One thing not mentioned in this video but I found so impactful in the game (just finished playing thru it) was the sparing use of soundtrack/music in it. There's something incredibly impactful about spending the first significant chunk of the game in silence, then reaching the surface you hear the ambient electric guitar riff and holy hot damn does it hit hard.
@@jimmiekarlsson4458 Lol, you kidding? I'd be pissed that I wasted all that money on a Doctorate only for society to immediately implode and render it worthless.
@@patchwurk6652 On the upside, no one is going to be buggin you to pay back all those loans you took out for that doctorate. Downside, the post alien invasion apocalypse isn't the greatest job market for former theoretical physicists.
I bet that if Act Man were to ask Gabe to release Half-Life 3, he would have to comply. I mean, Gabe can't say no to the personification of Gordon Freeman in flesh, can't he?
I'm replaying HF1 again right now and it has lost none of it's impact or addictiveness. 25 years later and it's as difficult to tear myself away from now as it was in '98. Truly a masterpiece.
@@PurooRoy We didn't have videos but we did have text only walkthroughs. Also, there might have been a book you could buy (imagine that!). I know lots of games did that bitd.
What's crazy about the ending of HL1 is that the scientists never tell you that there's no way back after you kill the nihilanth - you kinda just realize after G Man grabs you that, actually, you went there on a suicide mission. The scientists used Gordon the entire time, relying on his sense of responsibility for protecting the earth to save their own ass.
a great theory, i've never thought about it like this before such a shame that gearbox ruined this because in both HL expansions you visit xen and are able return to earth afterwards. and even if we decide these games are not cannon, in HL2 when characters are shocked to see you they seem to ask "where have you been" rather than "how are you even here"
@@Gryzly123 well, with Mark Laidlaw out of the picture, I'm sure valve is going to be developing the official canon moving forward (since he actually didn't like the idea of games necessarily having official canon), though it seems to me with the paradoxes present in HL:A that the series could turn into a multi-dimensional, multi-timeline war adventure game where things are canon or not canon depending on what narrative they happen to be going for in each game. In short, I'm worried that valve has bit off more than they can chew, and I'm still not certain that we're going to get HL3, with all the issues in continuity, canon, and story arc.
@@Gryzly123 The theory still works actually. You could return to Earth in the expansions because the Nihlanth was still there to keep the portal to Earth open. Gordon would still be trapped in Xen without the G-Man’s interference because he was there to kill off the Nihilanth, meaning he would have been trapped no matter what afterwards. Asking “where have you been” would also technically work as an appropriate question in this context, but it’s part of a bigger criticism I have with HL2 in general where the characters don’t really act as shocked as I think they should be
@@Gryzly123 Too be fair, the characters in HL2 mainly Eli, Kleiner and Magnusson. Don't send you off to Xen to kill the Nihilanth, nor are really apart of the events that unfold in the later stages of the game/story. Kleiner and Eli last saw Gordon going to the surface with both of them presumably escaping shortly afterwards. Magnusson most probably escaped with both of them. Barney Gtfo'd before the second day. Breen... well as the administrator of Black Mesa (who also had some contact with G-Man) probably was already off site before the events. Also, Judith never got the job and lost out to Gordon. So it's safe to say their reactions are warranted and reasonable. So the nuking of Black Mesa fits in with cannon in my opinion, other wise why would the Combine solely focus on the Borealis when Black Mesa can also be scavenged for teleportation technology that allows them to teleport locally.
I remember playing this game as a 13 year old, thinking "Gordon's 27? Man he's old!" Now I'm 27 and shit my pants imagining being in his situation. That, or I just lie to myself and think he's like 49 or something.
Wow, I never fully took-in how old Gordan is when the incident at Black Mesa happens. Don't know who's first day was worst, Leon S. Kennedy's or Gordan Freeman!?
@@pawanpoojary7463 well to be fair, some of them may have gone to the same university that Gordon did. Either-way even if it wasn't his official first day, it wasn't a great start to his day at all
@@warchild4974 appparantly he was working as an intern/probably still studying while being at black mesa, thats why scientists know him before his first day of oficially working
Let me get this straight: You comment something that is unrelated to the fact that I have two DANGEROUSLY DASHING girlfriends? Considering that I am the unprettiest RUclipsr ever, having two hot girlfriends is really incredible. Yet you did not mention that at all. I am quite disappointed, dear bas
Fun fact, most of the tanks explode by themselves if you keep your distance and crouch just enough that they can see you. It makes them shoot too close to themselves. Funny how you remember small things like that
Well when you dump your original fanbase in favor of supporting the Chinese market without actually improving the game and ignoring feedback then I don't know what else to say about the devs.
And neither are we as a gaming community PUBG could've been amazing and ground breaking, but they done goofed and now are just a shell of what they could've been.
I think a lot of it is the New Mexico desert setting. For some reason the movie Broken Arrow with Christian Slater and John Travolta reminded me of it too.
@@glctcthnkr8059 still, Half Life 2 is just... A masterpiece, no words other than that, I honestly think Half Life 2 is the best fps ever made, but regardless of that it does absolutely deserve a masterpiece video tbh
Israel start it first by taking land majority of land from Palestine who has been there to minority that is Israrl. UN majority give weapon to them How on earth do you think Palestine start it first if not from your cow bias against Islam?
Half life 1 and 2 are so different, yet they both share an overall vibe that other games have tried and failed miserably to replicate. But half life 1 had a certain purity to the concept. It's hard to describe.
R.I.P Kitty0706. My introduction to Half-Life was the second game. I only relatively recently played the original, having played Black Mesa first, as well.
I saw this video before I knew much about the Half-Life series, and when I purchased Half-Life 2, my first reaction on seeing the cover in my Steam library was "Holy shit that's The Act Man!".
All these years later my daughter started playing it and she loves it. It’s undeniable that a game that good can remain timeless makes it a true masterpiece.
All of the platforming issues are because of not crouch jumping, it's a signature movement style of valve games. In cs 1.6, css, csgo, hl1, hl2 etc. there are multiple games that utilize this system. If you crouch you get a little bit extra jump length to reach further platforms.
I remember I would watch my dad play this game. I was young and too scared to play by myself at the time. There is the part near the beginning of the game where you have to jump on the ladder that hangs in the elevator shaft. My dad couldn't get the jump right so I offered and did it first try! Good little bonding moment I wont forget haha.
That's amazing. Funny enough, I had the exact same experience on the hanging crates section with my older cousins. They said they had been trying to get past that part for 2 days. I got through it on my first try.
31:14 My favoutite thing about half life is that this part in the german version, which turns the soldiers into the unused robot soldiers, implies that the alien invasion apocalypse preventet the sentient mashines wipe out humanity apocalypse. I'm sure the whole censoring of violence in video games in Germany at the time was all part of Valves masterplan.
@@abc-ug5ym yeah I wasn't referring to any of that. You said in your last reply "because in your 30s u'll be so fat from screen and mcdonalds I won't even care to reply". So why can't you just debate rather than resulting to childish insults. Also, your grammar and spelling are terrible, i think you should consider reading a novel rather than talking about them on the Internet.
I started playing Half Life 1 only two weeks ago and i finished it today, and i can say that this game has zero boring moments, from start to finish it keeps gradually gettting better and better. If a 1998 game can give me this much fun time in 2022 then it definitely deserves the title of "Masterpiece".
Same here, just started playing recently, and its become one of my favorite games, and I was born 6 years after the game came out. Not finished quite yet, am currently on the chapter *Lambda Core*.
First played it about 4 years ago on the PC but couldn’t continue due to the door opening glitch at the beginning, now been playing it on the PS2 and I’m definitely getting into it! It’s a great game.
I appreciate that titanfall 2 was there along the goats. Even though it's multiplayer has been ruined by a hacker entirely it's still fun to play the single player campaign I just wish when you got the other titan loadouts you kept them permanently even when returning to a previous level.
@@whiterunguard6415 Skyrim is a tragic failure compared to it's predecessors, and I'd be shocked if Actman himself wasn't aware of this. Oh, except commercially. They marketed it very well.
One of the most memorable aspects of this game I have is that the journey has no stops (which were always occurring in previous FPSs at the time) - except for that point you get knocked out and wake up
I definitely didn't grow up as a gamer so all of my exposure to games happened through my husband. Half life was one of the first games he ever showed me. Even without the context of the broader world of gaming, I could tell it was incredible! It remains in my top 5 favorites to this day!
@@imsentinelprime9279 Looking over the rest of your comments on this video, you yourself certainly look like the type to be trapped in a stereotypical COD lobby. Why don't you get your chronically-on-buttocks self over to a place you actually belong?
@@imsentinelprime9279not everyone enjoys turn based or old ass jpeg games so if someone says cod is there favorite that doesn’t mean there not a gamer it’s only if they play anime games then there not a gamer
I played it for the first time in 2022 and its now one of the best games i ever played. Cant believe how an over 20 year old games makes more fun than todays games. It surprises you behind every corner.
Good, now Play Black mesa, a Dedicated Community Remaster/Remake of the game that can make your balls either explode in absolute shock, or give them an extra 2 ton weight addition on how Incredible it is in general.
Honestly the movement is one of the things I LOVE about Half-Life and is one of the biggest reasons why I don't think Black Mesa replaces it. Along with the marines being less fun. (Black Mesa's still great but more as an extra experience not a replacement)
What's so great about Half-Life's slippery movement? It feels like you're on roller skates the whole time, and there's nothing about it that has any impact on gameplay, besides making things slightly more difficult than need be. It's not even as though the huge amount of air control plays any part unless you're doing speedrunning, and it's not like Unreal for example where there's a dodge mechanic. The only other element is crouch jumping, which is almost a pointless feature.
@@ThisBirdHasFlown Speed, there's a MASSIVE speed difference between HL1 and Black Mesa. It's has a completely different game feel that makes black mesa feel like source game, rather than a goldsource game. Also the slipperyness is just you not having played the game enough. That's not an issue, especially if you can hold a button to walk.
@@Jarekthegamingdragon I just turned speed on constantly and edited a few settings and it was pretty on-point to the original. I'd have to check to see which settings I changed.
To me, I think the whole appeal of Half-Life, aside from the revolutionary storytelling and innovation on the FPS formula, is that it's the first game to NOT pit you as some kind of grizzled balls-to-the-walls action hero, and more like a random scientist who's trying to survive. Gives a whole different perspective.
i always like the premise that you are regular civilian or non military proffession try to survive Horror Gordon Freeman: A 27 y.o Scientist Ethan Winters: Maybe an Office Worker Isaac Clarke: CEC 3rd class System Engineer
Especially looking at all of the other scientists who don’t have HEV suits and knowing that if you didn’t have yours you’d be doing just as bad as them
2:40 I think an interesting point that could have followed up the typewriter is that, while people don't use a typewriter anymore, we still use the layout it had on keyboards, such as the formulas half-life used are still being used as inspiration in games today.
It goes beyond just keyboard layouts. If you open up a bare Microsoft Word page and fiddle with literally any of the formatting, there are good odds the setting you're messing with was invented and named during the typewriter era.
I just played and beat this game for the first time a few days ago. I'd always heard of it being this great game, but I had no idea exactly what I getting into. It is by far one of the best games I've ever played and the historical context of it makes it all the more sweet. Wow. Just so much fun from start to finish. It's a game that respects your intelligence and always keeps it fresh.
I played it for the first time last month, and I absolutely agree. I was coming to it after playing quite an amount of emulated games on PS2. Half Life blew me away for how well crafted it was, to the point that I found it vastly superior to a lot of the PS2 ones (especially in the puzzles department). All around a must recommend for everyone to try at least once
The first time I played this, I put the CD back in the case after done installing. So I was left with eerie silence throughout the entire game accompanied only by the sound design and the visuals. Interestingly enough, I think that made the horror aspect of this game much more real because I began having nightmares of gurgling headcrab zombies in dim lit rooms. Good times.
Indeed good times....I also remember that I hated when games used to access the disc drive when you were in the middle of gaming because of the horrible drive noise destroying the immersion....the came Steam and you could experience the music without any additional noises 😅
My game wouldn't load the music for reason. I tried playing recently with the music on and it just seems off. You're right, having no music makes it more immersive.
Half-Life 2 is garbage though. One of the most overrated video games of all time. Not even being a troll here. That game is disgustingly overrated. Terrible story, terrible writing, terrible characters, terrible shooting. The game was all hype. It is an objectively BAD game, and I expect Act Man here will say as much if he reviews it.
I played Half-Life for the first time when it was free and I gotta say, I was amazed what was created in 1998. But most importantly, I was just halfway through the game and I just realised something. I was progressing through the story even though they never told me what to do or showed me any directions, I just somehow knew what to do. Somehow a game from 1998 can have better gameplay story telling then most modern games with objectives or arrows.
I was a 24 year-old hardcore PC gamer when this came out, and it blew everybody away. I will never forget my first play-though and it makes me happy to see this video. Thanks Act Man ..
This poor soul made it through the platforming without learning crouch jumping. Respects Act Man. And thank you for covering one of my all time favorite shooters since childhood. If you have finished Episode 2 of Half-Life 2, welcome to the pain us Half-Life fans had to deal with for over a decade.
Crouch jumping is probably the first gaming skill I ever learnt, and served me well in all the HL1 engine and source engine games that followed it lol..
Love these reviews of old games by the old timers that played them growing up. You and guys like Civvie do these oldies real justice. Each in totally different ways that I'll watch two reviews on the same game cause I love the different takes on it. Nostalgia hits hard watching guys like you. Is a nice relief from the mad world around us.
I remember my Dad playing this game when it first came out, I’d sit beside him and watch. Then I’d run around the house with a toy golf club pretending I was Gordan Freeman and accidentally smash a fluorescent light bulb……..:those were the days lol. It definitely sparked my interest in video games and my imagination. Great video Act Man!
I've always seen Valve as a company that doesn't do a lot in terms of game releases compared to other companies, but when they do it makes an undeniable impact on the genre they release.
It's cool to see Act Man talk about one of my favorite games of all time. Back in 1999, my dad was in the Air Force and him and his buddies would go into a secret vault to play nothing but Half-Life Deathmatch. The vault was so secure that if you were even the president of the United States, they couldn't just let you in without knowing who you were, even by camera. Believe it or not, it was a training exercise that the drill Sergeant was cool with because you had to listen to sound and that was one of the main reasons why he allowed it. That was around the time when half-life Opposing Force came out as well so they also played capture the flag and deathmatch on there too. He told me about this one game competition they had, whoever was in the last place would leave the game and then the next map would start. It would eventually count down to the last two people. Whoever was the last person standing, would get the "secret prize." So one dude, who is really good at the game, wins first place. The "secret prize" was that he had to eat raw meat in front of everyone because he was the butcher and killed everyone. Somewhere around the 2000s, way after my dad left the Air Force, the government found out that it wasn't a government program and they pulled the plug on the Half-Life game sessions. Honestly, if my dad never played that game back in 1999, my life would be completely different, I don't know where I would be. Half-Life 1 changed me as a person and what I wanted to do with my life. In my opinion, Half- life 1 is better than half like 2 by a LLooooong shot, but that is me. It's my favorite shooter and probably my favorite game of all time: the organicness, gameplay, the story, the Black Mesa Research Facility etc. I normally don't think games are 10 out of 10 and is rare, but this game for me is definitely that and I will even defend Xen by saying it was perfect. Seriously, I have no problems with Xen and will defend that tooth and nail. Overall, I love Half-life 1 too much.
The whole half-life franchise is a masterpeice. It's like an organism: half-life 1 with opposing force, blue shift and decay are the brain of the half-life world, this games are start of the half-life universe and they are amazing. Half-life 2 with ep1 and ep2 is a heart of half-life franchise, which is give a great plot, characters and one of the best sci-fi world. Half-life Alyx is lungs of the franchise that gave us a breath of fresh air, another revolution in the world of video games, and also developed the world of the Half-Life universe.
@@echo-4656 I have a different analogy to sum up the half life games actually from you. For half life 1 for me, Half-life 1 is the cheeseburger, Opposing Forces is the fries, Blue Shift is the milkshake and Decay is onion rings. Like all this other stuff is unnecessary you just want the burger, but it's nice to have. Before anyone notices, I took these inspirations from Joel vinesauce.
"The possibility of a resonance cascade scenario is highly unlikely" And now, in the most predictable plot twist in history, we have a chapter called unforseen consequences
"You ever wonder why we're here?" "One of life's greatest mysteries, isn't it? Why are we here? Are we the product of some cosmic coincidence? Or is there really a god, watching everything, ya' know with a plan for us and stuff? I don't know, man, but it keeps me up at night."
AWelcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.
The most important shooter (FPS) ever made is Wolfenstein 3D. If you haven't played that game in the 90's as a kid you can't possibly know. The engineers in my father's firm had two games installed on their PC: Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty and Wolfenstein 3D. Their boss, a physicist, had Warcraft I: Orcs and Humans and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness on his PC.
I haven't played Half Life yet, but throughout this video I was struck by the similarities between Half Life and Dead Space. The Silent Scientist plays the protagonist, picking up tools along the way. The scientists themselves playing a huge role in the horrors. The puzzle solving, multiple firing modes of weaponry, random enemy spawns, etc.
Ahh, as a big Half Life fan, now I realize why I also love Dead Space so much. And other shooters with survival-horror & puzzle elements. Thanks for connecting the dots. Those really carry Half Life's inspiration forward & bring back a lot of its vibes, whether intentional or not.
Half-Life is very special to me. Not just the games themselves, but its impact and what it spawned afterwards. As well as the GoldSrc and Source engines. There's something about those engines that I love so much, seeing a non-Valve game run on either brings a smile to my face. It's all just something I love. Also I hope you'll talk about the expansions sometime. Opposing Force is amazing in my opinion. Also I'd like to hear you talk about the mods that became Valve products, like Day of Defeat and the original Counter-Strike (emphasis on original, as in the GoldSrc CS). Also the World Opponent Network, which in some ways was a precursor to Steam. Though I guess there isn't too much to talk about in that regard. Would still be nice though.
I have put 2k hours on Gmod since 2012 (not exactly proud) so i can't underestimate the legacy of Half-Life. The Source engine gets treated unfairly, but when i saw HL2 on the PC of an older cousin as kid, i really couldn't believe it. I didn't have a pc at home and it was around the time of the games release, i would go to library computers and search for Half-Life 2 on the internet and still couldn't believe those screenshots. I believe some screenshots from Half-Life 2 still look photorealistic, due to the textures being mostly scans of real things and the clean lightning with minimal post processing. Most console games and the newer games influenced by them try to look like movies with camera lens-like effects, wobbly objects, shiny environments and low FOV coupled with blur, among other things. I love games where you can see the 3D world and move around it without effects, bulky movement or an overly animated viewmodel gun obscuring it.
I love all source games, Even if they don't actually try to, they have this awesome feeling of isolation and loneliness, the ambiance of HL1 and 2, Dark Messiah, portal, Even Gmod, are so atmospheric. The source engine has to he the most "magical" Game engine ever. It creates a sense of being there that newer games can't.
You don't even need to buy games you can play source mods forever. I used to play so many multiplayer mods that were legit amazing games. Zombie Master, The Hidden, Neotokyo. Great stuff
Isaac Clarce from Dead Space is pretty similar to Gordon actually, and I really enjoy how DS refined this formula, Isaac is a nerd too, he is just a engineer who goes to U.S.G.Ishimura to see his gf, and gets terrorised to the point he gets deadly halusinations, just like a normal person would. The ge has ONE cutscene and does gorgeous!
Something I always loved about Half Life and that is a major reason I keep going back to replay it is that it conveys this feeling of loneliness that keeps you wanting to move forward. You are so ALONE in Half Life 1. I remember the first time finding the security guard and I kept trying to talk to him just to hear a human voice. Then as the game goes on, that feeling of lonely dread gets WORSE because when you finally crack the surface and find more humans.. they're all trying to murder you. So few games since Half Life have ever gotten me so immersed that I felt that sense of panic for being so alone and lost.
I loved toward the second half when you link up with the guard In the underground parking area just for him to have a door shut on him and a giant alien tosses him around like a rag doll. I genuinely felt bad for him lol
Portal 1 has the same kind of atmosphere imo, but what i like about hl1 is the nostalgic atmosphere it has, the 70-80s style conspiracy government lab style is just so great and astonishing to me, the teal walls, crt monitors, massive pipes, lasers... It's amazing.
@@celestialcolosseum I kind of missed that lonely atmosphere in portal 2 but at the same time I'm glad they went for something different instead of just making a copy of the original game.
I found this game by mistake, back in 2009 I got my first pc and a friend installed for me a non steam version of counter strike and thats all I new about pc games, one day I had nothing better to do and I started exploring the cs folders(yeah I used to go arround exploring folders for no reason) and I found out this orange symbol that I kinda've seen before in physics class, clicked on and got hooked ever since
I think it’s really telling on how much half life 1 respects the player’s intelligence and time is that the only time you can’t move Gordon at all is when he is barely conscious
That scene from halo 3 was the best example you could have used. I played that game once and when you started that clip I knew the scene after 0.68 seconds. The amount of time data contemplated joining the Borg in first contact.
27-28 is around the expected age to finish a phd in physics. Phd programs for physics take around 5 years on average, so if you start undergrad at 18, and go straight from undergrad to phd, you'd be 27 when you finish. Most physicists skip a masters or it's included part way through the phd program
I know people who finish PHD's around their 30s. It's a good thing he has his PhD though so he can skillfully push all those buttons and turn all those valves.
I have spent so many hours on Half Life - epic story ! I feel what is really underestimated about it tho how awesome the multiplayer was . There is yet to be anything half as exciting as bending an RPG round in a cluster of your friends crowbaring each other to death , or silently sneaking a sniper crossbow shot in their head - glorious !
Another cool thing about Half Life's world was how intuitive it makes navigation. I remember starting the game with the directions to different areas actually written in colored bars on the wall. Adds to both the world-building and aesthetics while also helping players know where to go, with such a little thing!
I mean it is over hyped, unlike other over hyped stuff though. It deserves every ounce of hype it got then as it does now and i can't help but have a tiiiiny very tiny yet still there hope that we will see an episode 3 and a proper conclusión.
You didn’t mention one of the most impressive things of this game: the groundbreaking AI, which still to this day is arguably the best ever made in an FPS.
@@zilliq and putting grenades at his feet and dying thanks to them We'll forgive them because in the ps2 version they can kick the grenades back to you
Half-Life was Equal Parts Shooter and Equal Parts thriller, at least at the time of launch; and was an absolute mind fuck to travel through. One of the best games of all time. Also: I think it's overlooked how insightful you are sometimes. You draw parallels where a lot of others don't and you've always got something profound to formulate your views around. They are always well articulated and entertaining also. Been watching you a long ass time and I'm still always suprised; whether I'm watching a new video or an older one I happened to miss.
Very good review. Just one thing to add: the sensation of continuity in the levels, made you feel the gigantic structure of black mesa. Which was the first and foremost novelty of the time. There never was, a continuous exploration of a complex for dozens of kilometers before half life. And THAT, is the immersion that gave it, its emotional impact. The step up from before. That step was so steep, never a game after that managed to recreate the same delta. Which made everything dull afterward :(
This was indeed exceedingly impressive at the time but it's very incorrect to say that no other game has managed to do the same since then. Indeed I can't think of many examples, but it's not zero. I'd say The Witcher 3 did it extremely well.
I think it feels that way because it was the one that blew us away and expanded our minds first. After your synapses fire in brand new ways, it's hard verging on impossible to feel that same brain blast from anything else. We can get similar, but it's not gonna be the same.
I remember being a kid just getting into FPS when Half-Life came out. The game had a unique feel that I've never found in another. Going from playing Golden Eye to Half-Life was phenomenal. I can still vaguely remember the "Oh shit!" feeling when you first see the face huggers. It was also the first game to make me go "I'm going to use the melee weapon because I've only got 12 rounds on my pistol... gonna need that for the ceiling/tongue guys..."
Yeah I kinda started playing half life back in 2002 pretty much the same time as halo Combat evolved, of course I love both games a lot but CE gave me much more respect a si play the og halo CE to this day but since black Mesa came out for half life(a remake) I play that instead of the original but who knows, maybe I'll go back to play the og sometime just for the nostalgia
"Go to buyraycon.com/actman for 15% off your order! Brought to you by Raycon."
Damn, I actually look pretty good with a goatee. I'm shocked!
No, i will not.
Of course sir
Nah
Jesus that opening 🤣
You should try cry of fear
bro please drop the crowbar we can talk about this
Freeman sends his regards.
All hail the legendary Zanman
The OG kingdom hearts fan.
Slayer of weeaboos.
I greet thee.
*even angrier crowbar noises*
hey Zancan
All im saying is that we've never seen Gordan Freeman and Act Man in the same room
Ayo wait u onto something
But where is Gman? is this his doing by any chance?
Neither do act man and Ross or Wayne
I did, and they were kissing
But we literally just did in the video.
It's honestly impressive you got the real doctor freeman to appear in your video
You 2 guys need to colab more. Love your vids bud.
great.
No way....ITS YOU!
hey whats up cute lesbian
Please do Collabs With The Act Man
One thing not mentioned in this video but I found so impactful in the game (just finished playing thru it) was the sparing use of soundtrack/music in it. There's something incredibly impactful about spending the first significant chunk of the game in silence, then reaching the surface you hear the ambient electric guitar riff and holy hot damn does it hit hard.
Imagine spending your life to graduate from MIT, earning a phd title, become a physicist and end up becoming an alien slaying war-hero.
gordon has more phds in fighting than he does in science
Usually how it goes tbh
@@jimmiekarlsson4458 Lol, you kidding? I'd be pissed that I wasted all that money on a Doctorate only for society to immediately implode and render it worthless.
@@patchwurk6652 On the upside, no one is going to be buggin you to pay back all those loans you took out for that doctorate. Downside, the post alien invasion apocalypse isn't the greatest job market for former theoretical physicists.
Id be pretty fucking happy in life.
I bet that if Act Man were to ask Gabe to release Half-Life 3, he would have to comply. I mean, Gabe can't say no to the personification of Gordon Freeman in flesh, can't he?
,
ruclips.net/video/yFV-owh1eW8/видео.html...
Doubt it. Gordon Freeman doesnt talk though XD
@@christiananddanyell his crowbar can do the talking
If you comment on all of act mans videos, how come you’re not subscribed to him yet
Ok act man, now do 'Why was the orange box a masterpiece?'
OOF that's a tall order, captain
@@TheActMan Well it's a masterpiece sooooooo
@@TheActMan wondering the safe shallows remind you of something
Act man would do why *SUBNAUTICA IS TERRIFYING BUT BUGGGY*
@@TheActMan just do each game in small parts to make a normal video, with possibly returning to each game on its own.
Nah do videos on the individual games, they all deserve a separate video
I'm replaying HF1 again right now and it has lost none of it's impact or addictiveness. 25 years later and it's as difficult to tear myself away from now as it was in '98. Truly a masterpiece.
I finished it today, amazing game
Ah yes half file
Must have been more difficult back then, since you couldn't look up walkthrough videos online.
@@PurooRoy We didn't have videos but we did have text only walkthroughs. Also, there might have been a book you could buy (imagine that!). I know lots of games did that bitd.
Half fucked
What's crazy about the ending of HL1 is that the scientists never tell you that there's no way back after you kill the nihilanth - you kinda just realize after G Man grabs you that, actually, you went there on a suicide mission.
The scientists used Gordon the entire time, relying on his sense of responsibility for protecting the earth to save their own ass.
a great theory, i've never thought about it like this before
such a shame that gearbox ruined this because in both HL expansions you visit xen and are able return to earth afterwards. and even if we decide these games are not cannon, in HL2 when characters are shocked to see you they seem to ask "where have you been" rather than "how are you even here"
@@Gryzly123 well, with Mark Laidlaw out of the picture, I'm sure valve is going to be developing the official canon moving forward (since he actually didn't like the idea of games necessarily having official canon), though it seems to me with the paradoxes present in HL:A that the series could turn into a multi-dimensional, multi-timeline war adventure game where things are canon or not canon depending on what narrative they happen to be going for in each game.
In short, I'm worried that valve has bit off more than they can chew, and I'm still not certain that we're going to get HL3, with all the issues in continuity, canon, and story arc.
@@Gryzly123 The theory still works actually. You could return to Earth in the expansions because the Nihlanth was still there to keep the portal to Earth open. Gordon would still be trapped in Xen without the G-Man’s interference because he was there to kill off the Nihilanth, meaning he would have been trapped no matter what afterwards. Asking “where have you been” would also technically work as an appropriate question in this context, but it’s part of a bigger criticism I have with HL2 in general where the characters don’t really act as shocked as I think they should be
@@Gryzly123 Too be fair, the characters in HL2 mainly Eli, Kleiner and Magnusson. Don't send you off to Xen to kill the Nihilanth, nor are really apart of the events that unfold in the later stages of the game/story. Kleiner and Eli last saw Gordon going to the surface with both of them presumably escaping shortly afterwards. Magnusson most probably escaped with both of them. Barney Gtfo'd before the second day. Breen... well as the administrator of Black Mesa (who also had some contact with G-Man) probably was already off site before the events. Also, Judith never got the job and lost out to Gordon. So it's safe to say their reactions are warranted and reasonable. So the nuking of Black Mesa fits in with cannon in my opinion, other wise why would the Combine solely focus on the Borealis when Black Mesa can also be scavenged for teleportation technology that allows them to teleport locally.
Secret plot twist: the true hero of half life is gman
I remember playing this game as a 13 year old, thinking "Gordon's 27? Man he's old!"
Now I'm 27 and shit my pants imagining being in his situation. That, or I just lie to myself and think he's like 49 or something.
Wow, I never fully took-in how old Gordan is when the incident at Black Mesa happens. Don't know who's first day was worst, Leon S. Kennedy's or Gordan Freeman!?
@@warchild4974 it wasnt Gordon's first day, few scientists and guards already knew him before the incident.
@@pawanpoojary7463 well to be fair, some of them may have gone to the same university that Gordon did. Either-way even if it wasn't his official first day, it wasn't a great start to his day at all
@@warchild4974 appparantly he was working as an intern/probably still studying while being at black mesa, thats why scientists know him before his first day of oficially working
@@ishid_anfarded_king yeah that's how I take it, I was stating that for us (as the player) it's his first day on the job and all hell breaks loose
You've pretty much never mentioned half life before and I've been wondering for years if you had even played it. Psyched to see this!
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is so awesome
Let me get this straight: You comment something that is unrelated to the fact that I have two DANGEROUSLY DASHING girlfriends? Considering that I am the unprettiest RUclipsr ever, having two hot girlfriends is really incredible. Yet you did not mention that at all. I am quite disappointed, dear bas
@@AxxLAfriku That's some interesting channel content you've got there....
@@H3Vtux Bow down
@@AxxLAfriku Oh you're that channel that nobody gives a shit about and I already forgot by the time you read this
Fun fact, most of the tanks explode by themselves if you keep your distance and crouch just enough that they can see you. It makes them shoot too close to themselves.
Funny how you remember small things like that
Half-Life 1 is a certified hood classic.
CLASSIC
@@TheActMan wondering the safe shallows remind you of something
Act man would do why *SUBNAUTICA IS TERRIFYING BUT BUGGGY*
@@AgentStone5 subnautica is dope af
@@AgentStone5 new ncr ranger huh?
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is so awesome
Actman is never going to leave the PUBG devs alone lmaooo
Nope and Acting Gods bless that Acting Male
Well when you dump your original fanbase in favor of supporting the Chinese market without actually improving the game and ignoring feedback then I don't know what else to say about the devs.
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is s awesome
And neither are we as a gaming community
PUBG could've been amazing and ground breaking, but they done goofed and now are just a shell of what they could've been.
they made an a$$ of themselves, it was the most pathetic thing when they sued fortnite, how can you be that salty and pathetic?
The aesthetic of Half Life 1 is surreal. It's like being dropped inside a dream.
A cream dream
Lol wake up on a bus with a crow bar fighting soldiers to fighting zombies to then meeting a girl & her robot 😂 definitely the definition of a dream🤣
@@BeastMode-kg7sc aesthetic let that word sink in
Crow bar isn’t an aesthetic nor are the aliens
...a dream of crowbars.
I think a lot of it is the New Mexico desert setting. For some reason the movie Broken Arrow with Christian Slater and John Travolta reminded me of it too.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on the "remake" thing called Black Mesa!
It’s good. It’s more than a port and it’s got it’s own identity.
@@CavinLee You aren’t Act Man! 🫵🏻 That’s a fake mustache!
@@OhNoJoshEdits huh?
@@CavinLee ☝🏻OP asked for the Act Man’s thoughts! I’m starting to think you’re just 2 kids in a trench coat! 🤨
@@OhNoJoshEdits oh, I’m not a channel regular. I was just saying that I’ve played the game and thought it was pretty good.
I love that I can name all the game OSTs you use in your videos
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is s awesome
Now i feel like im not gamer enough that i can only recognize some of them :/
Music at 7:21 please??
@@neiliosTM CSGO theme
@@lukkkasz323 thank you!
Up Next: “Why is Half Life 2 A MASTERPIECE?”
In a couple decades: "Why is Half Life 3 A MASTERPIECE?!"
@@starstorm5338 centuries*
I actually like HL1 better tbh
Better title. "Was Half-Life 2 better then Half-Life?"
@@glctcthnkr8059 still, Half Life 2 is just... A masterpiece, no words other than that, I honestly think Half Life 2 is the best fps ever made, but regardless of that it does absolutely deserve a masterpiece video tbh
Can you explain to me why Valve never credited you as the real life inspiration for Gordon Freeman?
Can they just add black mesa to console? Its really not difficult anymore
cringe
"𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢𝚠𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎 𝙸 𝚐𝚘, 𝙸 𝚜𝚎𝚎 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚏𝚊𝚌𝚎."
@@bozoratio7718 how do you do that? Are you on a computer?
Israel start it first by taking land majority of land from Palestine who has been there to minority that is Israrl. UN majority give weapon to them
How on earth do you think Palestine start it first if not from your cow bias against Islam?
Half life 1 and 2 are so different, yet they both share an overall vibe that other games have tried and failed miserably to replicate. But half life 1 had a certain purity to the concept. It's hard to describe.
Half-life 2 is just a glorified tech demo with bad gameplay, low enemy variety and misuse of physics
@@russianoverkill3715 this has to be ragebait
@@russianoverkill3715 you're probably just dying over and over again, so you came here to take your frustration out.
@@russianoverkill3715 cope
Funny enough, I only discovered Half Life because of Freeman’s Mind and Kitty0706
You missed out
I miss Kitty0706 man.
We all do miss him.
wow
R.I.P Kitty0706. My introduction to Half-Life was the second game. I only relatively recently played the original, having played Black Mesa first, as well.
RIP
Ya know he actually kinda looks like Gordon I’ll never be able to unsee this and I’m not upset
Valve needs to make a Half Life movie with Act Man as Gordon Freeman
Older act man will look even more similar
I saw this video before I knew much about the Half-Life series, and when I purchased Half-Life 2, my first reaction on seeing the cover in my Steam library was "Holy shit that's The Act Man!".
He's actually not that far off from being the same age. Isn't Gordon line 29?
All these years later my daughter started playing it and she loves it. It’s undeniable that a game that good can remain timeless makes it a true masterpiece.
All of the platforming issues are because of not crouch jumping, it's a signature movement style of valve games. In cs 1.6, css, csgo, hl1, hl2 etc. there are multiple games that utilize this system. If you crouch you get a little bit extra jump length to reach further platforms.
Yeah. He didn't mention the optional tutorial, so he likely didn't know about it.
I remember I would watch my dad play this game. I was young and too scared to play by myself at the time. There is the part near the beginning of the game where you have to jump on the ladder that hangs in the elevator shaft. My dad couldn't get the jump right so I offered and did it first try! Good little bonding moment I wont forget haha.
I wasn't expecting a wholesome comment like this
that’s a very touching story Dr. Butt Hartmann!
That's amazing. Funny enough, I had the exact same experience on the hanging crates section with my older cousins. They said they had been trying to get past that part for 2 days. I got through it on my first try.
Something like this with brother :D
Wholesome
9:07 "Wait, how did they get into those offices? I don't see any doors."
_Aperture has joined the chat_
They are indeed in the same universe.
monster inc. 3
now you're thinking with portals
We are concerned that Act Man’s videos are replicating the experience for which the most legendary content creators in existence are known for.
31:14
My favoutite thing about half life is that this part in the german version, which turns the soldiers into the unused robot soldiers, implies that the alien invasion apocalypse preventet the sentient mashines wipe out humanity apocalypse.
I'm sure the whole censoring of violence in video games in Germany at the time was all part of Valves masterplan.
It’s been 7 months. I want a "Why is Half Life 2 A MASTERPIECE?!"
@@abc-ug5ym If Half-Life is a video game, then what’s Half-Life 2?
@@abc-ug5ym Did you even watch the review and what made this method so good? What the fuck are you even talking about???
@@abc-ug5ym why cant you just have a normal debate about HL2 rather than resorting to insults.
@@abc-ug5ym yeah I wasn't referring to any of that. You said in your last reply "because in your 30s u'll be so fat from screen and mcdonalds I won't even care to reply". So why can't you just debate rather than resulting to childish insults. Also, your grammar and spelling are terrible, i think you should consider reading a novel rather than talking about them on the Internet.
@@abc-ug5ym more childish insults?
Now let's crowdfund a short movie with actman as a silent Gordan Freeman
I started playing Half Life 1 only two weeks ago and i finished it today, and i can say that this game has zero boring moments, from start to finish it keeps gradually gettting better and better. If a 1998 game can give me this much fun time in 2022 then it definitely deserves the title of "Masterpiece".
Same here, just started playing recently, and its become one of my favorite games, and I was born 6 years after the game came out. Not finished quite yet, am currently on the chapter *Lambda Core*.
Damn does HL1 brings back memories. First played the game in 2005/2006 on a pentium 3 lol.
Better and better until you hit Interloper. Game's still a masterpiece though.
@@jpeg2503 Interloper? Is that a cut level? I never heard of him... nope... never
First played it about 4 years ago on the PC but couldn’t continue due to the door opening glitch at the beginning, now been playing it on the PS2 and I’m definitely getting into it! It’s a great game.
I appreciate that titanfall 2 was there along the goats. Even though it's multiplayer has been ruined by a hacker entirely it's still fun to play the single player campaign I just wish when you got the other titan loadouts you kept them permanently even when returning to a previous level.
Like Team fortress 2
@@macros1852There are too much similarities, Titan Fall 2 even uses a Modified source engine.
Here so early that the Combine hasn’t invaded earth
give it 7 hours
@@TheActMan wondering the safe shallows remind you of something
Act man would do why *SUBNAUTICA IS TERRIFYING BUT BUGGGY*
Dont be a anti citizen
@@TheActMan *Valve theme plays*
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is so awesome
twitter saw this cosplay first
ruclips.net/video/yFV-owh1eW8/видео.html...
Yessir
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is so awesome
@@whiterunguard6415 Skyrim is a tragic failure compared to it's predecessors, and I'd be shocked if Actman himself wasn't aware of this.
Oh, except commercially. They marketed it very well.
@@whiterunguard6415 Skyrim wasn’t awesome so why would he make that video,
This is the best cosplay of Gordon, The fact that your hair was already styled like his helped
One of the most memorable aspects of this game I have is that the journey has no stops (which were always occurring in previous FPSs at the time) - except for that point you get knocked out and wake up
Act man literally shaved before all of the gordon freeman bits can we please give a round of applause for the dedication
0
I imagine he grows it back extremely fast.
@@H3Vtux L O L
ruclips.net/video/omQ-G7dxq8s/видео.html
It’s a sad reality that we’ll never get a “Why is Half-Life 3 A MASTERPIECE?”
We might get "Why Was Half-Life 3 SO DELAYED?!"
@@TheActMan hint hint
@@TheActMan How to describle the word "pain" in one sentense
@@TheActMan Can we get on why the Yakuza series is a masterpiece or awesome
@@TheActMan Probably because the pressure and expectations are so high that even for HL:a people were expecting a masterpiece. (Which we got imo)
I definitely didn't grow up as a gamer so all of my exposure to games happened through my husband. Half life was one of the first games he ever showed me. Even without the context of the broader world of gaming, I could tell it was incredible! It remains in my top 5 favorites to this day!
what are your top 5 favorites?
@@terencesdurag2823 lol this woman probably doesn't even play video games. Her number 1 would probably be cod.
@@imsentinelprime9279 Looking over the rest of your comments on this video, you yourself certainly look like the type to be trapped in a stereotypical COD lobby. Why don't you get your chronically-on-buttocks self over to a place you actually belong?
@@imsentinelprime9279not everyone enjoys turn based or old ass jpeg games so if someone says cod is there favorite that doesn’t mean there not a gamer it’s only if they play anime games then there not a gamer
@Ariistos I hate turn based games. I was just saying because most women have zero taste in video games.
I played it for the first time in 2022 and its now one of the best games i ever played. Cant believe how an over 20 year old games makes more fun than todays games. It surprises you behind every corner.
Good, now Play Black mesa, a Dedicated Community Remaster/Remake of the game that can make your balls either explode in absolute shock, or give them an extra 2 ton weight addition on how Incredible it is in general.
I played it a month ago. Already finished 1, 2, Episode 1, Episode 2, Lost Coast, Deathmatch and Deathmatch 2.
Then its baby (Black Mesa) was born and has been kicking ass since
Honestly the movement is one of the things I LOVE about Half-Life and is one of the biggest reasons why I don't think Black Mesa replaces it. Along with the marines being less fun. (Black Mesa's still great but more as an extra experience not a replacement)
What's so great about Half-Life's slippery movement? It feels like you're on roller skates the whole time, and there's nothing about it that has any impact on gameplay, besides making things slightly more difficult than need be. It's not even as though the huge amount of air control plays any part unless you're doing speedrunning, and it's not like Unreal for example where there's a dodge mechanic. The only other element is crouch jumping, which is almost a pointless feature.
@@ThisBirdHasFlown Speed, there's a MASSIVE speed difference between HL1 and Black Mesa. It's has a completely different game feel that makes black mesa feel like source game, rather than a goldsource game. Also the slipperyness is just you not having played the game enough. That's not an issue, especially if you can hold a button to walk.
Jarek my man hitting us with FACTS
@@Jarekthegamingdragon I just turned speed on constantly and edited a few settings and it was pretty on-point to the original. I'd have to check to see which settings I changed.
You can turn always run on in Black Mesa for a similar feel
To me, I think the whole appeal of Half-Life, aside from the revolutionary storytelling and innovation on the FPS formula, is that it's the first game to NOT pit you as some kind of grizzled balls-to-the-walls action hero, and more like a random scientist who's trying to survive.
Gives a whole different perspective.
If you are good enough you can be a action hero
i always like the premise that you are regular civilian or non military proffession try to survive Horror
Gordon Freeman: A 27 y.o Scientist
Ethan Winters: Maybe an Office Worker
Isaac Clarke: CEC 3rd class System Engineer
Especially looking at all of the other scientists who don’t have HEV suits and knowing that if you didn’t have yours you’d be doing just as bad as them
I remember the whole appeal to me for Quake III was the girl in your pfp XD
@@austrakaiser4793 It's actually Doomguy, not Crash, but I get what you're saying ;)
2:40 I think an interesting point that could have followed up the typewriter is that, while people don't use a typewriter anymore, we still use the layout it had on keyboards, such as the formulas half-life used are still being used as inspiration in games today.
its like a quote i remembered (i think) *"the body he burried that day, laid a foundation of what we are today"*
@@povyouretiredbutdontwannasleepViggo from John Wick
It goes beyond just keyboard layouts. If you open up a bare Microsoft Word page and fiddle with literally any of the formatting, there are good odds the setting you're messing with was invented and named during the typewriter era.
I just played and beat this game for the first time a few days ago. I'd always heard of it being this great game, but I had no idea exactly what I getting into. It is by far one of the best games I've ever played and the historical context of it makes it all the more sweet. Wow. Just so much fun from start to finish. It's a game that respects your intelligence and always keeps it fresh.
I played it for the first time last month, and I absolutely agree. I was coming to it after playing quite an amount of emulated games on PS2. Half Life blew me away for how well crafted it was, to the point that I found it vastly superior to a lot of the PS2 ones (especially in the puzzles department). All around a must recommend for everyone to try at least once
I played this game almost 16 years ago , it was so cool when you go to the other dimension momentarily … epic stuff
The first time I played this, I put the CD back in the case after done installing. So I was left with eerie silence throughout the entire game accompanied only by the sound design and the visuals. Interestingly enough, I think that made the horror aspect of this game much more real because I began having nightmares of gurgling headcrab zombies in dim lit rooms. Good times.
Indeed good times....I also remember that I hated when games used to access the disc drive when you were in the middle of gaming because of the horrible drive noise destroying the immersion....the came Steam and you could experience the music without any additional noises 😅
Same for me, for a few years I didn't know there was music at all and I always b believed it was part of the overall sound design / concept
Ngl, i forgot about the ol days where the soundtrack didnt install with the game and was read off the disc.
My game wouldn't load the music for reason. I tried playing recently with the music on and it just seems off. You're right, having no music makes it more immersive.
…HALF-LIFE HAD A SOUNDTRACK!?!
"They're waiting for you Gordon - in the test chamberrrrrrr."
Feed my my coooiiiiiinnsss... Mr. Freemaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnnnnn--
Can’t wait for “why half life 2 is a masterpiece”
Yes
“Those chickens are up to something”
yaaas
Half-Life 2 is garbage though. One of the most overrated video games of all time. Not even being a troll here. That game is disgustingly overrated. Terrible story, terrible writing, terrible characters, terrible shooting. The game was all hype. It is an objectively BAD game, and I expect Act Man here will say as much if he reviews it.
@@jaimealvarado4421 that’s amazing man, like really, force your opinion on us, please.
I played Half-Life for the first time when it was free and I gotta say, I was amazed what was created in 1998. But most importantly, I was just halfway through the game and I just realised something. I was progressing through the story even though they never told me what to do or showed me any directions, I just somehow knew what to do. Somehow a game from 1998 can have better gameplay story telling then most modern games with objectives or arrows.
I was a 24 year-old hardcore PC gamer when this came out, and it blew everybody away. I will never forget my first play-though and it makes me happy to see this video. Thanks Act Man ..
Yeah, he does a pretty good job of explaining how big a deal this was at the time! Man those early death match servers were epic
“Jump + crouch” let’s you make those jumps. Simply jump then before landing hold crouch and you will be able to make the distance.
Valve movement shooters in a nutshell
"It's not a bug, it's a FEATURE!" - Valve making the half life tutorial
yep actman plays Call of Duty and not Counter-Strike, or else he would've known
@blu element1235 You don't have to explain about the individual. That is the magic of it.
It's like nobody played the tutorial
This poor soul made it through the platforming without learning crouch jumping. Respects Act Man.
And thank you for covering one of my all time favorite shooters since childhood. If you have finished Episode 2 of Half-Life 2, welcome to the pain us Half-Life fans had to deal with for over a decade.
Crouch jumping is probably the first gaming skill I ever learnt, and served me well in all the HL1 engine and source engine games that followed it lol..
@@CalgarGTX same
@@CalgarGTX
Indeed! It's ingrained into my fps gameplay that I do it in games where I probably don't even need to. It just happens subconsciously.
@@CalgarGTXsame with halo
Love these reviews of old games by the old timers that played them growing up. You and guys like Civvie do these oldies real justice. Each in totally different ways that I'll watch two reviews on the same game cause I love the different takes on it. Nostalgia hits hard watching guys like you. Is a nice relief from the mad world around us.
If there ever is a half life show. Gordan needs to just menacingly stare at people while brandishing his crowbar
Freemans mind the movie confirmed
"hey freeman, why are you always carrying that crowbar?"
"God dammit i bought this crowbar and im going to get my money's worth!"
I remember my Dad playing this game when it first came out, I’d sit beside him and watch. Then I’d run around the house with a toy golf club pretending I was Gordan Freeman and accidentally smash a fluorescent light bulb……..:those were the days lol. It definitely sparked my interest in video games and my imagination. Great video Act Man!
me toooooooooooo
I've always seen Valve as a company that doesn't do a lot in terms of game releases compared to other companies, but when they do it makes an undeniable impact on the genre they release.
you can see how act bro’s editing has improved so so much, and his production quality in general it’s amazing
Ima feed you to a funny looking bird
It's cool to see Act Man talk about one of my favorite games of all time. Back in 1999, my dad was in the Air Force and him and his buddies would go into a secret vault to play nothing but Half-Life Deathmatch. The vault was so secure that if you were even the president of the United States, they couldn't just let you in without knowing who you were, even by camera. Believe it or not, it was a training exercise that the drill Sergeant was cool with because you had to listen to sound and that was one of the main reasons why he allowed it. That was around the time when half-life Opposing Force came out as well so they also played capture the flag and deathmatch on there too. He told me about this one game competition they had, whoever was in the last place would leave the game and then the next map would start. It would eventually count down to the last two people. Whoever was the last person standing, would get the "secret prize." So one dude, who is really good at the game, wins first place. The "secret prize" was that he had to eat raw meat in front of everyone because he was the butcher and killed everyone. Somewhere around the 2000s, way after my dad left the Air Force, the government found out that it wasn't a government program and they pulled the plug on the Half-Life game sessions. Honestly, if my dad never played that game back in 1999, my life would be completely different, I don't know where I would be. Half-Life 1 changed me as a person and what I wanted to do with my life. In my opinion, Half- life 1 is better than half like 2 by a LLooooong shot, but that is me. It's my favorite shooter and probably my favorite game of all time: the organicness, gameplay, the story, the Black Mesa Research Facility etc. I normally don't think games are 10 out of 10 and is rare, but this game for me is definitely that and I will even defend Xen by saying it was perfect. Seriously, I have no problems with Xen and will defend that tooth and nail. Overall, I love Half-life 1 too much.
The whole half-life franchise is a masterpeice. It's like an organism: half-life 1 with opposing force, blue shift and decay are the brain of the half-life world, this games are start of the half-life universe and they are amazing. Half-life 2 with ep1 and ep2 is a heart of half-life franchise, which is give a great plot, characters and one of the best sci-fi world. Half-life Alyx is lungs of the franchise that gave us a breath of fresh air, another revolution in the world of video games, and also developed the world of the Half-Life universe.
@@echo-4656 I have a different analogy to sum up the half life games actually from you. For half life 1 for me, Half-life 1 is the cheeseburger, Opposing Forces is the fries, Blue Shift is the milkshake and Decay is onion rings. Like all this other stuff is unnecessary you just want the burger, but it's nice to have. Before anyone notices, I took these inspirations from Joel vinesauce.
"The possibility of a resonance cascade scenario is highly unlikely"
And now, in the most predictable plot twist in history, we have a chapter called unforseen consequences
2:24 "the goat" shows a picture of half life source 💀
I never realized how much Act looks like Gordon. Now I know.
he looks exactly like this fanmade gordon model www.reddit.com/r/HalfLife/comments/fehf86/unofficial_community_made_gordon_freeman_model/
"You ever wonder why we're here?"
"One of life's greatest mysteries, isn't it? Why are we here? Are we the product of some cosmic coincidence? Or is there really a god, watching everything, ya' know with a plan for us and stuff? I don't know, man, but it keeps me up at night."
Ayy a fellow RvB fan!
AWelcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Welcome to Gboard clipboard, any text you copy will be saved here.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Tap on a clip to paste it in the text box.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.Use the edit icon to pin, add or delete clips.
@@emmywhiten8705 what the fuck is this
@@Callsign_Bear [ＷＡＲＮＩＮＧ － ＩＮＦＯＨＡＺＡＲＤ ＤＥＴＥＣＴＥＤ － ＡＭＮＥＳＴＩＣＳ ＤＥＰＬＯＹＥＤ]
“Your subjective opinions are objectively incorrect.” I’m going to be using this gem in arguments for a long time.
You disagree with me, so I am going to call you a "Naughtsee" and win.
@@Marinealver nazi ur opinion unvalid
The most important shooter (FPS) ever made is Wolfenstein 3D. If you haven't played that game in the 90's as a kid you can't possibly know. The engineers in my father's firm had two games installed on their PC: Dune II: The Building of a Dynasty and Wolfenstein 3D. Their boss, a physicist, had Warcraft I: Orcs and Humans and Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness on his PC.
Better than newer games, just like how "Back To The Future" is a masterpiece and more watchable than newer movies.
Like how Empire Strikes Back may sometimes look dated, but is still masterpiece
and the analogy works even better when you realize that you're overgeneralizing and there's both still great movies and games coming out all the time.
@@plebisMaximus Yes but they are very rare
@@walter1824 Not really, no. You're just looking in the wrong places.
@@plebisMaximus what movies do you recommend ?
This man shaved his beard to a goatee for the cosplay. I give props
The hazard course taught you jump crouching. When you crouch in mid air, Gordon pulls his legs up so you can reach platforms easier
and it teaches long jumping as well
I haven't played Half Life yet, but throughout this video I was struck by the similarities between Half Life and Dead Space. The Silent Scientist plays the protagonist, picking up tools along the way. The scientists themselves playing a huge role in the horrors. The puzzle solving, multiple firing modes of weaponry, random enemy spawns, etc.
Ahh, as a big Half Life fan, now I realize why I also love Dead Space so much. And other shooters with survival-horror & puzzle elements. Thanks for connecting the dots. Those really carry Half Life's inspiration forward & bring back a lot of its vibes, whether intentional or not.
“Act Free-Man isn’t real, he can’t hurt you” Act Free-Man:
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is so awesome
Half-Life is very special to me. Not just the games themselves, but its impact and what it spawned afterwards. As well as the GoldSrc and Source engines. There's something about those engines that I love so much, seeing a non-Valve game run on either brings a smile to my face. It's all just something I love.
Also I hope you'll talk about the expansions sometime. Opposing Force is amazing in my opinion. Also I'd like to hear you talk about the mods that became Valve products, like Day of Defeat and the original Counter-Strike (emphasis on original, as in the GoldSrc CS). Also the World Opponent Network, which in some ways was a precursor to Steam. Though I guess there isn't too much to talk about in that regard. Would still be nice though.
I have put 2k hours on Gmod since 2012 (not exactly proud) so i can't underestimate the legacy of Half-Life. The Source engine gets treated unfairly, but when i saw HL2 on the PC of an older cousin as kid, i really couldn't believe it. I didn't have a pc at home and it was around the time of the games release, i would go to library computers and search for Half-Life 2 on the internet and still couldn't believe those screenshots.
I believe some screenshots from Half-Life 2 still look photorealistic, due to the textures being mostly scans of real things and the clean lightning with minimal post processing. Most console games and the newer games influenced by them try to look like movies with camera lens-like effects, wobbly objects, shiny environments and low FOV coupled with blur, among other things. I love games where you can see the 3D world and move around it without effects, bulky movement or an overly animated viewmodel gun obscuring it.
@@abbcc5996 i have over 5000 in gmod and it has definitely shaped me as a person, for better or worse (definitely worse)
I love all source games, Even if they don't actually try to, they have this awesome feeling of isolation and loneliness, the ambiance of HL1 and 2, Dark Messiah, portal, Even Gmod, are so atmospheric. The source engine has to he the most "magical" Game engine ever. It creates a sense of being there that newer games can't.
You don't even need to buy games you can play source mods forever. I used to play so many multiplayer mods that were legit amazing games. Zombie Master, The Hidden, Neotokyo. Great stuff
Best game engines of all time.
The next video better be “WHY THE ACT MAN IS A MASTERPIECE?!”
Isaac Clarce from Dead Space is pretty similar to Gordon actually, and I really enjoy how DS refined this formula, Isaac is a nerd too, he is just a engineer who goes to U.S.G.Ishimura to see his gf, and gets terrorised to the point he gets deadly halusinations, just like a normal person would. The ge has ONE cutscene and does gorgeous!
Not to worry, we're still flying Half-A-Life!
Hello there
General Kenobi, you are a bold one!
GENERAL FREEMAN
HAL λF- A-LIFE
Hello there
Act Man could do "Why Black Mesa is a MASTERFUL Remake".
- My brain: "We happy?"
- Me: * Sees Titanfall 2 when Act Man is talking about "Masterclass First Person Shooters" at 37:13 *
- Me: "We happy"
I non ironically got a master degree in Nuclear Physics because of this game
(doing Doctorate RN, hope I finnish it before HL 3)
LITERALLY WAS WATCHING HALF LIFE LORE, YOU'RE AMAZING
metal server supremacy
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is so awesome
@@whiterunguard6415 pain.
@@madhavbhatia4107 bruh
@@JyotirmayShelly I do not know what you mean, could you elaborate?
Gordon would be the best person for P.E Class, he literally doesn't stop running, even when you ask him to
Something I always loved about Half Life and that is a major reason I keep going back to replay it is that it conveys this feeling of loneliness that keeps you wanting to move forward. You are so ALONE in Half Life 1. I remember the first time finding the security guard and I kept trying to talk to him just to hear a human voice. Then as the game goes on, that feeling of lonely dread gets WORSE because when you finally crack the surface and find more humans.. they're all trying to murder you. So few games since Half Life have ever gotten me so immersed that I felt that sense of panic for being so alone and lost.
I loved toward the second half when you link up with the guard In the underground parking area just for him to have a door shut on him and a giant alien tosses him around like a rag doll. I genuinely felt bad for him lol
I don’t suppose you found your way in to one of the lonely areas where you hear the horrific scream of ghosts
Portal 1 has the same kind of atmosphere imo, but what i like about hl1 is the nostalgic atmosphere it has, the 70-80s style conspiracy government lab style is just so great and astonishing to me, the teal walls, crt monitors, massive pipes, lasers... It's amazing.
@@celestialcolosseum I kind of missed that lonely atmosphere in portal 2 but at the same time I'm glad they went for something different instead of just making a copy of the original game.
I found this game by mistake, back in 2009 I got my first pc and a friend installed for me a non steam version of counter strike and thats all I new about pc games, one day I had nothing better to do and I started exploring the cs folders(yeah I used to go arround exploring folders for no reason) and I found out this orange symbol that I kinda've seen before in physics class, clicked on and got hooked ever since
If a film adaptation came out, Act Man would be perfect casting choice.
He doesn't even have to talk.
I'd honestly want Bryan Cranston but yeah act man would be really good as well.
He is the acting male after all
@@ethanium8405
Bryan would've been perfect but he's way too old to play Gordon.
@@ethanium8405
Far too late for that now.
But you see, the thing about movies, is that they require people who can ACT, man!
I think it’s really telling on how much half life 1 respects the player’s intelligence and time is that the only time you can’t move Gordon at all is when he is barely conscious
Need a " Why portal is a masterpiece" !
Yes
Yes
Yes
yes
YYYEEEEESSSSSS
That scene from halo 3 was the best example you could have used. I played that game once and when you started that clip I knew the scene after 0.68 seconds. The amount of time data contemplated joining the Borg in first contact.
27 years old and already has a PhD in physics is the amazing part for me
27-28 is around the expected age to finish a phd in physics. Phd programs for physics take around 5 years on average, so if you start undergrad at 18, and go straight from undergrad to phd, you'd be 27 when you finish. Most physicists skip a masters or it's included part way through the phd program
I know people who finish PHD's around their 30s.
It's a good thing he has his PhD though so he can skillfully push all those buttons and turn all those valves.
@@illyay1337 Looks like that MIT education really pays for itself...
@@dylanherman2008 I'm turning 26 and I'm still in film school guess I'm an idiot right?
@@yaboydolphin nope, not everyone have the same opportunities.
This is the exact moment Gordon Freeman became Heisenberg
Truly a masterpiece
The moment Act Freeman became Gordonberg
Plot twist: The G-man is just a more advanced Mark Zuckerburg.
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is s awesome
@@whiterunguard6415 It almost makes you wish for a nuclear winter
I have spent so many hours on Half Life - epic story ! I feel what is really underestimated about it tho how awesome the multiplayer was . There is yet to be anything half as exciting as bending an RPG round in a cluster of your friends crowbaring each other to death , or silently sneaking a sniper crossbow shot in their head - glorious !
Breaking News: MySpace has recently gained 500,000 new members because of a RUclipsr, ActMan
Taking an arrow to the knee is almost as painful as waiting for actman's why skyrim is so awesome
Another cool thing about Half Life's world was how intuitive it makes navigation. I remember starting the game with the directions to different areas actually written in colored bars on the wall. Adds to both the world-building and aesthetics while also helping players know where to go, with such a little thing!
99% of people viewing this video already knew Half-Life is a masterpiece. But honestly, nice video!
Fact!
Yay I'm finally in the 1% of something! (That's actually sad, I wish I had experienced this game like everyone else 😔)
When he said, "As he's proven to be the deadliest nerd amongst the Dungeons and Dragons club at Black Mesa", I died of laughter.
Bought half life thinking that it was overhyped.
Little did I know, I was objectively wrong in every way
I mean it is over hyped, unlike other over hyped stuff though. It deserves every ounce of hype it got then as it does now and i can't help but have a tiiiiny very tiny yet still there hope that we will see an episode 3 and a proper conclusión.
"this is my hiding spo-" gets shot 12:56
I knew I was going to find someone that commented on it🤣
You didn’t mention one of the most impressive things of this game: the groundbreaking AI, which still to this day is arguably the best ever made in an FPS.
It was incredible at the time to see the military soldiers tactically run and hide behind boxes to throw grenades
@@zilliq and putting grenades at his feet and dying thanks to them
We'll forgive them because in the ps2 version they can kick the grenades back to you
Even valve admitted that in some ways the HL1 AI was better than the HL2 AI
Search for the AI behavior of the monsters in this game and you'll be truly impressed.
Half Life 1 had some revolutionary AI at the time, but arguably the best AI now goes to FEAR.
Half-Life was Equal Parts Shooter and Equal Parts thriller, at least at the time of launch; and was an absolute mind fuck to travel through. One of the best games of all time.
Also: I think it's overlooked how insightful you are sometimes. You draw parallels where a lot of others don't and you've always got something profound to formulate your views around. They are always well articulated and entertaining also. Been watching you a long ass time and I'm still always suprised; whether I'm watching a new video or an older one I happened to miss.
Very good review. Just one thing to add: the sensation of continuity in the levels, made you feel the gigantic structure of black mesa. Which was the first and foremost novelty of the time. There never was, a continuous exploration of a complex for dozens of kilometers before half life. And THAT, is the immersion that gave it, its emotional impact. The step up from before. That step was so steep, never a game after that managed to recreate the same delta. Which made everything dull afterward :(
This was indeed exceedingly impressive at the time but it's very incorrect to say that no other game has managed to do the same since then. Indeed I can't think of many examples, but it's not zero. I'd say The Witcher 3 did it extremely well.
I think it feels that way because it was the one that blew us away and expanded our minds first. After your synapses fire in brand new ways, it's hard verging on impossible to feel that same brain blast from anything else. We can get similar, but it's not gonna be the same.
I remember being a kid just getting into FPS when Half-Life came out. The game had a unique feel that I've never found in another. Going from playing Golden Eye to Half-Life was phenomenal. I can still vaguely remember the "Oh shit!" feeling when you first see the face huggers. It was also the first game to make me go "I'm going to use the melee weapon because I've only got 12 rounds on my pistol... gonna need that for the ceiling/tongue guys..."
i totally feel you i was 12 years old when i played it through.When being this young everything feels way more intense
Yeah I kinda started playing half life back in 2002 pretty much the same time as halo Combat evolved, of course I love both games a lot but CE gave me much more respect a si play the og halo CE to this day but since black Mesa came out for half life(a remake) I play that instead of the original but who knows, maybe I'll go back to play the og sometime just for the nostalgia
If there is one person who can pull of a goatee, that would have to be the act man!
The goatee man