Jackskeleton

http://www.eurogamer.net/content/ss_half-life2_pc


Wow. The game looks pretty damn crazy if you ask me. I wonder if there will be an updated CS surge after this?

Trigger

Looks badass... In my top 5 most anticipated games... along with STALKER, Doom 3, Duke Nukem Forever, and Deus Ex 2... it actually looks alot like STALKER.

RoQuEr

I really like the way all the textures look gritty. Some games lose realism points by making everything look polished and smooth.

CharlesC

Is there any word on the story yet? Some of the locales make it look like they are in some kind of industrial factory or something. I'm guessing that they will be getting out of Black Mesa this time.

Head crabs! Man I really do hope this is coming out this year like all the rumors say.

Trigger

Valve did an excellent job of keeping secrets... They didn't release tidbits after tidbits like 3drealms only to say "when it's done" and take Forever to finish the game. They just secretly worked on the game until it was close to completion and then unleashed it all at once. Hell, many people thought Valve wasn't even working on HL2 or anything at all.

Jackskeleton

Now the real question is if they are even working on TFC2?

trigun

I remember reading a quote from a 3D Realms employee WAY back when that basically said "Half Life is cool but DNF kicks its ass".

dgc

I hope so. TFC is one of my all time favorite mods. So much so, I used to belong to a clan. Many hours of "free" gaming pleasure.

mtucker

I really like the fact that they were able to keep things under wraps for so long. I think I'm going to try to avoid reading any of the press/impressions of the game until I am able to play it for myself.

As far as TFC2 and CS2, I'm half expecting to release those two with the HL2 perhaps.

tha_dvd_man

I wouldn't count on it. If TF2 would sell on its own...which it would...why would they pack it in with another game that would also sell incredibly well on its own?

Jackskeleton

http://money.cnn.com/2003/04/23/comm...ming/index.htm

cnn article about it with new pics..

ClarkKentKY

Just for Synergy.. if there is such a thing. I think the release of all 3 at the same time, even as seperate purchases, would raise the hype a little bit. I know i'd buy all three. Plus it would act as an excuse for them to finally get TF2 released...

I'm hoping for the release of all 3 at the same time, but i know its not going to happen.

Trigger

Jackskeleton

this should make trigger drool some more.

http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_0.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_1.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_2.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_3.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_4.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_5.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_6.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_7.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_8.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...51095942_9.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...1095942_10.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...1095942_11.jpg
http://www.gamer.nl/images/content/C...1095942_12.jpg

ClarkKentKY

Those pics look incredible. Damnit. I was really hoping i could coast through the next year without upgrading.

Trigger

Broncos5121

PC only?

SCSIMan

Jackskeleton

Yup PC only, for the time being, then again do you know any system that could even dream of running this game?

trigun

I heard it will be ported to PS2, but all character models will be reduced to stick figures to keep the framerates up. The sky texture will require all of the PS2's memory, but will look killer.

BigPete

What engine are they running? Modified Unreal, Unreal Warfare, Quake 3+, Lithtech, other?

tha_dvd_man

What is that supposed to mean? It looks amazing, but nothing some of the best looking Xbox games aren't doing. The character models don't look any better than Halo 2 models (check out the marines in the OXM preview). The environments don't look like anything out of the realm of what's possible on the Xbox. The polygon count doesn't look staggeringly high. The lighting system looks like it won't even be as advanced as Halo 2's. Hell, according to that big magazine preview the engine is scalable to run on some relatively old PC systems. Even if a couple minor downgrades were required for a port, to say there are no systems that could "dream" of running this game is pretty ridiculous.

The game looks amazing, but let's not kid ourselves here. I wouldn't be surprised to see it announced for Xbox at E3. Ed Fries did say in the interview in the last OXM that Valve is a major partner with MS this year.

Brand new. They started working on it, get this.....right after Half-Life shipped.

Fripp

"Yup PC only, for the time being, then again do you know any system that could even dream of running this game?"

Um, sure…

“Rather than aim of DOOM III-Level specs in order to guarantee Doom III-Level “oh-my-god” visuals, the plan is for it to run on a Pentium 700 with a DX6-class videocard.”

Now, no one can argue that the current consoles would be able to present the game’s graphics to their fullest, I would think that the game could be ported to the XBOX, a dedicated gaming system that has GeForce 3 (or GF 3.5 or GF 4, depending on who you ask) level graphics could certainly best a low end PC with a DX6 videocard, right?

Regardless, I will be picking this one up and probably upgrading the videocard in September! Though I will still fantasize that I can play it with an Xbox controller on my 50in HDTV Dolby 5.1… Ah, that sound must be the screams of the PC gaming elite yelling BLASPHEMY! Yeah, I’m one of those lamers that prefers console gaming. Never could get the hang of the mouse/keyboard thing.

Fripp

Oh, forgot to mention:

Thanks for the great article scans Jack! Good reading!

gr8fuldave

This is gonna sound really silly, but how is the first Half Life? I bought it to play Counter-Strike, Team Fortress, and Deathmatch Classic and have never even touched the Half-Life portion of it.

Trigger

That's pretty amazing that you haven't touched it. It's one of the best single-player FPS games ever made. It's incredibly immersive and intense. Some people find the third act kinda lame, but most people love this game. Play it before HL2 hits shelves.