Is it Just me or is the Half Life Series the Least well known but popular games

[garagesaleking!!]

This is just something that has always puzzled me, it seems to me that half life is probably, if not the highest selling, and best game series around that has the lowest recognization among people.

I cant believe how many people dont know what half life is or have never heard of it. It was the kind of game that i assumed everyone might not like like, but at least had heard of.

And for the people who do like half life, it seems like there is a battle between halo fans, and half life fans.

Am i just crazy or has anyone else ever noticed this?

[Ed Oscuro]

In my experience, everybody seems to know about HL. On campus I can't recall having a discussion with anybody who knew what Halo was but not HL. It could be that people who didn't know HL were being quiet, though; I think HL fans tend to be more outspoken about their love of the series :D

[roushimsx]

I think Half Life 1 and 2 are such awesome sellers because of Counter Strike & Counter Strike Source more than anything (what with the massive online communities they have), but god damn if they are among my favorite games ever.

...until the Xen levels in the first game. Actually, until the level right before the Xen levels in the first game. Ugh.

But yea, whenever I come across someone at work that loves first person shooters but has never seen/played Half Life 2 (which is the case for a lot of people that mainly only played Goldeneye and Halo), I offer to lend them one of my copies (since I've bought each console release). Sometimes they bite and sometimes they decide to just drop the $20 on Orange Box. They've never been disappointed either way and it's always fun to discuss the game with them as they play through it for the first time and draw comparisons to other games that they love (like Halo 3).

I wish I could wipe my memory of Half Life 2 / Episode 1 / Episode 2 / Portal and play through them all over again for the first time. Episode 3 can't come out soon enough. How the hell is Half Life 2 4 1/2 years old already?

[Kitsune Sniper]

I think Half Life 1 and 2 are such awesome sellers because of Counter Strike & Counter Strike Source more than anything (what with the massive online communities they have), but god damn if they are among my favorite games ever.

Er. What? No, really, what?

I've noticed the CS players rarely touch or even mention the Half-Life games. It's like they're in their own pocket universe (and they can STAY there.)

[BHvrd]

I play Unreal and Half Life and used to tear up Quake. I'm into action shooters, don't care much for tactical shooters like Ghost Recon or half ass tactical/action shooters like Call of Duty....yes, I went there. :D

[Diosoth]

Half-Life was pretty much the only game to do something noteworthy with the Quake II engine(all iD could do was make tech-castle maps full of gray and brown walls). Even Doom 3's basic plot stole from Half Life.Then we got Source, which was a worthwhile engine, as opposed to the bug-filled Unreal engine that Epic keeps making.

Valve also supported the fan community, unlike companies that spit on and stifle their fans(Epic, Square). They took things such as Counterstrike and Team Fortress and nurtured them into legit products.

[NayusDante]

I play Unreal and Half Life and used to tear up Quake. I'm into action shooters, don't care much for tactical shooters like Ghost Recon or half ass tactical/action shooters like Call of Duty....yes, I went there. :D

That's the same boat that I'm in. I started playing Quake II at the age of 8, Unreal Tournament at 12, and Half-Life at 16. (I'm 20 now, so I guess it's time for a new shooter series) Aside from these series, I haven't had any love for the FPS genre. An FPS should be all about the action, and only about the story if it can integrate it well. I'm just now at the point where I play Counter-Strike Source on random servers without friends asking me to play, but I have a strong dislike for tactical shooters of any sort. To me, a tactical shooter gets everything wrong in terms of what a shooter should be.

From what I've seen, Half-Life is indeed the underdog in terms of mainstream recognition. Half-Life was a success, but Quake III/UT were bigger for their multiplayer focus at that pivotal time. Half-Life 2 was anticipated by fans of Half-Life, not so much the general shooter community, which seemed focused on Halo 2 and tactical stuff. According to Xfire, CSS is played much more than HL2, and the case is similar with Team Fortress 2. Coincidentally, HL2 was primarily bundled with these games, with its solitary release being a rerelease for retail and the Steam store release. More people recognize the things that came from Half-Life than Half-Life itself.

With the action elements of the series being top-notch (realistic, yet fun and frantic), the story may turn people off. In fact, how many Half-Life fans actually paid attention to the story? When you're used to shooters where you're a space marine kicking ass, a story about a theoretical physicist isn't the easiest thing to relate to. Gordon Freeman isn't a badass, he's a nerd, but he somehow knows how to use a gun rather well. The humor element is a bit alien to the FPS genre, and the series is absolutely full of it. While HL1 was limited in terms of art style, HL2 has a distinct look that differs from the bland realism of other shooters.

The way I see it, Half-Life has achieved success not for its story and content, but rather, for its technical features. For the average gamer, the selling points are the physics, the visual quality, etc. For the fans, it's the story. A lot of things like the 8-hour war, the Combine, Dr. Breen's role in everything, and how it all ties together might go over the heads of an average gamer. It's a nerd's shooter, and I'm surprised (and glad) that it's made it as far as it has.

As for Episode 3, I'm wondering if it's going to be a completely new game. As hard as it is for me to say this, the Source engine is beginning to look and feel dated. When they're having difficulties rolling it onto 64-bit Windows, it's time to start thinking about the next iteration of their platform. I'd like to see Ep3 as a standalone game, not a 5-6 hour story expansion to HL2.

However, this gets back to the topic. For a series that's sold bundled with other games, you have to wonder about commercial viability. They may be on to this, since they've announced that they're looking for a voice actor to play Cave Johnson, CEO of Aperture Science. While everyone jumped to the conclusion of "Portal 2!," I'm almost certain that it's for Half-Life. As anyone who's played Ep2 knows, Ep3 has the almost unavoidable opportunity to tie Portal into the Half-Life timeline. If CJ is in Ep3, that means that either he's still sane and Portal is distant future, or he's come out of hiding and Portal is before HL2. At any rate, it means that he's not the G-Man. If HL2:Ep3 and Portal 2 are the same product, that's two fanbases ready to purchase.

[The 1 2 P]

Half-Life 2 was anticipated by fans of Half-Life, not so much the general shooter community, which seemed focused on Halo 2.

I suppose the midnight launch and huge marketing campaign(slurpee cups, toys, fake websites and a ton of other merchandise) helped Halo 2(and 3) alot. But you are correct, lots of die hard pc fans were waiting for Half-Life 2 to drop, just like they are now waiting for the third game.

The OP is correct. While I can go up to 10 random people and ask them about Halo, atleast 7 will have heard of it. But Half Life? I'll be lucky if one of the ten have. Although the majority of casual gamers haven't heard of it, I'm surprised at how many shooter fans haven't heard of it either. My guess would be because it's mainly a pc series, although that will now change.

I have the PS2 version of HL1 and the Xbox and 360 versions of HL2. From the little I've played of HL2 I'm not super impressed but I'm only about 20% thru the game. Regardless of how HL's popularity compares to other fps games, it's still a great series that sells extremely well and is also constantly ranked as one of the top pc games of all time.

[skaar]

We live in an era where most people who buy games would describe Half-Life - if footage was shown to them - as a "Halo-type" game.

Tragic, really.

[NayusDante]

We live in an era where most people who buy games would describe Half-Life - if footage was shown to them - as a "Halo-type" game.

Tragic, really.

If this is true, then the majority of the populace has godawful visual perception. Not sure how anyone could mistake Combine and headcrab-zombies for those Metroid space pirate rip-offs from Halo.

But even sadder is that Halo has become the flagship "action" shooter. This is what happens when people jump in late in the game, without being exposed to Doom, Quake, etc. I doubt that Quake Live will educate the masses to the necessary degree, since it's really just for Quake fans. Also, it doesn't seem like Duke Nukem is going to come back and revive the action-shooter anytime soon.

[roushimsx]

I've noticed the CS players rarely touch or even mention the Half-Life games. It's like they're in their own pocket universe (and they can STAY there.)
Considering Counter Strike was a Half Life mod, you pretty much had to buy HL to play it (until they did a retail release, but even then they bundled that with the main game in some compilations). Likewise, if you wanted Counter Strike Source, you bought Half Life 2 since CSS was the multiplayer mode of the game at the time (until Episode 2 came out with TF2).

HL2DM is pretty rad, but it mostly only gets love on the LAN play. Killing friends with toilets rocks.

edit - since when were Call of Duty or Medal of Honor remotely considered tactical shooters? They're not run and guns, but they don't even try to fall into the same category as stuff like Operation Flashpoint, Rainbow Six or SWAT 3/4. They're good at what they do and most of them are pretty ok (with some being hella good).

[Daltone]

That's a sad thing to notice indeed. When you look at the two big FPS releases of late 2004, Halo 2 and Half Life 2, the gulf in quality becomes apparent. Ok, so the hovercraft sections of HL2 went on a bit longer than anyone would have liked, but side-by-side it makes Halo 2 look like the bland, rushed abortion that it is.

[heybtbm]

This is just something that has always puzzled me, it seems to me that half life is probably, if not the highest selling, and best game series around that has the lowest recognization among people.

I cant believe how many people dont know what half life is or have never heard of it. It was the kind of game that i assumed everyone might not like like, but at least had heard of.

And for the people who do like half life, it seems like there is a battle between halo fans, and half life fans.

Am i just crazy or has anyone else ever noticed this?

To answer your question: It's just you.

I realize there are some people that want to label Half-Life as some underground, hip, counter culture FPS...but that's just not reality. Half-Life was hyped to no end back in the day as was every expansion and even more so with HL2.

HL was a system killing FPS at the time (as in you HAD to upgrade your machine). It was 1998's version of Crysis. All PC FPS fans were chomping at the bit to play this game. That was the reality of the time.

I understand people love to take their shots at the Halo games and foolishly assume because something sells millions of copies, it's automatically "bad". It's a shame. You see this silly attitude with music and movies all the time. Kotaku had an interesting article about this exact subject a year or two ago. It somehow mostly affects teens and 20-somethings. Imagine that.

In short: Half-Life is well known and respected by millions of FPS gamers.

[Kitsune Sniper]

I understand people love to take their shots at the Halo games and foolishly assume because something sells millions of copies, it's automatically "bad". It's a shame. You see this silly attitude with music and movies all the time. Kotaku had an interesting article about this exact subject a year or two ago. It somehow mostly affects teens and 20-somethings. Imagine that.

It's not that some of us think Halo is "bad". It's more how the Halo fanboys think of everything else as "bad". That's annoying.

As a guy who'll play pretty much any FPS that doesn't make me feel ill (motion sickness), that kind of attitude pisses me off and only makes me hate Halo.

[The 1 2 P]

It's not that some of us think Halo is "bad". It's more how the Halo fanboys think of everything else as "bad". That's annoying.

I agree but this can be said about many different games(for example, FF fans thinking every other rpg series isn't as good). Halo is my favorite fps series but I don't go around saying other fps games suck just because they don't have the "Halo" title. What annoys me is the constant media and fanboy labeling of the lastest "Halo killer". That shit is super annoying, although we haven't heard it that much since Killzone 1 failed to live up to the moniker.


As a guy who'll play pretty much any FPS that doesn't make me feel ill (motion sickness)

Same here. I'll play any fps I can get my hands on. However, since you brought it up, Star Wars: Dark Forces(PS1), Quake 2(PS1), Doom 3(Xbox) and Darkwatch(Xbox) have all given me motion sickness at least once. Luckily I still finished them but I had to limit how many times I sprinted thru levels.

[jahvybe]

It's not that some of us think Halo is "bad". It's more how the Halo fanboys think of everything else as "bad". That's annoying.

I totally agree with this. I get this a lot when I try to introduce people that like Halo to Time Splitters. I have heard so many Halo fanboys say- "Time Splitters? Oh, I heard that people that suck at Halo like that game."

[Kitsune Sniper]

I totally agree with this. I get this a lot when I try to introduce people that like Halo to Time Splitters. I have heard so many Halo fanboys say- "Time Splitters? Oh, I heard that people that suck at Halo like that game."

I actually wanted to like the Time Splitters series sooooooooooo much... but I can't play FPS games with a console pad. It's ridiculous! I've been playing FPS for like seven years and I can't get used to using a DPad and the analog sticks at all. It's like driving. It just doesn't work in my head.

I wish they were out on PC. :(

[jahvybe]

I actually wanted to like the Time Splitters series sooooooooooo much... but I can't play FPS games with a console pad. It's ridiculous! I've been playing FPS for like seven years and I can't get used to using a DPad and the analog sticks at all. It's like driving. It just doesn't work in my head.

I wish they were out on PC. :(

Yeah, I have a friend that I can never get to play console games because of this. I actually have never played a fps on a pc.

[garagesaleking!!]

dark watch and time splitters are both awesome games, i consider myself a halo fanboy but i dont hate things that arent halo, i have actually gotten sick of playing halo.

[Daltone]

I actually have never played a fps on a pc.

If you have an older computer try this (ftp://ftp.idsoftware.com/idstuff/doom/doom19s.zip) alternatively you could always give Gordon a whirl. (http://www.gamershell.com/download_7886.shtml)

Problem solved.

[roushimsx]

Darkwatch was pretty ok. It was a B game that took more than a few inspirations from Halo, but the so-bad-it's-good story and nice graphics really went well with the run and gun gameplay. I'd take it over Halo 2 any day of the week, but Halo 3 really surprised the hell out of me. Like, I'm not crazy about the weapons in the series, but that was one fun game.

Never liked Timesplitters 1 or 2, and I fucking tried, man. I tried hard. Timesplitters 2 was just awful. The single player was just so painfully drawn out by the shitty checkpoint design and it hit rock bottom in the Tokyo level. The control was pretty crap, too. Apparently 3 is supposed to be the bee's knees, but everyone said that about 1...hrml...I'll give it a shot one of these days.

You know what B game was way more fun than you'd think? Fucking Gore: Ultimate Soldier (http://www.4drulers.com/gore/index.php). Approach it like you would any Epic or Apogee shareware game from the mid-90s (though it was years late to THAT boat). It's a pretty fun run and gun FPS with a few neat ideas and a relatively low-tech presentation, but it works out well for it and the ending (both in style and because of its writing) will totally bring back memories of the glory days of run and gun first person shooters (mid-late 90s). I hesitate to cite any comparisons because I'd hate to ruin it, but needless to say, if you had fun shooting shit in the 90s, you'll have fun with Gore. Oh, and it's free now!

Shame the rest of 4D Rulers' work isn't nearly as good :(

[Daltone]

You know what B game was way more fun than you'd think? Fucking Gore: Ultimate Soldier (http://www.4drulers.com/gore/index.php).

Oh, and it's free now!



That's a good find!

[NayusDante]

Downloading now. I like the sound of that "items explode" mechanic.

[kupomogli]

I'm not even a FPS fan and I know of Half-Life. I don't think it's uncommon as alot of people think. If you didn't start gaming until the 2000's or later, then you'll know of Half-Life and most likely think it's the best "single player" FPS title.

Like other games such as Myst, Shadow of the Colossus, Out of this World, etc, Half-Life is pretty much an art form of its own genre. It's done alot the genre has never experienced previously and did all of it well. It's not the end all of FPS titles, but it's a title all FPS fans should experience as even to this day it's one of the better FPS titles.

[Spartacus]

I haven't played a fps on the PC since Duke Nukem. And even then I used a joystick to play through the game. A joystick is not a very good way to play fps games, but it allowed me to avoid using a keyboard. I guess a mouse is probably an ideal aiming device, it's smooth, it's fast and there's nothing attempting to self-center and push off the aim. But using a keyboard for movement feels awkward, unnatural and frankly it hurts my hand holding it in a claw position for any length of time. I don't know people can do it!
I've never gotten motion sickness playing a game, but HL1 induced a sense of vertigo while leaping from boulders in space and HL2 pulled it off too on the bridge. To have a video game give me a feeling of a fear of heights just impressed the Hell out of me and it's what I'll always remember about Half Life.
Halo 1 was so much fun I actually replayed the game over immediately after I finished the game. Something I almost never do. But Halo 2 left a terrible impression with me. I'm playing a shooter to shoot, not to cloak and run around with a sword in my hand! Give me a break! And where's the fracking flood!!! I LOVED those things!
Black impressed me with the sense of realism the weapons provided. Soldier of Fortune has fantastic weapons damage modeling. But all of the above left no doubt that I was being funneled. Even in the wide spots I recognized I was on a short leash as to where I could go. I guess that's why I appreciated the open nature of Mercenaries. A game hampered with a T rating. I mean if I enjoy shooting, cartoon violence or not, for the love of God at least allow me to inflict gory damage and dismemberment.

[The 1 2 P]

We live in an era where most people who buy games would describe Half-Life - if footage was shown to them - as a "Halo-type" game.

The reason for this is because people tend to favor the games they play first, especially if that first experience is a really good one. A good example would be Goldeneye 64. The majority of people who like that game played it long before Halo or Half Life even existed. For me, it was the opposite. I played Halo and Halo 2 in 2004. Then, three years later I finally played Goldeneye 64. As you can imagine, I was not very impressed. The controls are horrible(I blame the N64 controller), graphics dated(understandably) and I wasn't nearly as engrossed with the storyline as I have been with other fps games. I have to admit that I never got to try the 4 player multiplayer part of the game, but judging by the control sceme I don't think I would have enjoyed that very much either.

This is why I wish Nintendo didn't cock block Microsoft last year when they were going to rerelease Goldeneye 64 on XBLA. That game with updated graphics and a modern controller setup could have been epic. Oh well.