Half-Life 2: Episode One

Half-Life 2: Episode One

Windows - USA - 1st edition.

Developer Valve Publisher Valve Published 2006-06-01 Platforms Android, Linux, Macintosh, Windows Genres Action, First-person shooter, Shooter Themes Horror, Science Fiction, Suspense Series Half-Life Distribution Commercial

Half-Life 2: Episode One is a first-person action adventure game developed and published by Valve on 2006-06-01 for Windows and later ported to several other platforms. The game features an unusual title as it is the third game in the Half-Life series, and the second Half-Life 2 game, but it's oddly named "Episode One." The game is much shorter than Half-Life 2, but the goal of the developers was to make the series more episodic from this point out so that new additions could come out every few months. That clearly didn't work as people have been waiting for episode three for almost two decades now. The game is built using the Source Engine.

Personal

Own?	Yes. On Steam.
Won?	Yes. Twice on normal difficulty. I have 8/13 achievements.
Finished	2013.

My friend Cody bought me Half-Life 2: Episode One along with all the other HL2 games, and I played it in sequence after beating HL2.

Review

8	7	8	5	6

Best Version: Windows

— This section contains spoilers! —

Good

• The new Zombine enemy is a great addition and thoroughly terrifying at times.
• The Stalkers, and the train sequence are both really creepy.
• The large dark room with the elevator is also a pretty cool battle.
• The hospital area has some really nice freaky sequences.
• I like how the game fits seamlessly on the end of Half-Life 2.
• The developers kept with the tradition of making interesting puzzles that weren't too easy, or too difficult.
• Alyx Vance is a fun, attractive, and a bad-ass sidekick.
• I love that the developers added commentary.

Bad

• I find the crowbar to be a nuisance in this game. I'd much rather not pick it up and just have the gravity gun.
• I actually don't care much for DOG. While I find the idea fun and cute, the AI is far too advanced for what you'd expect from theoretical physicists.

Ugly

• Nothing.

Media

Documentation

• 

  Prima Guide.

• 

  Prima Orange Box Guide.

• 

  Prima Orange Box Episode Guide.

Videos

Longplay.

Representation

Strong female character?	Pass	Alyx Vance plays an even bigger role in this game.
Bechdel test?	Fail	No women talk to each other.
Strong person of color character?	Pass	Alyx Vance is half-black. Eli Vance only has a minor role in this game.
Queer character?	Fail	There are no queer characters.

Links