Half-Life: Every Game Ranked Worst To Best

But in terms of remaining fully playable . Twenty years after the events at Black Mesa, Gordon Freeman is brought out of stasis and sent to City 17, an urban centre ruled by the totalitarian Combine.

The silent protagonist, with Alyx Vance in tow, goes on to begin a revolution, which takes the player across one of the most tightly focused and memorable campaigns in gaming history.

It's a masterfully produced thrill ride as Gordon escapes the city via the canals, makes his way along the coastline, assaults Nova Prospekt prison and finally returns to the settlement in a desperate confrontation against the alien menace.

Once again, it all goes down without a single interruption, leaving the player firmly immersed. It went much than deeper than that however, with the legendary gravity gun complementing the action exquisitely. Half-Life 2 was and still is a landmark shooter that became the golden standard for FPS pacing and seamless storytelling.

It's also a pioneer in game physics, character facial animation and audio design, representing the second major leap the series made for the industry. Half-Life 2 is Valve at the peak of their development prowess, and more importantly, it's one of the best games ever released.