Everyday Gamer

So I got The Orange Box a couple weeks ago but it wasn’t until last week that I decided to embark into the world of all thing Gordon Freeman. It’s been a few years since I played Half-Life 2 so I decided to re-acclimate myself with the storyline. I figured I would give it a quick 30 minute run through just to get the feeling back but I soon realized that 30 minutes became two hours. One thing was certain - Half-Life 2 is as addicting today as it was when it was released on PC.

The Orange Box, as you may know, also includes the multiplayer game Team Fortress 2. It’s the follow up to the game that “made” me spend countless hours on my computer, Team Fortress. The thing I love about this game is the need for teamwork, coordination, and the variety of playing styles offered. Unlike so many other FPS games it’s about thinking as it is pure hand-eye coordination. Don’t get me wrong, being a talented gamer will certainly make the fighting aspects less frustrating, but you really need to think and formulate a plan of action. You will need to utilize most of the nine different character classes but some are definitely more useful than others in the more common situations.

Episode 1 is also available for the first time on console and Episode 2 is just new altogether. They are essentially the equivalent of PC expansion packs but with 10-25 hours of gameplay depending on player skill and difficulty they are as long as some games. I have been doing my best to holdout on playing them until I run through Half-Life 2 again but I don’t expect either to disappoint fans.

Lastly this gem Valve likes to call Portal is included. I could think of a number of adjectives to describe this game but what most often comes to mind is “genius.” I can’t believe no one ever tried to do anything like this before. The controls are simple enough with each of the triggers controlling a portal and two buttons designated for jumping and the other for “a contextual use function.” Portal is essentially nothing but a first person puzzle game, but it requires people to use physics and spatial reasoning to solve puzzles.

So as you can figure out I love The Orange Box but there are a few minor flaws. The first thing that comes to mind are the frequent and rather long, for Xbox 360, load times in Half-Life 2. The graphics for Half-Life 2 aren’t on par with some of the newer games but they are definitely adequate considering it’s a 3 year old game. There are occasional issues with lag in Team Fortress 2 but Valve is aware and working on a fix. There are also only 6 maps on Team Fortress 2 and you aren’t able to choose the gametype. That’s somewhat of a downer but the game is still a lot of fun. That’s Portal is a pretty short game all things considered but it is really excellent nonetheless.

All in all The Orange Box is a rare combination of quality gameplay and amazing value… the kind that you feel guilty about paying ONLY $60 for. It’s almost a steal considering what most are use to getting for their $60 and I recommend it wholeheartedly to anyone in need of a good shooter or a game that can last you months.