More Thoughts From Me #65: “Gordon? Gordon Freeman?!”

After all these years, people are still wondering if Gordon Freemen will ever return. First introduced in Half-Life, Gordon was sent into an underground complex with nothing but a crowbar and his wits. Then came Half-Life 2, where Gordon had to survive City 17 with a crowbar and his wits. Oh sure you could get other weapons in both games, but come on, the crowbar was your most important tool. Short episodes, 1 and 2, were released to expand on Half-Life 2. And a Half-Life episode 3 was supposed to continue the adventure…but it never came out. Valve, the company that made the Half-Life games, has since moved onto other things like STEAM. Will they ever return to the world of Half-Life? I take a look at this question, plus my thoughts on Half-Life 1, 2, and the two episodes!

Gordon Freeman deserves an ending to his story.

Will he ever get it? Let’s take a look at the other Half-Life games before answering that question.

I didn’t care for Half-Life 1. To me, the first Half-Life was just another first person shooter game. It didn’t engage me very much.

However, Half-Life 2 was another matter. The graphics were so much better in Half-Life 2 and the world was more wide open. City 17 was a blast to explore and there was so many cool weapons to find. I especially liked the Gravity Gun, which let you pick up all kinds of objects and throw them at the enemies. And those enemies were pretty freaky! Half-Life 2 was a fun game, with a good story.

When Valve did the Orange Box, I was able to play Half-Life 2 again, along with playing the mini “episodes” that expanded on the second game. I liked all three a lot. Though, I wasn’t happy with the second game’s cliff-hanger ending!

The worst part of the cliff-hanger ending to episode 2 is that it has never been resolved. Episode 3 was never released nor was a Half-Life 3. Valve has left fans of the Half-Life series hanging for YEARS. And its very likely that we’ll NEVER see an episode 3 or Half-Life 3.

Valve is now too focused on STEAM and whatever else they are doing. It seems like they have left the Half-Life franchise behind. I doubt they’ll ever do another Half-Life. It is such a shame. Gordon Freeman and his fans deserve better!

Still, we can’t help but wonder what if. If Gordon gets a new adventure, we’d want to see a resolution to his story, but we’d also want to see the return of the Gravity Gun, new weapons, and new and returning enemies. Plus, its been so long since the Half-Life 2 episodes that surly  a third Half-Life episode or game would have the best graphics of the series! Could a new Half-Life game ever truly measure up to our hopes?

Perhaps that’s why the creators of Half-Life are avoiding ending the saga. Maybe they realize that we’d never be fully happy with a new game in the series. Still, shouldn’t they try?

What do you think of the Half-Life franchise? Which game is your favorite? Do you think we’ll ever see another Half-Life game?

Next week: I will take a look at Ascent of Kings for the New 3DS. Its an action/adventure/platformer. It only costs $1.99 (plus tax). I downloaded it recently and I’ll give you my impressions of the game. Is it worth $1.99?

More Thoughts From Me is an opinion column. The thoughts expressed here are mine and mine alone. I wish I still had the Orange Box…