Awesome... no other words can describe.

Bestest game ever made :D

As a kid turning teen i can not still believe how awesome the graphics are i mean this is better then the final fantasy series best game ever made enough said.

Oh my goodness! half life 2 is THE most fun i have ever had in a game . the physics are fantastic and are fun to play with. the storyline is scary and graphics go along way in expressing the feel of the game . THIS IS THE BEST GAME

It's a great game if you have the right stuff. I'm really not sure why everyone is comparing this to Far-Cry thousands of times, I have viewed textures, graphics and such: overall, if you can run Half-Life 2 without what probably 50% of the lower rated poster's computers are, preferably horrible 4200 Dells, Half-Life 2 is immense and the graphics are well made and just awesome. And since when does a shooter have to be so in particularly be a completely realistic in an environment of the jungle, or some place on Mars, or some really dumb variation of L.A? (I'm looking at you, Bloodlines.) What happened to the good old shooters like Metal Slug, hm? Sure, they weren't packed to their necks with plasma decentigration balls, dual powered shotguns, MP7's, or hoverboats, but what it the issue? Even if you count out the puzzles and map designs (Which, by the way, are practically flawless compared to some of the garbage I've seen from Halo and many other First Persons) the gameplay still heads in the correct direction. Then, complaints on the squads and commands; let me address that you don't even need squads if you're playing on normal, let alone easy. If just having some rebel guy following you and you press 'c' at the ground in front of you, he'll go. I found barely any uses of teamwork, with the exception of Grigori or Alyx, the special NPCs.
What sort of makes me mad too is the fact people continue to say 'this game is overrated', 'this game is behind its time', 'this game is crap no thanks to Steam', personally, these are whiny comments. First of all, the game would probably not be overrated, if it weren't for the 2003 hacking. Second, it would not of been behind its time. If I do recall, some companies found part of the coding and used it for their own games. Next to that, the physics engine was remarkable for what it was way back when, when it drove awe into the people who watched E3 and the beta clips. I'm not sure what's wrong with registering to Steam either: You simply install the game, which takes NOT 4 hours, it takes 10 to 15 minutes before for my old, lousy Dell. Then you register the game, which shouldn't even take that long, if 3 minutes counts as yet another sarcastic 1 hour. If it takes the person installing Half-Life 2 at least 4 hours, then your computer dates back to the days Half-Life 1 could run on those awesome Pentium 1 Windows 93 computers. And complaining of load times? Get a computer upgrade, stop whining. If you save some money for at least 3 months, you could get a gigabyte of ram and a GeForce 7300 at its cheapest.
Enough complaining, it's time to get on to Half-Life 2, and what it brought, and would of brought to this generation. I applaud Valve for simply releasing this; I was almost doubting a real release at all due to the beta hack. The guns, if I say, are awesome. The MP7 I would delightfully switch with an MP5K anyday, though.… Expand

The most amazingly realistic and engrosing game to come along in ages. HL2 is one for the history books!

this is the best game i have ever played, it has excellent storyline, non-stop action, suspense, and excellent. this game will keep any gamer playing for hours!

This is a great game. I really like we dont go to raven holm. It had a nice element of realism.

Wow.

Best Game Ever!!!!

It may be impossible to match the ambience this game created.

The push back in dates were disappointing. And so was the ending. STEAM blows unless you have the right equipment for it. But throughout the bad ending and STEAM not delivering what I so rightly deserved [I bought the game], the gameplay, the graphics, and the all out layout of this game made every bad detail worth it. I give it a 10. 9 wouldn't do it. Anything lower would be a little [okay, a lot] unjust. It isn't perfect, but for todays standards, this game left me breathless, and it left me for me. Like a game should. Similar to God of War. Gameplay kept me hooked, the storyline going somewhere, the graphics were, dare I say, orgasmic. Hats off to you Valve. And STEAM, fix yourself up. The HL series lost fans to you, but fans loyal enough stayed with it and say the same as I. Can't wait for what else you have in store.

- Always waiting,
[ e X i l e ]… Expand

Exciting, edge-of-your seat game that immerses you in the very realistic, alternate world of Gordon Freeman.

A very gripping experience, taking you through this futuristic underground railroad. The ammunition capacity is realistic, the length of the game is great, the sound is pretty cool, and the graphics are near top-notch. But them greatest of all is the story. This game has one of the most fantastic and entertaining stories I have ever experienced! This is a truly revolutionary game, (in terms of enjoyment) and should not be missed by anyone who enjoys the genre(s). The great thing about the Source engine is that you can be playing off of a medium-low end computer and still enjoy decent gameplay. But if you want to max it out, I recommend using a quality rig. ottom line: This is a fantastic, amazing, enthralling, and revolutionary game.… Expand

What is it about hl2 that makes it so awesome? The fact that every aspects of a good fps has been covered, from graphics to puzzles, and presented masterfully. Furthermore, unlike other games, the requirements we'rnt high upon release, i ran it on a ti4200 and 2.4 gig p4 and it still looks fantastic. Episode one rocked too, so keep it up!

the variety of half life with less obvious puzzle tedium. graphics have made the game even more immersive than the original. oh and giving it a permanent place in my heart.

Perfect by comparison to other FPS games, HL2 is the best game to ever hit the PC. It engages the player through so many different levels - everything from the anticipation of fear to the fun of using military tactics to command your team of resistence volunteers against an alien-dominating society. Nothing better than HL2 has yet been produced to date.

This is the best action shooter game ever!!! Nice graphic's and NICE STORY!!! i can't stop foe playing this again and again and again..

the best game i see in my life.

Wow.

This game is amazing... Graphics.. Story... and its so realist, you feel like youre in the game!

Currently lacking time for a proper comment,all I can say is it can definetly be considered one of the greatest games of all time.

The greatest game ive ever seen or played. (On a great PC like mine that is.)

Best game of the world - forever!!!

The Best Game Ever

Amazing. Simply amazing.

Absolutely incredible. Half-Life 2 is an amazing experience the whole time. I was constantly finding myself with my jaw to the floor. Simply amazing.

This the best game that can scare u can make u laught and other thingss but the bad thing is that what valve publish as the video preview doesnot come in the half life 2 and thats make u think other things but this the best game ever did and the episode

No doubt this is the best 3D first person game due to its revolutionary CG technology, combined with a high degree of physics processing realism (acceleration, inertia, rotation and deformation of vehicles, gravity, material stress, explosions etc). Also, the player interactivity with AI objects is still the best one.

The best game I have ever played.

This is one of my favorite games of all time, by far.

Fantastic Game left me wanting more.... where is my copy of Half-Life 2: Episode 1?

It's a great game. What more can I say?

The best game I have ever played.

Best game ever! First game anyones made where your in the cutscenes and it's the storyline that makes this a good game. If this was a movie (which it's going to be) it'll be a blockbuster

Best game in a while... Can't wait til Half Life 2 Episode Two

H-L 2 is amazing! Great combination of intense action and a compeling storyline.

Breathtaking. Superb. A masterpiece of the most epic proportions. While not flawless, the good FAR outweighs the bad. By far the greatest game I have ever played. I got it and played it once for PC when it came out, I got it in the PC version of the Orange Box and played it a second time, and I got it in the 360 version of the Orange Box and played it a third time. Never once in any of my three runs through the game, was I ever not astonished by the epic scale of this work of art. If you have not yet played Half Life 2, then I have but one question for you: WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?… Expand

This is the best game for ever! Anybody whatever say!

One of the best games, I´ve ever played.

Half Life, since the first game, was innovator, i've never played a game like this before. It is a turnign point for the first person shooters.

The game makes your world look borring and not funny but.. in HL2 its totally differint. Its making one curious and THIS world is much more exciting and interesting so, GO TO HELL "netjak"!

One of the most engrossing games ever. I was glued to my screen for hours straight. Although linear at times, the game has such a high variety of environments that it never ceased to bore me. The enemy AI, despite what some seem to say was extremely bad, I thought was pretty good. True, enemies were never really faced with complicated decisions of tactics and the like, but they did flank and use cover. And they didn't rush you blindly (unless they had a shotgun). I also liked the lack of ammo that kept you scrounging or finding new ways to make use of the gravity gun, which, by the way, is simply put the most ingenious weapon ever designed in a video-game. Lastly, the story was excellent. Without an engrossing story, even the best of games can get tedious. This was an almost cinematic story, dishing out plenty of plot twists, reslationships, character backgrounds, and was generally just a really well-implemented part of this game. Any interested should buy. Any uninterested should buy anyway.… Expand

A great game, takes you deep into the story line and gives a variety of killing options. One of the greatest FPS ive ever incountered.

Excellent game. Great graphics and physics engines, the game blew my mind on what a first person shooter could be. Top notch scifi apocolyptic story.

Best Game Ever!!!!

Amazing game, and so well paced. The game always feels like it's pushing you, but it never overwhelms you. First time through it is better than sex.

Amazing game. Great graphics, smooth gameplay, and that gravity gun is the best gun I've ever played with in a FPS.

Greatest game ever. It never fails to capture your complete attention. Ravenholm map in particular has great atmosphere few Fps hope to achieve.

Wow! One of the best games, i've ever played!

Very good physics and lighting. I have no complaints, except that the enemy AI is actually pretty smart.

A beautiful game with an immersive plotline and stunning graphics. The one flaw: teammate AI. "I'm coming with you, Freeman! You're not leaving without me, Freeman! Let me just get in your way, Freeman!" Other than that, excellent.

Best game ever made Bar maybe WoW its a undescribable gaming experience if you have not played this game buy it you will not regret it one thing that will annoy is the steam gaming platform but if your okay with waiting on longer load times then you will not be sad its playable over and over.

This is the best game ever! It has good AI, very good graphics and sound!

Probably one of the most innovative games out there. The Source Engine is a masterpiece. The HDR technology (which, sadly isn't used in this game) is beautiful, on a good computer of course. Graphics: 10 -Beautiful graphics, great physics. Awesome, even with a medium-high level graphics card. Although compared to current graphics technologies, it's a little rusty, but compared to 2004 graphics, it's amazing. Storyline: 8 -Great storyline, but I didn't really get sucked into it, but then again most FPS games have almost NO storyline at all. And if they do, it sucks. AI: 7 -I have to admit that this game's AI is kinda....stupid? But what would an FPS be if the AI is so smart that they do all the stuff for you? It's good enough, (at least they don't suicide) so stop whining. Gameplay: 10- I can't stress enough about the gameplay. It is absolutely amazing. Some parts are crazy, with bullets flying everywhere, complete chaos, but there are also many parts where its just you. Those parts are for you to calm down after a harrowing firefight. Many games don't have that, it's just fighting, fighting, and fighting. Too repetative. Of course, you'll need at least a mid-high level computer. If you don't, you can't fully appreciate the game. Trust me when I say this: Get a good graphics card. It will prepare you for when you get theHalf-Life 2 Episodes. Those have HDR technology (I think...) so if you want to play those, you'll need a good graphics card. Steam...Steam...Steam....everyone's complaining about it. To me it is one of the best ideas ever. Once you register your game, its yours forever. As always, there are hackers, but if you are smart with your account you should have no problems. Many times I lost a CD and the game is toast. But for this, all you do is register, and if you lose the CD, all you have to do is download it. It's very convenient. Great game. Great engine. Buy it. Or then again, buy the Orange Box.… Expand

Heart pounding from start to finish, amazing story and AI.

COOL!!!

Awsome game, really looking forward to Episode 3.

Anyone who give HL2 lower than a 9 out of 10, that includes you big name reviewers up there, is nothing more than a jealous Halo fan. HL2 is is a required in any Top 5 FPS list.

The physics, the spirit, the militia, the monsters, the zombies - everything is perfect.

This is the best game ever. I nearly shit myself playing it.

The most fun first person shooter ive had since return to castle wolfenstein. I cant get enough!

The best game ever. It has everything. It´s like watching a movie. You get the now the characters. I played it trough a hundred times, never get bored.

This is the only game worth buying, apart from Wolfenstein Enemy Territory and Resident Evil.

The best game I have ever played.

Its one of the most impressive games ever!!!

This game is just amazing, even if you find one moment where you dont like the game, the next moment makes you regret thinking such blasphamey, MAKE A HALF LIFE 3

This game rocks.

Truly the best game I have ever played. If you have never played Half-Life 2 you have been living under a rock.

The Game is the best I have ever seen, is not just beautiful graphics, you can't stop play it until it end.

One of the most breathtaking games I have ever played. At times you almost wonder if you are still playing a game or if what is happening in front of you is real. All around surely this is the game of the year.

Great game, loved it so much, I finished it 3 times. Now for Episode 1, 2 and 3.

I thoroughly enjoyed this game and played through it a few times and lost many hours of sleep in just a few weeks. The graphics were purely stunning, the game play was really fun and really intense, and the puzzles that went along with the gravity gun added a lot to the game.

Along with all the positive parts of the game, I never encountered something that inherently irked me or even made me think, "C'mon, why would the developers do that?"

Overall it was an amazing game and this puny description of how much I liked it cannot fully convey my overall enjoyment of the game.… Expand

Best Game Ever!!!!

The best game I have ever played.

There is absolutley nothing wrong with this game, no flaws, no mistakes, perfect in every way. huge variety in enemies, weapons, and methods on how to play it. Phyisics are real life and the guns are geat, but marlon brando is to the godfather as Gravity gun is to this.

Best Game Ever!!!!

I just finished this game, and it is simply amazing! No words can describe it! It's just beyond any FPS game! Just wow! If you are a fan of Half-Life, or even just someone who likes to play FPS games, you just HAVE to try this. It's challenging without being obscenely dificult, and it's hard where it's supposed to be. And the physics! This game feels amazingly real! Again... Just WOW!… Expand

This is the best game ever made not only the best out of all the PC games but its the best game out of every system game too including wii,360 and ps3. this game should have got a 100 rating because it beats out far cry by miles sorry to the guy below me but half-life will always win for its amazing storyline to its incredible graphics and physics engine and finally its greatest accomplishment ever its great endings always open for another sequel.… Expand

Perfect game. Nothing to say... Graphics, audio, physics, story all 10. PS: Dont understand why people gives low ratings for the long loadings. If your computer is old it doesent mean that the game sucks.

The game is awesome, besides the fact that the single player storyline was too short, and that the driving levels were slightly boring. But what does make me incredibly irritated are the people who are giving reviews, and scoring this game a 0 due to steam. Incase you haven't noticed, we are scoring the game Half-Life 2, not the program Steam. -_-

For the first few weeks of playing this I though I *was* Gordon Freeman.

Best Game Ever!!!!

this game is beatiful and full action

Great game! Beat it many times! love playing it!

I've played many games in my day, but this game was unlike any other. It was created as if VALVe knows what the players want in a game. A game where nearly any object can be used as a weapon. The storyline may seem as if it doesn't follow the path of Half-Life 1, I thought the same too, but I was very wrong. It completely makes sense and everything fits in perfectly. Half-Life isn't just a game, its a revolution in gaming as you know it. Say goodbye to non-physics games after this.… Expand

This game is amazing. From the enticing storyline to the innovative source engine. A lot of people don't realize how in-depth and many features the source engine has.

I've played many good games in my life, but this take the cake! 10 / 10 !

The Best Game Ever

Half Life 2 is one of the best games ever made. If you don't have it you must get it!

LOVE it!

Absolutely great game ... the graphics, the atmosphere, the game-design ... perfect! :)

Saying that Half-Life 2 deserves any less than a definite 9, and basing that opinion on the versatility of the engine is shocking. The evidence is there. It is one of the most modded games to date (Perhaps HL1 would stop it exclusively), and games are still being released on it. Have you SEEN team fortress 2? Half-Life 2 is 3 years old, and could still hold out today flawlessly. Outstanding.

It was the best game I have ever played. It had a great story to it too. It was like the best and favourite movie I have ever seen and you get to be a part of it!

HL2 Set a bar to which all FPS game should aspire to achieve. Its mix of problem solving and action with a great plot driven story makes this title unmisable. HL2 was my 1st game after a long break in PC gaming for me, I had been playing console games solo for since I got my master system. This game works so well on so many levels I just couldn't believe I had neglated PC gaming for so many years. I was never a great fan of FPS games on the console format but some how HL2 ws able to offer a much more engrossing game that I just found hard to put down. This game has stood the test of time to as if you look at other games from the same year its quality and attention to detail still look crisp to many games being produced now. All in all a classic that everyone should own in my view.… Expand

Best Game Ever!!!!

This is really the best game ever made, the graphics, the gameplay, the way your view of the weapon changes when you turn around, the story, the lead charcters expresions when they talk and of course G-MAN!!!! :) the only thing i can think of that is a little bit bad is the music. It sounds good enough but the first time you will play game it wont last long enough and the next then it almost cant before the game needs to load again. im not saying that the game is'nt challenging the second time, its mostly because you know were you need to go to. But what the hell chould Valve do about that??… Expand

This game is EPIC! The graphics are Nice!