Alright, I'll get this discussion started. I've played through the game probably 4 or 5 times before, but it's been awhile. I decided to start over after I realized I picked a couple feats on my character I didn't want because I had forgotten what everything was, lol. Now on my second character, I just wrapped up everything on Taris and landed on Dantooine.
I've decided to go as a Scout and I'm focusing on dual wielding melee (later I'll use a double-bladed light saber) weapons. As far as skills go, I'm just trying to keep Persuasion and Awareness maxed, and putting any extra points into Computer or Demolition. One thing I like about the Scout class is you get the Implant feats for free, and I find the implants are pretty useful. :)
I'm not sure what characters I'm going to use in my part. I usually use Bastilla and either Carth or HK-47 because he's hilarious. I want to use different characters this time around though. Any recommendations from anyone?
On a side note, this is my first time playing this on PC as I own it on Xbox also. I was surprised that this game doesn't have any kind of controller support what-so-ever. The keyboard/mouse controls are fine, but I really was hoping to use my Xbox 360 controller. I was also annoyed to find there was a pretty bad bug in the game that made the main character immobile, which required me to switch to my second character in order to move around. This one I Googled and it looks like it is a problem with one of the graphics settings. Once I turned ON v-sync the issue seems to have gone away.
Oh, and I also had forgotten how whiney Carth is in the beggining of the game. Seriously dude, I get it, you have trust issues, but please shut up about them. :P
If anyone has trouble getting this older game going on newer hardware:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=362478411
OK so I installed this and started playing it. A few thoughts.
The UI doesn't really hold up well and seems a bit clunky. I don't think this is simply because it's an older game, I think the PC menus are designed poorly. Does it look or operate better on XBox?
I am playing it on my Mac and it's a bit laggy. It's not terrible, but i'd expect a pretty butter smooth experience from such an old game on really new hardware.
That said, I have enjoyed the game so far and understand why people herald it as the best Star Wars game. It seems like BioWare were real fans of the series and did what they could to make it authentic. One thing that I noticed was that in the game there are "Sith Troopers" and "Sith Warriors." This makes sense and if EP IV-VI is your guide that would be how i'd have done it.
Oh and WBS i'd go a bit easy on Carth, his planet was firebombed into submission by the Sith and takes some personal responsibility for it. All in all, his regret seems understandable.
That said, I do have some questions and am not sure how to proceed because I am not sure what kind of RPG this is.
Should I be buying armor and weapon upgrades or stick to what drops?
OK so I just installed the PC version and transferred over my Mac save. Apparently I can't run everything on the highest setting on a high resolution on the Mac, the game suffers. Still strange for such an old game.
A few other things I've noted in this game.
Only Jedi use Lightsabers but everyone and everyone uses swords. Find this amusing.
Yeah I noticed it's not quite "butter smooth" on my modern PC also. The UI is a bit clunky, and it's almost the exact same menu as the Xbox version. Actually I think I had an easier time playing on Xbox, which is another reason I wish there was controller support. Still, it's a very minor difference and it wasn't hard to transition to keyboard and mouse.
After playing on the PC I've noticed things are much better.
The controls don't feel right at all with a keyboard and mouse. It's disconcerting. I've never played a game that controls like it, and I can't seem to get my muscle memory to adapt.
I use WASD to move around and click on things to make it work. It's kind of like Neverwinter Nights and I don't mind it but you can't jump or anything, which is strange.
Games from this era of BioWare were all turn based RPGs. It looks like NWN, Jade Empire and KOTOR play similarly to this.
Oh and if you are wondering why the score is so great, it's because it was written by Jeremy Soule.
Jon: Sorry I didn't see your question about armor/weapons. Ummm, money is kinda hard to come by in this game, and if you explore around on Taris you'll probably find plenty of armor and weapons to get you by for now. Eventually you'll want to buy better gear for your team though. Also keep an eye out for gear that can be upgraded.
Honestly. I've played this game through more than 20 times. And i cant remember buying anything. sometimes id buy stimpacks. or other consumables. i think there are a few good items you can buy. but they will be quickly replaced with other stuff you find.
also i flipped this game on my xbox just to remember. and crap. still great. UI is fine on xbox. only played on pc once but dont remember an issue. also yes this game is basically a starwars version of Dungeons and Dragons. It directly ports the famous D20 system. even right down to the attributes and feats system.
still a great game. still a 10/10.
also epic stroyline. nothing has made me feel more BA than this ending.
I'll post more as a i get more into it.
Oh WBS- i've always gotten a few chuckles playing with t3-m4 and it kind of makes me feel like luke skywalker at times, bickering with artoo. canderous was always my favorite though i think. hearing his stories about the mandolorian war is so awesome (plus he becomes mandalore which is BA). i also like jolee as he is the quigon jinn of this game.
The game tone is really becoming something I enjoy. So far the story has been good and the play control I really don't mind. I still think the menus are a bit strange, but nothing to complain about.
I am exploring around Undercity and it's been quite a bit of fun. I haven't purchased any items and you do seem to get enough stuff from drops and such, that said, I don't have a full set of armor yet.
Canderous is cool as a character, but I don't think I've used him in any of my times through the game. Maybe I'll include him this time! Currently I'm heavily leaning towards Juhani and maybe T3 or Mission. Jolee is awesome too, but I've used him before. :D
I don't remember where all the best gear comes from, but I do remember there are some shops on Dantooine with some nice stuff, but I think it is really expensive for you when you first get there, lol. Still, if you only use gear you find you should be pretty well equipped.
Tax return came through earlier than expected. Installing now. It's been a while since I've played so I'm gonna have trouble distinguishing between this and Kotor 2 until I get it installed and started.
I'm currently planning on Going scout for dual wield so I can use two sabers. I prefer 2 over the double blade as I can add different effects to each. HK-47 and Jolee were my go to party members. That may change this time, and I'm trying to approach this play through like I did the first time I played. Very little planned, adapt as I go. Next play through will be more about stat management and planning.
I haven't allocated any stats yet. At what level do you start doing that?
I misspoke. I meant feat allocation, and that is done differently by class. Stats auto upgrade with your class level. This might help: http://strategywiki.org/wiki/Star_Wars:_Knights_of_the_Old_Republic/Classes
Not to be confused with Attributes, like STR or DEX, which you do pick when you first make your character. You also gain one attribute point to distribute every few levels. :)
So I just remembered one of my favorite parts of this game. Near the beginning, there's a quest to get to the lower city of the first planet by either getting a sith armor set or by getting authorization papers. I just walked up to the guard, put my disguise on in front of him, and headed down. Not the brightest crayon, are you sith guard?
Look man, that Sith Trooper has a very simple job description: If they have the uniform or the proper papers, let 'em through. The Sith are not an organization known for treating their employees very well. He probably doesn't get paid enough to care. You got the uniform? Yeah, sure, go on through.
Fair enough.
So I wrapped up the Dantooine quest line last night and I'm able to travel to different planets now. First thing I noticed was a new space station orbiting Yavin that was not in my Xbox version! Looks like it's just a shop to sell high end equipment, which is cool. I looked the station up on-line and apparently you can get it for the Xbox version if you have an Xbox live account, which I never did. :P
Also, speaking of this new shop with all this expensive gear... I forgot how poor you are in this game if you want to go light side. Seriously, every light side option is like "no no, I don't need a reward!" or "Here poor person, take this money... plus an extra 200!" My Jedi is turning out more morally gray than I planned just because I want some damn money once in awhile.
I didn't get to play much over the weekend, but I did jump on for a little bit last night and wrapped up Tattooine. I'm definitely becoming a more morally gray Jedi as I go. I still save hostages and (usually) pick the nice dialogue options, but there have been several times I've had the option of negotiating my way out of a fight, and decided it was a lot easier and more fun to just stab them in the face. Surprisingly this doesn't always earn me dark side points. :P
I'm curious how everyone else is progressing. Are you going light or dark? Do you have a preference on which order to do the planets?
I'm doing quests on Dantooine at the moment. Butbag McButts (yes that is my character name) has gone from a scout to a guardian. I'm going light side as usual, mostly because the light side powers get so cheap. Force heal for days!
Hey weird names fit the Star Wars universe. I mean there's a guy named Elan Sleazebaggano in the freakin' canon.
I know your team is probably limited at the moment since you're still on Dantooine, but who are you using for your other two characters? I've decided to keep Juhani, but I've rotated out the third member a couple times now.
Juhani hasn't joined my party yet. On Dantooine, I've had Canderous and Bastila, but I'm going to put Mission in soon for her security abilities in the ruin. I think there's stuff there that security will help.
I just got the Wookee and Blue woman person and just got past the Rancor. So far I dig the game but it's hard balancing working on the site and publishing Rubicon and playing the game. I've really enjoyed the game so far, the turn based mechanics are fun and I don't find it as hard as I thought it would be.
That said, my Starcraft 2: Heart of the Swarm game I started before I began KoTOR is calling me back and that's a ton of fun.
One thing that's nice about Kotor is you can save anywhere (assuming you remember to save often, lol). So it's actually pretty easy to pick up and play in short intervals. The quest journal isn't the best, but it's usually enough to jog your memory on what you were doing.
As far as my own progress goes, after Tatooine I decided to head to Kashyyyk. I wrapped up Kashyyyk pretty quick, but I think I that's partly because I accidentally skipped a few side quests in the process. Oops.
Jon: It's funny you mentioned Star Craft 2. I just ordered a pair of copies for me and the wife. :)
Wings of Liberty is pretty darn cool. The single player is well done and the multiplayer is great too. Did you just get Wings or Heart of the Swarm?
We just got the base game (wings).
I just entered the Sand People Enclave. 15 hours in. Still trying to decide where to head to next once I'm done with Tatooine.
A couple of thoughts on the different versions of this game. I bought the iPad version for kicks when it was on sale a while back. I'm sure it's no surprise that the controls are wonky and uncomfortable. Only played a couple of hours before I switched to the Xbox version. Xbox has always been my preferred version due to the use of a gamepad and being able to chill on the couch. But since I don't have an original Xbox anymore I had to play on 360 and the emulation is pretty buggy. Major frame rate issues especially during battles. After about 6 hours I had to call it quits and go with PC. I noticed some lag on PC but after turning the grass off in the graphics settings the frame rate is smooth.
First off, welcome to the discussion Dannytron! Thanks for the input on the different versions, you win the "I tried 'em all" award for this game club session. 
Right now I'm torn between which version I like better: Xbox or PC. If the PC version had native controller support it'd be a no brainer. Also I haven't experimented with Mods for the PC version so that could be a tipping point as well.
I picked Kashyyyk as my next planet because I knew there was a recruitable character there, so I picked it for purely practical reasons.
On a side note, the month is about to wrap up but it looks like a lot of people (myself included) still have a ways to go to finish up the game. I'm thinking I'm going to extend the event out another couple of weeks so everyone has more time to play through and discuss the game. Does that sound good to everyone?
I think extending the event is a good way to do. I am going to head back after I finish up Heart of the Swarm and would like to continue talking about it. 
I'm not playing it, but I have played it about halfway through and am enjoying hearing your experiences so yes, please extend the event for my entertainment. You are my dancing monkeys.
Things have been busy at Castle Slim lately, so I haven't gotten to play much lately. I pretty much just landed on Manaan and started the questline to get into the sith camp. How's everyone else progressing?
After finally getting the game working on my system, I put in a solid 5 hours without leaving Taris. But then I died during the invasion of the Black Vulkar base. It was the last fight, I think, in the garage, for the swoop bike flux-capacitor-thingy. I was momentarily depressed, because I forgot where my last save would take me (I think it was back in the sewers somewhere). So thankful for autosaves these days!
One thing that I really appreciate with this game, is the overall linearity of the quest directives. Contrasting that, I've been playing through Dragon Age Inquisition, off and on since January, and the story/stories there are so dense and plentiful, that it's difficult at times to keep it all together. It's one of the reasons I love the Dragon Age series, but KotOR lets you play within those story elements one chunk at a time. You can chose what planet you want to go to, but once you're there, your focus is specific to that area, which can be refreshing. I don't know if that makes sense. I guess, I (and I'm sure others are like this) get overwhelmed, sometimes, at the openness of some games. Where there is so much in the game that could be done, I'll spend hours with friends in GTA 4, trying to launch a car into space by means of a glitched piece of playground equipment.
I am impressed with how the gameplay and story have held up over time. It helps to imagine the graphics are on par with the Clone War animated series. Playing with keyboard and mouse is weird, but felt more and more natural after a few hours. My character is female, as they tend to be. Meryl Silverburgh, because it's the first name that came to mind. I am trying to play stealthily, though, so that gravity isn't entirely lost :).
I know "linear" is kind of a bad word in gaming, but it's not always a bad thing. I agree with you that it's nice to have each planet kind of have it's own quest line with a beginning and an end. That was one thing that was kind of hard for me when playing something like Oblivion. I kept getting so side tracked running side quests that I never really advanced the main story, lol.
You said you're playing a stealth character, does that mean you went Scoundrel? I remember from a previous play through that later on your Sneak attack skill can help you lay down some huge damage numbers once you learn some force abilities that let you stun enemies, but that making it through Taris was pretty tough. How has your play-through been so far?
I picked the Scout class, but have been building toward a more stealthier character. I haven't been very subtle in my movements, yet. Mostly run in hacking and slashing (preferring blades over blasters), with the occasional grenade (sooo stealthy!). I'm also trying to build my Persuade skill. I seem to remember that helping a lot when I first played the game.
What does everyone think of the camera controls, being locked to horizontal pan only? Do you find it beneficial at all to the combat, or general gameplay, sequences?
Scout is what I picked too. I love the free implant feats you pick up, as some of the implants you get later in the game are really good. The camera controls are weird, but I've never felt like it hindered me in any way.
There's not a lot of reasons to use stealth on Taris unless you feel like avoiding combat, but that means you'll be missing out on a lot of XP. Persuade opens up a lot of dialogue options though, so the earlier you build that up the better.
Awh man. I forgot how much I love the ending. Some of the mist epic dialogue of all time between you and malek. Still gives me that tingle. Haha It reminded me that this game is what made me love writing stories and putting story and character first in my game preferences.
I know what you mean, Rettisawesome. I just finished it a couple of days ago. The ending gets me every time I play this game. Did you go light or dark?
haha. this time i just went straight light side. i've played through so many times that i flipped a coin... i even did a female so i could romance carth. thinking about blasting through kotor 2 now. despite how many times i've plyed that one. there are still a few different bits that i've missed.
also. this has reminded me how bummed i am that they scrapped kotor 3 to devote resources to the old republic.... and the storylines that they were hinting at were awesome! they get back to the story of the main character in kotor1 (kotor2 focuses on a different character the Jedi Exile) and i think was supposed to feature more of the other characters coming back. carth. canderous as mandalore. man. I was excited. probably one of the only games i would purchase on release day. i dont think there are any other games that mean more to me in terms of my development as a gamer and nerd. i always loved star wars. but this was my first taste of the EU. although i suppose i plaid outcast and jedi academy before this.but still.
lol "plaid" obviously meant played.
Dang, I'm lagging behind everyone now! I wrapped up Manaan so I only have Korriban left as far as the main planets go. I hate Manaan, so I kinda took a little time off before tackling it. Now that it's out of the way I am looking forward to wrapping up the game. :D I think I've settled on the team of Jolee and Juhani. I usually don't pick three Jedi characters, but we're kicking so much butt right now. :P Jolee loads up our team with buffs and Juhani and I just slaughter everything with Master Force Speed and Flurry.
We're a bit lacking in skills though. My character (I went scout > jedi sentinel) is the only one who is specializing in anything really. I took a modest bonus to Int, so I get 3 skill points each level up. I originally was leveling Awareness, Persuasion and Computer skill, but I ended up switching Computer Skill for Demolition so I could recover mines when I turn around and sell.
I'm currently half way through the Leviathan, so, you know, I'm about to get the MIND BLOWING PLOT TWIST.
I didn't make much progress in the game last night. I mostly fiddled with this program I downloaded (Xpadder) to map keyboard and mouse input to a controller. It actually worked really well! I still need to tweak the settings to get everything working.
Xpadder is great for games where it works. Oblivion was released for Xbox 360 and PS3, yet the PC version has no gamepad support, and Xpadder doesn't work well at all for it. It's maddening. I mean yes, I prefer the keyboard and mouse, but sometimes you just want to lean back and play.
Well our first official games club is about to wrap up. While I'm not sure I'll finish the game by the 14th, it seems like everyone else is probably done with the game so I'm going to let the event officially conclude, unless there are any objections. :)
What did everyone think of the Games Club? Is this something you'd like to see more of?
I liked it. Although I didn't participate much. Gave me a reason to play a great game again. And talk about it.
What game were you thinking of next if you do again?
I'm not sure. Any suggestions?
I plan on playing through Kotor 2 on my own after I finish up this one, but I don't know if I want to make the next Game Club game another RPG. One game I was considering was The Last of Of Us. I kind of want something that's multi-platform and has been out for awhile so that as many people as possible can play along.
Last of us is good. I just finished that one a few weeks ago for the first time. Was pretty bummed at first about the linear storyline. But I realized I finished the whole game before I thought about it once. So kind of a moot point.
I'd have to think of some non RPG ideas.
I could definitely do Last Of Us. I started it but only got a short way through it before getting distracted by something else.
Not sure what i'd recommend for a next game. I have been pretty busy working on the site and as such haven't had a ton of time for any serious gaming beyond a handful of Issac.
That said, reading and taking part in this game club has been fun. I'll lurk for the next one, whichever you do.
KoTOR is a really great game, I can see why it's on so many peoples best of lists.
I'm in the same boat as @rettisawesome. I love this idea, even though I didn't participate much.
Last of Us would be cool. Never finished that one, either. Other games I'd vote for:
Dishonored
Legend of Grimmrock
Warhammer 40K: Space Marine
Myst
Beyond Good & Evil
Mirror's Edge
Papers, Please
Remember Me
Ico
Or something along those lines ;)
It would be cool if we could play something that's new to everyone. Maybe come up with a short list to last us a few months/cycles? Can we do a poll on the site?
I thought of beyond good and evil as well. Such a great game.
Here's some I've thought of.
Shadow of the colossus
Freelancer
Gothic
Half life 2
Hitman blood money
Mark of the ninja
Mass effect
Mount and blade warband
Nexus the Jupiter incidebt
Morrowind (probably my first pick. But trying not to be lame)
The wolf among us
Company of heroes
Warhammer 40k dawn of war
Any metal gear solid
A huge unhelpful list. But all games are great. And a joy to play when you have others to talk about it with. Also a variety of genre.
I can answer any questions about any of them if someone needs.
Dawn of war 2 is what I meant.
Sounds like Last of Us would be a good pick, based on everyone's comments. I also like the idea of Half-life 2, since that's one I own but haven't played yet. :P
Papers, Please could be a great conversation piece.
I think I know why Morrowind is your first pick, Rett. :P That would be pretty convienent for you, I don't blame you for recommending that, lol. P.S. Did you want to post about your play-through on CG? I bet the community would find that interesting too. Morrowind might be a little too big for something like this. I briefly considered Skyrim. It's not a requirement that everyone (or even anyone) complete the game we're playing for the games club, but it would be nice if it's at lest possible to finish in a month or two, lol.
I've heard a lot of great things about Beyond Good and Evil, I'd be open to that. It's on GOG.com for $10, so that's not bad. I'd be open to that.
I know Jon has posted polls on here before. I'll ask him about setting up something. In the mean time keep posting suggestions!
lol yeah tim. well this whole thing i got in the works with morrowind has just really rekindled my passion for that game. and i've been playing it a ton recently to get into the right headspace. it really is the best in the elder scrolls series. and i love talking to people who are just sort of tapping into its wealth of gameplay for the first time. or at least coming to understand its depth for the first time. i love skyrim. and have logged more hours in oblivion than any other game. but morrowind.... man! so great. and wiith the trove of mods out for it now. the gameplay never ends.
and yeah i think i will probably make some posts here about our play throughs and all that stuff when the time comes. things are still coming downt he pipes. im trying to convice my buddy lee to make an account over here too. but he doesnt even have a facebook. so its like herding cats.
i think hl2 would be a great choice. there is a reason that it is one of the best games from the previous decade. and does not take long to complete.
but idk.
Half-life 2? Speaking if games I totally want to replay. I had a friend that went through it recently and he said it was just as strong now as it was.
I"m casting my vote for HL2. It isn't new to me, not by a long shot. I've probably played it 5 times, most recently last year, maybe? But I'd love to replay it.
So far the rising titles seem to be:
Last of Us
Half-Life 2
Beyond Good & Evil
I'd love to go back and play Mass Effect again. Such a great game. Shadow of the Colossus is one of those that I never finished, but desperately need to.
Any of these work for me. What if we narrow the list to 3-5 games, poll it, and see who comes out victorious?
Or if we're all in agreement on those three, just draw lots for which goes first and we have the year planned out! :)
Five. Those five.
I started Mass Effect but didn't get very far. That might be a good pick later on down the line, for this next game I'm leaning towards not picking another RPG just to add some variety. If the games club becomes a regular thing, there will be plenty of RPG's we'll go through just because, as a genre, I feel like RPG's are kind of perfect for an event like this.
I've been wanting to play Shadow of the Colossus for awhile now. I'd be ok putting that on the poll.
Sotc would be my vote first then. Got the ps3 redux so sweet. Probably in my top 5. So perfect. Beaten it no joke 20 times. Cuz I heard about this secret garden that you need to beat and repeat several times to get your grip meter big enough to climb there.... Still haven't .
But I would love to see the little things people discover. Maybe compare time trials stuff etc. Would be fun
Sweet. So, let's go with these four:
Last of Us
Shadow of the Colossus
Half-Life 2
Beyond Good & Evil
If we want to only pick the next game, head to this link and vote! http://goo.gl/qO87UO
If we want to rank these and set the next 4 games for the year, I'll volunteer to sort. Private message me here on the site with your list ranking the above games from 1-4, 1 being your first pick, etc. I can tally and sort, and post results below.
Or, I suppose you could just post your picks in order here in the comments, if we want to be all open about it ;)
Voted
Last of Us and Half-Life 2 are neck and neck. Are @vdogmr25 and @dannytron still with us?
Dannytron is around here somewhere. I'll text him and tell him to come vote.
I'm thinking we should also make a post on the main page and see if anyone else wants to vote for the next game too.
I vote for Half-LIfe 2. It's been a while since I last played.
Give me a second, I'll post on the main page.
Timogorgon
Azurephile
Travis
jdodson
scrypt
Zach_Foster
dannytron
vdogmr25
It's still weird to me that people haven't played this game! :) Glad you're going to finally experience it. The plot between the first and second is definitely related. There's some larger mysterious plot going on that we have bits and pieces of. But overall you don't need to have played the first game to follow this one. If you want to catch up on plot, here's a link. It was kinda light on plot (Half-Life 2 has way more plot) so I'm surprised there's this much: http://half-life.wikia.com/wiki/Half-Life_storyline
Follow-up: Does this event cover episodes 1 and 2 as well? They're much shorter and can be completed in a few hours.
I haven't ever played any Half-Life game, that is until I started the demo recently. I decided to join the event, even if I only play the demo. I might be tempted to get the game (and all related content). I'm not sure yet, I'll have to play the demo more as I only spent a little bit of time with it so far.
Thanks for the link! I haven't played the first one, so I'll have to read through that to get caught up. I don't know what episode 1 and 2 are about, but I'm open to including them.
Those are just sequels to hl2. And are absolutely amazing.
Cool, I'm good adding them then. I'll update the description.
Think of them like standalone DLC. There were supposed to be three of them, but ... well, Valve can't seem to count to three.
Greg if you decide you want to play the full game let me know, i've got an extra copy of The Orange Box I got as a trade for a Steam Holiday Card.
My first question is how are people going to play the game this time? I have the Orange Box on PS3 and Half-life 2 on PC. I thought the PS3 version was quite good but will more than likely hit the PC this time.
I'll be playing it on PC, as soon as I get the mod downloaded. I'd like to experience the updated textures and whatnot :).
Thanks, Jon, you're awesome! I can't decide whether to accept or decline, yet I kind of feel like I shouldn't pass it up. =) I still haven't played the demo for a while. I got side tracked by the Diablo III: Reaper of Souls event. Now that it's over, I'm disappointed because it's over, but still playing it. I got my Monk up to level 86 and beat the game (and Ros) on Torment II. I did die once by Malthael. I just created a new character, a Witch Doctor. Anyway, I figured I'd start playing the HL2 demo again once this event got under way.
Well, if you do let me know.
I am playing it on PC too. They have a controller setting as well as the standard keyboard and mouse. Originally I played the Orange Box on PS3 but prefer the keyboard and mouse this time around. That said, I was streaming it to my TV earlier to play on the couch and it was a fine controller experience, I am more effective with key/mouse though
Ah and if anyone didn't know, you need to start your game in the Half-life update mod you can't pick it up after you have a save in the regular game. I started in the regular game as the mod was downloading and unless I move the save(which I won't do because I am lazy and the game still looks incredible).
That said, the game looks incredible and is buttery smooth and 60fps maxed out on my monitor. Older tech games still look and play well and come with the bonus of great frame rates
I'm thinking I should take you up on the offer. I might as well not pass up a free game, especially one that's as popular as Half-Life 2. I had friends that were playing it during its release, but my PC at the time didn't meet some of the system requirements. I think that would be a cool idea because I can then fully participate in this event. =)
The PS3 Orange Box wasn't great. The 360 version was way better. Once you get to the final areas it starts dragging in a major way on PS3. The problems were more apparent in TF2 and Portal, but Half-Life 2 suffered as well. This was back when Valve said the PS3 was essentially worthless, and farmed out the development of the Orange Box on PS3 to a third-party, before eventually integrating Steam into the PS3 version of Portal 2. :)
I played The orange Bix all the all the way through on PS3 and beyond some audio crackling thought it was fine. Portal, in my experience ran the best out of the lot. I went to try TF2 the other day and the servers weren't up, which isn't surprising.
EA published Half-life 2 and I think they ported it.
Looks like Valve and Sierra published the game and EA distributed versions of it.
With that if you have the PC copy play that, it's far superior.
Yeah they did the port job on it. TF2 had the launch content and nothing else. The 360 version kept growing with the 360 version for a while, but the PS3 version never got any of that new content.
When I got to the area moving into the final boss fight in HL2, where it's really hazy/smoky, my framerate dropped to like 2fps, and it wasn't much better during the actual boss fight. There were pretty bad framerate issues throughout the game, but nothing gamebreaking until you try to fight the boss with really bad stuttering.
Greg, I sent over the game on Steam.
So I just got to Black Mesa East after the chopper fight and I figured that is a pretty good place to rest for a bit.
I forgot how great Half-life 2 is at establishing the dystopian future tone. It's like a totally depressing future but one that's so compelling I wouldn't mind going to. That said, the Combine REALLY like burning people alive. As I continue on with the game there are torched corpses scattered here and there
A few hours in, just entered Ravenholm. The first time I played through the HL2 games was on XBox 360, and, though playing on the PC now, I'm sticking with the 360 controller. The smoother, sweeping motion of the controller, I think, allows for a more cinematic experience. Definitely not optimized for a controller, and the default configuration is frustrating at times (how do you equip a grenade?).
I forgot how much of a maze this game is to run through. Level design is stellar, but it's a pretty simple formula: run through extensively long corridors, shoot some stuff, (load screen), solve a puzzle, maybe swim a little, (load screen), awkwardly drive a hover-boat through extensively long hover-boat-sized corridors, (load screen)... Then I remember that this game is over 10 years old(!), and it still looks amazing, the writing is solid, voice acting is spot on. It's that attention to detail that elevates Half-Life 2 to the classic that it is.
I want to talk some about the actual story, but I'll wait until I know more people have started and at least gotten to Ravenholm.
As if i needed an excuse to play this game again! I've been a huge fan of the franchise since the very beginning. I still have all the original discs for Half-Life, Opposing Force, and Blue Shift from my old Windows '98 computer.
The first time i played these games was on PC, several years ago. I played Half-Life 2 shortly after Episode 1 came out, so i played the two back to back and i remember how frustrated I was waiting for Episode 2... Now I will actually be playing through on Orange Box for 360 for the first time. I'll be deciding whether I like playing with keyboard or controller better.
@scrypt: I think waiting until people are starting up Ravenholm is a good time to talk story. I haven't started that yet, I don't really want to go there any more...
I think this is an easter egg to the then unreleased Portal game. I could be reaching I suppose smile
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=418540770
Oh and as an aside, the Linux port of Half-life 2 is superb. I'd say it's on par with or better than the Windows one. Valve did a great job, I might continue playing the game on Linux to the end.
I am now downloading the game thanks to Jon. I played the demo a bit more recently. I got to an interrogation room where a couple of friendlies helped me get out the back door. I climbed over some stuff and went to the plaza. From there, I wasn't sure what to do, but many paths were blocked. I think I ended up going into a bathroom and the demo seemed to point me to another part of the game. This time, I had weapons and there were a few creepy looking monsters to kill. I exploded some fuel tanks (or something) and didn't know where to go from there.
After I get the bundle installed, I'll check out the mod Travis shared and get that installed, too. Then I'll jump in.
That's funny, @jdodson. I took that same screenshot of the "Portal Wars," and wondered the same thing.
I'm kind of in the same boat with Ravenholm. It's not a happy place. In fact, all this talk of portals has me longing to hear GlaDOS coyly belittle me while I put her in her place...with science.
I'm a little over an hour in so far. I decided not to install the graphics update to get the total "2004" experience. I gotta say though once I turned all the graphics settings up everything looks pretty darn good. And of course since I'm running a fairly modern PC I get a perfectly smooth frame rate. Awwwww yeah.
Other than reading up about the storyline in Half-Life 1 I went into this knowing pretty much nothing about the game, so I was kind of surprised to run into some physics based puzzle elements. :) I was expecting a straight forward FPS experience.
Oh, and those barnacle things are really creepy and gross. I felt pretty clever when I decided to try rolling an explosive barrel into a group of them and, not only did my plan work, but I earned an achievement for it as well. Score!
I'm still very early in the game but so far I'm liking it a lot!
This game really does hold up. I think a lot of modern gaming has a lot to owe to hl2. And if you guys ever want one of the hardest gaming experiences of your life try hl1 . haha . but hl2 is so great and short enough to enthrall. Mp is great too. A lot of the mp mods are great. Install man classics where I come from.
I've made it out of the mine, which is passed Ravenholm, it seems. It's cool that you kind of have to figure out where to go and how to get there with a few snags along the way. Some how, it seems, most of this is a bit intuitive. By the way, Ravenholm was the second part of the demo. Anyway, I seem to love the crowbar, I tend to use it a lot. I'm kind of stuck where I am now as there are snipers above me. I found out how to take out one of them, but the next is where I'm at. I'm sure I'll figure something out.
To answer your questions about "Portal wars," the game released in 2004. The game that inspired Valve to make Portal, Narbacular Drop, didn't release until 2005. In fact, they hired the developers of Narbacular Drop to make Portal!
So it's a nice coincidence but not an intentional easter egg.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Narbacular_Drop
More info. It's actually a pretty good game for what it is. Not much there, but you can see the Portal concepts.
That's where they got the idea for the actual portal mechanic, but I thought Valve had been working on the story of the game prior to approaching the NB team?
It looks like the story came after after the Narbacular Drop team joined up, and the tie-in to HL2 was chosen since they could save money by reusing assets.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portal_(video_game)#Concept
http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2010/03/10/opening-the-portal-exploring-portal-s-creation-and-its-ties-to-half-life-2.aspx
Right on. Thanks for the clarification! :)
Wow, think about how different the game could have been if it had more money. I'm really glad they had the restrictions on them, because the final was a masterpiece for what it was, and it led into Portal 2, which I wouldn't want to be any different.
Often, restrictions and adversity can make the end result pretty special. OBLIGATORY Star Wars comparison.
Absolutely. The things Lucas managed to pull off on ping pong tables is amazing. The things he pulled off with green screen and millions of dollars are not as compelling.
All I can think now is, "I thought I'd never..." Such as, I thought I'd never get passed those snipers. I thought I'd never take out that first gunship (aim red cursor at it to guide rocket). I thought I'd never get my buggy flipped right-side up (use "special g weapon"). Some times I thought I was stuck, but managed to figure out how to progress. Like I said before, the game seems a bit intuitive. At one point, I wasn't sure how to get passed a barrier, but used the "special g weapon" to push a heavy transport to break the power line. At another barrier, I found out that I could get under the bridge and make my way to the other side, pull a plug with the "special g weapon," and then head back to get my buggy through. Also, I thought I'd never find that third car battery to get that one gate open. Anyway, I'm done with the buggy, I made it to my destination and now have to go on foot.
I like that the game auto saves. There are really only a couple of "issues," which are hardly issues, that I've found. When the terrain, or whatever, is shaking, the graphics get kind of odd looking, it's not smooth. I noticed this at the beginning on the train and while crossing under the bridge (previously mentioned). Loading between areas takes a few seconds or so. I am playing the "update" mod.
You keep saying "special g weapon." Did they call it that at any point? I always just thought it was the gravity gun.
No, I just called it that hoping to avoid spoiling the game for anyone, although I may have with my last comment. I'm in City 17 now.
Well, I'm done, at least with Half-Life 2 Update. Next is Episode 1, 2, and Lost Coast. I thought that was Michelle Forbes as Dr. Judith Mossman. I think I first saw her in Star Trek: The Next Generation. I saw her again in Battlestar Galactica.
Mossman REALLY sounds like Michelle Forbes and... yep according to the ol' Internet she did play her.
http://half-life.wikia.com/wiki/Michelle_Forbes
She has a really unique voice.
Ravenholm is spooky! Glad that's over with. A few questions about that reverend: What is he living off of? Raven meat? Head crabs? I suppose he could take trips out to the city at some point for a Combine burger, but if that's the case, why continue to go back to Ravenholm? Not that I don't appreciate his help and weaponry. Maybe he's the last survivor of what went down there, or he feels responsible in some way? Also, he seems to be the only person in the game who doesn't know who Gordon Freeman is!
I've switched over to the keyboard/mouse configuration. Much easier to play that way. I'm surprised they didn't to a proper implementing of the Xbox 360 controller, especially after releasing the Orange Box on that console.
Michelle Forbes is sci-fi royalty. Next Gen, Battlestar, Orphan Black. She was incredible in The Killing, but that's not sci-fi.
The 360 controller works ok for most things, but it certainly does NOT work well with driving controls.
I liked the guy in Ravenholm, he had a cool name, hehehe. I thought I'd never make it out of the Sand Traps, either. I have had to consult a walkthrough a few times. Anyway, Episode One complete.
Well i'm sad to say that i'll be out of the running until i can find a new copy of Orange Box, or get the game running on my laptop. For those of you who follow me on twitter, (Jon), you can see the issues i'm facing with what I call "HL2: Disco Edition". There is an error on the disc and my 360 will not process the active graphics, which makes the game nearly unplayable.
Well guys. Am I first across the finish line? Also about narbacular drop a cool story. Those guys were presenting their game at an event for their school. And the dudes from valve literally walked up, and pulled the plug on all their stuff so no one else could see and offered them all jobs on the spot.
I don't know how true that is. But I heard it in an interview with them.
I just finished Episode Two. Did you finish the game and the extra stuff, rettisawesome?
Dang, I'm lagging way behind everyone, lol. I'm still on the run from the Combine trying to get to... uh... well actually I don't really remember. I just know I'm suppose to be heading somewhere and I'm being chased, heh. I just recently got a hold of an airboat type vehicle and been driving that around for awhile. Part of the reason I'm not very far is I've been doing a lot of exploring around and kind of taking my time with it.
Nah. Just hl2. Been farting around on Gary's mod now. Remembered how great all that stuff is.
It's funny that you mention Gary's Mod because while I was playing HL2, my son kept saying that it's like Gary's Mod. He ended up watching me play at times and even offering some help.
Lost Coast was very brief. In fact, it is essentially a tech demo. I did run the video stress test and it said my frame rate was about 291 fps. Info Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Half-Life_2:_Lost_Coast
Yeah it's a demo for bloom lighting I think.
From wikipedia: "Lost Coast serves as a technology demonstration, specifically showcasing the high-dynamic-range rendering implemented in the Source engine. The level was designed with a variety of appropriate environments to emphasize these effects."
Ah hdr
Relevant: today's Zero Punctuation is a review of Half Life 2: Update.
http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/zero-punctuation/10098-Half-Life-2-Update-Retro-Review?utm_source=feedly&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=videos
I'm kind of late to party but I'll try and catch up. I'm halfway through Ravenholm. I forgot what a masterclass in level design it is. I love how the game just drops you straight into a horror film. It almost feels like a seperate game. I wish more horror games could achieve what this one level does.
It's been a while since I last played Half-Life 2 and I'm having a blast.
Welcome to the club, dannytron! You nailed it with what you said about level design, which I think is one of the greatest aspects of the game. I mentioned, twice, that the game seems pretty intuitive and that certainly points at level design. I think it was definitely designed well in a way that getting through it was some what obvious. I did get stuck a few times and referred to a guide, but otherwise I found the game mostly easy to traverse. It wasn't always extremely obvious what to do or how to progress, but in many cases it certainly makes the player think a bit. So, I think aspect of it was certainly done well.
I love how the game just drops you straight into a horror film. It almost feels like a seperate game.
So true. There is very little in the way of cheap shocks in this level. It's more a deeper feeling of lonlely terror, that maybe your character could be trapped here, joining the soulless masses, if he doesn't follow the voice of a slightly crazed preacher. In fact, just by putting a preacher in that role adds a gravity of the supernatural to the whole situation that might not otherwise be felt. Brilliant!
Yeah the horror doesn't feel cheap at all. It has an almost serene and tranquil quality about it as if your fate is inevitable. Then the pastor shows up. And to keep running with the religious metaphor I really like how the ground around you is on fire and you literally have to ascend from the flames toward the pastor and salvation. It may not have been intentional but it certainly feels that way.
Saw this recently on Reddit. Gordon Freeman playing w a headcrab.
https://i.imgur.com/J0BmL1R.gif
Horrifying, and yet adorable!
Hello fellow Cheeful Ghosters! Thanks for another great games club! Our HL2 event is over but our Guild Wars 2 is still on going. I've heard some rumors floating around that Terraria 1.3 is planned for a June release, so I'm going to hold off on announcing our next games club until later this May. If Terraria comes out I know we'll be setting up a server and we'll all be busy with that. If no official release date is announced then we'll fire up Last of Us for June. :D
Thanks again everyone!
WBS TALK TO US ABOUT SHIELD.
Also yeah, it was nice seeing other people's reactions to this classic. :)
I was glad to join and glad to play a seemingly classic and obviously very popular game.
Terraria 1.3 is expected in June, although officially I only saw that a June release was their goal. Hopefully soon they'll give us a release date or just release it. I found out about it in late November and have been eagerly awaiting its arrival ever since (like a kid waiting for Christmas again). I'm still playing Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls and the way I'm playing might hold me until then. If not, Terraria 1.3 will get my immediate and primary focus. =)
Since it's already May and Terraria 1.3 is expected in June, I think it's safe to go ahead and start another Games Club month, but that's just my opinion. I don't know anything about Last of Us, except I only recognize the title.
Travis: GOSH I ALREADY DID COMMENT ON AGENTS OF SHIELD! YOU'RE NOT THE BOSS OF ME!
Greg: The Guild Wars 2 games club is still ongoing through May, so I figured the next Games club would start in June. Depending on what news we get from the Terraria camp will determine if we start Last of Us in June or if we start up our next Terraria server. :) In either case, we'll get to both Terraria 1.3 and Last of Us eventually.