Half-life 2

There are two kinds of masterpieces in gaming. The first kind are games that innovate, providing an experience completely new and unique that will be copied for years to come. The second kind utilise existing ideas, then polish them so finely that we feel like we're playing something new, but we have the comfort of the familiar. Half-life 2 is the second kind of masterpiece. Valve have built the game around simple, solid shooter mechanics, but have designed the world and characters so cleverly that they feel real and important. We feel part of the world, partly because at no point do we leave Gordon Freeman's perspective, but also because the levels necessitate a high level of interaction; Half-life 2 is so much more than the loose selection of shoot-outs you'll find in modern military shooters. Most importantly, we as players are not spoon-fed unimportant information about the details of the setting: things are as they are, though the information is there for those who look for it.

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