HL2 Episode 2

[Samwise]

I think a week from release is reasonable.  If you haven't finished it by then you must not care that much.

[eldaec]

When can we spoiler this up?  Not that there is a whole lot to talk about.

Nothing stopping you putting up a postgame thread straightaway.

[Falconeer]

Just finished Episode 2. Great, good gameplay and good way of enhancing the story. Loved the ending....

BUT

after Portal that's not even nearly enough. All games now look shallow, uninspired and childish.
In a way, I am afraid Portal killed videogames for me. It literally came from the shadows and backstabbed my hobby.

[Fabricated]

I'm towards the end...I think. Strider Buster training.

It'd be nice if this shit ended on an upnote for once. HL1 doesn't count since Valve ended it in a way that it would be sort of okay if they didn't get to continue it, HL2 was a nothing/downer, Episode One wasn't terribly upbeat either, and so far Ep2 is screaming in my face that they're gonna kill one or more main characters because it looks like some of them may actually be able to answer what the fuck is going on behind the scenes.

[rattran]

It really doesn't matter who they kill if you don't give a rat's ass about any of the characters.

I think in Ep 3 they should have Alex get crushed by the Weighted Companion Cube. In the first scene.

[Miasma]

I think in Ep 3 they should have Alex get crushed by the Weighted Companion Cube. In the first scene.

If that stupid bitch would just build a hundred Dogs and give each of them one of her magic wands which destroy all combine locks/computers we'd have won this damn war already!

[schild]

I'm going to have an article by tomorrow night up that absolutely spoils both Portal and Ep 2 totally and completely.

So, Miasma, tomorrow.

[Cory Jacobs]

LIES!

das iz tomorrow and zee article iz still not delivered! schild u iz an article racist.

[schild]

LIES!

das iz tomorrow and zee article iz still not delivered! schild u iz an article racist.

Night. Learn to read.

(which is any time between 7pm and 6:30am, ARIZONA TIME, since the sun isn't up yet)

[Cory Jacobs]

...... (grumble, grumble, grumble)..... you won't be so smug after a weighted companion cube to the face...

[ahoythematey]

I enjoyed episode 2 a ton, EXCEPT for the final strider fight.  I don't mind the hunter cockblocking much, since I figured out I could run them over, but I do mind the fucking useless bombs not sticking when thrown onto the strider legs, and I do mind the fact that my I keep having major sound stuttering issues with pretty much all of Orange Box.  Episode 2 owes me a new computer desk because of this, and I only wish I was kidding.

My hand really hurts now, time to find some ice.

[LK]

I thought the ending was shit and pointless.  It happened because they wanted it to happen from a story standpoint rather than from any logical standpoint.

But I suppose I should have seen it coming when my vision blurred when closing the missile silo.  At least, all the build-up to it which was screaming "Yeah, time to close this arc."

[Sky]

My hand really hurts now, time to find some ice.

And perhaps a therapist!

[lesion]

today I received a response to my strider fight complaint e-mail in the form of helpful after-the-fact advice. it is too bad that it did not arrive in time to save Mr. Desk:

Thanks for taking the time to write to us!
 
Here are some tips for making it through the strider battle:
 
1) kill the hunters before you try to "Magnusson" the strider they are
protecting
2) kill the hunters by running them over in the car, or throwing two
logs at them, or two RPG rockets, or one shot from the AR2 alt fire.
3) keep the car with you at all times!
4) replenish your health and armour as frequently as you can
 
I'll suggest lasers at the next EP3 meeting
 
Dario

emphasis mine. I have infiltrated Valve at the highest levels.

[Ookii]

You complained it was too hard to beat?

[lesion]

I complained that it wasn't fun, sort of, and also asked for a laser.

[LK]

If you're trying to save all the buildings, yeah, it's rough.  But otherwise I found it to be fun and a definite change of pace from normal Half-Life gameplay.

[Furiously]

My hand really hurts now, time to find some ice.

You complained it was too hard to beat?

WHAT IS THIS GAME??

[Ookii]

I complained that it wasn't fun, sort of, and also asked for a laser.

I don't understand.

Have you done this for other games?

[Fabricated]

I have no idea how you're supposed to save the sawmill because the second strider that appears blows it up no less than 5 seconds after it appears.

The ending was horseshit. Like Deus Ex Machina in reverse. I don't understand how to save all the buildings either because the main 2 you use after the Sawmill become nearly impossible to defend at the end because the striders hunch over and RUN towards them. Also, the game makes hunter fletchettes magically find your strider buster. Running hunters over is a great solution until you notice the car controls like dog shit with wheels.

[LK]

You have to be ready for that second Strider.  Letting the first one get close, turning around and grabbing the sticky bomb and firing it as right before the Strider gets in position so you can blow it up as soon as it lands will save the Sawmill.  There's only one other Strider (the next one that comes from the Cranes) that is a fast-moving bitch who you need to deal with before you take the slower ones, even if the slower ones show up first.

So yeah, it's possible, you just have to plan accordingly and be as psychic as you can be with a Quicksave system.

[Samwise]

Also, the game makes hunter fletchettes magically find your strider buster.

That's the part of that sequence I really hated.  I could deal with them shooting at me while I deal with the strider, but the fact that their mere presence appeared to mysteriously nullify my main weapon was obnoxious.  It took me a while to even get that they were 'shooting' the sticky footballs, since most of the time it just looked like the football was fizzling in midair or while attached to the strider for no apparent reason.  Also, I would have thought that if they shot a football that was already attached to the strider it would blow the strider up rather than harmlessly defusing the football.   

[lesion]

I don't understand.

Mr. Newell asks for comments about Valve's games and I provided one. while I love these games from the depths of my testicles, that section of Episode 2 bothered me for a number of reasons (mainly that hunters are dickhounds, as is being outlined here).

[ahoythematey]

It wasn't really so much the difficulty of that area that pissed me off as much as the fact that every so often the game would stutter like crazy because of the sound being all fucked up or something and in the heat of the moment I slammed my fist into the desk and it broke because it's shitty particle board.  It's not like I went into some crazy Hulk-Smash mode, just more like the PC version of a broken controller.

Hmm, maybe I have issues...

[Prospero]

Here's a little tribute to you gnome freaks.

http://www.kfj.f2s.com/index.php/2007-10-15-gnome-quest

[Fabricated]

I played Episode 2 again for fun since the combat is great, and I'd just like to say that Valve really fails at foreshadowing.

Eli Vance: Hey, so I totally know everything about what's going on. You see, you know the G-man right? Yeah, of course you do. Anyway, the deal with him and his involvement in Black Mesa, the Combine, and the Borealis are~

Alyx: HAY GUYZ IM HERE TO INTERRUPT THIS CONVERSATION SUP

Eli Vance: Ah well. I'll just explain this all to you later when I will totally still be alive. Go kill some striders. *DIES*

Gordon: ...

[Sky]

I complained that it wasn't fun, sort of, and also asked for a laser.

So yeah, it's possible, you just have to plan accordingly and be as psychic as you can be with a Quicksave system.

So...it's not fun.

[schild]

I never used the quicksave system. And it was fun. It just wasn't Portal.

[Teleku]

Episode 2 had some issues with stuff dragging out, but overall, I thought it was still fun.  I was a bit let down by the fact that the building destruction stuff only happened at the very end, and in a very scripted way.  When I was watching dev stuff about how they were developing realistic building destruction, I had hoped they meant that they would actually put it throughout the game, and buildings could get destroyed as you/combine blow the hell out of each other. 

Ah well, I replayed HL2 recently and realized I had forgotten how awesome of a game it was.  Really enjoyed it, and my experience was enhanced by the fact I did it right as Orange box came out, so I immediately jumped to episodes 1 and 2 (never played 1 either).  I guess if I had actually had to wait for 1 and 2 as long as they took, I would be a little more jaded to.  Whole franchise is great though.

[Azazel]

I decided to play through HL2 again with the Orange Box coming up, and held off buying Ep1 til Ep2 came out. So now I've finished HL2, and I'm playing through Ep1. Let me just say that the first hour or two of Ep1 is the most fucking tedious and boring FPS I've ever forced myself to sit through. I'm (probably) close to whatever the fuck I have to do to that fucking reactor. I want to throw Alyx into a deep, deep pit. And Gordon. And the fucking grav gun as well. I hope it gets better.

Yes, I know this is the EP2 thread, but the Ep1 thread is no doubt lost to the dust of ages. I'll go through Ep2 next. I hope it doesnt start with 2 hours of suckitude like Ep1 has.

[Fabricated]

Episode 2 is pretty much leagues ahead of Episode One, which felt like a mediocre fanmade level.

[schild]

Lost Coast was more inspired than Episode 1.

[Samwise]

When Ep1 came out I thought it was one of the best FPS experiences I'd ever had; conversely, I thought Ep2 was a bit meh.  But that might be because Ep1 came after a dry spell, whereas when I played Ep2 it was in between bouts of Portal, which is going to make anything else look bad.  I may need to install Ep1 and see if it's as good as I remember.

[Ookii]

I like 'em both, I just like Ep 2 a bit more.  And I LOVED the ending!

[Teleku]

I enjoyed Episode 1 as well.  The whole feeling of trying to escape from the completely bombed out city while the tower is melting down was pretty awesome.  The way combine kept bursting through doors and repelling down from roofs added great effect.  Also, the zombines were a cool touch.