I have just finished the Half-Life series. Prompted by the 20th anniversary of HL2, I decided to play HL1 (1997), then HL2 (2004), and both episodes. I'm currently playing through Black Mesa and it's very enjoyable so far, it's like they took everything from HL1 and removed the annoying parts, I'm excited to see what more changes they decided to make, and what other references are present.
HL1 aged badly imo, but I recognize the technical achievement that it was at the time it was released. It's full of good ideas, and I'm amazed by what they've accomplished.
HL2 didn't feel like a it has a technical leap as big as its predecessor, but the gameplay ideas in there feel more modern than most game 20 years later. The game has some long stretches that were a bit annoying but the whole journey felt worth it. During the last chapter where you get the upgraded gravity gun, I started seeing the seeds of Portal games, more so in Episode 1, it was like I suddenly understood Valve as game devs and their philosophy. Episode 2 was the most fun I had and despite being short it felt like a full fledged campaign.
Alyx was fun to watch on youtube π€‘
I'm really happy that I completed the games and can put them down (compared to grinding endlessly in live service games), I'm really glad that I now understand why the series is praised, why people are aching for the third Episode, why Valve backed themselves into a corner because of their technical ambitions.
But now, I want more of this, more of those one of a kind experiences that push the genre forward. More gameplay ideas. I'll probably replay the Portal games, but what other games would you recommend?
Some times, Half Life reminded me of more modern immersive sims I played before (Dishonored, Prey, I'll probably go back to them at some point), maybe Deux Ex, System Shock should be on my list?
Deus Ex and System Shock should definitely be on your list, just skip Deus Ex: Invisible War.
Also, as I don't see them listed, did you check out Blue Shift and Opposing Forces? They're 2 Half-Life expansions made by Gearbox, back in the day, that show the events of HL1 from different points of view.
Invisible War is fine. It doesnβt live up to the orginal but itβs still a good game.
Then add Thief 1&2 to the list so that you really get where those two came from. They both still hold up surprisingly well due to fan support.
I can't believe I forgot the Thief games! Absolute classics. I need to get around to replaying them sometime soon.
Iβd love to see a System Shock remake type project for them. Itβs not as necessary due to NewDark but would still be nice.
Hey I liked invisible war :/
Thanks! I knew of their existence but didn't know if they were worth it, I think I'll play them a bit later because at some point I was really struggling with the pacing of HL1
The System Shock remake was amazing, definitely give it a shot!
there is an ongoing project to remake them for black mesa, so if you wait you'll probably get a better experience.
I've noticed that no one has mentioned Decay yet. It's a two player coop expansion campaign also made by Gearbox for the Half Life 1 release for PS2. There's a PC port with a singleplayer mode.
Like others keep saying, check out the System Shock remake. It's fantastic.
But also with Black Mesa, another team is remaking Blue Shift within that game, and you can get it as a workshop addon for free. They actually just came out with the next level they've been working on a couple weeks ago. So far, it's pretty damn great imo.
Opposing Forces is the better of the two, but if you enjoyed the general story/feel of Half-Life, they're definitely worth at least giving a shot.