#241316 - 15/11/2004 21:58
Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
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pooh-bah
Registered: 09/09/2000
Posts: 2303
Loc: Richmond, VA
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#241317 - 15/11/2004 23:17
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Are you sure? As of a few hours ago, they'd withdrawn the sticky-post that confirmed "midnight" and instead put up the blurb on the web site saying "it'll happen when Vivendi deems it'll happen".
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#241318 - 16/11/2004 00:11
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 09/09/2000
Posts: 2303
Loc: Richmond, VA
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#241319 - 16/11/2004 05:38
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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I mean we're all still hoping against hope.
Of course you won't hear the result from me. 23 minutes from now, I'll either be playing it, or I'll be going to bed, dejected.
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#241320 - 16/11/2004 06:03
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Oh, then again, looks like we're ON.
12:01 AM....
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#241322 - 16/11/2004 11:37
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 09/09/2000
Posts: 2303
Loc: Richmond, VA
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This game is awesome. Way better than Doom 3, I think. Must ... remember... that.. it .. is .. a.. workday ... Must ...resist ... HL2... Unable .. to .. speak ... at .. normal .. rate ...
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#241323 - 16/11/2004 13:12
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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addict
Registered: 11/11/2001
Posts: 552
Loc: Houston, TX
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I'd be playing, but I've got too big of a stack of games on the table already. Here's a webcomic that I read, he did a HL2 comic for todays: http://www.nuklearpower.com/latest.php
_________________________
--Ben
78GB MkIIa, Dead tuner.
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#241324 - 16/11/2004 13:57
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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Of course, the hard disk in my games rig decided to die on Sunday night. Still haven't replaced it  . Fortunately, at least, I hadn't pre-bought HL2, so I haven't lost anything there. In fact, what happens if you lose your Steam files -- does it just throw you a fresh copy?
_________________________
-- roger
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#241326 - 16/11/2004 17:33
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
In fact, what happens if you lose your Steam files -- does it just throw you a fresh copy?
Yes. If your hard disk goes bad and you don't have a backup, merely reinstall steam and sign on with your ID and password, and it'll send you fresh copies of all the games.
The only important thing that you can't lose is your Steam user ID and password. As long as you've got that, you'll always have whatever you've bought through steam and it'll just re-download.
In fact, you could have the game downloaded and installed on multiple computers under that steam ID. Whichever computer you log into with that ID, it downloads whatever games you feel like playing.
Think of the steam files as just a local cache of online content. In fact, the store-bought CDs are merely a copy of this set of cache files, no different than what you'd download. The only difference is that the store-bought CD slowly go more and more out of date as they make updates and patches to the game.
There is a feature within Steam that allows you to zip your steam files into nice CDR-sized chunks for backup, but really I'm not sure it's even worth it, since it's kind of the equivalent of backing up your "temporary internet files" folder. All it saves you is the time to re-download the game, and if you're on broadband that's just an overnight run.
I must echo the sentiments expressed about the game. I expected that last night I'd play for an hour and then go to bed.
At 4am I was still wide awake and utterly rivited. This morning I called in a vacation day. It's that good. No spoilers, but there are many MANY moments of "this is so utterly cool" alternating with "HOLY CRAP" jump-out-of-your-chair startles. There are scenes where you're doing things that are just beyond cool and fun, totally immersed.
And I haven't even gotten to the cool scenes they showed in the E3 videos.
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#241327 - 16/11/2004 18:56
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
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I caved last night and did end up buying it.
And now I am regretting it, and half tempted to have my credit card company reject the charges.
Last night, it was flawless. Today? Far from it. Spent 15 minutes trying to log into steam since clicking HL2.exe to play would be way too simple. Now, I hit Half Life 2, and watch Steam take up 100% of my CPU. Two minutes later :
So who said this was a good idea? To rely on some server not once, but every time I want to play a single player game? I hate being right about this, but Valve made it way too easy to be right this time.
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#241328 - 16/11/2004 19:08
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: drakino]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
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Oh, I remembered offline mode. So I hit exit on Steam, pulled my ethernet cable, and restarted Steam. Yeah, offline mode is working real well...
"All circuits are busy" when I call the VUGames support line.
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#241329 - 16/11/2004 21:57
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: drakino]
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veteran
Registered: 25/04/2000
Posts: 1525
Loc: Arizona
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From what I've read (in the box and elsewhere) when you create a Steam account you need to have it 'Remember your password' to have it work offline.
Of course, I'm still trying to create a Steam account and haven't been able to successfully yet
- Tim
Edit: Figures, as soon as I said that it connected finally and let me create an account 
Edited by Tim (16/11/2004 22:01)
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#241330 - 16/11/2004 22:13
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 09/09/2000
Posts: 2303
Loc: Richmond, VA
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Quote:
At 4am I was still wide awake and utterly rivited. This morning I called in a vacation day. It's that good. No spoilers, but there are many MANY moments of "this is so utterly cool" alternating with "HOLY CRAP" jump-out-of-your-chair startles. There are scenes where you're doing things that are just beyond cool and fun, totally immersed.
I agree -- Way more often than Doom 3 I've found myself saying "oh my god, that's just amazing". I really love how the physics system is actually a major gameplay element and not just a cool thing they stuck on to do ragdoll corpses.
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#241331 - 16/11/2004 22:49
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
I really love how the physics system is actually a major gameplay element and not just a cool thing they stuck on to do ragdoll corpses.
Unfortunately, most of that stuff, although it entertains and amuses me, doesn't impress me as much as it impresses others, because I remember "Trespasser". Of course what they're doing here is scads better than Trespasser was in a multitude of ways, not the least of which is that this game is actually fun. 
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#241332 - 16/11/2004 23:12
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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I enjoy the occasional puzzles thrown in here and there. It adds a bit more reality as opposed to the "run and gun" method. Hefting barrels and boxes in order to "activate" the appropriate mechanism can be a nice little challenge.
I also like the way the game catalogues your quick save progress. Now I don't have to worry about pressing the quicksave button only to discover that a missile was about to obliterate me and the most recent "official save" was 2 levels ago.
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#241333 - 17/11/2004 01:00
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: drakino]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 19/09/2002
Posts: 2494
Loc: East Coast, USA
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Sounds like doing a Windows XP install... every time you want to boot your machine. I may not buy the game if I have to log on to the server every darn time I want to play.
_________________________
- FireFox31 110gig MKIIa (30+80), Eutronix lights, 32 meg stacked RAM, Filener orange gel lens, Greenlights Lit Buttons green set
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#241334 - 17/11/2004 01:10
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: FireFox31]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 24/12/2001
Posts: 5528
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In theory you just need to do it once like product activation in Windows. Once it's validated your install then it'll let you use offline mode. You don't need to be connected to the internet after that.
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#241335 - 17/11/2004 03:28
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Cybjorg]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
I enjoy the occasional puzzles thrown in here and there. It adds a bit more reality as opposed to the "run and gun" method.
Oh, I enjoy them too. Some of them were quite clever. A couple of them, when I looked at what needed to be done and figured out the solution, actually had me cackling with glee: "Oh this is going to be fun!"
I'm just not as impressed by the physics technology as some people are, because I remember a game from several years ago that essentially tried to do the same thing (albeit not nearly as well). I have to say that they've done it quite well, though.
In other praise: One of the things the game does terribly well is letting you infer things from context. There have been a lot of times where you are expected to figure out what's going on just by observation. What turns that into a truly immersive experience is when they couple that with some piece of action or some kind of urgency. Like when you need to scramble up a ledge before meeting impending doom. So in addition to the "aha" moment when you realize what's happening, it gets followed by an OH CRAP moment where you're afraid for your own existence. Absolutely masterful.
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#241336 - 17/11/2004 03:50
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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addict
Registered: 11/11/2001
Posts: 552
Loc: Houston, TX
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Quote:
So in addition to the "aha" moment when you realize what's happening, it gets followed by an OH CRAP moment where you're afraid for your own existence. Absolutely masterful.
Aye, I've loved that about the game so far, myself. I'd be playing it right now, but I've gotten motion sickness from it and need to rest my eyes
_________________________
--Ben
78GB MkIIa, Dead tuner.
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#241337 - 17/11/2004 05:07
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tman]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
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Quote:
In theory you just need to do it once like product activation in Windows.
In theory we would be in Valveland and it would work right. Here in the real world, I have done everything properly, including having "Save my password" on every time and Offline mode still fails to work. The second I get a proper offline attempt, I am blocking my network from seeing Steam so I can play the game I legally bought any time I want to, and not when Valve decides I can. This assuming I can get it to work. Attempts to call today to ask for a refund were always met with an all circuits are busy error. If I can't get through tomorrow, I am calling Chase and having them reject the credit charge, for receiving faulty merchandise.
I made a few people at Best Buy today rather upset. Told them flat out "I am being treated like a criminal, and am being denied access to Half Life 2, a product I paid for. This while people are downloading the game off pirate sites and playing it just fine with no issues." Pretty sure I managed to stop about 4 sales of it, since the retail version is simply encrypted files and Steam.
*edit* Thinking about it, at least Microsoft did activation in a semi decent way. It is not mandatory to do to use the product you paid for during the first 30 days. And if for some reason you can't activate it online, you can call a toll free number at any time to activate and use the product. It is a one time deal period. Never again do you have to activate or call Microsoft unless you reinstall. Steam, well, you have to have their permission before even using the product, and have it every time if you have an ethernet cable plugged in.
Edited by drakino (17/11/2004 05:27)
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#241338 - 17/11/2004 11:23
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: drakino]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 24/12/2001
Posts: 5528
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Ah. Didn't know that it would ALWAYS try to authenticate if it detected that it had an internet connection! Now that sucks! What happens if you don't actually have internet? Some people don't have any internet access at home which means they'll be screwed if they bought HL2. Lug your PC to an internet cafe to get the Half Life 2 install unlocked?
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#241339 - 17/11/2004 11:36
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: BAKup]
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veteran
Registered: 25/04/2000
Posts: 1525
Loc: Arizona
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Quote:
I'd be playing it right now, but I've gotten motion sickness from it and need to rest my eyes
I was trying to decide if I was feeling motion sickness or just the general crappiness I felt the last few days. I'm hoping the game itself is not what made me feel (more?) ill.
- Tim
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#241340 - 17/11/2004 11:40
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 25/04/2000
Posts: 1525
Loc: Arizona
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Quote:
What turns that into a truly immersive experience is when they couple that with some piece of action or some kind of urgency.
One of the first things I noticed was the sense of urgency. After you really start the game, the speakers talking about you (suspect or something?) really got my attention. That was serious immersion.
So far, outside of the Steam issues (took me 3 hours before I was able to play after installing it from the DVD) I am really impressed with this game.
- Tim
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#241341 - 17/11/2004 13:20
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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new poster
Registered: 30/10/2004
Posts: 21
Loc: MaryLand , USA
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Ah yes .. awesome so far! I was bothered a bit by the load times between 'scenes' but I after awhile it was good to get those few seconds to stretch a bit.
If you guys hadn't noticed yet, there is a 'backup files' opotion in the 'playgames' menu if you right-click on the game title. I'm going to give it a shot tonight, I'm curious just what gets backed up ...
_________________________
TankheaD
Rio MkIIa (plus PCATS tuner) - 120Gb - green with lighted Greenlights smoke buttons!
JL 300/4 (Polk Audio fr & rr) - JL 250/1 (Polk Momo 8" sw)
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#241342 - 17/11/2004 13:57
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Tim]
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addict
Registered: 11/11/2001
Posts: 552
Loc: Houston, TX
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Quote:
I'm hoping the game itself is not what made me feel (more?) ill.
It's not the first FPS that's done it to me, basicly what happens is my eyes and ears aren't sending the same signals to my brain so things get confused
_________________________
--Ben
78GB MkIIa, Dead tuner.
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#241343 - 17/11/2004 14:41
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: BAKup]
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veteran
Registered: 25/04/2000
Posts: 1525
Loc: Arizona
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Quote:
Quote:
I'm hoping the game itself is not what made me feel (more?) ill.
It's not the first FPS that's done it to me, basicly what happens is my eyes and ears aren't sending the same signals to my brain so things get confused
I haven't gotten ill since the original Doom. Games that I've previously played with no problems did bother me last night, but that was after HL2, so it might've been the problem.
In retrospect, I didn't like the default mouse speed, it was way too slow so I ran out of room before completing a 90deg turn. I messed with the settings quite a bit, by spinning around and the like. Maybe that is what got to me.
Guess I will find out soon enough.
- Tim
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#241344 - 17/11/2004 15:30
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Tim]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
After you really start the game, the speakers talking about you (suspect or something?) really got my attention. That was serious immersion.
Did you catch how, as time went on, the crimes you were charged with kept increasing in severity? Eventually they started charging entire sections of the city with collective criminal activity. I got a real kick out of that.
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#241346 - 17/11/2004 18:53
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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addict
Registered: 02/04/2002
Posts: 691
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This game is truly a masterpiece. The true interaction with the game world is just amazing. I think I’ve found a couple bugs. At one point, I was in the path of another character walking, and they walked right through me. Then another time I got stuck for a second in a rotating door.
The one thing that just really pissed me off, no multiplayer options in half-life 2! I know counterstrike source has the multiplayer, but I really despise online team play. What ever happened to just regular deathmatch? I'd think when you require online authentication to even play just the single player, they'd include the multiplayer code from the original halflife. I'm almost ready to call my credit card company and cancel the payment just because of the missing multiplayer. (plus the fact that sometimes during gameplay I’ll get a steam auth ticket has expired, please re-authenticate with steam) even with the remember password box always checked
Edited by oliver (17/11/2004 18:54)
_________________________
Oliver
mk1 30gb: 129 | mk2a 30gb: 040104126
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#241347 - 17/11/2004 19:42
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: oliver]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Yeah, the physics system still has a few bugs, but it works well enough to make for an enthralling and engaging experience. Although it causes a few pretty serious irritations in counter strike.
I know what you mean about how not including regular deathmatch is a big and surprising omission. Your sentiments are echoed in every review I've ever seen of the game.
They've been saying all along that "Counter Strike Source is the multiplayer component of half life 2", but I think that's sort of a cop-out. CS:S feels like a completely different and independent game to me.
The good part is: With the SDK released, I'm sure we'll see HL2 straight-deathmatch as a third-party mod almost immediately. So have no fear.
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#241348 - 17/11/2004 19:51
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 25/04/2000
Posts: 1525
Loc: Arizona
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I never cared for Counter Strike from the original Half-Life. The best was TFC as far as I was concerned. I really, really, really hope we see a follow on with the Source engine.
- Tim
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#241349 - 17/11/2004 20:09
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Tim]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
I really, really, really hope we see a follow on with the Source engine.
Supposedly Team Fortress 2 is still in development and is still an offical product...
It's currently carrying the Duke Nukem Forever/Daikatana "Vaporware" stigma, though, so we'll see if it materializes or not.
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#241350 - 17/11/2004 20:57
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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Quote:
Supposedly Team Fortress 2 is still in development and is still an offical product...
Yeah, but as you point out, it's been in development since before HL2 was announced. It's firmly in Duke Nukem Forever territory.
Which is a pity, and I'll be glad to be proved wrong, because TFC absolutely rocked. Particularly the 'hunted' gametype.
_________________________
-- roger
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#241351 - 17/11/2004 20:58
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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Quote:
About an hour to go.
It lies. Still only 68% downloaded. Doesn't look like I'll be playing it tonight
_________________________
-- roger
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#241353 - 18/11/2004 00:49
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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Daikatana isn't vaporware. It might have taken forever to come out, but it was eventually released. It was horrible though, so maybe you choose to ignore that it actually exists. 
_________________________
Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241354 - 18/11/2004 00:55
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: oliver]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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Quote:
I think I’ve found a couple bugs.
After playing fetch with "dog," I was forced to retreat into the confines of the underground hideout. Turns out that I was standing in the way so that "dog" couldn't follow me through the door and it closed on his head. As I was noticing the wierdness, he disappeared and materialized inside the structure.
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#241355 - 18/11/2004 04:26
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Cybjorg]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 09/09/2000
Posts: 2303
Loc: Richmond, VA
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Quote:
After playing fetch with "dog,"
He's one of the coolest characters in any game I've played, by the way ...
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#241356 - 18/11/2004 08:36
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: oliver]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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Quote:
If any of your buddies...
Unfortunately, none of my buddies live nearby, and it was getting late.
Fortunately, it finished at some point during the night.
Unfortunately, I'm at work today.
Fortunately, I got to play for ten minutes or so this morning. I didn't get much further than leaving the station and getting to the plaza, but I had fun throwing bottles at people, anyway.
Unfortunately, I'm at work today.
_________________________
-- roger
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#241357 - 18/11/2004 12:03
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 14/01/2002
Posts: 2858
Loc: Atlanta, GA
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Quote:
Unfortunately . . .Fortunately . . .
Man I used to love that book as a kid. . .
_________________________
-Jeff
Rome did not create a great empire by having meetings; they did it by killing all those who opposed them.
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#241358 - 18/11/2004 18:09
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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Found a bug. See the attachment.
Attachments
241108-hl2_bug.jpg (279 downloads)
_________________________
-- roger
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#241359 - 18/11/2004 18:17
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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old hand
Registered: 27/02/2003
Posts: 777
Loc: Washington, DC metro
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Hmm... Looks like a Microsoft ad. -jk
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#241360 - 18/11/2004 18:18
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 14/01/2002
Posts: 2858
Loc: Atlanta, GA
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You know, I was really expecting a shot of a bug-moster there. I was dissapointed to find it really was a software bug!
_________________________
-Jeff
Rome did not create a great empire by having meetings; they did it by killing all those who opposed them.
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#241361 - 18/11/2004 18:39
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: JeffS]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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It gets worse around that corner. Almost every texture is missing, leading to nasty hall-of-mirrors effects, and being totally unplayable.
_________________________
-- roger
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#241362 - 18/11/2004 19:02
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 24/12/2001
Posts: 5528
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Time for a new video driver?
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#241363 - 18/11/2004 19:08
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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The steam forums talk about some people having that wireframe problem a lot in Counter-Strike: Source. I don't know if a 100 percent solution was found or not. The first suggestion everyone has is always "The software is missing some files, delete it and reinstall it." Which is a large pain if you downloaded the thing. And I'm not even sure if that fixes the problem or not. Have a scrape round the steam forums and their FAQs and see if there is a definitive solution.
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#241364 - 18/11/2004 19:20
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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Yeah, that's odd. I have yet to run into that issue (and hope I never do).
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#241365 - 18/11/2004 19:25
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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Quote:
Have a scrape round the steam forums and their FAQs and see if there is a definitive solution.
This guy says that this does fix the problem. Which sucks, 'cos it took a huge length of time to download last time.
This thing (Steam) needs a "repair" mode, which compares checksums and replaces broken files.
_________________________
-- roger
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#241366 - 18/11/2004 19:53
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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That does suck very much. I agree that Steam needs this repair mode.
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#241367 - 18/11/2004 20:02
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your (buggy) Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
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You found the hidden wallhack mode, secretly put in by the CounterStrike fans at Valve so they might have a chance at beating all the other hackers plaing CounterStrike.
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#241368 - 19/11/2004 18:33
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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I'm loving it so far. I'm at Nova Prospekt, and I've been taking random screenshots as I go along. I've posted what I have so far here (pics of "dog" starting on page 7 ). For some reason I didn't take screenshots of a few sections. I think I was just too caught up in the action and forgot. Oh, and the game would look a lot better if I had a better card; I only have an FX 5600. Although, I think it looks pretty damn good for my card.
The voice acting and the writing for the game is just awesome, btw.  There are some good "chase scenes" that really get the adrenaline going.
_________________________
Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241369 - 19/11/2004 18:39
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 15/01/2002
Posts: 1866
Loc: Austin
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ive been doing the same thing. not so much random, though. i shall put mine up later.
turn on AA, at least to 2x!
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#241370 - 19/11/2004 18:56
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: RobotCaleb]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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Yeah, It'll probably kill my computer. I'll try though.
_________________________
Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241371 - 19/11/2004 19:43
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
I'm loving it so far. I'm at Nova Prospeckt,
I finished the game last night. Some of the coolest set pieces are in Nova Prospekt. I was very frustrated with the scanner-gun-standoff scenes at first, until I figured out the secret to how to place them most effectively. (Won't tell unless someone asks.)
The opening segment to Nova Prospekt, where you're entering the prison from the outside, is brilliant. I'd loved taking on the gunship with the laser-guided rocket launcher earlier in the game, and I was thinking that maybe I'd seen the last of the gunship segments. Then at Nova Prospekt they make you take on multiple gunships simultaneously before you even make it inside. Talk about sphincter factor. Truly a great gameplay experience.
In fact, I think that this single game has more genuinely over-the-top great gameplay moments than every other game I've played combined. I mean think about it... How many truly great moments can you think of in games? There's the first time you encounter the Cyberdemon in the original Doom. There's the battle for Endor in Rogue Leader. There's the final battle in Homeworld with the cavalry showing up at precisely the right moment. But how many games can you name where mind-blowingly good moments like that happen at least once in each level?
By the way, did I mention that I've been playing the game on the hardest difficulty level? I read a review that said that the combat seemed too easy, so I wanted to make sure that I was challenged. I sure was, I think I had to reload one of the Nova Prospekt scenes about 50 times before I got past it. I'm told that you can change the difficulty level on-the-fly, even in the middle of a firefight if you want, I didn't bother doing that. Wanted the full effect.
Oh, now that I've finished it, I find it fascinating that some of the scenes we saw in the E3 videos simply didn't exist at all. The one big scene with the striders? Didn't happen. We get multiple other scenes with striders that are all equally good (and others that are even better), but that particular moment in that particular level never happened. At one point I recognized that I was standing at that place, in a modified version of that map (the UMF letters on one of the buildings gave it away), but a completely different set of events was taking place.
There was also a moment in one of the E3 videos where a strider blows through the wall in one of the secret labs while you're talking to Alyx and one of the scientists. Scene never happens in the final game, that whole scripted segment is gone.
What this tells me is that they were very serious and meticulous about tweaking every bit of that game. A scripted sequence like that is a lot of work to put together, and the fact that they simply threw it away in favor of a different plot segment says a lot about their design philosophy. Other developers would have kept a sequence like that in place simply because it represented a lot of work. These guys ruthlessly edited and reworked it until it was just right, and it shows.
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#241372 - 19/11/2004 19:55
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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About how long do you think it took?
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Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241373 - 19/11/2004 19:59
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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I didn't measure, but I think it was close to the 15-20 hours estimated in the reviews. Possibly a bit longer because I played on the harder difficulty setting and had to reload some scenes a lot of times. By the way, about those screen shots... Are you enamored of that one female scientist or what?
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#241374 - 19/11/2004 20:05
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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Quote:
I think it was close to the 15-20 hours
Ok, that's what I've been hearing, just wanted some confirmation. How far in is Nova Prospekt then?
Quote:
Are you enamored of that one female scientist..
Heh. I was just snapping screenshots to try and get all the emotion, and gestures and such. Plus, it was early in the game so I was more trigger happy.
_________________________
Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241375 - 19/11/2004 20:12
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
How far in is Nova Prospekt then?
Hard to say because the game's plot and sequences blend together in my memory as a unified experience (another hallmark of a truly great game). My gut instinct is that the Nova Prospect section begins at the half-way mark in the game. In other words, as you're entering the prison, that's about the half way point. I seem to recall spending a lot of time in Nova Prospekt, longer than most other areas. It's a pretty complex section with lots of different little things going on and multiple set pieces within it.
By the way, did you get penalized for parking your buggy here? I deliberately parked it on the other set of tracks because I knew trains would come by on that set of tracks. Figured if I parked my buggy there it'd get run over.
That was another great moment, by the way... When you finally get that force field down and start driving the buggy down the tracks, the sound of the train horn comes at EXACTLY the moment you're thinking to yourself, "I wonder if..."
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#241376 - 19/11/2004 20:16
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/03/2000
Posts: 12338
Loc: Sterling, VA
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Quote:
But how many games can you name where mind-blowingly good moments like that happen at least once in each level?
Well, the one that comes about 90% close in my mind is Conker's Bad Fur Day. That game was incredible and people really discounted it.
I don't play FPS games, so I can't judge myself, but from every bit of evidence I can see other than playing them myself, it appears that HL2 beats the crap out of Halo 2 in nearly every respect. As a non FPS player, I was very nearly compelled to check out HL2, even though I know playing it will make me physically ill in under a minute.
What I can't understand is why Halo 2 was greeted like God's gift to video games, and then HL2 gets released a tiny bit later and there's barely even any build-up to it. I mean hell, Halo got an ENTIRE DAY devoted to it on G4TechTV. I didn't see for sure, but it didn't even look like there was a mention of HL2 on the channell all day long (of course, this week they seem to be showing reruns of their entire lineup).
So what's the verdict from the game players yourselves?
_________________________
Matt
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#241377 - 19/11/2004 20:21
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Dignan]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
What I can't understand is why Halo 2 was greeted like God's gift to video games, and then HL2 gets released a tiny bit later and there's barely even any build-up to it. I mean hell, Halo got an ENTIRE DAY devoted to it on G4TechTV.
Well, temporarily setting aside the fact that money had a lot to do with it (heck, doesn't Microsoft OWN TechTV now?), there's also the consideration that HL2 had an entire year or more of hype and buildup. I didn't even know Halo 2 existed until just a couple months ago.
Thing is, I loved the single player Halo 1 game, and it had a few of those truly great gaming moments. Unfortunately, that was interspersed with incredibly boring repeat-the-same-octagonal-room-over-and-over sections that made me want to claw my own eyes out.
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#241378 - 19/11/2004 20:23
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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Quote:
My gut instinct is that the Nova Prospect section begins at the half-way mark in the game.
OK, so I guessed correctly then.
Quote:
By the way, did you get penalized for parking your buggy here?
Nope. The train isn't triggered until you start driving down the track. That was a great moment. With the way that section is setup, though, it was easy to guess what was going to happen.
BTW, anyone else a little mad that they have the Gold package (through Steam only) for only $10 more than the Collector's Edition and it comes with a bunch more stuff? If I would've known about the Gold edition I would've boughten that instead. Too bad there's no way to pay the difference and get the extras in the Gold edition (excluding the DVD).
Edited by ricin (19/11/2004 20:50)
_________________________
Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241379 - 19/11/2004 21:21
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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Another thing: How many times did you see the G-Man? I've seen him a few times so far, walking away quickly as soon as I look at him.
_________________________
Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241380 - 19/11/2004 21:25
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
Another thing: How many times did you see the G-Man? I've seen him a few times so far, walking away quickly as soon as I look at him.
I only recall noticing him twice, and once was when they specifically had you looking through binoculars so you could see him.
I saw a screen shot of a place during the airboat run where he's standing on the deck outside one of the buildings you go past. It was one of the spots you could stop to get supplies because there was a lambda logo there.
I think I'm going to play through the whole game again immediately, starting tonight, just because I can't get enough of its creamy goodness. I'll look for the G-man harder as I go through it.
I'm told that he appears something like 50 times in the original half-life, and I can only think of a few spots I saw him in that game. They like their easter eggs, don't they?
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#241381 - 20/11/2004 07:06
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 15/01/2002
Posts: 1866
Loc: Austin
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here they are i was using print screen to take screen captures of the first few levels. that didnt work. i noticed the problem and started using F5. that fixed it, but i was no longer documenting my way through, having missed the first few levels. lots of pics, lots to come. if you have not played the game yet, take a look.
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#241382 - 20/11/2004 18:28
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: RobotCaleb]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Heh, speaking of using white paint cans on the Ravenholm level, take a look at what happens when you fling paint onto one of Father Gregori's spinning traps. Can you say "bounding box"?
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#241383 - 20/11/2004 18:33
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
Another thing: How many times did you see the G-Man?
I'm playing through the game a second time, exploring and looking around a lot more than I did the first time, and I'm seeing the G-man a lot more often. I'm only up to Ravenholm and I think I've seen him five times. One time is shortly after you get the gun mounted to the airboat... I was shooting at barnacles and I saw a distant figure on a bridge and started shooting at it. It straightened its tie and calmly walked away.
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#241384 - 20/11/2004 20:15
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 13/09/1999
Posts: 2401
Loc: Croatia
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Hey, gaming fanatics, do your wives complain of feeling like single mothers with one child too many? 
_________________________
Dragi "Bonzi" Raos
Q#5196
MkII #080000376, 18GB green
MkIIa #040103247, 60GB blue
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#241385 - 20/11/2004 23:47
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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Quote:
The train isn't triggered until you start driving down the track.
Odd. I seem to remember that at one point during the bridge sequence, while I was under the tracks, the train traversed the bridge above my head. I was thinking at the time that it was a good idea to park my buggy out of the way so it wouldn't get clobbered.
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#241386 - 20/11/2004 23:47
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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Quote:
I've been taking random screenshots as I go along.
I've been very careful about taking screenshots of all the puzzles and obstacles so I can assist the poor blokes who get stuck on every level.
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#241387 - 21/11/2004 00:39
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Cybjorg]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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It's funny, I was never stumped by any of the puzzles. I was only ever stumped when I couldn't find an obviuos way out of an area. That happened to me a few times.
The worst example was early-on in the canals section. I was in the bottom of a canal and there was a bunch of junk around: Cars, boxes, barrels, the remnants of a broken bridge. I couldn't climb out, although there were several ledges that looked like I might be able to climb out if I could only get up high enough. An hour later, and after trying all sorts of things including using explosives to blast my way out, I finally managed to stack the junk high enough to reach a ledge, only to be stopped by an invisible wall. (Mappers call this invisible wall a "detail brush", a way of preventing a player from interacting with objects you don't want them to interact with.)
Turns out that there was a tunnel leading out of the area, but it looked identical to other tunnels that were blocked by metal grates. Since it was deeply in shadow, I couldn't see into it well enough to notice. You had to get right up against it and peer inside before you could tell it was a valid exit blocked by barrels. I only stumbled upon it by accident, after I'd long since given up looking for ordinary exits.
THAT made me mad.
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#241388 - 21/11/2004 00:54
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 15/01/2002
Posts: 1866
Loc: Austin
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the invisible walls piss me off
get creative mappers!
i hate seeing somewhere that looks like i can get to it, and not being able to. hate hate hate
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#241389 - 21/11/2004 01:32
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Cybjorg]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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Yeah, there was a passing train as you go under the bridge, but I'm guessing they just played the sound and rattled the bridge and didn't bother with the train itself since it's out of view, hence there is nothing to collide with the buggy.
_________________________
Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241390 - 21/11/2004 01:37
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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The only places I've gotten "stuck" so far were where I knew where to go, but every time I'd try I'd get killed. I end up doing those sections a few times before finally getting through. Right now I'm in that situation with the stupid striders. I'm out of rockets, and I can see a crate of them up in a staircase, but if I try and get to it, I get taken out by the strider. Not stuck, just frustrated that I can't get to the rockets and take out the strider without dying.
_________________________
Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241391 - 21/11/2004 02:56
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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In those cases, I usually have to rewind to an earlier savegame and do the "run up" to that scene better, so that I have more health, or perhaps more of my squad with me, or whatever. Sometimes rewinding just changes the subtle randomizations of how the scene plays out so that the bad guys are in slightly easier-to-kill places or whatever, and you end up being able to get through it.
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#241392 - 21/11/2004 04:15
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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Yeah, I've done that a few times too. I think in this case I'll have to as well. I just can't seem to get to the rockets without the strider taking me out.
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Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241393 - 21/11/2004 10:16
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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OK, I'm well into the Citadel now. What sucks is ever since I entered the Citadel, jump has stopped working. I've tried remapping it, restarting the game, and rebooting, but nothing works. First bug I've found. The only suggestions on the forums are the things I already tried. Hopefully it'll just go away or they'll release a patch soon.
PS: I've uploaded more screenshots.
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Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241394 - 21/11/2004 11:28
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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veteran
Registered: 19/06/2000
Posts: 1495
Loc: US: CA
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Welp, I finished the game, and I've got to say it was amazing. Great writing, great voice acting, animation... everything. Can't wait for HL3. Only bug I ran into was the not being able to jump and, related to that, there was something messed up with my collision detection. It would randomly fling me across the room after gently tapping objects in the level. It only did this in the "Dark Energy" part. I started a new game and started from that chapter and everything was fine. *shrug* Anyway, uploading the rest of the screenshots now.  I think I'll go through the game again slower this time.
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Donato MkII/080000565 MkIIa/010101253 ricin.us
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#241395 - 21/11/2004 14:31
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
I think I'll go through the game again slower this time.
I'm finding that it's a lot like watching a good movie the second time through. You notice lots of little things you didn't see the first time. Definitely worth doing.
Example: this strange easter egg. Dunno what it means, but it's cool.
I'm still getting startled by some things, too.
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#241396 - 22/11/2004 15:13
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: ricin]
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veteran
Registered: 25/04/2000
Posts: 1525
Loc: Arizona
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Quote:
BTW, anyone else a little mad that they have the Gold package (through Steam only) for only $10 more than the Collector's Edition and it comes with a bunch more stuff? If I would've known about the Gold edition I would've boughten that instead. Too bad there's no way to pay the difference and get the extras in the Gold edition (excluding the DVD).
Yeah, I wasn't happy about that. I really don't like the fact that I still need to have the DVD in the player when I was under the impression that I didn't need it.
I've been toying with the idea of buying the Gold Edition and giving my DVD and Steam account to a friend instead. He was also the recipient of my UT2004 game when I finally found the Collector's Edition also... He must love it when I mess up.
- Tim
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#241397 - 22/11/2004 15:41
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 25/12/2000
Posts: 16706
Loc: Raleigh, NC US
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Anyone know of a way to test my hardware to see if it'll be good enough to play HL2? I'd like to play, but I don't want to spend $60 only to find out that I'll have to spend another $200 on a new video card to use it. And I can't find any technical specs anywhere to help me out. Maybe someone could point me that way.
_________________________
Bitt Faulk
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#241398 - 22/11/2004 15:55
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: wfaulk]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
Anyone know of a way to test my hardware to see if it'll be good enough to play HL2?
Linky 1
Linky 2
Linky 3
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#241399 - 22/11/2004 15:58
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Tim]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
I really don't like the fact that I still need to have the DVD in the player when I was under the impression that I didn't need it.
The work-around is: Do the online steam "download" version, using the product key from that DVD.
I'm not sure how the mechanics of this installation work (dunno if you have to actually install the DVD version or if just the product key is enough, for example), but that's Valve's official position on a no-CD installation.
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#241400 - 22/11/2004 16:01
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Oh, for those playing through the game, if you get supremely irritated at the limited flashlight duration (dealing with it all the time actually gave me a headache), you can do this in the console:
sv_infinite_aux_power 1
I did this about half way through my second play-through of the game and it made the experience a lot more enjoyable.
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#241401 - 22/11/2004 19:15
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 25/04/2000
Posts: 1525
Loc: Arizona
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Quote:
Quote:
I really don't like the fact that I still need to have the DVD in the player when I was under the impression that I didn't need it.
The work-around is: Do the online steam "download" version, using the product key from that DVD.
I'm not sure how the mechanics of this installation work (dunno if you have to actually install the DVD version or if just the product key is enough, for example), but that's Valve's official position on a no-CD installation.
Thanks, I'll try that next time I reinstall my system. I'm still interested in the Gold version to see what posters it comes with though
- Tim
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#241402 - 01/12/2004 18:57
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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Are you confused as to just what is going on in Half Life 2, or even the 1st one for that matter? Check out the The Half-Life Saga Story Guide created by Chan "Ventro" Karunamuni. This guide is there to lay out the story and events of the Half-Life saga as well as filling in other details such as who the Combine are, etc.
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#241403 - 01/12/2004 19:01
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Cybjorg]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
Are you confused as to just what is going on in Half Life 2, or even the 1st one for that matter?
Not really. I like how you get the backstory from lots of subtle cues, as opposed to just a bunch of outright exposition. But it means you have to be paying attention and looking for the cues.
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#241404 - 01/12/2004 19:15
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Cybjorg]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Hm, it's an interesting read, but I think I disagree with some of his conclusions. For example, he assumes that City 17 is the new capital of Earth after the invasion and that Breen is the puppet human leader for the whole planet.
I got a different impression: Breen is the puppet administrator of just City 17, and there isn't anything particularly special about C17 other than it was where the old Black Mesa people had holed up. The game is set in C17 only because Gman sent you there to meet up with the other Black Mesa veterans because he knew you'd need their help. I never felt like C17 was the key Combine stronghold, merely one place for the rebels to get a toehold in their long fight against the Combine.
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#241405 - 01/12/2004 20:25
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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I also don't feel like you necessarily thwart (or destroy) the Combine stronghold in City 17 - just the warping machine in which Breen is trying to escape.
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#241406 - 01/12/2004 21:41
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Cybjorg]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
I also don't feel like you necessarily thwart (or destroy) the Combine stronghold in City 17 - just the warping machine in which Breen is trying to escape.
I think you do.
Alyx and Breen both talk about how you'll bring down the whole Citadel if you blow the reactor, which is supposedly what your goal was in the final scene.
After you do it, Alyx starts to say something like "I wonder if we have time to get out of here?" but the big explosion begins before she can finish the sentence, and Gman freezes time and takes you out of there.
The assumption is that Alyx doesn't make it, she sacrificed herself (and I suppose Eli and the other scientist, too, whom you'd left downstairs) for the cause of the rebels.
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#241407 - 02/12/2004 11:42
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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True, that. I guess I was so busy stopping Breen that I wasn't atune to the background story evolving.
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#241408 - 28/07/2005 20:18
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Cybjorg]
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veteran
Registered: 08/05/2000
Posts: 1429
Loc: San Francisco, CA
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Ok, so I finally got my new PC, video card, and Half Life 2 running. Anyone want to kill a newbie? Let's start a game!!!
- Jon
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#241409 - 29/07/2005 00:54
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: mschrag]
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veteran
Registered: 08/05/2000
Posts: 1429
Loc: San Francisco, CA
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Ok, I just got the gravity gun and met dog. This is the best game I've ever seen. The most fun I've ever had playing any video game.
- Jon
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#241410 - 29/07/2005 01:20
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: jbauer]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 23/08/2000
Posts: 3826
Loc: SLC, UT, USA
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I still don't have a PC up to spec to play it decently. =\
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#241411 - 29/07/2005 01:56
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: jbauer]
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addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
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Isn't the gravity gun one of the coolest weapons in any game...ever?!? It is sooooo fun. Have you gotten to the point in the game with the magneto-crane thing? What the hell are those called?
Funny you should post this, I just five minutes ago finished installing HL2 on my new machine with an ati 850xt and bigass lcd monitor. Should be fun.
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#241412 - 29/07/2005 02:17
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: visuvius]
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veteran
Registered: 08/05/2000
Posts: 1429
Loc: San Francisco, CA
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Quote:
Isn't the gravity gun one of the coolest weapons in any game...ever?!? It is sooooo fun. Have you gotten to the point in the game with the magneto-crane thing? What the hell are those called?
Funny you should post this, I just five minutes ago finished installing HL2 on my new machine with an ati 850xt and bigass lcd monitor. Should be fun.
No, haven't gotten to any cranes yet. I had to stop soon after getting the gun as my hands are killing me.
So I went with an nvidia card with the Dell 24" 1920x1200 monitor and am having problems with it. I may end up trying an ATI card. Is the 850xt the one to get? Can it support that res? What specific card did you get? Link?
- Thanx
- Jon
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#241413 - 29/07/2005 03:05
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: jbauer]
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addict
Registered: 23/12/2002
Posts: 652
Loc: Winston Salem, NC
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I've had better luck playing Half-Life 2 with an ATI card than with an nVidia card. In fact, my new nVidia card is supposed to be better than my old ATI card and still has some crash issues with Half-Life 2. Pooh.
I've played the game several times through. I'm anxiously awaiting the expansion pack.
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#241415 - 01/08/2005 00:29
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: tfabris]
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veteran
Registered: 08/05/2000
Posts: 1429
Loc: San Francisco, CA
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Quote:
I didn't measure, but I think it was close to the 15-20 hours estimated in the reviews. Possibly a bit longer because I played on the harder difficulty setting and had to reload some scenes a lot of times.
By the way, about those screen shots... Are you enamored of that one female scientist or what?
I just finished. Man, Tony finished in 15-20 hours? I think I have more than 30 in it. My hands hurt.
Need something else to get addicted to. BF2 is next, I think.
- Jon
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#241416 - 01/08/2005 01:41
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: jbauer]
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old hand
Registered: 14/02/2002
Posts: 804
Loc: Salt Lake City, UT
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The bad thing with BF2 is you start to want to rank up, and unlock weapons. Then after scoring really well, the ranked server doesn't update your stats/awards/ranks. Then you just get pissed at EA for the crap they sell and stop playing. The next week you repeat the cycle.
_________________________
-Michael
#040103696 on a shelf
Mk2a - 90 GB - Red - Illuminated buttons
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#241417 - 01/08/2005 04:27
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: jbauer]
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addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
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Quote:
So I went with an nvidia card with the Dell 24" 1920x1200 monitor and am having problems with it. I may end up trying an ATI card. Is the 850xt the one to get? Can it support that res? What specific card did you get? Link?
I love Battlefield 2. Its an amazing game and I wanted to maximize my BF2 experience. Thats why my video card purchase was basically based on this anandtech review.
I was willing to get the most expensive/best thing available. Turns out this is the nVidia 7800, which is just a little too ridiculously priced for me. So I went for the next best thing, the ATI 850xt. I didn't really want to deal with trying to find it cheap online so I just bought it at CompUsa for $400.
I can play BF2, which is a very intense game, at 1280x1024, max resolution with no problems at all. P4 3.3, 1 gig ram. However with the 30'' LCD, it can play at a max of 1024x768. I havn't tried any hacks yet and I'm a bit reluctant to really.
I can safely recommend the 850xt, if you can spend the bucks, then the 7800gtx. Both of these cards can definitely run that resolution.
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#241418 - 01/08/2005 04:29
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Waterman981]
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addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
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Damnit that is SO true. I've received my 1st rank and am working on my 2nd but it just seems like it's taking forever...and I play a lot! I try to only play on ranked servers too.
I still havn't figured out how to use the unlocked weapons in the game though. Something about an arrow that I can't seem to find.
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#241419 - 01/08/2005 04:30
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Dignan]
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addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
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Hey I never actually played Doom 3. Was it any good? It just looked very generic FPS shooter to me. I'm sure it looks good and all, but was it fun?
edited cause I want to change my avatar.
damn. Just realized that can be done through My Home. That's pretty sweet.
Attachments
261743-ninjagaiden.jpg (227 downloads)
Edited by visuvius (01/08/2005 04:37)
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#241420 - 01/08/2005 04:39
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: visuvius]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 08/06/1999
Posts: 7868
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Game Resolution Switcher rignt now will launch Battlefield 2 at whatever your resolution is set to. Though to be honest, it's not doing much special. To run Battlefield 2 at a resolution beyond the limited ones in game, you simply add: +szx 1280 +szy 720 to the executable. Easiest way to do that is to right click the shortcut and hit properties. Odd are, there are other commands there as well, like +fullscreen 1 and such. No hacks, no fuss. Do be warned though, Battlefield 2 does not have proper support for widescreen displays. Running it at any aspect ratio other then 4:3 results in what you see being cropped. People are hoping support for this is added in soon, as games like Half Life 2 and Doom 3 simple work and asjust the aspect ratio on their own, requiring no FOV adjustments.
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#241421 - 01/08/2005 06:43
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: jbauer]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 18/01/2000
Posts: 5683
Loc: London, UK
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Quote:
I just finished. Man, Tony finished in 15-20 hours? I think I have more than 30 in it. My hands hurt.
The Half-Life 2 Done Quick movie is just over 3 hours...
_________________________
-- roger
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#241422 - 01/08/2005 13:52
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: jbauer]
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carpal tunnel
Registered: 20/12/1999
Posts: 31597
Loc: Seattle, WA
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Quote:
Need something else to get addicted to. BF2 is next, I think.
I find Counter-Strike: Source incredibly addictive. And since you own HL2, you just got it for free.
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#241423 - 01/08/2005 19:17
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: Roger]
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veteran
Registered: 08/05/2000
Posts: 1429
Loc: San Francisco, CA
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Quote:
The Half-Life 2 Done Quick movie is just over 3 hours...
Wow - that guy is good.
- Jon
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#241424 - 02/08/2005 03:14
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: visuvius]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 15/01/2002
Posts: 1866
Loc: Austin
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#241425 - 02/08/2005 05:58
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: RobotCaleb]
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addict
Registered: 18/02/2002
Posts: 658
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Sweeeeet! I've seen the sigs around on the Planet Battlefield Forums but I havnt tried yet.
Hey where do you play? I'm looking for a consistent bunch of people to play with. I've never really been in a clan or anything before but I'm getting sick of playing on random servers and taking my chances.
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#241426 - 02/08/2005 13:28
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: visuvius]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 15/01/2002
Posts: 1866
Loc: Austin
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LANCAMP has our own server. That is where I spend most of my BF2 time. Info is available on the front page.
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#241427 - 30/10/2006 21:50
Re: Ladies and Gentlemen, start your Half-Life 2 engines
[Re: RobotCaleb]
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pooh-bah
Registered: 15/01/2002
Posts: 1866
Loc: Austin
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Quote:
http://bf2sig.l0ser.net
Info
I wrote a new sig generator with the guy that runs bf2s. You can play with it here.
It can be found by locating your profile on bf2s and clicking the Sig Generator link at the top right of the page. I wrote the WYSIWYG part. It's getting a lot of traffic, which is sweet. Some people can't figure out how to use it (I guess it's complicated. I developed it, so I don't think it's complicated at all. The admin at bf2s was supposed to write a tutorial though, but hasn't.) so some guy made a video tutorial and posted it on Google Video. I only tested in FF and IE under Windows XP. Sorry for you others that have a less than spectacular time.
So far (last 24h or so) it's seen over 40,000 hits, over 4,000 unique hits and nearly 3,000 unique profiles (players). I'm excited. Except for one little thing. Big thing. Dude gives me credit nowhere.
I told him all I wanted was a link to http://l0ser.net and a link to http://www.lancamp.com and my name. That's not asking too much.
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