Half-Life 2 turned 20! Does it hold up?

[@NobleStarling]

Half-Life 2 hasn't aged one iota

[@georggrech5924]

My God, how does it do it?!

[@TheFakeBriskeh]

because the version you play on steam is on more advanced versions of source not the retail one​@@georggrech5924

[@hazzmati]

I never thought it would take Half-Life 2 this long to get back to us with an anniversary update!

[@DuneJumper]

​@hazzmati Welcome to the game anyway, it's not Black Mesa Source but it's served us well enough.

[@SonOfTheChinChin]

@@NobleStarling some game models aged a bit

[@JuanGamer0202]

You could even say... that today is a Red Letter Day...

[@FahmiZFX]

Sigh, you just made me put down my drink. I'm reeling at this. lmao. Nice pun.

[@Omega-jg4oq]

@@JuanGamer0202 yeah.. Except I have Nightmares about not getting Half life 3 💀

[@TheDeathmatchKlan]

HL2DM Still has players 20 years later. Happy Birthday HL2.

[@Omega-jg4oq]

As someone who haven't played Deathmatch, I will definitely check that out

[@safilyn]

hell yeah it holds up 🔥

[@umairasif15]

even half life 1 holds up against modern games 😁.

[@safilyn]

@umairasif15 I agree

[@stinville]

if anyone wants to know. Yes the MMod still works for the game. and those that have not played it should because it has some of the best gun play in the game. so i recommend anyone to play the game with that mod on half-life 2. you'll still need to download episode 1 and episode 2 though. and if your using the fire particles from that mod too then its recommended to switch to classic particles in the game.

[@FevrDrim]

Honestly the best gunplay I ever felt in hl2 was in boreal alyph it feels amazing but mmod is great too but I've played it too much and it got really stale especially on vanilla mmod

[@cappella264]

This game will still hold up in many many years this game was so innovative and honestly still is, It’s better than games being released this YEAR

[@Omega-jg4oq]

To be fair.. it's literally called Half life lol

[@Andrewawilson]

Don't forget the awesome score, much of which is still worth a listen separate from the game. Lab Practicum still gives me goosebumps 20 years later, plus You're Not Supposed to Be Here and CP Violation just kick ass!

[@penguinz3091]

And tomorrow we get focal point for blue shift and next week early access for hecu i think? It’s a great time for half life fans

[@BIT866]

I think Half-Life 2 should have 64Bit support. I know its Apples fault but Valve have the money, right? :(

[@loneman4999]

the fact valve just let hl1 and hl2 be free is crazy (well free until later)

[@Scary_stalker-w9k]

Does half life 2 hold up? Is a carrot a vegetable?

[@dmonsef]

By far the game still holds up. In fact it's still better than today's new games! Really, who is to say today's new games are actually better, because they are not. A lot of new games lack a good story and all they do is fluff up games with a lot of eye candy. Might give you a sugar high but it won't be a good meal like Half-Life 2!

[@Omega-jg4oq]

Yeah and I don't think I could see a story that it is as deep and mysterious as Half life and there's Portal but they are in the same universe and it's makes it even more deeper

[@DKArmstrong]

Your story recap was really well done.

[@darksars3622]

Window jumpscear 5:49

[@fireaza]

14:40 The turret defence segments are MUCH better in the VR port of the game. Why? Because you have two hands instead of one, which you can play the segment while duel wielding turrets!

[@Desenrrollado]

Nah, I'd argue all source games, hell gold source games are timeless. Graphically I think Half life 2 and its source engine counter parts still look good. Though I also grew up doing them all. Kinda surreal to see an update drop today. I'll have to replay them soon. If only Synergy finally got updated along with this.

[@S0N1CST3R2]

Yes it holds up pretty well

[@MohIsmail-mk1fd]

I really like your face, you look so happy lol

[@LilPootisGaming]

I remember buying this a while ago, i came to it today, damn i love half life!

[@nightfire_CSGO]

28 yrs old just played HL1 - HL2E2 for the first time and they hold up really well. Wishing now I had held out for raytracing and such but hey, eventually replay will have it

[@andeve3]

I played through HL2 again just before the update and actually ran into a lot of bugs and visual issues on that playthrough, so it's great to see so many fixes in the update. Also, it struck me that how well the gunplay holds up is completely dependent on how you use the tools you get. Running around with the shotgun, revolver and gravity gun, sending enemies flying etc. is ten times as fun as peppering enemies down with the smg or pulse rifle. More than most shooters, the gunplay in the half life games is a sandbox where you make your own fun (by not using the smg).

[@SuperXavier_R]

To be honest the when ever I hear your voice the first thing that comes to mind is the radio guy from entropy zero 2.

[@Dprint5611]

I love your voice man,always make me sleepy😂

[@nathane5287]

Yeah HL2 still holds up, weapon hit feedback could be better, sadly Valve didn't tweak enemy flinching for the update to be on par with 2004 release where metrocops for instance flinched from every pistol or SMG shot that hit them, but at least they flinch from every 3rd or 5th bullet which is better than 2013-2019 HL2. Even Zombies used to flinch in I think Episode 1 update, but that animation got buried in the spaghetti code. Of course still even with that fixed I think the gunplay in something like Halo 2 or if allowed to jump from 2004 to 2005 then FEAR has aged much better compared to HL2. Visually I think the main thing that drags HL2 down is the awkward "projected dynamic" shadows, I really don't think they look nice even for 2004 (maybe not fair to compare since we had Doom 3 then...) but the entity shadows for props and NPCs look really fake and glitchy as they get projected through walls, ceilings, other props, so you'll see stepping out from the train the shadow of suitcases bleeding through the trolleys they're stacked on right from minute 1 of playtime and it only continues to rear its ugly head to the end of the game. Putting r_shadowmaxrendered to 0 replaces them with blob shadows which looks mostly better because it makes props & NPCs blend better with their environment since lightmaps/shadowmaps are so much more subtle-- Only problem is some stuff does look sort of worse, headcraab & antlion blob shadows look weird compared to other NPCs & props. But man, those real time reflections? the overall level lighting (in HL2Update), the art direction? atmosphere? character facial animations? those insane dynamic soundscapes? story and variety to gameplay and interactivity? Still some of the best in the business.

[@notmyname743]

Damn I am ready to play with half lide 2 camapigns that I've always wanted

[@dobromirpodsiado5884]

I was waiting for an workshop fir hlf2 ever since I found out about it's huge modding scene

[@Cinarbayramic]

i guess it will hold up forever since it includes workshop modding (also is it the same as before for modding or not)

[@the_not_real_bigboss]

Yes. Yes it does hold up

[@SuperXavier_R]

I like the update and all, but here are some things I dislike. New bugs occurring like missing textures and missing models, one of the employees spelling Grigori as Gregori in the update log, and water effects bugging out at certain angles.

[@kimmyksbro3116]

It just made me feel old

[@Shotgun9009]

Half-Life 2 will hold up even 1000y from now.

[@NickDeLarge92]

I don't know, is water wet?

[@iliving23-y9u]

Idk

[@TheFakeBriskeh]

No

[@eggnite4144]

I can confirm that you can indeed run HL2 on a chromebook

[@alfredjr2k556]

Mitch! I have HL2 and L4D2 installed on Steam!

[@kietvo2633]

Can i ask does mmod work with half life 2 20th anniversary update ?

[@andresbravo2003]

This is worth the wait.

[@xenomorphlover]

Damn imagine raytraced lighting and reflections slapped on this classic 😳....

[@remondx8880]

Look up Half Life 2 RTX

[@MFDeimos]

MM.. FOOD turned 20! Does it hold up?

[@arcticridge]

happy november 16th you hairy hamster!

[@Arjun-eb1yc]

17:28 wait HL2 doesn't have screen space reflections? How are they pulling off those water effects?

[@CMBPropaganda]

Skill

[@viannizvnv7222]

they render the world twice

[@bgildersleeve]

@@viannizvnv7222 I believe it's actually 3 render passes. One for the geometry below the water (for refraction), one for the world reflected in the water, and one for the non-reflected world above. ...but I may be wrong.

[@skibidiwhatever]

Ming it’s jetrock horror games guy

[@Leggenda007]

Still pure art

[@darksars3622]

9:04 USP match is chambered in 45 acp not 9mm

[@mactemporal1980]

OMG Half Life 2 turns 2432902008176640000 ?!

[@WadDeIz_Real]

19:14 hey i made that (:

[@krono069]

How do I get console commands to work on steam deck?

[@Ciluu1426]

16:46 i got the game working on my phone😂😂

[@sgtaveryjohnson3803]

Yes, it's objectively one of the best games ever made. Why WOULDN'T it.

[@goozilla1998]

19:15 wait. That's my mod on Moddb page.

[@anytorp]

based on the channel name, i guess in the video it will be stated that the game holds up

[@eggnite4144]

the only thing that isnt perfect about HL2 is that there are no Houndeyes and Bullsquids

[@SeaNBlack]

Fun fact. you can Play Half life 2 on any Mid tier Android Phone.

[@razorstargazer]

A Half-Life channel making a video if Half-Life "has held up" XD definitely not biase! But yes ofc it holds up, it always will, it's one of the greatest video games of all time hands down

[@hazzmati]

He did admit it looked outdated in a couple of aspects

[@Emilieskjoldebrand]

obviously it holds up.

[@Niklink]

gee i wonder if youtube user 'Lambda Generation' thinks half life is good video game

[@THEboemannew]

5:51 What happened there?

[@sillyGooberHamza]

This game is just good

[@luddydude182]

you kind of sound like radio guy from EZ2

[@shieldwalker]

I thought your accent sounded familiar.... is je favoriete kleur oranje B)

[@ornsteinthedragonslayer2092]

I downloaded it for the first time, actually bought it an hour before it went free. Still holds up massively. It’s so good.

[@stormhought]

yes

[@nonsense-me]

Nice

[@19Marksman89]

GOAT

[@Will21st]

Is this a rhetorical question?

[@potatospaz3155]

woah.

[@dejangammer9116]

you can actually get half life 2 running on a mobile, though it is a bit janky not gonna lie

[@David_the_man2]

Yes sir

[@AliensComeback]

Guess what happens in October 10, 2027?

[@d4rkjust1c3]

Hell yea half life 2 still holds up lol

[@TheArtkaw]

HL2 is a timeless classic and all but… I actually stopped playing after 10 minutes. Seeing G-man and everyone else’s low res face and dated visuals actually bothered me lol

[@randompersonontheinterwebs]

yeah

[@skyhighnightlight]

Jesus rode is better than shure. Great update happy birthday half-life 2.

[@bivalvan1564]

Havok engine is an outdated piece of code!!! It may be revolutionary in physics, but in multiplayer it lags a lot!!! The best replacement for it is VPysic Jolt, which is capable of not reducing the frame rate on your PC.

[@bugle.580]

decided to try out half life for the first time ever after noticing it for free on steam and havent even been able to make it past the first 5 seconds of loading the game. So far the game is absolute shit to me since it wont even run without detecting a false virus.

[@SASTSimon]

Yeah

[@deus_nsf]

I love HL2, but I've got to admit it's a really slow start, pretty much everything after the intro and before Ravenholm is kind of a hard sell especially if you're not into the universe. Unprecise weapons, brain dead AI, pacing problems, extremely unequal texture quality, it feels like Valve wished they had a few more months for a final pass to the early chapters and it shows. Thankfully when you reach Ravenholm it's pretty much a non stop banger from there :)

[@theguyinthere]

IS EVERYONE GONNA MAKE THAT PHYICAL COPY JOKE ON EVERY VIDEO?!?!

[@Water_White053]

Yeah

[@MohIsmail-mk1fd]

Waltuh?

[@FBI_sinver]

Hey Water Wait

[@MohIsmail-mk1fd]

​@@FBI_sinverWaiter what

[@_ZimZam]

Eh, not really

[@AndrewDasilvaPLT]

No, I would still rather play half life despite having hundreds of hours of time in it. Half Life 2 spends too much time babysitting and trying to hold your hands, trying to teach you things...

[@redxphones3281]

All half life 2 mods are broken cuz valve made episodes 1 and 2 into tools and are no longer registered as games. Things like Gmod and Synergy no longer have 1 and 2 bounded assets and Entropy Zero's enemy AI is not fuctioning at all.

[@ileryon4019]

theyll fix it soon. also, ez2 is overrated

[@mattc7420]

Woah I didn't know until now. I guess changing the SteamID number in the mod files might work, or else they're chalked.

[@ceptemzorpus]

@@ileryon4019 you considering ez2 overrated doesn't mean it should be bricked forever 😭😭😭 tf

[@MrKrustenkaese13]

Imagine claiming youre a REAL GAMER without having played Half-Life. Ugh, these people disgust me!

[@yurak0]

they killed Half-Life 2 Deathmatch, again.. 20th HL2 Anniversary update this is a slap in the face to hl2dm community

[@7019mb]

H

[@TheFoxyGamer-1777]

7 hours and 70 commets

[@philsc6028]

Compare Left4dead (2008) to Back 4 blood (2021) enough said

[@philsc6028]

For those of you who want to disagree..watch Crowbcat - Back4blood proves Valve carried Left4dead

[@mattc7420]

​@@philsc6028 why are you So insecure? 😂

[@philsc6028]

@@mattc7420 What are you on about? Im not the one liking my own comment...

[@BamBamAbraham]

Nice