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Half-Life 2
Box art featuringGordon Freeman
Developer(s)Valve
Publisher(s)Valve
Artist(s)Viktor Antonov
Writer(s)Marc Laidlaw
Composer(s)Kelly Bailey
SeriesHalf-Life
EngineSource
Platform(s)
Release
November 16, 2004
  • Windows
    • WW:November 16, 2004
    Xbox
    • NA:November 15, 2005
    • EU:November 18, 2005
    Xbox 360
    • NA:October 10, 2007
    • EU:October 19, 2007
    • AU:October 25, 2007
    PlayStation 3
    • NA:December 11, 2007
    • EU:December 14, 2007
    • AU:December 20, 2007
    Mac OS X
    • WW:May 26, 2010
    Linux
    • WW:May 9, 2013
    Android
    • WW:May 12, 2014
Genre(s)First-person shooter
Mode(s)Single-player

Half-Life 2is a 2004first-person shooter(FPS) game developed and published byValve Corporation.It was published forWindowson Valve's digital distribution service,Steam.Like the originalHalf-Life(1998),Half-Life 2combines shooting, puzzles, and storytelling, and adds new features such as vehicles and physics-based gameplay. The player controlsGordon Freeman,who joins a resistance to liberate Earth from theCombine,an interplanetary alien empire.

Half-Life 2was created using Valve'sSource game engine,which was developed simultaneously. Development lasted five years and cost US$40million. Valve's president,Gabe Newell,set his team the goal of redefining the FPS genre. They integratedIpion Virtual Physics,licensed fromHavok,[1]which simulates real-world physics, to reinforce the sense of presence and create new gameplay. They also developed the characterization, with more detailed character models and animations.

Valve announcedHalf-Life 2atE3 2003with a release date of September of that year. They failed to meet the release date, leading to fan backlash. A year before its release, an unfinished version was stolen by a hacker and published online, which damaged the team’s morale and slowed their work.

Half-Life 2was released on Steam on November 16, 2004. It won 39Game of the Yearawards and has been cited as one of thebest games ever made.It wasportedtoXbox,Xbox 360,PlayStation 3,macOSandLinux.By 2011, it had sold 12 million copies.Half-Life 2was followed by the free extra levelLost Coast(2005) and theepisodicsequelsEpisode One(2006) andEpisode Two(2007). In 2020, after cancelingEpisode Threeandseveral furtherHalf-Lifeprojects,Valve released a prequel,Half-Life: Alyx.

Gameplay

[edit]
A screenshot of the player engaging a group ofantlionswith a Pulse-Rifle/AR2. Along the bottom of the screen, the player's health, suit charge level, and their ammunition is displayed.

Like the originalHalf-Life(1998),Half-Life 2is a single-playerfirst-person shooter(FPS) in which players controlGordon Freeman.It has similarmechanicstoHalf-Life,including health-and-weapon systems (though with fewer overall weapons) and periodic physics puzzles, except with the newerSourceengine and improved graphics. The player starts without items and widens their arsenal over the course of the game. While the game is mainly linear, effort was put into making exploration rewarding and interesting; many optional areas can be missed or avoided.[2]

A diverse set of enemies is present, which usually require being approached with different tactics: some coordinate in groups to out-maneuver or out-position the player; others, such as the Manhack, fly directly at the player through small openings and tight corridors.[3]Others use predictable but powerful attacks, while others hide before swiftly attacking the player. Gordon can kill most enemies with his weapons, or make use of indirect means, exploiting environmental hazards such as explosive pressurized canisters, gas fires or improvised traps. In chapters ten and eleven, Gordon can be joined by up to four armed Resistance soldiers or medics and can send his team further from him or call them back.

Many of the features use the Source engine's detailedphysics simulation.Two sections of the game involve driving vehicles. Instead of button-oriented puzzles fromHalf-Life,environmental puzzles are also introduced with makeshift mechanical systems, revolving around the player's new ability to pick up, move, and place objects. Solutions involve objects' physical properties, such as shape, weight, andbuoyancy.For example; In chapter three, "Route Kanal", the player is required to stack cinder blocks on a makeshift see-saw ramp to proceed over a wall. Alternatively, the player can build a crude staircase with the blocks, so the puzzle may be solved in multiple ways.

Part-way through the game, Gordon acquires theGravity Gun,which allows him to draw distant objects towards himself or forcefully push them away, as well as the ability to manipulate larger and heavier objects which he otherwise cannot control. These abilities are required to solve puzzles later in the game. They can also be used in combat, to throw heavy objects at enemies or to shield themselves from gunfire.

The game never separates the player with pre-renderedcutscenesor events; the story proceeds via exposition from other characters and in-world events, and the player can control Gordon for the entirety of the game. Most of the backstory to the game is simply alluded to or told through the environment. Even tutorials are mostly placed in the environment or in dialogue. The few pop-ups that appear inform the player only of keyboard bindings for actions.

Plot

[edit]

After thealien invasionat theBlack Mesa Research Facility,a multidimensional alien empire known as theCombineinvaded and subjugated Earth. Approximately twenty years after being placed in stasis,Gordon Freeman,theplayer character,is awoken by theG-Man(Michael Shapiro), who cryptically informs Gordon that "his time has come again" before celestially inserting him into a moving passenger train bound forCity 17,anEastern Europeancity (probably inRussiaas most of the posters and signs are inRussian) which houses the Citadel, a several-miles-tall tower which serves as the headquarters of the Combine on Earth. Helped by the undercover Resistance memberBarney Calhoun(Shapiro), Gordon attempts to reach the laboratory ofDr. Isaac Kleiner(Harry S. Robins) before being beaten and arrested by Combine officers. He is rescued byAlyx Vance(Merle Dandridge), who takes him to Dr. Kleiner's lab. During Dr. Kleiner’s attempt to teleport Gordon to the main Resistance base atBlack Mesa East,Gordon is accidentally, briefly teleported to the Citadel office ofDr. Wallace Breen(Robert Culp), the Combine’spuppet rulerof Earth, alerting Dr. Breen to Gordon’s presence. Gordon is subsequently forced to progress to the base using the city's canal system, navigating it on anairboat.

Upon his arrival at Black Mesa East, Gordon reunites withEli Vance(Robert Guillaume) and meetsDr. Judith Mossman(Michelle Forbes). Alyx introduces Gordon to her pet robotDogand gives Gordon aGravity Gun.Black Mesa East is suddenly attacked by Combine forces, who capture Eli and Judith; Gordon is forced to escape through the zombie-infestedghost townofRavenholm,aided by its lone inhabitant,Father Grigori(Jim French). Escaping the town, Gordon reaches a Resistance outpost, whose inhabitants provide him with adune buggy.He drives acrossHighway 17to reach the Combine prison ofNova Prospekt,where Eli and Judith are being held. He breaks into the prison and reunites with Alyx. They locate Eli and discover that Judith is a Combine spy. Before they can stop her, Judith teleports herself and Eli to the Citadel. The teleporter explodes moments after Gordon and Alyx use it to escape Nova Prospekt.

Returning to Dr. Kleiner's lab, Gordon and Alyx learn that the teleporter malfunctioned and that a week has passed, during which time the Resistance has launched a full-scale armed rebellion against the Combine. Aided by Barney and Dog, Gordon fights his way inside the Citadel. He makes some progress in climbing the tower before he is captured and taken in a transport pod to Dr. Breen’s private office, near the tower’s apex, where he and Judith are waiting with Eli and Alyx as captives. Dr. Breen reveals that he intends to use his captives as leverage during negotiations with the Combine, which contradicts what he had previously told Judith.[4]Angered, Judith frees the three captives before Dr. Breen can teleport them off-world. Dr. Breen attempts to escape using a teleporter on the Citadel’s roof, but Gordon destroys the Citadel's reactor using the Gravity Gun, causing Dr. Breen to fall into the abyss, though it has never been made clear whether he falls to his death. Just as the reactor explodes, the G-Man reappears and freezes time, praises Gordon’s actions and places him back into stasis.

Development

[edit]
Valve presidentGabe Newellin 2007

Development ofHalf-Life 2began in June 1999, six months after the release of the originalHalf-Life.It was developed by a team of 82.[5]With voice actors included, this number is 100.[6][7]Valve's president,Gabe Newell,wanted to redefine the FPS genre, saying: "Why spend four years of your life building something that isn't innovative and is basically pointless? IfHalf-Life 2isn't viewed as the best PC game of all time, it's going to completely bum out most of the guys on this team. "[5]Newell gave his team no deadline and a "virtually unlimited" budget, promising to fund the project himself if necessary.[5]They used Valve's new in-housegame engine,Source,developed simultaneously.[5]

Setting and characters

[edit]

WhereasHalf-Lifewas set in a single location, the Black Mesa research facility, Valve wanted "a much more epic and global feel" for the sequel. One concept had the player teleporting between planets, which was discarded as it would make continuity between levels difficult. At the suggestion of the art director,Viktor Antonov,who was Bulgarian, the team settled on a city in an Eastern European location. In this early concept, players would start the game by boarding theBorealis,anicebreakerbound for the city.[5]Nova Prospektwas conceived as a small rail depot built on an old prison in the wasteland and grew from a stopping-off point to the destination itself.[8][page needed]

After observing how players had connected to minor characters inHalf-Life,the team developed the characterization, with more detailed character models and realistic animation. The animator Ken Birdwell studied the work of psychologistPaul Ekman,who had researched how facial muscles express emotion.[5]The writerMarc Laidlawcreated family relationships between the characters, saying as it was a "basic dramatic unit everyone understands" rarely used in games.[5]

Physics and design

[edit]

The team integrated theHavok physics engine,which simulates real-world physics,[9]to reinforce the player's sense of presence and create new gameplay.[5]To experiment, the team created a minigame, Zombie Basketball, in which players used a physics-manipulating gun to throw zombies through hoops.[5]In mid-2001, to test the engine, Valve built a street war between rioting citizens and police, featuring tanks,Molotov cocktails,hand-to-hand fighting, and looting. The designer John Guthrie described it as "an early attempt at getting something–anything–in the game that used non-player characters and physics ".[5]

In late 2001, Valve began creating ashowreel,hoping to demonstrate it atE32002.[5]For several months, Newell let the team work without his input so he could provide unbiased feedback, and focused on developingSteam,Valve's upcoming digital distribution service. The team presented the showreel to Newell, showcasing physics, environments such as theBorealis,and a dialogue-heavy scene with the scientist character Dr. Kleiner. Newell felt the showreel did not adequately show how the physics would affect gameplay and that the Kleiner scene was overlong. Reflecting on the feedback, Laidlaw said: "The dramatic scenes with the characters are important, but they have to be in service of the interactivity and gameplay."[5]

In September 2002, the team completed a second showreel, featuring a buggy race along the City 17 coast, an encounter with headcrabs on a pier, an alien strider attacking the city, and a greatly shortened Kleiner sequence. In October, Newell told the team they would announceHalf-Life 2at E3 2003 and release it by the end of the year.[5]As with the originalHalf-Life,the team split into "cabals" working on different levels. Designers created levels using placeholder shapes and surfaces, which then were worked on by the artists.[5]

Announcement and delay

[edit]
A square in City 17, showing the Source engine's lighting and shadow effects

Valve announcedHalf-Life 2at E3 2003, with demonstrations of the characters, animation and physics. The reaction was positive, and the game won the E3 Game of the Show award.[10]Newell also announced a release date of September 30, 2003, hoping this would motivate the team. They worked long hours to meet the deadline, but by July it was clear they would miss it. Rumors spread of a delay. On September 23, Valve released a statement targeting a release for the holiday season, leading to fan backlash.[5]

Newell had been hesitant to announce a delay without a new release date. He said later: "We were paralyzed. We knew we weren't going to make the date we promised, and that was going to be a huge fiasco and really embarrassing. But we didn't have a new date to give people either."[5]Thegraphics cardmanufacturerATIhad arranged a promotional event onAlcatraz Islandto coincide with the planned release ofHalf-Life 2.Unable to pull out of the event, Newell gave a prepared speech, demonstrated the Source engine, and left without addressing questions.[5]

Leak and final months

[edit]

On September 19, theHalf-Life 2source codewas obtained by a German hacker, Axel Gembe, who had infiltrated Valve's internal network months earlier. According to Gembe, he shared it with another person, who leaked the code online in early October.[11]Fans sooncompileda playable version ofHalf-Life 2,revealing how unfinished it was. The leaks damaged morale at Valve and slowed development.[5]In March 2004, Gembe contacted Newell and identified himself, saying he was a fan and had not acted maliciously. Newell worked with theFBIto invite Gembe to a fake job interview, planning to have him arrested in the United States; however, police arrested him in Germany.[11]In November 2006, Gembe was sentenced to two years'probation.[11]

In 2004, the Valve staff returned after Christmas to long hours, stressful working conditions, and no guarantee that the game, which was costing $1 million a month to develop, would be finished soon. However, Newell felt that progress was speeding up, with the team producing about three hours of gameplay per month. In March, they created the first version playable from start to finish and stopped production for a week to play through the game. Major changes by this point included the cutting of theBorealis,the replacement of the jet ski with a hovercraft, and introducing the physics-manipulating gravity gun earlier in the game. Feedback was positive across the company. Newell recalled: "The fact that you could go from one end of the game to the other was a really big thing for us. Then we knew it just had to get better–but it was all there. "[5]After several months of bug fixes andplaytesting,Half-Life 2was completed on October 13, 2004.[5]

Release

[edit]

Valve made a 1 GB portion ofHalf-Life 2available for download in an encrypted format through Steam on August 26, 2004. On the day of release, Steam customers were able to pay, unlock the files, and play the game immediately, without having to wait for the game to download.[12]In retail, distribution of the game was handled byVivendi Universal Gamesthrough theirSierra Entertainmentsubsidiary.[13]

Half-Life 2was simultaneously released through Steam, CD, and on DVD in several editions. Through Steam,Half-Life 2had three packages that a customer could order. The basic version ( "Bronze" ) includes onlyHalf-Life 2andCounter-Strike: Source,whereas the "Silver" and "Gold" (collector's edition) versions also includeHalf-Life: Source(ports of the originalHalf-LifeandDay of Defeatmod to the new engine). The collector's edition/ "Gold" version additionally includes merchandise, such as a baseball cap, astrategy guideand CD containing the soundtrack used inHalf-Life 2.Both the disc and Steam versions require Steam to be installed and active for play to occur.[14]The retail copies of the game came in two versions, standard and Collector's Edition. The Collector's Edition differed from the physical items in the "Gold" edition, and included a T-shirt and sample of thePrimastrategy guide.[15]

Ademoversion with the file size of a single CD was made available in December 2004 at the website ofgraphics cardmanufacturerATI Technologies,who teamed up with Valve for the game. The demo contains a portion of two chapters:Point Insertionand"We Don't Go To Ravenholm...".In September 2005,Electronic Artsdistributed theGame of the Yearedition ofHalf-Life 2.Compared to the original CD-release ofHalf-Life 2,theGame of the Yearedition also includesHalf-Life: Source.[16]

The soundtrack was written byKelly Bailey.The Soundtrack of Half-Life 2,containing most of the music fromHalf-Life 2and many tracks from the originalHalf-Life,was included with theHalf-Life 2"Gold" edition and sold separately from Valve's online store.[17]Valve released adeathmatch modein 2004.[18]In 2022, fans discovered that thetextureused for a corpse model originated from a real photograph of a corpse published in a medical textbook on treating burns, leading to criticism.[19][20]

Dispute with Vivendi

[edit]

On September 20, 2004,GameSpotreported that Sierra's parent company,Vivendi Universal Games,was in a legal battle with Valve over the distribution ofHalf-Life 2tocyber cafés.Cyber cafés were important for the gaming market in Asia, where PC and broadband penetration per capita were much lower in most territories.[21]

According to Vivendi, the distribution contract they signed with Valve included cyber cafés. This would mean that only Vivendi could distributeHalf-Life 2to cyber cafés — not Valve through the Steam system. On November 29, 2004, Judge Thomas S. Zilly, ofU.S. Federal District Courtin Seattle, Washington, ruled that Vivendi and its affiliates are not authorized to distribute (directly or indirectly) Valve games through cyber cafés forpay-to-playactivities according to the parties' current publishing agreement. Zilly also ruled in favor of the Valve motion regarding the contractual limitation of liability, allowing Valve to recover copyright damages for any infringement as allowed by law without regard to the publishing agreement's limitation of liability clause.[22]

On April 29, 2005, Valve and Vivendi announced a settlement. Vivendi would cease distributing all retail packaged versions of Valve games by August 31, 2005. Vivendi was also to notify distributors and cyber cafés that had been licensed by Vivendi that only Valve had the authority to distribute cyber café licenses; their licenses were revoked and switched to Valve's.[23]Valve partnered with Electronic Arts for the retail distribution of its games, including the Xbox version ofHalf-Life 2.[24]

Ports and updates

[edit]

In 2005, Valve released an extra level,Lost Coast,as a free download to anyone who purchasedHalf-Life 2.[25]Lost Coastacted as atechnology demonstration,showing off new lighting techniques and high-dynamic-range rendering in theSource engine.On December 22, Valve released a64-bitversion of the Source engine forx86-64processor-based systems runningWindows XP Professional x64 Edition,Windows Server 2003 x64,Windows Vista x64,orWindows Server 2008 x64.This update enabledHalf-Life 2and other Source games to run natively on 64-bit processors, bypassing the32-bit compatibility layer.Newell said it was "an important step in the evolution of our game content and tools", and that the game benefited greatly from the update.[26]Some users reported major performance improvements, though the technology siteTechgagefound stability problems and no notableframe rateimprovement.[27]

In 2006, Valve partnered withTaitoto releaseHalf-Life 2: Survivor,anarcade gamefor the Japanese market.[28][29]Valve rereleasedHalf-Life 2as part of the 2007 compilationThe Orange Boxfor Windows,Xbox 360andPlayStation 3.[30]On May 26, 2010,Half-Life 2, Episode OneandEpisode Twowere released forMac OS X.[31]In 2013, Valve portedHalf-Life 2to Linux[32]and released a free update adding support for theOculus Riftvirtual realityheadset.[33]AnNVIDIA Shield Tablet-exclusive port forAndroidwas released on May 12, 2014.[34]In January 2022, a new UI designed for Valve's portableSteam Deckdevice was released.[35]

Reception

[edit]

Half-Life 2has an aggregate score of 96/100 onMetacriticbased on 81 reviews. Sources such as1UP,[38]GameSpy,[44]The Cincinnati Enquirer,[50]The New York Times,[51]andVideoGamer[49]gave it perfect scores, and others, such asPC Gamer,[48]IGN,[46]GamesRadar,[45]andEurogamer,[40][41]gave near-perfect scores. It was the fifth game to receive ten out of ten fromEdge.[39]Critics praised the advanced graphics, physics, story, and gameplay.[42][51]Maximum PCawardedHalf-Life 211 on their rating scale which normally peaks at 10, calling it "the best game ever made".[47]

In the United States,Half-Life 2'sPC version sold 680,000 copies and had earned $34.3 million by August 2006. It was the country's 17th best-selling PC game between January 2000 and August 2006.[52]It received a "Platinum" sales award from theEntertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association(ELSPA),[53]indicating sales of at least 300,000 copies in the United Kingdom.[54]Forbesreported on February 9, 2011, that the game had sold 12 million copies worldwide.[55]

In a review ofThe Orange Box,IGN stated that althoughHalf-Life 2has already been released through other media, the game itself is still enjoyable on a console. They also noted that the physics ofHalf-Life 2are impressive despite being a console game. However, it was noted that the graphics on the Xbox 360 version ofHalf-Life 2were not as impressive as when it was released on the PC.[56]GameSpot's review ofThe Orange Boxnoticed that the content of both the Xbox 360 releases, and PlayStation 3 releases were exactly alike, the only issue with the PlayStation 3 version was that it had noticeable frame-rate hiccups. GameSpot continued to say that the frame rates issues were only minor but some consider them to be a significant irritation.[43]

Several critics, including some that had given positive reviews, complained about the required usage of the program Steam, the requirement to create an account, register the products, and permanently lock them to the account before being allowed to play, along with installation difficulties and lack of support.[51]

Awards

[edit]

Half-Life 2earned 39Game of the Yearawards,[57]including Overall Game of the Year atIGN,GameSpot'sAward for Best Shooter,GameSpot'sReader's Choice — PC Game of the Year Award, "Game of the Year"and" Computer Game of the Year "from theInteractive Achievement Awards,and "Best Game" with theGame Developers Choice Awards,where it was also given various awards for technology, characters, and writing.

The editors ofComputer Gaming WorldnominatedHalf-Life 2for their 2004 "Single-Player Shooter of the Year" and overall "Game of the Year" awards, although it lost toPainkillerandWorld of Warcraft.They wrote, "Half-Life 2,everyone's default pick to win this year, is indeed a fantastic roller coaster of a ride, not as great as the original but still leagues above most other shooters. "[58]

EdgeawardedHalf-Life 2with its top honor of the year with the award for Best Game, as well as awards for Innovation and Visual Design. The game also had a strong showing at the 2004British Academy Video Games Awards,picking up six awards, more than any other game that night, with awards including "Best Game" and "Best Online and Multiplayer."[59]Computer Games MagazinenamedHalf-Life 2the fourth-best computer game of 2004. The editors call it "a masterful single-player experience that plays a constant game of one-upmanship with itself." It won the magazine's "Best Technology" (beating outDoom 3) and "Best Writing" awards, and was a runner-up in the "Best Sound Effects", "Best AI" and "Best Voice Acting" categories.[60]

Guinness World RecordsawardedHalf-Life 2the world record for "Highest Rated Shooter by PC Gamer Magazine" in the Guinness World Records: Gamer's Edition 2008. Other records awarded the game in the book include, "Largest Digital Distribution Channel" for Valve's Steam service, "First Game to Feature a Gravity Gun", and "First PC Game to Feature Developer Commentary".[61]In 2009,Game InformerputHalf-Life 25th on their list of "The Top 200 Games of All Time", saying that "withHalf-Life 2,Valve redefined the way first-person shooters were created ".[62]

Half-Life 2was selected by readers ofThe Guardianas the best game of the decade, with particular praise for the environment design. TheGuardianjournalist Keith Stuart wrote that it "pushed the envelope for the genre, and set a new high watermark for FPS narrative". One author commented: "Half-Life 2always felt like the European arthouse answer to the Hollywood bluster ofHaloandCall of Duty."[63]Half-Life 2wonCrispy Gamer's Game of the Decade[64]tournament style poll. It also wonReviews on the Run's,[65]IGN's[66]Best Game of the Decade andSpike Video Game Awards2012 Game of the Decade.[67]In December 2021,IGNnamedHalf-Life 2the ninth-best game of all time.[68]

Award Category Recipient(s) and nominee(s) Result Ref.
Game Critics Awards2003 Best of Show Half-Life 2 Won [69]
Best PC Game Half-Life 2 Won
Best Action Game Half-Life 2 Won
Special Commendation for Graphics Half-Life 2 Won
Game Critics Awards2004 Best of Show Half-Life 2 Nominated
Spike Video Game Awards2003 Most Anticipated Game Half-Life 2 Nominated
Spike Video Game Awards2004 Game of the Year Half-Life 2 Nominated
Best PC Game Half-Life 2 Won
Best First-Person Action Half-Life 2 Nominated
Best Graphics Half-Life 2 Won
Spike Video Game Awards2012 Best Game of the Decade Half-Life 2 Won
Golden Joystick Awards2005 PC Game of the Year Half-Life 2 Won
8th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards Game of the Year Half-Life 2 Won [70]
Computer Game of the Year Half-Life 2 Won
Computer First-Person Action Game of the Year Half-Life 2 Won
Outstanding Innovation in Computer Gaming Half-Life 2 Won
Outstanding Character Performance - Male Robert GuillaumeasDr. Eli Vance Won
Outstanding Achievement in Character or Story Development Half-Life 2 Nominated
Outstanding Achievement in Animation Half-Life 2 Won
Outstanding Achievement in Art Direction Half-Life 2 Won
Outstanding Achievement in Game Design Half-Life 2 Nominated
Outstanding Achievement in Gameplay Engineering Half-Life 2 Won
Outstanding Achievement in Visual Engineering Half-Life 2 Won
5th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards Best Game Half-Life 2 Won [71]
Character Design Half-Life 2 Won
Game Design Half-Life 2 Nominated
Technology Half-Life 2 Won
Visual Arts Half-Life 2 Nominated
Writing Half-Life 2 Won
2nd British Academy Games Awards Best Game Half-Life 2 Won [72]
PC Half-Life 2 Won
Action Game Half-Life 2 Won
Sunday Times Reader Award for Games Half-Life 2 Nominated
Animation Half-Life 2 Won
Art Direction Half-Life 2 Won
Online Multiplayer Half-Life 2 Won
Technical Direction Half-Life 2 Nominated
Game Audio Network Guild Awards Audio of the Year Half-Life 2 Nominated [73]
Sound Design of the Year Half-Life 2 Nominated
Best Dialogue Half-Life 2 Nominated

Mods

[edit]
See also:List of Source engine modsandSource SDK

Since the release of the Source engineSDK,a large number ofmodifications(mods) have been developed by theHalf-Life 2community. Mods vary in scale, from fan-created levels and weapons, to partial conversions such asRock 24,Half-Life 2 SubstanceandSMOD(which modify the storyline and gameplay of the pre-existing game),SourceFortsandGarry's Mod(which allow the player to experiment with the physics system in asandboxmode), tototal conversionssuch asBlack Mesa,Dystopia,Zombie MasterorIron Grip: The Oppression,the last of which transforms the game from a first-person shooter into a real-time strategy game.[74][75]Some mods take place in theHalf-Lifeuniverse; others in completely original settings. Many more mods are still in development, includingLift,The Myriad,Operation Black Mesa,and theepisodicsingle-player modMinerva.[76]Several multiplayer mods, such asPirates, Vikings and Knights II,a predominately sword-fighting game;Insurgency: Modern Infantry Combat,which focuses on realistic modern infantry combat; andJailbreak Sourcehave been opened to the public as a beta.[77][78]As part of its community support, Valve announced in September 2008 that several mods, with more planned in the future, were being integrated into theSteamworksprogram, allowing the mods to make full use of Steam's distribution and update capabilities.[79]In September 2022, after a decade of development, a fan made full-VR mod was released titled "Half Life 2: VR Mod".[80]

Sequels

[edit]

Half-Life 2was followed by twoepisodic sequels:Episode One(2006) andEpisode Two(2007).[81]After cancelingEpisode Threeandseveral furtherHalf-Lifeprojects,[82]Valve released a prequel,Half-Life: Alyx,in 2020.[83]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
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