I dont think anyone is really going to give 2 craps about Ep3 by the time its out, we all know deep down it's not going to answer any of the fundamental questions about the HL universe, like who g-man is, they need a way of continuing the brand onto it's next development cycle. And by the time its released the engine is going to look so old and dated it wont even have visuals going for it, the source engine is starting to look pretty dated already, by then we'll be seeing DX11 tech demos etc, lol
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HL2 Episode 3 not available till 2010
- Thread starter defiant007
- Start date
Agreed..Ep2 was showing its age when it came out.Episodic gaming only works if there is say ~3 months in between..Kinda like waiting a year and a half between Sopranos seasons..You lose interest and move on..
too many episodes just makes me wanna go meh. Ive watched all the first seasons for lost, prison break, heroes. And when they reached season 3, its gone... wtf. I dont think ill even watch it till it hits season 7 (oh please let em stop at season 5).
It's funny to sit here and listen to everyone say how meh HL2 was, yet right before it was released and all the videos were going around people were going nuts over how incredible it looked, especially for the time.
I don't know but it felt like the way they were panning out episode 2 it was leaning toward a heavier story line that the next game wouldnt be just an episode but HL3
either way I'm sure I'll buy it lol
I don't know but it felt like the way they were panning out episode 2 it was leaning toward a heavier story line that the next game wouldnt be just an episode but HL3
either way I'm sure I'll buy it lol
semisonic9
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/sigh. I had the same thought.
I'm buying the Orange Box in a week or so, for my new rig. Thanks for spoiling the surprise.
-S
The problem is...this is NOT Episodic Content. Episodic Content means "more content, less time" and that's not happening with Valve's "initiative".
I may have to replay it, but I was extremely dissapointed with the Ep1 visuals. I thought Ep 2 was better.
You missed my point. Although better, Episode 2 didn't have much visual difference from Episode 1. However, Episode 1 was extremely different than the original HL2, in terms of visuals.
It's not just the visuals. HL2 story and gameplay are just bleh.. by 2010 all 3 will be bleh because they know they can just release crap and sell it. I was a huge fan of half-life 1 because for it's time, it did everything so well. I was very excited about HL2 and then after playing it I was not amused with HL anymore because HL2 just ruined the whole thing. Non memorable levels/places, enemies, weapons, gameplay. It took everything HL1 did so well and just threw it into the trash.
You sure? I have the opposite impression myself. I got HL2 and played it all the way through twice. I loved it. However episode 1 came out and I never payed attention to it. When I pre-ordered the orange box it got me back into an HL2 mood so I played it and beat it a third time. When I got the Orange Box I played EP1 right away and basically felt like I was playing HL2 again. Nothing new visually from my perspective, with so-so gameplay that was just drastically too short. When I started EP2 however, from the very first scene I realized they had done "something" to the lighting and texture capabilities of the game. The visuals between EP1 and EP2 were pretty distinct for me. Realize I went from one to the other within HOURS of each other, so it was all very fresh for me to compare in my head. The lighting, textures and design of the world was much better IMO, the Antlion cave lighting was amazing. Just overall it seemed better. I dunno just my observation.
On topic though, EP3 in 2010 is epic fail. I may not bother buying an "episode" that is 2 years later than I would want it.
Episodic content works. However when you have no story hammered out or written prior to starting, on top of about 3 other games in production its hard to make a game in three months.
I am fine with waiting as long as the game is fun. I enjoyed HL2 - e1 and e2. Short for the wait yes, but enjoyable.
Who knows what will happen between now and then. They updated the engine for orange box. I could see them doing a minor update for e3 and making it more of a link to Hl3 built on a new engine.
If I compare the amount of time it would take me to hammer out a good story and a full game I am fine to wait a few years for quality content. Graphics are not everything, I like the feel and look to HL2 + eppies. If after e3 they dont get to work on HL3 + new engine then I might have some complaints but making a new engine for every game is not all that cost effective.
I am fine with waiting as long as the game is fun. I enjoyed HL2 - e1 and e2. Short for the wait yes, but enjoyable.
Who knows what will happen between now and then. They updated the engine for orange box. I could see them doing a minor update for e3 and making it more of a link to Hl3 built on a new engine.
If I compare the amount of time it would take me to hammer out a good story and a full game I am fine to wait a few years for quality content. Graphics are not everything, I like the feel and look to HL2 + eppies. If after e3 they dont get to work on HL3 + new engine then I might have some complaints but making a new engine for every game is not all that cost effective.
What you mean newer games on newer revised engines, running on newer, faster hardware, with more features, is better than the previous game?
Pshaw, surely thy jest?
mastercheeze
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The story is done. It's not hard to tell where EP3 is going to go if you've paid attention. I hope the delay will bear a 15-hour "episode" as its fruit.
Somnambulator
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you guys are crazy stupid. just read this full interview and STFU: http://games.kikizo.com/features/valve-doug-lombardi-left-4-dead-interview-p1.asp
i read too many erroneous posts to even respond. for starters:
1- Valve is releasing a non-Half-Life game next month
2- they admitted they didnt want to spend 6 years on the 3rd HL like they did with HL2.
3- HL3 will use a new, valve-created engine, possibly called Source2
4- look at any "Top 10 fav PC games" thread and youll see HL2 on damned near every list; probably near the top
5- their Episodic releases were really meant to be more like installments without any regularity. lombardi admits they should have called them something else.
6- every new Episode, and every new "other" game simultaneously released incorporated new Source updates. it's not like theyre not enhancing Source. sure it's old, but it's still pioneering many new GFX and lighting techniques.
i read too many erroneous posts to even respond. for starters:
1- Valve is releasing a non-Half-Life game next month
2- they admitted they didnt want to spend 6 years on the 3rd HL like they did with HL2.
3- HL3 will use a new, valve-created engine, possibly called Source2
4- look at any "Top 10 fav PC games" thread and youll see HL2 on damned near every list; probably near the top
5- their Episodic releases were really meant to be more like installments without any regularity. lombardi admits they should have called them something else.
6- every new Episode, and every new "other" game simultaneously released incorporated new Source updates. it's not like theyre not enhancing Source. sure it's old, but it's still pioneering many new GFX and lighting techniques.
Valve havn't pioneered anything since HL2's launch years ago now, gfx and lighting in all modern and upcoming source games is incredibly dated, and all their comments on how episodic gaming isn't working correctly is all PR spin to make them not look so foolish.
Holy shit. Now I don't think H-L2 was a generic FPS-cum-seesaw showcase that bored me almost to tears. IT'S IN SOME LISTS.
Top tip: there're probably some out there that rate Halo 2 as the best game of all time, or something. That doesn't make it any less shit.
That is all gravy, to be honest. Valve have gotten progressively better at overall pacing, varying up encounters, and improving the quality of the individual encounters themselves.
If you stripped away all that window dressing it would still be fun as hell to play.
Thats not my experience, as yahtzee sumarises this well in the orange box review, the old placing physics objects in radioactive waste puzzle, the make a see saw puzzle, the defend an area while you wait for an incredibly slow lift puzzle. (plus some of my own, like using turrets to defend areas, racing around speed tracks in vehicles)
Valve maintain a very high quality of game design but the episodes are very forumlaic now.
for the yahtzee vid goto www.escapistmagazine.com and check out the zero punctuation videos, theres an archive where you can find the orange box review.
Yeah, I saw his Orange Box review. I can't say I agree with him very often (even though Portal really is better than Jesus), plus his shtick has gotten really old at this point. His asinine review of Bionic Commando: Rearmed was the last time I watched him.
The main thing about Yahtzee is, you have to take him as he is and with a grain of salt. He puts a spin on things that is refreshing to hear compared to some reviews that you know are full of shit.
I enjoyed HL2. Sure it doesn't have water like Crysis but at the time a lot of what you could do interacting with the environment was pretty innovative. Although it did have a very static/linear path thru the game there was enough variance in the environments to keep me interested.
It was an easy game though, but there's a place for games like that where it's just the time spent getting thru it. I loved Bioshock and that was a pretty easy game too.
It was an easy game though, but there's a place for games like that where it's just the time spent getting thru it. I loved Bioshock and that was a pretty easy game too.
Droc
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I hope the added wait adds more quality. I was one of the few who were dissapointed with the whole HL2 run.
I didnt care for the HL story, never did it for me. Overall I found HL2 a tech demo that went to crap when u hit the airboat. EP2 felt the same. Portal was a tech demo, and TF2 was any other arena game with cartoonish visuals.
Not saying HL is bad, I just never bought into the fanboy-ism for HL.
I didnt care for the HL story, never did it for me. Overall I found HL2 a tech demo that went to crap when u hit the airboat. EP2 felt the same. Portal was a tech demo, and TF2 was any other arena game with cartoonish visuals.
Not saying HL is bad, I just never bought into the fanboy-ism for HL.
Injection of <3
Gawd
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Wow that is the dumbest shit I read all week. You might as well quit gaming now because there will never be a game that can possibly satisfy your ridiculous standards.
boxterduke
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If it is until 2010 then I really hope it is as long as HL2 and not short as expansions usually are.
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Episode 2 was epic. Meanwhile I'll be playing other games until Ep 3 comes out.
valve's losing people with this. I just don't care anymore. If they'd just have waited and done hl3, I might be interested.
/sigh. I had the same thought.
I'm buying the Orange Box in a week or so, for my new rig. Thanks for spoiling the surprise.
-S
I also just bought Orange Box, and just got to the base in EP2 before taking a break for the day and reading this thread... sigh.I had originally bought HL2 a few years back, before I realized it was Steam-linked. It was a decent game then, but many parts just drug on way too long (e.g. boat part) and it was way too cliched. I just got Orange Box for the 360 and tried my hand at it again. It still felt long and contrived, but still moderately fun. This was my first time playing EP1 and EP2 and I was immensely entertained by both. I even loved doing the Rocket Man achievement (not as hard as people complained). Playing through the games in series, one after another, you can see an evolution in the story telling and game play.
EP3 is the last, right? IMO, I'm sure they're building it up as much as can to sell as a full stand-alone title, since there's nothing else they can really bundle it with. At least, it had better be built up if sold as a stand-alone; I'd be pissed to pay any more than $10 for either EP1 or EP2 (got whole Orange Box for $25, so I'm happy). But, chances are, if I was willing to wait this long to play EP1 and EP2, EP3 would hold extremely little interest after another few years, enough so that it would be hard to justify buying it at release.
This is the last episode, but not the last of half-life.
I don't really mind the waiting.