What's that you say? Another "dogsounds reviews:"? About time? Well, yes. But this one is...well...just a little late to the party.

I haven't had chance to get my hands on any new games lately, so I'm afraid this one is an oldie. A title from the original Xbox catalog: Doom 3, to be precise.

It's not that I am way behind in my games tally! I just realised that I had never really played through Doom 3 when I originally got it on release, and as it is on the 360 Backwards Compatibility List and I was stuck for something to play, I popped it in.

Doom 3 is id Software's remake (or rather, re-imagining) of their 1993 first-person shooter, Doom. The original was somewhat of a milestone in gaming history, being the first FPS to offer an immersive, engaging gameplay experience, networked multiplayer, and the possibility of user-generated content and expansions (interestingly, it is still common for people to create and upload new game files to the id servers even today). In fact, such a ground-breaking game was it that for many years, first-person shooters that followed in its footsteps were often referred to as "Doom Clones". Such a cultural meme wasn't seen again until after the launch of Halo: Combat Evolved in 2001, when the phrase "Halo Killer" was often used for games of the genre.

In 2000, id was ruminating on whether to resurrect the Doom franchise for, what was at the time, the next generation of video game consoles and much more advanced computer hardware. There was some resistance in-house, with some sides wanting to avoid rehashing old franchises and start on something new. But persistence paid off, and after the success of Return To Castle Wolfenstein work eventually started on Doom 3 - not a new instalment, but rather a re-creation of the game that started it all using all the latest technology available. Over the next few years, tiny glimpses of the work-in-progress were revealed to the world, and gamers were amazed by what they saw.

On Mars, when you are zombieficated by the dark demons of Hell, you also get your shirt stolen.

What stunned people so much were the visuals. And because, for the most part, the visuals are the most prominent feature of the game, we'll start there. I'm going to be reviewing the Xbox version of the game, because that's what I have, and I think the console version of the game represents the most outstanding use of the hardware available. PC users were used to jaw-dropping visuals, as they were able to spend a small fortune pimping their gaming rigs to the max (although it has to be said, Doom 3 did break new ground for PC users too, and pushed most setups to the limits).

Doom 3 is, without a doubt, one of the most amazing looking games ever seen on the Big Black Behemoth that was the original Xbox. Like a small number of others such as Chronicles Of Riddick: Escape From Butcher Bay and Black, it's release late in the lifecycle of the console meant that the developers had more than enough time to figure out how to get as much as possible from the hardware and software available to them, and boy, did they ever. These were games that made you wonder what the other developers had been doing all this time, as most other games looked simple and plain by comparison.

Whoah, wrong room!

The console version of Doom 3 was released seven months after its PC counterpart, and for the most part, the graphical difference between the two is not that significant. Sure, the PC version had higher resolution textures, but that is no surprise. Somehow, the developers managed to create a game that ran on the Xbox without skimping on any of the lighting or atmospherics to any great degree. What resulted is a game that stands up remarkably well, even compared to today's generation of games.

For the most part, you find yourself trawling through dark corridors, dimly-lit hallways and rooms filled with gas and steam. Lights flicker, fail, and often move. And the shadows move with them, thanks to very well implemented dynamic lighting. Often the action takes place in almost total darkness, and the only sight of your enemy through the gloom is glowing red eyes. Combined with the grimy, decrepit and grubby industrial feel of the location, the graphics and lighting work together to create a gloomy, foreboding and oppressive atmosphere that is exactly what a survival horror game needs - which is what this is. Level design is excellent - the amount of detail in the objects is astounding - and by that I mean not the number of rivets on a wall, but the sheer number of tubes, pipes, gadgets, machines and general industrial stuff you see in each room. You really feel like the designers have created a virtual version of a real industrial complex. And the lighting is so good at adding to the general spookiness that many times I found myself throwing grenades into a room to take out a bad guy, guided only by the presence of his shadow moving about around a corner, only to find I had wasted my supplies on a moving light behind a fan or pipe or something. Playing through it today I am amazed at exactly what the developers were able to get out of the console - it is that good looking. As a contrast, the visuals in Chronicles Of Riddick were equally impressive, but just made you think how awesome everything looked. In Doom 3, you had that and the feeling of "Oh crap oh crap oh crap!" as well.

Doom 3's lighting makes for some very realistic shadowing and effects. And also makes awkward toilet encounters realistically scary, too.

One other interesting and well-implemented aspect of the visuals is the use of computer screens and monitors in-game - quite radical at the time. Many times you will have to access a computer screen or panel to activate a switch, open a door or some such. This is achieved by forcing the player's weapon to drop and giving him a cursor to move around the screen, and means that the player can be given a number of different options on any one terminal screen. You still see the rest of the room around you - so there is no jarring change of viewpoint. The screens are presented as high-resolution, smooth and clear images, and animate with your actions. Some even include adverts within the GUI.

Hello? Is that the Police? I need you to send a farkton of officers, right now please...

The graphics are so impressive that this game could be released as an Xbox 360 title right now with only an increase in resolution of the texture images, and it would compare to or even better it's contemporaries in most respects.

So, what I am saying is Best Game Evar!!eleven!!, right?

Well, actually, no, not really.

See, it looks pretty and all, but gameplay-wise, we are on shakier ground.

The games sees you take the role of an un-named Space Marine who has been transferred to the Union Aerospace Research Facility on Mars in 2145. Seems that strange days are afoot at UAC, who are military and technology contractors developing tools "for the good of mankind". Far from the auspices of Earth it seems that the head of Delta Labs, Dr. Malcolm Betruger, has been getting involved with experiments into teleportation and has discovered that there is a startling side-effect to the process - that transportation from A to B involves passing through Hell itself. He has done a deal with the denizens of the underworld after unwittingly unleashing demons upon the base, and with personnel disappearing and strange accidents all over the place the UAC is getting edgy and shipping in more security. It's up to you to find out exactly what is afoot and try to stop Betruger before he is able to lead the minions of hell away from Mars and on to Earth.

It sounds a bit cheesy, but throughout the game the story is actually pretty well fleshed out, and is given more depth though the player accessing audio, video and text logs of scientists stationed in the base. Intrinsically these logs are designed to give the player codes that he needs to access systems and open weapons lockers, but the majority of the messages and logs the player experiences are "slice of life" commentaries - staff complaining about their colleagues, organising socials, bemoaning red tape, or commenting on their nervousness about the mysterious things happening in the base.

But, whilst the plot and back-story are certainly interesting, sadly the gameplay itself is not. When id remade Doom, they made a conscious decision to stay true to the gameplay of the original - otherwise it would not truly be Doom. Unfortunately, what they forgot is that standard gameplay mechanics for first-person shooters had evolved past the old-skool basic run and gun, circle-strafe mentality. Without any real application of tactical thinking or complex enemy behaviour, Doom3's play seems stale, stifled and, quite often, boring. The first few times you meet a new combatant, you learn their stiff and predictable behaviours, and how to avoid their fire. Unless you are being shot at by a zombiefied Space Marine, you are usually having something thrown or fired at you slowly. Simply step out of the path of the incoming rocket/plasma ball, step back, fire, rinse and repeat. Fighting bosses is simply a case of run around the outside of a room, and stay in cover until he is between shots and you can fire back.

Also not helping the gameplay are the weapons - for the most part, they sound weak and feeble - whoever chose the lame Buck Rogers pew! pew! pew! firing sound for the plasma rifle should be taken out and shot. With a much louder weapon. Gunplay is drab and lifeless. Without auto-aim the controls are not responsive enough to allow you to accurately aim for the head without lots of wasted ammo, and with auto-aim you usually end up hitting the torso - which requires more hits to score a kill. Weapon effectiveness does not scale well either - traditionally the later you get the weapon, the more powerful it should be, but some of the later weapons in this game feel far too weak.

And, finally, the damn flashlight. You have a flashlight as a separate item, and cannot hold a weapon at the same time. And as the game is 95% shin-banging-on-the-table dark, this is a real pain in the ass, especially when most enemies appear without warning. I can understand the mechanic - to intensify the creepiness of the game - but in reality, and over the course of the whole game, it is a pain. And, simply put, the idea that this far in the future there are no weapons with flashlights is simply absurd and exposes the mechanic to accusations of silly contrivance.

You would think that the dark, tight corridor nature of the game would smooth this rough edge a little, and at first it does. The first time you walk down a dark corridor and a panel flies off the wall, you jump. The first time this happens and a dude leaps out of the hole, you jump some more. But after a while, the way enemies appear becomes formulaic. If there is an Imp spawning in front, you know there'll be one behind. Once you see the developers' patterns ("oh look, a big fat healthpack right in the middle of a room. What could possibly go wrong here?") it becomes old.

And sadly, even though the oppressive gloom and bleak corridors combined with the excellent ambient and environmental audio, work perfectly to put you on edge and spook the living **** out of you, even this backfires, for it does not take long before it becomes tiring, and straining to see through the dark becomes hard work. And when I say tiring, I mean literally. The atmosphere is so immersive that you really to feel in the game, and eventually you really will start to feel anxiety and fear and stress. In a single level in a game, this is great. But when it is hour after hour, for the whole damn game, you physically feel like crap and depressed, and have to bail out and take a break. It's just too much. I started to look upon playing as a chore.

That's one doomed Space Marine...

So, so far we have great to look at, but dull to play (knew a girl like that once...). What about multiplayer?

Sadly, I have no idea as I went online and there was ONE guy sat in a game. Some poor bastard who probably sits there like a spider waiting for some other poor soul to stop by.

There is one awesome feature that I have to point out though - online co-op. Co-op is not supported on a single console, but IS supported over Xbox Live. The fact that this was included when other big-league titles of the time said it couldn't be done - especially considering the amount of work the console is doing to render the mind-blowing graphics - is astounding. The campaign is pretty much the same, although you are presented with the levels to play as you wish. Interestingly, cutscenes and dialog reflect the change in player numbers and no longer reference a single marine, which is a nice touch.

So, to wrap up. In so many ways Doom 3, like Riddick is an astounding graphical tour-de-force that shows exactly what the original Xbox was capable of, and exposes just how few developers ever fully tapped into that. Like Riddick it has an incredible depth of thought behind its visual design and creation, and has an engaging story.

Sadly, unlike Riddick, it also staggers around fettered by old-school gameplay, poor AI, feeble and uninteresting weaponry and the unusual game design mechanic of making the player feel like the game wants to take their gaming soul and rip it out of their ass, chew it up, spit it out and grind it into the dust with a well-worn cloven foot.

Which kinda sucks.

Dogsounds' score: 6/10 - because no matter how pretty the game, if I don't want to play it, that's 99% of the reason for my purchase gone.

From the original story here:

Two stories for you: kotaku are reporting that Josh Larson, the exec many people pointed the finger at for the laughable firing of Gamespot's Jeff Gerstmann (and the godawful way CNET handled the whole debacle) has himself been fired.

Although we suspect this is simply a case of "Josh, you kinda screwed this up right royally, and cost us a **** of money, so don't let the door hit your ass on the way out", CNET isued the following somewhat cut-and-paste comment:

"...new management structure means that Josh Larson's position as VP, Games is being eliminated and Josh will be leaving the company."

After Gerstmann was fired, and subscriber trust in Gamespot's editorial staff somewhat dulled by the actions of CNET, many old hands left for new ventures. Respected journalists such as Alex Navarro, Brad Shoemaker and Ryan Davis, amongst others, all took their chance to leave what many perceived to be a sinking ship and start up other ventures.

Since then, it seems that although users still feel respect for the Gamespot editorial team, many have no faith that CNET is able to keep its hands to itself and stop interfering. Although CNET users who do not visit Gamespot have not changed their opinions, many Gamespot regulars have voiced their disgust at CNET by avoiding CNET affiliate sites altogether. This has to have had a detremental impact on CNET, and it is hard to imagine that this has not been a major deciding factor in Larson being given the ol' Spanish Archer.

So, we celebrate his passing, and await a new era without suit-based interference.

Or do we?

Second story: Valleywag is also reporting on the story, but their angle is that an inside source has revealed Larson's replacement - Shawn Rose, formerly at Yahoo and more recently at CNET's TV.com. And he or she does not see this as a change for the better:

"...the terrible irony, Shawn Rose should never have been hired to run tv in the first place, as he talks and talks his way into all kinds of crazy **** Now another suit replaces the suit they booted, and this one's wearing purple. He literally got nothing done at Y, and to date, has done nothing at CNET.

Another example of how over-puffed-up yahoos wiggle into new digs and maintain that same level of low-productivity and paper pushing... I'm a former cneter with friends at both companies, and it's just sad to see a good (though embroiled) talent like Larson go, for a sucker like Rose - all my contacts on the inside are literally scratching their heads... totally blindsided the team... they feel like chumps because no one told them this was coming.

If Rose gets you in a room, he doesn't shut up... talks and talks, and his claim to fame that he'll invariably bring up to everyone he meets, is that he created some search engine that he sold to AltaVista some 10 years ago. Something I'm sure he made a few bucks on, enough to buy a small bit of vineyard up north, but something that is so entirely irrelevant to any current internet job it's laughable."

So...what to make of that? This is only one person's opinion, and unverified, so who knows? Could this guy be as bad for Gamespot as Larson? Or could he take a totally different approach and do some good? To use the over-played phrase, only time will tell. If the mass resignations continue at Gamespot, I guess we can call this tip-off and good call. If not, and if things pick up, maybe the good times will return.

Despite earlier blogs, the team at dogsounds.com still has a lot of respect and fondness for Gamespot, and the editorial team that remain (that's why we couldn't just stay away), and we really hope that Shawn will turn out to be good. This is one ship we don't want to see sink anytime soon.

We will watch with interest.

We broke this a few days ago on dogsounds.com, but haven't had chance to put it up here till now. Read on to find a little more meat to the story you know...

Post on Gearbox forum from Randy Pitchford advertises a position vacant for a project he describes as "big" and that he "can't oversell this one"; dogsounds' Microsoft sources hint at former Bungie IP rumor.

You heard it here first, amigos. As other sites have picked up on, President of Gearbox Software Randy Pitchford has posted on his forums asking for applicants for a senior artist role for a new project that he describes thus:

"I've started a new project. It's big. It's, like, look-at-our-line-up-and-imagine-something-even-bigger kind of big. I'm Directing it myself. I can't mention it publicly yet. When you find out what this is, you'll likely agree that I can't oversell this one."

Very intriguing. But dogsounds can go a little futher than other sites. Gearbox has produced many different big-league titles in its time, and has Hell's Highway, Borderlands and Aliens still pushing at the door to get out. They have also worked on IP's from other developers, such as Half Life and Halo for PC.

Let me just repeat those last few words there: Halo for PC.

My mind suddenly started ticking over a little. Something big.Something you can't oversell. Half Life is out of the picture; Valve will do that themselves I would suspect. That wouldn't make sense. Then I thought...Halo? Nah, MS has that now, they would just do it themselves through MGS.

Wouldn't they?

My gut feeling is, no, they wouldn't. MGS are not really up to speed enough to pull off something that big all by themselves. But you can bet your absolute last bottom-dollar Microsoft will want to milk the Halo cash-cow. No doubt about that. So it would make sense to farm it out. And who better than the studio that already worked on Halo before?

I put out a few feelers, to see what I could find out. My little friend at Microsoft (who, for blatantly obvious reasons, is remaining anonymous here) couldn't confirm or deny anything, specifically, as very little information is generally available. But of my suspicions, she did say this:

"...not that there is a lot to tell at the moment, and not that I want to stick my neck out too far, but what you think isn't...beyond the realms of possibility. There has been a buzz here since the Bungie split that we want to go somewhere with the franchise, obviously. Once the other two are out the door, it would be prudent to have a break for a while before the next instalment. We don't want to do a Final Fantasy on this franchise; it's too important for that kind of crap. Too much, and folks get bored. And these games, you know, they take a few years to make. Take from all this what you will."

The emphasis is hers. And "the other two" are Halo Wars and Peter Jackson's mysterious project.

My little secret mole, bless her, has not always been on the money, but is good more often than not. And it makes so much sense...

We shall see. What do you think? If you are reading this elsewhere, go to http://www.dogsounds.com/news/?artid=109 and tell us your thoughts.

So, this will be my final blog entry on Gamespot.com.

The big news of today: Gamespot has sacked Jeff Gerstmann, chief editor of Gamespot and one of the team that made this site so much better than every other gaming site out there.

The rumor: currently going round the theory-bowls amongst fans onsite here and amongst other journalists is this. Gamespot were paid a whole mess of money by Eidos to advertise their upcoming release, Kane & Lynch: Dead Men. Adverts plastered all over the site. This is fine, and more than acceptable practice. However, Jeff reviews the game, and offers a very negative video review, and a not-too-positive written review. This is why we like Jeff - he speaks his mind, and it helps us to believe that Gamespot, unlike many other sites, is unencumbered by bias and business-to-business bribery - that they are impartial.Ultimately, that they are providing the service that paying customers expect. Jeff's review is obviously in conflict with the advertising.

The next thing we know, Jeff has been "sacked" - at the time of writing, Gamespot have said only that he no longer works for Gamespot. Kane & Lynch adverts dissapear; as does Jeff's video review.

So, the current theory: Gamespot has valued the advertiser (i.e. Eidos) and their money more than Jeff's review, and for providing a review that is in conflict with the adverts (after all, why advertise your game on a site that says your game sucks?) he has been sacked. Not given a warning, or told off, just sacked.

There is no official explanation from CNet or Gamespot; nor will there ever likely be. Employer records of hirings and firings are confidential. But what if the theory is true?

It means one thing. Gamespot will not produce reviews that conflict with a paying advert. Which means that they are effectively taking a bribe to give a good review. Which means, to spell it out in even more simple terms, that if you see a game advertised on here, and it has a great review? It's probably paid for, and worthless. Gamespot has in one simple move removed ALL of it's journalistic integrity, and cannot be trusted ever again.

Jeff's review is more than in line with most of the reviews out there, and the metacritic review scores. He is also not afraid to call foul when a game really stinks. Personally, I would like to think that rather than being fired, Jeff was simply told to re-write the review, refused, and quit, putting HIS integrity first.

Latest rumors also suggest that Tim Tracy has also quit (or is no longer employed) and also possibly that Ryan Davis has done the same (although there is no evidence I can find for Ryan right at this time).

It is a sad day. Jeff, Ryan and the regular public-facing team made Gamespot what it is - a unique gaming site with a true community - I have said before that Gamespot was like the Bungie of the game journalism world. That has now been destroyed and they are no longer a site of any value to me. Without the usual team on the Hotspot, or On The Spot, and without the inside jokes and humor, this place may as well be IGN or some other lifeless, corporate lapdog site.

To me, to lose your integrity is one thing. To lose the people who make your site what it is - that is a stupid, stupid corporate-minded, unintelligent moment of idiocy, and really tells us that CNet do not have A SINGLE CLUE about the community this site has engendered over the years. They are a business, and yes, I know that businesses are driven by money. But most are not so dumb as to walk around shouting it from the rooftops. They at least try to maintain some sort of community feel. Even, by all accounts, the forum Mods are up in arms and leaving in droves.

So, with no faith in the honesty and integrity of this site, and with Jeff and Tim gone, and, I hope, the others following suit - for their own sakes - I have no reason to return here. I feel sad. What friendly shore is there for us now to roll up on when we need our gaming information?

Jeff, Tim et al: you all have my respect, and I hope you do well in your future endeavors. I have no doubts that you will be snapped up by someone with at least a brain cell. Unlike these idiots here. Stick to your guns, keep your integrity. And if all else fails, start up your own site.

I suspect you would find that many Gamespot readers will follow you, willingly.

It's been fun, but I feel I must go. Catch dogsounds' blog on www.dogsounds.com.

Goodnight America, wherever you are.

dogsounds 30/11/2007

So, having played Portal, I decided to turn my attention to the other constituents of Valve's "The Orange Box": namely, Half-Life 2, Chapters 1 and 2 and Team Fortress.

Firstly, let's get this out of the way: I am not about to review Team Fortress fully as I have no interest in objective-based multiplayer. So I suspect I would find myself bored by it quickly, and this would not lead to a subjective review. All I can say is that I love the look and feeling of the game, and from the experiments I have carried out (on my own) on the maps, testing each character and the weapons and objectives, it seems to have a wonderfully dark humor to it. I also adore the characters - most notably the Slovak self-named "Heavy Weapons Guy" and was impressed with the little "Meet the..." featurettes that are available on the web. You can see "Meet The Heavy" here:

So I like the look and I like the off-the-wall humor. I fear I personally would not like the gametypes, but there are enough of you out there that would, so feel free to tell me what you thought.

Right. On to the Half-Life contingent. Bear in mind that I played Half-Life 2 when it came out on the original Xbox, but I have played through the Orange Box version again, and base the review solely on this. For an overall review, I will treat all three instalments: Half-Life 2, Chapter One and Chapter Two as one single game, although Half-Life 2 was originally released for PC and Xbox way back when, and was added to the Xbox 360 backwards-compatibility list pretty sharpish. Chapters One and Two were released episodically for PC over Valve's donwload service - Steam - as additional expansions, and further the story.

However, lets get the chapter specific bits out of the way first. Half-Life 2 is essentially an identical port to the 360, in terms of gameplay, although the graphics have been updated to a subtle degree to get a bit more out of the system - there is more realistic lighting and some textures have been upgraded. Some character models - such as the Vortigaunts - have been given a level of polish and now look more "realisitic" and do not have the really crappy eyes that were so noticeable on the original Xbox version.

Importantly, all the graphical glitches and frame-rate issues that plagued the Xbox version when played on an Xbox, and then the extra ones that apeared when played on the 360 as a backwards-compatible title, have been dealt with. The original Xbox release really pushed the old Xbox hardware, and sometimes it showed. But this new 360 version, for the most part, looks smooth, runs smooth and plays well. The frame rate does drop a little here and there, but not enough to diminish the experience. Sadly, Valve have not removed the endless loading screens that appear every 500 yards and stop the action dead in its tracks. Surely this should not even exist anymore? Come on.

It is important to note though that this is not a game that can visually compete hands-down with current-gen games at the top of the league such as Call Of Duty 4, Halo 3 or BioShock. This game is a few years old, and still has low-poly models and some very nasty textures. But it still holds its own, and for the most part looks good.

You can also notice the difference in visual qualiity in the later chapters, Chapter Two looking the best and much better than Half-Life 2 in many respects. But, in all chapters, there is still a gap between the best it has to offer and the best offered by current-gen games. This can be forgiven though, given the timespan of these games' original releases.

For the overall review, I think I can safely break it down ("it" being all three instalments as one) into a small number of aspects to consider: story, gameplay,voice acting and audio. Let's go.

Story

Ever since the original Half-Life, this franchise has excelled in the domain of the deep, engaging and thought-provoking storyline. The story in the original Half-Life was interesting enough, but Valve have created an even deeper, richer plot in Half-Life 2. Twenty years after the original game, the protagonist, physicist Gordon Freeman, is brought out of what appears to be some sort of nether-world stasis by the mysterious G-Man to carry out his next appointed task.

Since Gordon's resonance cascade at the Black Mesa facility in Half-Life,a portal link has opened up between Earth and the mysterious planet Xen and has brought us to the attention of a galactic evil empire: The Combine. Able to get to earth through the portal, the Combine were able to assault and begin enslavement of the Human race, defeating their feeble attempts at defence in the Seven Hours War.

Since their defeat in this war, Humans have lived a miserable, 1984-esque existence, under the auspices of The Combine, who control their every move. The Combine's ultimate goal is to absorb Humanity into their realm by supressing the ability to breed, restricting their freedoms and genetically altering humans to suit their needs. The Combine Overwatch - the military force of the Combine made of genetically-altered Humans - act as the police and surpressing force on the ground, and a "supression field" removes the ability to breed, giving the Humans a stark choice: give in to the Combine and acceed to their will, or die out. Add to this that both the Combine AND Humanity are also fighting against creatures that have come through the portal from Xen, and the Combine have harnessed some of these for their own purposes - such as the famous headcrabs - and Earth is not a dandy place to be!

As Gordon Freeman, you start the game arriving in City 17, a large populace of subjugated humans run by the Combine forces, and governed by a Human puppet dicator - Dr. Breen. Dr.Breen was the head of Black Mesa, and now is lord of all he surveys over City 17, acting at the behest of the Combine and using policitical spin and propaganda to convince Humanity to give up its feeble resistance and follow the rule of the Combine - whom her refers to only as "Our Benefactors" - citing that they will allow us to transcend or feeble human existence and offer us our true destiny, remove the shackles of insitnctual behaviour and travel amongst the stars.

Your task within the game is to hook up with and assist the resistance movement, to try and defeat the Combine attempts at subjugation, remove the supression field, and remove Breen from power. The resistance movement is struggling, and hope and faith are dwindling. Your prescence is seen as the motivational kick the resistance movement needs, and the rallying cry. But the Combine are also aware of the threat you pose.

As far as stories and plots go, this is just the surface. There is an incredible level of depth, and what Valve have also done to enhance this is build it into the atmosphere and feel of the game and its settings. As you travel around City 17, for example, ever-present is the eerie and cold voice of the Overwatch - a female voice that seems to emanate from everywhere and issues commands and information to not only the Combine Overwatch troops and Civil Protection, but also to the populace in general. You have to hear the voice of the Overwatch really to get the feeling, but Ellen McLain, who provides the voice, offers a wonderful, clinical English accent, and the dialog is officious and clinical, almost medical. She often comments to the Gordon directly, calling him "individual" and saying that the "anti-civil activity" he has carried out has led to his "citizen status" being "revoked" (evetually you are renamed "Anticitizen One"). The Overwatch also directs citizens to report any anti-civil activity, and that failure to do so will result in restriction of rations or privileges. Combine forces are often directed in almost medical terminology, almost as if you are a virus and they white blood cells, with phrases such as "Isolate; cauterize, sterliize". It's really hard to explain the Overwatch voice, but it gives the ambience a real 1984/Brazil feel to it, and works perfectly.

The sense of opression and subjugation in the story is enhanced tenfold by the ambience and environment, and is utterly engaging.

Gameplay

Well, I hate to say this to all you Half-Life devotees out there, but for me, this game is not what I would call fun, or engaging.

Sadly, despite the fantastic story and plot, and the marvellous settings and ambience, the gameplay lets it all down. Thre seem to be only three different types of action: fight the Combine, fight the headcrabs and headcrab zombies, or fight the creatures from Xen (such as Antlions). And all these are interspersed with inane puzzles and uninteresting vehicle sections that go on for too long. Wash. Repeat. Rinse.

Boring weapon mechanics make fighting the combine an unintersting chore. Vehicle sections which show potential end up as nothing more than a quick way to get to the next tedious fighting section, and they last just too long (the dune buggy section on Half-Life 2 just goes on and on and on), and with the addition of not the most fantastic vehicle control scheme, it becomes a pain.

Fighting Combine is usually a case of "stay a long way away and use your pistol", and up close the AI is not that fantastic. The Combine generally stand there and let you take them out. For example, there is a section in the Nova Prospekt level where, on first play, you will feel overwhelmed and struggle to survive, until you realise that you can simply jam yourself into a pokey little corner and safely stand there with your shotgun, blasting each enemy as he walks up and faces you - as they ALL will. You will be alive, there will be no challenge, and there will be a huge pile of dead dudes in one spot. This is generally how Combine combat unfolds.

In the ubiquitous headcrab zombie sections, you will find yourself growing more and more bored fighting off the shambling zombies who all apparently all shop at the same clothing store. Even the fun of the Gravity Gun and using ripsaw blades as weapons do not alleviate the tedium. The whole "We Don't Go To Ravenholm" level is just awful, and like the vehicle sections, goes on for ever.

And the Xen creatures? Antlions are horse-sized insects that sense vibrations in the floor and pop out of loose ground to attack you, at speed. A single shotgun blast will take them out, and there is no fun to be had doing so. The whole sequence in Half-Life 2 where you have lost the dune buggy and have to traverse the beach using objects and the gravity gun to make safe walkways and stay off the sand had me wanting to throw my controller against the wall. And don't get me started on the garage sections in Chapter One or the underground hive sections in Chapter Two.

So pretty bad huh? Well, wait, it gets worse. Permeating almost all of the levels are the damn puzzles.

Puzzles are not a bad thing, and Half-Life is known for them. They were fine in the original Half-Life - get past these trip mines, figure out how to get from here to here, that sort of thing. Which was fine, and new and shiny at the time. But from Half-Life 2 onwards, they seem contrived, pointless and appear as nothing more than an excuse to show off the Havok Physics engine. Oh look, another inconceivably unlikely see-saw puzzle! Gimme a break. They are endless, and never really seem to fit. At one point in Chapter Two, even your Vortigaunt ally, when faced with a puzzle, leaves it to you, saying in effect (I am paraphrasing here) "Oooh look, here's a ridiculous puzzle, I'll leave that to you then, as that is what the Freeman is known for." I am not averse to pulling a lever here or pressing a button there, but so many of these puzzles seem so silly when you see them over and over again that they start to get annoying. We know you have a funky physics engine. Now get over it, and give me some gameplay back.

The sad thing is that there are so many things that make the gameplay uninteresting that it makes the game something very bad: it makes it not fun, and boring. When shooting is boring, and AI is dumb, and puzzles are pointless, and more often than not you are frustrated by contrivances and unclear map design, you simply want to give up. And in the end, I did. I have not finished Chapter Two, and I might not ever. I am debating whether to use a cheat to get past the hive section I am on now, which is, frankly, boring me **** and frustrating as hell (run out, die, run out, die, run out, die ad nauseam).

Voice Acting / Audio

For the main characters, voice acting is fantastic. With great voice talent such as Robert Culp for Dr. Breen, Valve have done a marvellous job.

Sadly, with minor characters, the result is FAIL. There seem to be two voice actors to represent all the male, non-main story characters (the resistance fighters). And, incidentally, about four different male faces and one female. Which means that the black dude speaks with the same voice as the white dude, and often two dudes having a conversation will have the same voice, and look the same. This just sucks. For the amount of effort and immersion that has ben put into the other characters and audio, to see an endless stream of NPC's with a total of two voices is just bloody awful, and destroys the immersion completely. Not to mention the limited number of phrases they actually have.

Audio, at least, is excellent throughout. I have mentioned the Combine Overwatch, but generally through all three instalments, audio is top-notch, engaging, and enthralling. From the ambient sounds of City 17, the "whoompwhaaaa" of the thumpers, distant sounds of Combine activity and even the garbled radio-speak of the Overwatch forces and Civil Protection, it is all wonderful. I cannot fault it.

So, in conclusion...as it is late and I need to sleep.

I feel and understand the passion that Half-Life garners, and this is in no small part to the premise and deep, enthralling plot and well-crafted ambience.

But, I can't help feel that although this pulls me in more than most other games out there, the gameplay itself then slaps me back out. With so many long, drawn-out and tedious sections, and with such little satisfying play to be had, I really wonder how the developers at Valve enjoyed this? If I had been a tester for Valve, being forced to play most of these levels would have caused me to walk out.

Jaime Griesemier at Bungie is famous for saying that a good game taps into the "30 seconds of fun" ethic, and repeats it over and over.

Sadly, all Valve seem to have tapped into is 30 seconds of "Christ, how much longer?"

Don't get me wrong - for the sheer amount of stuff you get in The Orange Box, it's a fantastic deal. And although the Half-Life contingent may be one of the deepest yet most tedious games out there, Portal alone makes this compilation worth the purchase. And if you have never played Half-Life, you should give it a go.

Tastes differ, it might just be your bag.

Here's an interesting article that looks briefly at the future of computing, and what possibilities the future may hold for alternatives to silicon processing:

The future, in a can.