Start with Half-life 1 or 2?

[Jhaalu]

So, I've actually never played Half-life before, despite all of the good things I've heard about it, and I want to fix that. Should I start with half-life 1? Or could I go straight to 2?

[Kuthe]

I have never played 1, though I will when Black Mesa comes out.
I didn't have a clue what the story was about, but it was still a great game to play.

[Coldpro]

I have never played 1, though I will when Black Mesa comes out.
I didn't have a clue what the story was about, but it was still a great game to play.

Black Mesa is going to be vastly different than 1, I highly recommend playing:

HL1 -> Opposing Force -> Blue Shift -> HL2 -> Ep1 and 2 -> Black Mesa Source

[Salandrin]

Half Life 2 was alright by todays standards.

I only hate the HL2 series because of the fact that the series is incomplete, and will never finish (Believe me).

[mitbrandir]

I'd say to play it before HL2 because its very cool too - Today , around 17.00 ( GMT+1 ) the black mesa source mod will also be released so you can download that ( for free )

[Shinzai]

I really would recommend playing at least Half Life 1 prior to HL 2. You can skip the add-ons as they're mostly side-arcs and most of them have little effect on the main story line, it's more just what random character X may have been doing at the time. If possible, wait until the Black Mesa Source mod is released and play through that first, since a lot of people find it hard to handle the original HL 1's dated graphics now.

[Cakka]

Half Life 2 was alright by todays standards.

I only hate the HL2 series because of the fact that the series is incomplete, and will never finish (Believe me).

If there is one game series that is acutally 99.9% sure to finish it's this. Valve is extremely solid company financially thanks to Steam so they aren't going anywhere. It might take 2, 5 or 10 years but eventually they will finish it.

[Ashrr]

I was in a similar position. I have never played the original Half-Life but I played HL2 because of all the hype. I LOVED it. In fact, it was one of the only few single player games I completed in a long time. Following that, I finished Episode 1 which was pretty nice as well.

I tried Episode 2 recently and somehow it felt like a chore, which is surprising because most reviews rate EP2 higher than EP1. I played a few levels and put it down. It could well be because I don't have the time and patience for single player games these days.

[Shadylol]

You should play Half-Life (1) first, but you might not be able to stomach the really old graphics and feel of the game. Half-Life 2 is actually very disconnected from the first game, except for the major events of the story (Freeman exists, and there are portals, that's about it). You mostly fight a completely different force, and the objective of the game is more "save earth", where the first was all about just getting the fuck out of Black Mesa, until the very end (which I won't spoil)

Black Mesa Source was also just released, which is a fan-created remake of the first Half-Life, with the Source engine (the engine that was used for Half-Life 2, and many other Valve games). You can always play that to basically see the first game (though with some changes), but with much more up to date graphics, though the end of the game isn't finished yet

[ElAmigo]

I started out with Half Life: Source earlier this year which is basically the same thing as the first one except the physics are more up to date. That game blew me away, it was very much to me like Resident Evil 4 (which I had played for the first time as well just prior to that) in the sense that the action is non stop and it's like one huge and fun roller coaster ride. I'm currently playing HL2 and once again being blown away due to realizing how the game evolved (it really is spectacular) so I'd recommend starting with the first one just cause I think it'd be wrong to miss out on that transitioning experience.

[Creatinebrah]

Half Life 2 was alright by todays standards.

I only hate the HL2 series because of the fact that the series is incomplete, and will never finish (Believe me).

that's pretty extreme, saying it won't finish...ever. lol

[Chaochamp]

If Black Masa weren't out I'd tell you to just play HL2. However, with the Black Mesa released (sorta) I would play that first.

[PizzaSHARK]

So, I've actually never played Half-life before, despite all of the good things I've heard about it, and I want to fix that. Should I start with half-life 1? Or could I go straight to 2?

I'd start from the beginning. Except for Xen, Half-Life 1 has still aged very well and is still a fantastic game. Actually, come to think of it, Black Mesa just released - so give that a try, instead! Or play both!

You don't really need to play HL in order to understand HL2 since the plot isn't your typical narrative. Much of the plot and situation are understood by observing and by reading between the lines, so skipping the first game won't cripple your ability to enjoy the second.

[Irony]

HL1 is a masterpiece and needs to be played. You can skip Opposing forces/Blue shift, and head right into HL2, which is just as good as 1. I do also recommend Black Mesa, you'll only fully appreciate once you have complete HL1 though.

[Shinzai]

Updating my opinion; play Black Mesa Source first, because it's a god tier upgrade/mod. It's still missing the last 10% (Xen) part of the game, but it's absolutely stunning.

After that, download Fakefactory's Cinematic Mod for Half Life 2 + Episode 1/2 and keep the cinematic action flowing.

[Deleted]

Start with Half Life 1, and not the new one(Black Mesa), play the original first, then you can play Black Mesa if you want, after playing the first it's ok to play Half Life 2. Just play the first game first, it's worth it, great series with a good story. At the time of the release it was said that this was the greatest game of all time. I still think it is!

[PBitt]

I started with Half Life 2...really not that hard to pick up on the story or gameplay. Tried Half Life 1 a number of years later and didn't like it very much, but in part because it is very outdated now...though the new Black Mesa mod thing is going to force me to have to play it.

[kumduh]

I never played HL1 and am nearing the end of Black Mesa. It's really good, and whenever I get frustrated that I can't get past a jump puzzle or am at an absolute loss as to where I'm supposed to go, it serves as a reminder of how dumbed down most games are these days. Someone said it was vastly different from HL1. In what ways? I realize the last few chapters are missing from Black Mesa, but in what other ways is it vastly different?

[Shinzai]

I never played HL1 and am nearing the end of Black Mesa. It's really good, and whenever I get frustrated that I can't get past a jump puzzle or am at an absolute loss as to where I'm supposed to go, it serves as a reminder of how dumbed down most games are these days. Someone said it was vastly different from HL1. In what ways? I realize the last few chapters are missing from Black Mesa, but in what other ways is it vastly different?

I wouldn't say that it's vastly different. They've basically given the game a more realistic flow. For example, in the original one, after the resonance cascade, you're basically running around with no weapon for a bit, until you get the crowbar, where as in Black Mesa, you're using emergency flares as a weapon. Sections of the game that seemed to leap from one area to another may have an extra corridor or connecting zone to smooth out the transition and a lot of the plot is made clearer through better exposition. Also things like the creature in the missile silo are a lot better scripted and more interesting encounters for it.

[Verdugo]

After that, download Fakefactory's Cinematic Mod for Half Life 2 + Episode 1/2 and keep the cinematic action flowing.

I found that the cinematic mod really ruins character faces, you would be better without it.