I finished Opposing Force today. This game is pure art. I've never played such a thrilling, innovative and overall perfect expansion pack. And it's not just the fact that there are new enemies, weapons and mechanics, but also the completely new experience. There's a ton of atmosphere in this game. I love the lone, almost isolated feeling that a big part of your journey inside the facility gives you. This game is definitely more direct with its story telling (You actually see the early Xen creature experimenting, G-Man plays a bigger role, etc). It makes finding people much more satisfying. My only criticism is that the human interaction is still limited. You'll be fighting together with your other HECU members and upon victory you just have to leave them behind.
But seriously, if your a fan of Half-Life and never bothered with expansion packs, check this one out. Every chapter offers something new, there's a ton of weapons and fighting against Race X is, in my opinion, even much cooler then the Xen creatures. I guess the level design isn't always perfect (I like Pit Drones but they were seriously overused, to the point where you already knew they were coming whenever there was an empty hallway.) but it's really a minor issue. I'd give this game a 9/10, no doubt.
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Today I started playing Blue Shift... and today I finished Blue Shift. I knew it was the shortest of them all but I literally beat the entire game in four hours during my first time. It's a shame that the full Dreamcast game was never completed, especially seeing how these fours hours do have some great ideas and the cancelled content would expand on the somewhat vague Race X. But besides being short, I loved it. I liked that this game was mostly above ground, as a third go at venturing trough Black Mesa would've been tiring. I really love that they decided to let Security Guards and Scientists be the stars of the game, as their my favourite characters. Rosenberg is the character I missed in the previous games. Instead of only using other people to open doors or protect you, Rosenberg will actually interact with you and help you throughout the second half of the game. He's a great character that I really wish had made it into the final game. The Xen portion is very well done and seeing the place in daylight is a neat touch. Also love that once you go there it stops making you feel so fragile and lets the whole Half-Life soundtrack kick in.
What's strange though is that the other survivors, Walter and Simmons, are not seen in Half-Life 2. The fact they escaped with Barney and share the same models as what Kleiner and Eli Vance were based upon would make it seem like they'd be the logical choice of returning Scientists for HL2.