Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Demophobe]

Well, after having 4 days with the game, i have reached some conclusions.

I was one of those holders of the ATI ticket, giving me a free copy of the game once released, and yes, I was among the throngs of seriously upset people when it was eveident that Valve were going to miss their projected September 2003 release date. I even called on gamers to rebel and grab copies off the networks just to spite Valve for their lies and misleading practices.

Well, a year has gone by, and Valve have been through it all. I don't care about some of their "poor us" stories, such as the $40 million dollar development price tag, seeing as the majority of this went into their own salaries. (and Gabe Newell personally has enough money to have picked up the tab, owing to his well-paid years at Microsoft)

They got hacked and some of the code was stolen. Yep, a drag to be sure, but again, due to their own lousy network security, they fouled up. Then the threatening lawsuits from ATI, who were plenty upset that they had bundled a coupon for vaporware with their latest and greatest products, and now it was looking like 2 generations of graphics cards would come and go before Valve got their product to market. ATI had some pretty vicious backlash from all of this, and they turned the heat up on Valve. The end result? Who knows....some fast talking on Valve's part, I suppose....but otherwise nothing.

Then the E3 showing, which was found out to be just a pre-rendered movie, not real-time, and the critics came down hard, saying that what was seen in the showing was in no way possible to be implemented in the actual game; the scope and complexity was just too wide to be actual gameplay. They didn't reply to this at all...they just let it slide.

Leaked copies appeared on the networks as a result of the stolen code, and pressed copies of some levels appeared on the streets in Eastern Europe. Things were just looking crummy. Their publisher/distributor Vivendi, was threatening lawsuits because of Steam, Valves own content delivery system, and it looked like the finished game might be held in limbo over a court matter regarding who could and would distribute the game. Vivendi wants the sales percent and Valve wants customers to get the game ASAP.

However, Valve pressed on in awful circumstances; it seemed like it was all going wrong.

Now, a year later, and the work has come to fruition, Vivendi settled quickly, ATI are happy as the game runs incredibly well on the 9800pro, the hot card the free tickets were bundled with, the hacked game that was stolen and copied just didn't work well or look good and finally, angry people like me recieved their copies of the game and well.....it's better than we could have imagined.

I won't bother going into a review, as there are many exhaustive reviews on the net, couched in better words than I could muster, but I have to tell you gamers and even non-gamers....

Buy this game! You will not be disappointed in the least. On so many levels it's thoroughly engaging and hugely satisfying...a FPS, mystery, puzzle-solving, some stealth....it seems to have elements of many genres and blends them all together well.

The physics are too cool...the gravity gun is just a toy. I have wasted way too much time just throwing things around...the sawblades in particular. Characters, weapons, story, atmosphere....it's all there and solid.

Doom 3 vs. HL2? Why bother? They are such different experiences...and they really are so far apart, they never even try to step on each other's toes. The interesting thing will be to see how the engine licensing goes.

The Doom3 engine is really graphics card dependant and seriously thrashes the system. The Source engine on the other hand, even plays well on my wife's older GeForce 3 and P4 2.0GHz, a system that Doom would eat up and spit out. Very different animals, and licensing will go in accordance with gametype. For overall flexibility and system-friendliness, the award goes to Source.

Anyways, enjoy both games for what they are. Doom3 has come and gone....now it's HL2's turn.

Also...Valve requires activation for the game, and the first leaked copy didn't appear until the day it was released. For all of you downloaders out there, you will have to wait a while before a functioning copy appears. The hackers are hard at work, I'm sure, but this one is really worth paying for.

Enjoy it when you get it. It doesn't get any better than this in the world of gaming.

[Bulsajo]

It's sold out here. Just as well, since I'm asking for the Director's Edition (not out yet in stores, at least not here) for Xmas. As you say, it's worth paying for, and I have enough games to hold me until Santa arrives.

[Bunnymonster]

It is truely awesome believe the hype.............

[Chillin' Villain]

I'm really into getting this game, but I'm not familiar with computer gaming AT ALL... I've finally just gotten my own 'puter a couple months ago, and I'm sure vid/sound card and RAM upgrades will be needed...

Now I KNOW that they've got spec requirements posted all over the internet, but all of these aren't always readily available or easy to find in Yongsan, right? Anyways, just curious- what is THE vid card to have for this game? I really don't want it to be running all jerky and stuttery- a game that looks as sweet as that needs to be smooooth....

So what do I need to make it happen? And is the game available at pretty much any of the REAL computer game shops in Yongsan?

[Bunnymonster]

just buy it over steam, will DL overnight and will be avoid any Korean language problems. I'd recommend getting the silver pack as the valve back catelgue including halflife 1 is well worth the $10.As for specs I'm running it at full detail and res on a AMD 2600+, ATI 9600XT 256 and a gig of RAM. I get occaisional stutter particularly after a load point and sometimes things slow down a bit if the is a LOT going on on-screen.

[Demophobe]

Please elaborate on "full res".

I am running a P4 @ 3.5GHz, 1 GB of RAM, RAID0 and a 9800XT o/clocked at 1280x1024, 8x AF and no AA, all on high...any higher resolution has some stutter when the system starts to draw enemies or load their character textures, thus alerting you to what's coming, which is not acceptable to me as it is almost like cheating....the game stutters, you are soon going to be fired upon...

Interestingly enough, for as much Doom3 was a system punisher, it still looked good on lesser systems at 800x600....the same cannot be said for the Source engine...lower res really looks like low res..lots of jaggies and the textures are not tight at all. Doom engine was more forgiving if you haven't the power to run it at high res, but Source doesn't ask so much to get one there.

I run it on my wifes system...my old one...P4 1.8 @ 2.0 (just for the FSB pump), GeForce 3, P4T533 with 512MB RIMM4200..all at 1024x768, everything on medium. As the GF3 is a DX7 card, it really isn't as pretty, but stil looks good. A DX9 card is really nice to have on this game. Water, reflections, refractions, bump maps, texture details...all are a totally different between older and newer cards...night and day.

The game still looks alright on my wife's system...however, luckily, HL2 has great gameplay; the looks are surely second to that.

[everydavid]

http://www.steampowered.com/
Go there, and you haver the game for like 50 USD. Simple and safe, I did and it is great.

[Bulsajo]

LOVING THIS GAME!

Except for the load times, they're a bit much. I'm running a 2.4Ghz with 512ram and a 9500pro (9700 chipset with 128DDRram). Not asking for advice (I know what upgrades I need) just sayin' the load times are a bit of a drag is all.

[Hank Scorpio]

Pros:

- BEST PHYSICS EVER!
- Incredible graphics
- GRAVITY GUN!
- The game runs like butter on low end systems

Cons:

- Load times
- HEAD CRABS!
- Relatively short
- Really subpar, lackluster ending

[Bulsajo]

[Hank Scorpio]

[Demophobe]

CS is no longer a mod, but a branch. You need to buy it separately from HL2. It's bundled with certain copies of the game (silver and gold, I think), but it's way past it's "mod" status.

Interestingly, they have come up with HL1: Source. HL1 using the source engine. Still looks old, but some better lighting and physics.

Valve recently came out with HL2:Deathmatch. A lot of fun. Just killing though, no CS squads or anything. Lot's of servers here in Korea....they play well. A lot of camping, but some good players. If anyone in Korea wants to have a match, let's hook up on the weekend...

Hank...I thought you were in Korea....if we can get the time difference right (and seeing as you are nocturnal, or an insomniac) perhaps we can connect. You have the game?

BTW: even if you did manage to get a cracked copy running, you can't go online with it.

The headcrabs have no place in this game, aside from linking the original with this one. They are just annoying....like the antlions aren't enough? Or those crazy leaping zombies? Gotta love the shottie on those....

[Hank Scorpio]

[Demophobe]

I would call a "twitcher" Quake 3: Arena. The deathmatch for HL2 has quite a different feel to it. Not so much a run and gun, but a more cautious, calculated tendancy. I don't play Q3:A, as I too can't compete with the hand/eye of an addicted 15 year-old on an online killing frenzy. I did join into this game, however, and got as many kills as I was killed. It was good fun actually.

When playing with friends on your own server (or one of you is hosting), things can just be a blast. Certain rules can be made to keep it light, and no one has to get sore.

There is also the fun of 2 or more friends joining a public server and going berzerk "team style". Each man takes an area, or you all just take over the power-up/health/WOMD areas.

Good fun....

[Hollywoodaction]