I just finished Half-Life 2: Episode One. I enjoyed it. I thought from the reviews I remember reading that it had a vehicle sequence, I guess I’m confusing Episode One and Episode Two. It was very well done. I miss having the saw blades that you got in Ravenholm in HL2. There are a few decent puzzles, but you get Alex next to you for most of the game and her character is very well done. She can shoot, quite well. You see her take out enemies (and kick them if they get too close). She is invincible and has unlimited ammo, so you don’t have to worry about babysitting her. In some areas she does things like provide sniper cover for you. She can get in your way from time to time, but it’s not that bad; I’ve played much worse.
It was fun. It wasn’t too long, or too short for me. Since I have to go through lots of pointless stuff to be able to play the game (rebooting into Windows, attaching my external drive) length can be annoying. The only problem I can see with the game is that they added high dynamic range to the graphics. This should be a good thing. By the end, it’s well done. But when the episode first starts they use it everywhere. They over use it. They do that “he have this neat thing, let’s use it everywhere” problem. A minor annoyance.
Glad I played it, now I have to start Episode Two. When I get that done, I’ll be all the way through the Orange Box.
