The ending of ravenholm/ start of highway 17 is probably my favorite part of the game. It's the pinnacle of the gameplay complexity and setpiece design all with incredible ambience. If i had to choose i'd probably say highway 17 because the car is just too cool.
1:26 Point insertion 2:13 Red leter day 2:53 Route kanal 3:24 Water hazard 4:13 Black mesa east 5:30 We don't go to Ravenholm... 6:25 Highway 17 7:25 Sandtraps 8:20 Nova prospekt 9:06 Entaglement 10:16 Anticitizen one 10:54 Follow Freeman! 11:45 Our benefactors 12:43 Dark energy
I gotta go with Water Hazard, sorry I know most don’t like it but for me it’s different. I’ve gotten so used to the airboat sections I can easily finish the chapter.
Honestly same, I prefer water hazard more than highway 17 because of the set pieces and the floaty gameplay of the airboat that feel more fun than the car. Not to mention some locations I've never even knew existed that I just recently discovered and it's crazy that I find something like this in a decade old game which adds up to my personal view, but in conclusion it should've been slightly shortened.
i love water hazard, it's not my favourite, but it has very nice moments. i think i really like that orange colour palette, the battle with the helicopter, the industrial areas... the whole chapter has some reminiscence of hl2 beta. But my favourites are ravenholm and highway17, ravenholm is the pinnacle of gameplay, it's like they made a whole chapter to show the gravity gun and a real tutorial for that gun, but it's a masterpiece in terms of ambience, soundtrack, locations, SFX, new monsters... everything is 10/10. And Highway 17 is another one, but in terms of art direction. i think the bridge section is pure art. that melancholic ambient music, the sound of the trains, the sea, everything has a big impact on the mood of the whole game
Agreed honestly with most rankings, I do have slight changes S: We Don't Go to Ravenholm - Nova Prospekt A: Point Insertion - Highway 17 - Anticitizen One - Our Benefactors - Water Hazard B: Sandtraps - Follow Freeman C: Entanglement - Dark Energy - Route Canal D: Black Mesa East - A Red Letter Day Personally I just loved using the antlions in Nova Prospekt a ton, the reverse Aliens/Starship Troopers where you send the bugs against the marines I kind of just love the atmosphere and vibe of Water Hazard, also those pretty planar reflections shine really good, and it feels like a better mix of the combat of Route Canal with more variation, the boat handles pretty ok when you get the hang of it, though a couple of nasty tricky jumps. Route Canal would be higher if Valve would patch the game and fix the broken features they broke around 2009, most importantly Metrocops and other enemies flinched from every single shot from just a standard pistol or SMG in 2004-8, which made combat even with the dinky pistol feel satisfying when HL2 released, but currently enemies flinch only on the first shot and then if there's a long pause between shots. Also AI is dumber, and has less cool stuff, like Metrocops used to yell "Grenade!" and duck and cover their heads if grenades landed close to them, that was funny, doesn't work anymore in current HL2. Also, Manhacks and Scanners had a unique metal hit impact sound effect that Valve broke somewhere between 2009-13, current HL2 uses just universal same generic metal impact sound for them and all other metal materials. Other stuff too, they broke a bunch of shaders for many metallic materials (AR2 is a lot more matte in current HL2 than pre orange box HL2, the pipes and tunnels you crawl through had more metallic sheens to them, a bunch)-- The list goes on, HL2 has many broken/missing features, and it saddens me that HL2 fans don't raise up a ruckus to try and pressure Valve to patch them, Halo fans got 343i to patch Halo 1 & 2 to make them more like their original releases, and 343i didn't even originally break Halo 1&2! Why can't Half-Life fans do the same and push Valve to preserve more of the obviously broken things about their classics?
TBH, on my first playthrough of HL2, I just stepped on the sand, and I regretted it much later when I decided to to play though HL2 again and get all the achievements.
My personal favorite are "Anti-Citizen One" and "Follow Freeman". Mainly because: 1_ We get to have friendly allies following us the entire time. 2_ Others are fighting at every section in the city, so it's not just Gordon, but literary EVERYONE is involved. 3_ Chapters that takes place at the end of the game, bringing back the city residents and main characters for a final showdown, unlike other video games where these characters are just gone. 4_ We get to work with Barney for a while.
Nah, I hate those chapters, especially Follow Freeman. The pacing just goes completely out the window, and there's literally no downtime between battles.
@@wta1518 With how much downtime the game has leading up to these, I find to be both a relief and exhilerating. Fighting in the streets looks and feels amazing. They're easily the best part of the game.
Hate the citizens, mostly due their overly generic dialogue and broken AI, as well as the fact that they are just people compared to the much better companions in the Antlions. Anticitizen One is very boring to me and has poor pacing, making it the worst chapter in the game for me. Follow Freeman, however, is MUCH better. It is harder and you feel the stakes involved. Barney is a welcome addition, and I love taking down striders and the Combine Depository. I do agree with your statement regarding bringing back everyone for the final showdown in the city. It is a nice touch. I just wish that they didn't have to follow the player everywhere.
@@NCVideoLogs I guess many don't like ally companions. I personally never got bored of them around, I can simply add a bunch of them to follow me through the entire game with cheats. As for their AI, when it comes to shooting they have better aim accuracy than the combines in easy & normal difficulty. I also forgot to add another reason why those 2 chapters are my favorite, and its the fact how we went into a circle in HL2, going back to where it all started at the beginning of the game, making the experience unique.
Addendum: The part with the hunter chopper gun is really cool though but that's the only exciting part once you've played through the whole game multiple times.
@@gordonneverdies I mean, it is just 1 map before that (if I remember correctly), so it's not that weird. What's weirder in my opinion is the fact that the section in the Nova Prospekt yard is part of Sandtraps.
Chapters "overstaying their welcome" is probably my biggest complaint about half life 1 and 2. Just about everything in the games is good, but too much good can become exhausting. Surface Tension and Follow Freeman are the 2 main chapters that come to mind that have this issue.
Follow freeman is my favourite, absolute S tier, it feels like war. It is basicly the surface tension of half-life 2. This is also where you fight striders for the first time and it feels really intesne and it feels like the steaks are really high. I esspecially love the last 2 maps with the strider running through the tunnel and the map after where lg orbifold plays. You can really feel how much the resistance is pushing here and breaching the citadel at the end of the map feels really rewarding
My ranking: 1) Our Benefactors 2) Water Hazard 3) Highway 17 4) Dark Energy 5) Sandtraps 6) "We Don't Go to Ravenholm" 7) Nova Prospekt 8) Route Kanal 9) Entanglement 10) Point Insertion 11) Black Mesa East 12) A Red Letter Day 13) Anticitizen One 14) Follow Freeman.
entanglement was the point where i used to give up playing... until i went insane and brought one of the first friendly turrets along with me and even named it and brought to the end of the chapter, sadly i could not bring the turret into the teleporter to the next chapter :(
But my favorite has to be Follow Freeman or Nova Prospekt. Those two chapters are the part of the game where it feels like your getting closer and closer to the big part in the game (Citadel) where it gets to its peak! And Follow Freeman how it introduces the team function which was pretty cool.
I feel like I'm more interested in seeing how Episode 1 & 2 chapters compare with base HL2 moreso than how they compare within their individual episodes.
8:03 Ngl, Route Kanal and Hoghway 17 may have had less slog monents then Sandtraps but imho, if not for those 2 helicopters, I think the ending of sandtraps chapter actually makes up for the slog, after ALL this suffering, you get to use antlions like your minions and have fun for once and that was way more fun than route kanal where you just spam pistol on barrels or sumn or highway 17 with it's slog riding section. So kinda hard to grade all HL2 chapters when imho, HL1 was better gameplay, guns and map design vise. But that sandtraps final part did make up for the slog and make me keep going 😊
Each time I've played HL2 over the course of 20 years I've had a new favorite experience from each of the chapters. The game is a masterpiece, and I think it's the best game ever made. I think highway 17/Sandtraps are my favorite since I strongly look forward to those two every time I play.
Point Insertion- B, good atmosphere to start the game but not a lot happens. "A Red Letter Day..."- C, saved by the ending train sequences with the iconic music. Also, throwing the cacti is the lab is fun. Otherwise, pretty freaking boring. Route Kanal- A, always a fun chapter to play, but is dragged down by boring landscapes, the tedious see-saw puzzle, and the slightly longer than necessary length. Water Hazard- A, extremely iconic for me. I get why some people might not like it, but the fun dodging of the choppers mixed with the amazing storage unit base take-over and fun final boss make this level very iconic for me to play. Plus, the music is some of the best in all of Half-Life. Black Mesa East- D, do I need to explain why? "We Don't Go to Ravenholm..."- S, the most replayable chapter for me. Sawing zombies in half, Father Grigori, atmosphere, decent difficulty, the making of the most iconic and enjoyable experience in the whole game. Highway 17- A, every time you are not in the buggy, the level is fun. I love the crane puzzle, the bridge, all three gunship battles, and the ability to runover combine soldiers. But... it can become tedious with the buggy driving after a while... Sandtraps- B, opening section is Highway 17 Pt. 2, the actual "sand traps" portion itself sucks badly, and the tutorial also drags it down. However, once you get the bug bait, the entire level is so much fun and is some of the best the entire game has to offer. Nova Prospekt- B, storming the prison is fun and I love that we have the Antlions with us throughout it, but the boring atmosphere mixed with the longer than needed length of the chapter and the dozens of turrets make this level a bit more of a slog to get through for me. Entanglement- B, same criticisms as the video for me, but I don't get TOO bogged down by the turret fights. Anticitizen One- D, I don't like the citizens. I wish we had the Antlions instead. At least you could kill them if they got in your way. Mix that with the tedious, boring, and uninspired fight sequences, and I find this to be the most forgettable chapter in the game. "Follow Freeman"- A, a MUCH better version of Anticitizen One, with harder challenges and greater feelings of reward. Striders suck, but taking them down is extremely satisfying. The Combine Deposit is a very fun environment that helps to add to the difficulty and replayability. Only things that prevents it from being S is the citizens. Barney is in this chapter though, so could be worse. Our Benefactors- S, dark energy Gravity Gun. Enough said. Also, seeing the inner workings of the citadel is always a very memorable moment for me and the only time we aren't fighting things in the game that I actually enjoy. Dark Energy- C, I love the Breen confrontation at the beginning of the chapter itself, mostly due to Culp's amazingly sadistic vocal performance, but I agree with the video that the final battle is pretty anti-climatic. Suffers similar issues to Anticitizen One as the chapter is pretty boring, but we have the dark energy Gravity Gun and Culp so, it could be worse.
We Don't Go To Ravenholm... is my favorite chapter and has been for the whole time I have been playing Half-Life 2. Although I really like Route Kanal, The Uprising Chapters, Highway 17, and The Citadel (Although I hated Route Kanal and The Uprising Chapters when I was a kid).
Point Insertion is Amazing, I have tired mimicing G-Man's voice and that scene is something I have seen enough times to make it possible. Pointless Insertion is great he had to figure stuff out but an absolute great way to start a comic. A Red Letter Day definetly is not the best after Point Insertion, not much they could have done there but it is fine. A Read Letter Day is absolutely great, weird seeing them reference TF2 never coming out after it has come out, Counter-Strike was fun, glad he did more of that later. Route Kanal, fun the first time not fun going through again. Route Banal, really fun, lots of good jokes and a big comic panel. Water Hazard, really fun moments gets a bit stale after a bit Really fun on your first couple go arounds. Also some great setpieces and places to relax though, as Ross Scott once said the boss fight at the end is kind of terrible because it has no cover. Water Haphazard: has some of my favourite moments and also a lot of stuff interesting for the future. Black Mesa East, eh, it is fine. Black Mesa Guest: THE CLAW! "We Don't Go To Ravenholm": BUT WHO IS THIS! ANOTHER LIFE TO SAVE! I'LL KEEP MY EYE ON YOU. MORE THAN THAT I CAN NOT PROMISE! "We Still Go To Ravenholm", kind of boring first half (but still some good jokes) but the second half is great, the explaning of Ravenholm and Zombie Frohman is always great. Odessa Cubbage, not actually a colonel, just a secu...oh wait, yeah, Highway 17, bit boring but has the most atmospheric place that I just like to sit out and relax for a bit (the bridge section). Bikeway 17 featured Combine Frohman, Concerned-Ish, Lost Coast, more Counter-Strike and...MONKEYS! MONKEYS! MONKEYS! I just kind of Backwards B-Hop across Sandtraps....OH YEAH! The raid! That part is fun, very enjoyable...except the fact that I still somehow get lost going across it. Do not really remember Sand Trip, will have to re-read it. I do remember that it gives Sandy and Lazlo backstory though. Also, has Behind the Comic which I forgot about, not as good as Concerned but still really good. Nova Prospekts, fun combat. Though, without MMod gets old fast, even with MMod eventually it gets boring but MMod helps. No Prospekts...S+. I like the Entanglement turret fights, very enjoyable to mess around with different layouts...then taking them all with you to just destroy the final fight. Which I did my first time playing through because I was confused about acheivements and accidently found that exploit. Actually, yeah, second one sucks even with the extra turrets. Anticitizen One, probably the chapter I have replayed the most, it is good, dislike the sewer section though, up until the combine assault with the elites above you, that part is fun. Anticitizen 101, featured lots of good jokes, Gordon Freeman references, overall a good chapter...oh, yeah, and Frank...poor Frank. Follow Freeman is better in my opinion, do not know exactly why I just prefer it over Anticitzen One. Follow, Frohman: Love the reference to Half-Life (1) and the game design jokes like the fact that there is only 4 rebels per squad or how Freeman takes all the dead rebels weapons and also the fact that Freeman does not talk...okay, maybe it is my favourite chapter based on that long rambling........hey, Freeman! Don't forget to reload, indeed. Or just rereading it now the stupid-ness of doors, amazing chapter. Why does Freeman not use the crowbar for, well, crowbaring? A delicious wedge of Bournes Pasturized Organic Cheshire Cheese. Our Benefactors, yeah, fun. Gets a bit annoying after playing it several times but still fun. Sometimes with MMod I will add more damage and a Ton of ammo to the Gloun Gun and try getting past the entire chapter with it, really hard to do. I enjoy looking over C17, even though the graphics are absolutely Terrible it still feels like I am looming over the city, love it. Tower Malefactor: on the IGN Devolopers React To Speedrun Or Whatever of Half-Life 2 Valve actually referenced this chapter. Breen's boss fight is not really a boss fight, honestly, you can really take your time and still not die. I do not think I died my first time playing it. Now I do not even bother killing the gunships that show up, I just go straight for Breen. Dork Energy: Buddha...definetly a funny word. Credits: good song. Epilogue: funny end, did not get it when I read it the first time. Sad to see it leave even though I only read it Years after its completion (like nearly last year I started reading it...wow.).
I wasn't even going to bother watching this because it was just going over what I already knew, so I left it for a week. Then I watched it and loved it because it reminded me afresh how much I love playing this game. I think I play the entire series all the way through every year, along with the Portal games and The Talos Principle (my one concession to non-Valve game). Needless to say, I'll be reinstalling HL2 in the very near future for another run through. Sandtraps is bloody tedious, mind...
S : We don't Go To Ravenholm A : Point Insertion, Red Letter Day, Black Mesa East, Follow Freeman !, Dark Energy B : Highway 17, Nova Prospekt, Anticitizen One, Our Benefecators C : Route Kanal, Sandtraps, Etanglement D : Water Hazard
You enter the Citadel in “Our Benefactors”. That’s the chapter where you also get to play with the supercharged gravity gun and where you get to sit in those pods that move you around for a bit. “Entanglement” is essentially the second part of “Nova Prospekt” which I do discuss in the video. You can check the full list of chapters here, together with detailed write-ups about what happens in each chapter: combineoverwiki.net/wiki/Half-Life_2_storyline
I only have half life 2 because one of my friends gifted it to me and the reason I met them is a post on community content for half life 2 deathmatch I asked what there server is it's a coop one and I wanted to try it so they added me and so I could join them Edit: I never played half life 2 update because I didn't really want to go through EVERY single chapter all over again and I really didn't see many changes and since I used to have half life 2 demo before my friend gifted me it I had the demo which includes most of point insertion and pretty much all of ravenholm and when I got half life 2 it had my progress from the demo so I started from ravenholm
Blud went with a *car section level* 💀 As for sandtraps, it has one of the best chapter endings with antlion army helping you attack but man those 2 helicopters ruined the mood so hard 😢
S: Point Insertion - Nova Prospekt - Follow Freeman! A: We don't go to Ravenholm - Anticitizen One - Sandtraps - Route Kanal B: Highway 17 - Water Hazard - Dark Energy - A Red Letter Day C: Entanglement - Black Mesa East - Our Benefactors D: None
Not Half-Life 2! But a bit of a hot take. I think On a Rail is actually good, and in fact probably one of the strongest chapters in the game. I also think it starts losing its steam at Lambda Core, not Xen.
you dont know the fun that Entanglement has.... don't trigger them and set everything up first... and the many ways to do it! hiding up on a top level is one of them, you HAVENT even played the game! haha S tier for sure ;O)
You need a whole new higher tier for We Don't Go to Ravenholm. Changing subject Have you ever noticed that every official HL starts or have at some point at the beginning a wagon or some sort vehicle taking the character to the action? I mean HL the wagon that takes Freeman to Sector C Opposing Force a helicopter Blue Shift again the wagon Decay an elevator HL2 train wagon HL2 Ep1 a van HL2 Ep2 another train wagon Alyx a combine vehicle It's that some sort of trade mark? Is there anything interesting to be said about it or I just must stop replaying 😅?
Before I even watch this video, the citadel and the canals were truly fantastic for me when i first played the game. Ravenholm, 👎 no. Nova prospect, 👎 no.
I wish black mesa east could have been a better chapter but it is just slow and boring when I replay through half life 2 I like to skip black mesa east a lot the only good part of black mesa east is (obviously) getting the gravity gun I'm glad I am not the only one who has this opinion on black mesa east
The ending of ravenholm/ start of highway 17 is probably my favorite part of the game. It's the pinnacle of the gameplay complexity and setpiece design all with incredible ambience. If i had to choose i'd probably say highway 17 because the car is just too cool.
The feeling when you walk out of that tunnel is just something else.
@@gordonneverdies Immediately followed up by a perfectly introduced sniper section? Chef's kiss.
Yeah, I totally agree! I wish that small section was a chapter itself, to play it and replay it again!
Triage at Dawn
1:26 Point insertion
2:13 Red leter day
2:53 Route kanal
3:24 Water hazard
4:13 Black mesa east
5:30 We don't go to Ravenholm...
6:25 Highway 17
7:25 Sandtraps
8:20 Nova prospekt
9:06 Entaglement
10:16 Anticitizen one
10:54 Follow Freeman!
11:45 Our benefactors
12:43 Dark energy
Thanks! Added them to the description!
@@LambdaGeneration yay
The part where you ride in a pod and just sit there and watch
the legend himself
Me be like: Why tf we doing it? AND WHY WE DOING IT THREE TIMES? 😭
I gotta go with Water Hazard, sorry I know most don’t like it but for me it’s different. I’ve gotten so used to the airboat sections I can easily finish the chapter.
Honestly same, I prefer water hazard more than highway 17 because of the set pieces and the floaty gameplay of the airboat that feel more fun than the car.
Not to mention some locations I've never even knew existed that I just recently discovered and it's crazy that I find something like this in a decade old game which adds up to my personal view, but in conclusion it should've been slightly shortened.
Love Water Hazard too
Same here. Water Hazard was top for me.
i love water hazard, it's not my favourite, but it has very nice moments. i think i really like that orange colour palette, the battle with the helicopter, the industrial areas... the whole chapter has some reminiscence of hl2 beta. But my favourites are ravenholm and highway17, ravenholm is the pinnacle of gameplay, it's like they made a whole chapter to show the gravity gun and a real tutorial for that gun, but it's a masterpiece in terms of ambience, soundtrack, locations, SFX, new monsters... everything is 10/10. And Highway 17 is another one, but in terms of art direction. i think the bridge section is pure art. that melancholic ambient music, the sound of the trains, the sea, everything has a big impact on the mood of the whole game
Agreed honestly with most rankings, I do have slight changes
S: We Don't Go to Ravenholm - Nova Prospekt
A: Point Insertion - Highway 17 - Anticitizen One - Our Benefactors - Water Hazard
B: Sandtraps - Follow Freeman
C: Entanglement - Dark Energy - Route Canal
D: Black Mesa East - A Red Letter Day
Personally I just loved using the antlions in Nova Prospekt a ton, the reverse Aliens/Starship Troopers where you send the bugs against the marines
I kind of just love the atmosphere and vibe of Water Hazard, also those pretty planar reflections shine really good, and it feels like a better mix of the combat of Route Canal with more variation, the boat handles pretty ok when you get the hang of it, though a couple of nasty tricky jumps.
Route Canal would be higher if Valve would patch the game and fix the broken features they broke around 2009, most importantly Metrocops and other enemies flinched from every single shot from just a standard pistol or SMG in 2004-8, which made combat even with the dinky pistol feel satisfying when HL2 released, but currently enemies flinch only on the first shot and then if there's a long pause between shots. Also AI is dumber, and has less cool stuff, like Metrocops used to yell "Grenade!" and duck and cover their heads if grenades landed close to them, that was funny, doesn't work anymore in current HL2. Also, Manhacks and Scanners had a unique metal hit impact sound effect that Valve broke somewhere between 2009-13, current HL2 uses just universal same generic metal impact sound for them and all other metal materials. Other stuff too, they broke a bunch of shaders for many metallic materials (AR2 is a lot more matte in current HL2 than pre orange box HL2, the pipes and tunnels you crawl through had more metallic sheens to them, a bunch)--
The list goes on, HL2 has many broken/missing features, and it saddens me that HL2 fans don't raise up a ruckus to try and pressure Valve to patch them, Halo fans got 343i to patch Halo 1 & 2 to make them more like their original releases, and 343i didn't even originally break Halo 1&2! Why can't Half-Life fans do the same and push Valve to preserve more of the obviously broken things about their classics?
In entanglement with the 4 way defence, I always hide in a cell with all my turrets.
TBH, on my first playthrough of HL2, I just stepped on the sand, and I regretted it much later when I decided to to play though HL2 again and get all the achievements.
My personal favorite are "Anti-Citizen One" and "Follow Freeman". Mainly because:
1_ We get to have friendly allies following us the entire time.
2_ Others are fighting at every section in the city, so it's not just Gordon, but literary EVERYONE is involved.
3_ Chapters that takes place at the end of the game, bringing back the city residents and main characters for a final showdown, unlike other video games where these characters are just gone.
4_ We get to work with Barney for a while.
Nah, I hate those chapters, especially Follow Freeman. The pacing just goes completely out the window, and there's literally no downtime between battles.
@@wta1518 Everyone loves and hate different things, after all.
@@wta1518 With how much downtime the game has leading up to these, I find to be both a relief and exhilerating. Fighting in the streets looks and feels amazing. They're easily the best part of the game.
Hate the citizens, mostly due their overly generic dialogue and broken AI, as well as the fact that they are just people compared to the much better companions in the Antlions. Anticitizen One is very boring to me and has poor pacing, making it the worst chapter in the game for me.
Follow Freeman, however, is MUCH better. It is harder and you feel the stakes involved. Barney is a welcome addition, and I love taking down striders and the Combine Depository.
I do agree with your statement regarding bringing back everyone for the final showdown in the city. It is a nice touch. I just wish that they didn't have to follow the player everywhere.
@@NCVideoLogs I guess many don't like ally companions. I personally never got bored of them around, I can simply add a bunch of them to follow me through the entire game with cheats. As for their AI, when it comes to shooting they have better aim accuracy than the combines in easy & normal difficulty.
I also forgot to add another reason why those 2 chapters are my favorite, and its the fact how we went into a circle in HL2, going back to where it all started at the beginning of the game, making the experience unique.
Everything same as you i played HL2 , Update, MMOD and MMOD Update. And Ravenholm is my favourite.
At first I was a bit upset that Water Hazard didn't get S tier but then I played it and it is really long. Epic video as always!
Addendum: The part with the hunter chopper gun is really cool though but that's the only exciting part once you've played through the whole game multiple times.
7:02 The lighthouse is in Sandtraps, not Highway 17. The bridge level is the end of Highway 17.
I always found it strange where Sandtraps begins. It feels like it starts as you walk up to Lazlo.
@@gordonneverdies I mean, it is just 1 map before that (if I remember correctly), so it's not that weird. What's weirder in my opinion is the fact that the section in the Nova Prospekt yard is part of Sandtraps.
Sandtraps is just a weird chapter I guess 😅
@@LambdaGeneration Yeah, it's just kind of the bits between Highway 17 and Nova Prospekt that don't quite fit in with either.
Chapters "overstaying their welcome" is probably my biggest complaint about half life 1 and 2. Just about everything in the games is good, but too much good can become exhausting. Surface Tension and Follow Freeman are the 2 main chapters that come to mind that have this issue.
Follow freeman is my favourite, absolute S tier, it feels like war. It is basicly the surface tension of half-life 2. This is also where you fight striders for the first time and it feels really intesne and it feels like the steaks are really high. I esspecially love the last 2 maps with the strider running through the tunnel and the map after where lg orbifold plays. You can really feel how much the resistance is pushing here and breaching the citadel at the end of the map feels really rewarding
My ranking:
1) Our Benefactors
2) Water Hazard
3) Highway 17
4) Dark Energy
5) Sandtraps
6) "We Don't Go to Ravenholm"
7) Nova Prospekt
8) Route Kanal
9) Entanglement
10) Point Insertion
11) Black Mesa East
12) A Red Letter Day
13) Anticitizen One
14) Follow Freeman.
For me it’s Route Canal, Highway 17(the bridge part) and the last few minutes of Red Letter Day.
Bit of a hot take, but on a rail, water hazard and highway 17 are my favorite half life chapters
How do you feel about Interloper? I'm curious because I love those chapters too. Pretty much all the controversial chapters. haha
@@gordonneverdies I personally don't like the xen chapters, they felt like I was playing a different game if that makes sense
entanglement was the point where i used to give up playing... until i went insane and brought one of the first friendly turrets along with me and even named it and brought to the end of the chapter, sadly i could not bring the turret into the teleporter to the next chapter :(
Love videos like these!
For me Ravenholm and Highway 17 are S tier.
Also not a fan of Entanglement and Dark energy.
I love highway 17 so much I play it without the car sometimes to make it longer.
....I might try that next time.
9:45 what i usually do for this section is that I'll collect all the boxes and barrels I can find and barricade the fourth exit.
But my favorite has to be Follow Freeman or Nova Prospekt. Those two chapters are the part of the game where it feels like your getting closer and closer to the big part in the game (Citadel) where it gets to its peak! And Follow Freeman how it introduces the team function which was pretty cool.
when entanglement rolls around I get to assemble an army of seven turrets
The end of ravenholm is SO GOOD
Easy, water hazard
Followed by route kanal and then nova prospekt
I feel like I'm more interested in seeing how Episode 1 & 2 chapters compare with base HL2 moreso than how they compare within their individual episodes.
My favorite chapter of the game is Sandtrap and Follow Freeman. Destroying both Gunship and Strider simultaneously is just satisfying moment.
8:03 Ngl, Route Kanal and Hoghway 17 may have had less slog monents then Sandtraps but imho, if not for those 2 helicopters, I think the ending of sandtraps chapter actually makes up for the slog, after ALL this suffering, you get to use antlions like your minions and have fun for once and that was way more fun than route kanal where you just spam pistol on barrels or sumn or highway 17 with it's slog riding section. So kinda hard to grade all HL2 chapters when imho, HL1 was better gameplay, guns and map design vise. But that sandtraps final part did make up for the slog and make me keep going 😊
Each time I've played HL2 over the course of 20 years I've had a new favorite experience from each of the chapters. The game is a masterpiece, and I think it's the best game ever made. I think highway 17/Sandtraps are my favorite since I strongly look forward to those two every time I play.
Point Insertion- B, good atmosphere to start the game but not a lot happens.
"A Red Letter Day..."- C, saved by the ending train sequences with the iconic music. Also, throwing the cacti is the lab is fun. Otherwise, pretty freaking boring.
Route Kanal- A, always a fun chapter to play, but is dragged down by boring landscapes, the tedious see-saw puzzle, and the slightly longer than necessary length.
Water Hazard- A, extremely iconic for me. I get why some people might not like it, but the fun dodging of the choppers mixed with the amazing storage unit base take-over and fun final boss make this level very iconic for me to play. Plus, the music is some of the best in all of Half-Life.
Black Mesa East- D, do I need to explain why?
"We Don't Go to Ravenholm..."- S, the most replayable chapter for me. Sawing zombies in half, Father Grigori, atmosphere, decent difficulty, the making of the most iconic and enjoyable experience in the whole game.
Highway 17- A, every time you are not in the buggy, the level is fun. I love the crane puzzle, the bridge, all three gunship battles, and the ability to runover combine soldiers. But... it can become tedious with the buggy driving after a while...
Sandtraps- B, opening section is Highway 17 Pt. 2, the actual "sand traps" portion itself sucks badly, and the tutorial also drags it down. However, once you get the bug bait, the entire level is so much fun and is some of the best the entire game has to offer.
Nova Prospekt- B, storming the prison is fun and I love that we have the Antlions with us throughout it, but the boring atmosphere mixed with the longer than needed length of the chapter and the dozens of turrets make this level a bit more of a slog to get through for me.
Entanglement- B, same criticisms as the video for me, but I don't get TOO bogged down by the turret fights.
Anticitizen One- D, I don't like the citizens. I wish we had the Antlions instead. At least you could kill them if they got in your way. Mix that with the tedious, boring, and uninspired fight sequences, and I find this to be the most forgettable chapter in the game.
"Follow Freeman"- A, a MUCH better version of Anticitizen One, with harder challenges and greater feelings of reward. Striders suck, but taking them down is extremely satisfying. The Combine Deposit is a very fun environment that helps to add to the difficulty and replayability. Only things that prevents it from being S is the citizens. Barney is in this chapter though, so could be worse.
Our Benefactors- S, dark energy Gravity Gun. Enough said. Also, seeing the inner workings of the citadel is always a very memorable moment for me and the only time we aren't fighting things in the game that I actually enjoy.
Dark Energy- C, I love the Breen confrontation at the beginning of the chapter itself, mostly due to Culp's amazingly sadistic vocal performance, but I agree with the video that the final battle is pretty anti-climatic. Suffers similar issues to Anticitizen One as the chapter is pretty boring, but we have the dark energy Gravity Gun and Culp so, it could be worse.
We Don't Go To Ravenholm... is my favorite chapter and has been for the whole time I have been playing Half-Life 2. Although I really like Route Kanal, The Uprising Chapters, Highway 17, and The Citadel (Although I hated Route Kanal and The Uprising Chapters when I was a kid).
my top 3: #1 Highway 17 #2 Nova Prospekt #3 Ravenholm
(swap Highway 17 for Riding Shotgun/Under the Radar if we include the episodes)
9:49 (fan fact) you can get a turret from the first turret defens to next and to last turret defens
Point Insertion is Amazing, I have tired mimicing G-Man's voice and that scene is something I have seen enough times to make it possible. Pointless Insertion is great he had to figure stuff out but an absolute great way to start a comic.
A Red Letter Day definetly is not the best after Point Insertion, not much they could have done there but it is fine. A Read Letter Day is absolutely great, weird seeing them reference TF2 never coming out after it has come out, Counter-Strike was fun, glad he did more of that later.
Route Kanal, fun the first time not fun going through again. Route Banal, really fun, lots of good jokes and a big comic panel.
Water Hazard, really fun moments gets a bit stale after a bit Really fun on your first couple go arounds. Also some great setpieces and places to relax though, as Ross Scott once said the boss fight at the end is kind of terrible because it has no cover. Water Haphazard: has some of my favourite moments and also a lot of stuff interesting for the future.
Black Mesa East, eh, it is fine. Black Mesa Guest: THE CLAW!
"We Don't Go To Ravenholm": BUT WHO IS THIS! ANOTHER LIFE TO SAVE! I'LL KEEP MY EYE ON YOU. MORE THAN THAT I CAN NOT PROMISE! "We Still Go To Ravenholm", kind of boring first half (but still some good jokes) but the second half is great, the explaning of Ravenholm and Zombie Frohman is always great.
Odessa Cubbage, not actually a colonel, just a secu...oh wait, yeah, Highway 17, bit boring but has the most atmospheric place that I just like to sit out and relax for a bit (the bridge section). Bikeway 17 featured Combine Frohman, Concerned-Ish, Lost Coast, more Counter-Strike and...MONKEYS! MONKEYS! MONKEYS!
I just kind of Backwards B-Hop across Sandtraps....OH YEAH! The raid! That part is fun, very enjoyable...except the fact that I still somehow get lost going across it. Do not really remember Sand Trip, will have to re-read it. I do remember that it gives Sandy and Lazlo backstory though. Also, has Behind the Comic which I forgot about, not as good as Concerned but still really good.
Nova Prospekts, fun combat. Though, without MMod gets old fast, even with MMod eventually it gets boring but MMod helps. No Prospekts...S+.
I like the Entanglement turret fights, very enjoyable to mess around with different layouts...then taking them all with you to just destroy the final fight. Which I did my first time playing through because I was confused about acheivements and accidently found that exploit. Actually, yeah, second one sucks even with the extra turrets.
Anticitizen One, probably the chapter I have replayed the most, it is good, dislike the sewer section though, up until the combine assault with the elites above you, that part is fun. Anticitizen 101, featured lots of good jokes, Gordon Freeman references, overall a good chapter...oh, yeah, and Frank...poor Frank.
Follow Freeman is better in my opinion, do not know exactly why I just prefer it over Anticitzen One. Follow, Frohman: Love the reference to Half-Life (1) and the game design jokes like the fact that there is only 4 rebels per squad or how Freeman takes all the dead rebels weapons and also the fact that Freeman does not talk...okay, maybe it is my favourite chapter based on that long rambling........hey, Freeman! Don't forget to reload, indeed. Or just rereading it now the stupid-ness of doors, amazing chapter. Why does Freeman not use the crowbar for, well, crowbaring? A delicious wedge of Bournes Pasturized Organic Cheshire Cheese.
Our Benefactors, yeah, fun. Gets a bit annoying after playing it several times but still fun. Sometimes with MMod I will add more damage and a Ton of ammo to the Gloun Gun and try getting past the entire chapter with it, really hard to do. I enjoy looking over C17, even though the graphics are absolutely Terrible it still feels like I am looming over the city, love it. Tower Malefactor: on the IGN Devolopers React To Speedrun Or Whatever of Half-Life 2 Valve actually referenced this chapter.
Breen's boss fight is not really a boss fight, honestly, you can really take your time and still not die. I do not think I died my first time playing it. Now I do not even bother killing the gunships that show up, I just go straight for Breen. Dork Energy: Buddha...definetly a funny word.
Credits: good song. Epilogue: funny end, did not get it when I read it the first time. Sad to see it leave even though I only read it Years after its completion (like nearly last year I started reading it...wow.).
My fav hl1 chapter: on a rail
My fav hl2 chapter: we dont go to ravenholm
nova prospekt and "we don't go to ravenholm" are my 2 favorite chapters!
good afternoon radio guy!
YEA! LETS GO! Worth the wait!
This is the type of content I love
Sandtraps should be S-Tier because it had Laszlo, the finest mind of his generation.
Absolutly turn this into a series please
I wasn't even going to bother watching this because it was just going over what I already knew, so I left it for a week. Then I watched it and loved it because it reminded me afresh how much I love playing this game. I think I play the entire series all the way through every year, along with the Portal games and The Talos Principle (my one concession to non-Valve game). Needless to say, I'll be reinstalling HL2 in the very near future for another run through. Sandtraps is bloody tedious, mind...
0:04 Java Monster tastes so much better than all the alternatives including the starbucks (a coffee centric company) ones . Shut is deliscioso
Highway 17/Sandtraps is S+ tier
S : We don't Go To Ravenholm
A : Point Insertion, Red Letter Day, Black Mesa East, Follow Freeman !, Dark Energy
B : Highway 17, Nova Prospekt, Anticitizen One, Our Benefecators
C : Route Kanal, Sandtraps, Etanglement
D : Water Hazard
I'm sure you missed that 1 chapter where you enter the Citidael. It could be entanglement, but I think it's a separate, completely forgotten chapter.
You enter the Citadel in “Our Benefactors”. That’s the chapter where you also get to play with the supercharged gravity gun and where you get to sit in those pods that move you around for a bit.
“Entanglement” is essentially the second part of “Nova Prospekt” which I do discuss in the video.
You can check the full list of chapters here, together with detailed write-ups about what happens in each chapter: combineoverwiki.net/wiki/Half-Life_2_storyline
I find it funny how two of the chapters are named after golf hazards
Wait seriously?
water hazard and dark energy
I only have half life 2 because one of my friends gifted it to me and the reason I met them is a post on community content for half life 2 deathmatch I asked what there server is it's a coop one and I wanted to try it so they added me and so I could join them
Edit: I never played half life 2 update because I didn't really want to go through EVERY single chapter all over again and I really didn't see many changes and since I used to have half life 2 demo before my friend gifted me it I had the demo which includes most of point insertion and pretty much all of ravenholm and when I got half life 2 it had my progress from the demo so I started from ravenholm
Ditch the buggy and start jumping back at the speed of sound , easy S tier chapter for me
Ravenholm beats out route canal by just a little bit because of the shotgun.
you are like nevel papperman from icarly but in a cute way? i respect that
For the long time player I think this is pretty accurate
Sewers.
Normies will say Ravenholm, true theoretical physicists know it’s Highway 17/Sandtraps.
Blud went with a *car section level* 💀
As for sandtraps, it has one of the best chapter endings with antlion army helping you attack but man those 2 helicopters ruined the mood so hard 😢
Nova Prospekt my beloved!!!
Black Mesa East was sooo soo cool on my first playthrough. But oh boy does it suck on replays
S: Point Insertion - Nova Prospekt - Follow Freeman!
A: We don't go to Ravenholm - Anticitizen One - Sandtraps - Route Kanal
B: Highway 17 - Water Hazard - Dark Energy - A Red Letter Day
C: Entanglement - Black Mesa East - Our Benefactors
D: None
Not Half-Life 2! But a bit of a hot take. I think On a Rail is actually good, and in fact probably one of the strongest chapters in the game. I also think it starts losing its steam at Lambda Core, not Xen.
you dont know the fun that Entanglement has.... don't trigger them and set everything up first... and the many ways to do it! hiding up on a top level is one of them, you HAVENT even played the game! haha S tier for sure ;O)
Those are metrocops... 2:24
What rank will you give to the credits?
S Tier, for sure 👌
Nova Prospekt through and through.
MOAAARRRRRR
hate it how you did not include the infamous "eeeeeeeeeh" while rating black mesa east
You need a whole new higher tier for We Don't Go to Ravenholm. Changing subject
Have you ever noticed that every official HL starts or have at some point at the beginning a wagon or some sort vehicle taking the character to the action? I mean
HL the wagon that takes Freeman to Sector C
Opposing Force a helicopter
Blue Shift again the wagon
Decay an elevator
HL2 train wagon
HL2 Ep1 a van
HL2 Ep2 another train wagon
Alyx a combine vehicle
It's that some sort of trade mark?
Is there anything interesting to be said about it or I just must stop replaying 😅?
don't limit yourself to half life, include portal and portal 2
anticitizen one
Oh man please do this to half life 2 ep 1 and 2
Anticitizen and Follow Freeman are incredible. The war in the streets, I haven't seen another game pull off the feeling of urban combat so well.
Anticitizen One is my number One
just finished it yesterday
Black mesa east is hard fr 💀
Before I even watch this video, the citadel and the canals were truly fantastic for me when i first played the game. Ravenholm, 👎 no. Nova prospect, 👎 no.
Mine is all of them.
for me it's anticitizen one
its hunt down the freeman (-:
I dont even think Black Mesa East is a real chapter.
I wish black mesa east could have been a better chapter but it is just slow and boring when I replay through half life 2 I like to skip black mesa east a lot the only good part of black mesa east is (obviously) getting the gravity gun I'm glad I am not the only one who has this opinion on black mesa east
Mine is ravenholm man
Darn, less than a minute ago!
Highway 17 is easily the best. Next would be Ravenholm and then Anticitizen One.
Ravenholm diff
nova prospekt fans here?
do more
This guy seems dutch
I am Dutch :O
Water Hazard for me. I dont get why some people dislike it.
Ravenholm is overrated
First