10 Video Games That Don’t Deserve Their Masterpiece Status

4. Half-Life 2

Half-Life 2.jpg
Valve

The question of where Half-Life 3 is (followed by the subsequent "what do you mean it's not even in development?") still gets asked a lot these days. Why wouldn't it be; Half-Life 2 was pretty much perfect, wasn't it?

Well, no. In the build up to its release, the sequel promised a great many things. Enemy AI was said to be the most intelligent of its time, and there were claims for fully destructible environments and objects for the player to enjoy.

While these promises were fulfilled to a fraction, there was nowhere near the level of intense detail that had been touted prior to release. Enemy AI was perhaps a little better than the standard of the time, but ultimately each enemy's movement and behaviour quickly became formulaic and predictable. They may hold you in a stalemate for a while, but eventually each would charge you and fence themselves into a killing corridor to allow you to progress with ease.

The destructible environments were a beautiful lie, too. Shooting virtually any large item would yield the same scripted crack or fracture; why make such a big deal out of the environments if the only really believable aspect is the way random boxes and items fall down?

Contributor
Contributor

Gareth is 28 years old and lives in Cardiff. Interests include film, TV and an unhealthy amount of Spider-Man comics and Killers songs. Expect constant references to the latter two at all times. Follow on twitter @GJCartwright.