Half-Life 2: Episode Two

Half-Life 2: Episode 1 had ended as we watched Gordon Freeman and Alyx Vance trying to escape City 17. The Combine Citadel had collapsed, but not before Alyx was able to download a crucial Combine communication, along with a message from Dr. Mossman, while Gordon delayed the structure's inevitable physical and energetic destruction in order to allow for their dramatic flight. Episode Two picks up immediately afterwards. The train, which the heroes were riding, had crashed, and at that point you once again gain control of Dr. Freeman, easily one of the most recognizable and loved protagonists that PC games have to offer us.

Although set in the same continuity, Episode Two is not merely more of the same game, it is a separate experience in it's own right. The players are treated to new locations, new foes, a new vehicle, a new weapon, a healthy dose of graphical improvements and most importantly further development of the story and characters. Whatever your reason for playing Half-Life games, you will find your needs catered to with EP2. Since this offering is still very much in line with other HL2 games, we will skip the usual coverage of the controls, weapons, etc. If you have played Half-Life 2 and Episode One, you will feel right at home. If you haven't played the previous games... you are wrong.

I find this title an improvement over all of its predecessors for a number of reasons. While Episode One seemed to simply add a few levels to the original game, as I played through the second episode, I was impressed by quite a few things. Chief among these was the story. You will learn more about the mysterious G-Man and about what happened at Black Mesa just before the Incident. You will find out curious things about the Vortigaunts and some of their ever amazing abilities. Those who have already played Portal (another Valve game set in the Half-Life universe) will be excited to gain new insight into Aperture Science and be able to better understand its place in the grand scheme of things. Everything makes sense and all the dialog is appropriate and well performed.

Players who don't care much for all this storytelling nonsense and are bent on destruction instead, will be happy to encounter more of the Combine cannon fodder as well as some new creatures. Notably, you will be able to square off against the Worker Ant-lions, a variety that builds the Ant-lion burrows with the help of their potent acid. They use their abilities to tunnel through rock, but make no mistake, you will not like it when they spit at you from a distance. Another creature that you are going to learn to detest is a Combine Adviser, a truly nasty being. Lastly the Hunters are going to make you very unhappy. Alyx is going to have trouble with them as well. Hunters are somewhat like Striders, except they are smaller, faster and much more annoying. They have a melee attack, but their weapon of choice is a machine gun of sorts. It fires darts that can either damage you or, if they missed, charge up over a few seconds time and explode with some splash damage. The worst part is that the Hunters can follow you wherever you go. Yes, that means inside the buildings too.

Episode Two also places some new gear at your disposal. You'll get to ride a rebel-built Hotrod with Alyx sitting right next to you. Features include speed and... not much more. Later in the game it will get a few upgrades though. Regrettably, this car is weaponless, but you can always hit-and-run as I have been reliably informed that there are no cops in the game. The new weapon is a device that is reminiscent of a sticky-mine and although you will only get it towards the end, you'll be treated to a very fast-paced sequence where the use of these Strider-busters is crucial to your success. Although launched with your trusty old gravity gun, these babies are not your usual explosive barrels. Since they don't explode on contact, you will have to get them to stick, and then proceed to hit them with one of your firearms to cause them to explode.

If you are like me and insist on your games looking their absolute best, I am happy to inform you that the visual aspect of the game shines once again. It appears as if the engine was greatly improved when it comes to all sorts of modern eye-candy. You will get to enjoy spectacular vistas that span across long distances as well as tight claustrophobic caves and tunnels covered in web and sticky, disgusting goo. Reasonably powerful systems will have the opportunity to enable motion blur, something that was never before a part a Source Engine game. The physics aspect of the game seems to have also slightly increased in quality, although this is something that is difficult to quantify.

Overall Half-Life 2: Episode Two is a solid game and a must-have for any fan of Half-Life or just about any person who can appreciate a good-looking and fast-paced shooter. I was unable to find any bugs or issues that I could complain about, and as such my experience with EP2 is overwhelmingly positive. I enjoyed it more than any game in recent memory and much more so than all the Half-Life games that came before it. It is just that much fun!

"The unarmed man is not just defenseless - he is also contemptible." - Nicollo Machiavelli