The Orange Box Review - Half Life 2, Portal and Team Fortress 2

[admin]

Welcome to the Orange Box! The box is actually the standard Xbox green with a very orange label. If you actually want an orange box, you'll have to buy the PC version for $10 less. Now that the colors are out of the way, the "Orange Box" contains not just one or two titles, but five! Half Life 2, Half Life 2: Episode 1, Half Life 2: Episode 2, Portal, and Team Fortress 2 are all part of this deluxe game package. It really feels more like 3 games, as all of the Half Life 2 games follow the same story.


Discuss "The Orange Box Review - Half Life 2, Portal and Team Fortress 2" here. Read the article.

[CaliHwyPatrol]

That review is kind of bias since it doesn't cover the PC version, which has completely different game play and features.

I think Team Fortress 2 on PC is the best game by Valve so far, and that's saying something coming from a die hard Day Of Defeat player.

Portal is a cool idea, but I blasted through the game in a measly hour and a half. I also spent half an hour getting the game to work without crashing, then another half an hour trying to fix it when it started crashing towards the end of the game. My system can handle the game just fine, so I'm thinking bugs somewhere else.

[Wafflesomd]

Play them all on PC. Your kinda shotting yourself in the foot by reviewing the console versions. These are PC games at heart.

To the above poster, I suggest you start playing the bonus levels in portal. Also, Valve made portal for modding. It's soul purpose is for modders. Imagine all the cool maps people will make for it. You can even play through Half-life 2 with the portal gun now.

Portal will go down as one of my favorites. It's so original. It has some of the best commentary I've ever heard in a game. The cake is a lie!

Here's the portal song for the people who want it: http://awiser.googlepages.com/portal_still_alive.mp3

Team Fortress 2 is easily the game of the year for me. It's so incredibly well balanced. Each class is completely different and fun to play.

Episode 1 is pretty lame. Episode 2 is better but not by much.

[Clint DeBoer]

Originally Posted by CaliHwyPatrol

That review is kind of bias since it doesn't cover the PC version, which has completely different game play and features.

Now, be fair. "Biased" is a rather harsh and insinuating term. I think you mean "limited". It was an Xbox 360 game review from the start so it never set out to be anything all-encompassing.

[Jim Robbins]

Originally Posted by CaliHwyPatrol

That review is kind of bias since it doesn't cover the PC version, which has completely different game play and features.

I think Team Fortress 2 on PC is the best game by Valve so far, and that's saying something coming from a die hard Day Of Defeat player.

To clarify, I didn't say TF2 was a bad game. I just said I was angry that I wouldn't be playing it much. *grin* I really wish is supported 4 players per xbox 360. I am actually quite shocked that it doesn't. The maps are pretty small, so there shouldn't be a memory issue with having 4 people on the screen at once. It just seems like it's something that SHOULD be there on a console.

As for the PC, well, I didn't want to buy the game twice. I already have the original Half Life 2 for the PC anyway, and you can't just buy each one individually, at least not yet. Seems like they could throw them on Steam easy enough and let me pick the parts I want.

In any case, I really like playing stuff on the 360 when I can. I NEVER have to screw with drivers. My PC has enough punch to play stuff like this, but the overwhelming urge to smash my computer screen in when my sound or vid card drivers mess up has been enough to move me almost exclusively to the console world. Of course, the consoles also work great on my home theater. We are chatting at Audioholics.com after all.

I do hook my laptop up to the theater periodically to mess around or play some video, but I don't have 5.1/7.1 output from it. And I don't want to haul my desktop system over; too many cables. Besides, for full 7.1 output, I have to use discrete analog connections to the receiver. Ok, sounds like my post is turning into and HTPC rant. *laugh* I'll stop now while I still can.

Later!

[CaliHwyPatrol]

Originally Posted by Clint DeBoer

Now, be fair. "Biased" is a rather harsh and insinuating term. I think you mean "limited". It was an Xbox 360 game review from the start so it never set out to be anything all-encompassing.

If that's the case, then perhaps it should be labeled as such? Of course, any idiot could figure out that it was an XBox review after reading it, but it still takes a big dump on TF2, which on the PC is an awesome game.

And yes, "limited" would have been a better term.

[Hi Ho]

As for the PC, well, I didn't want to buy the game twice. I already have the original Half Life 2 for the PC anyway, and you can't just buy each one individually, at least not yet. Seems like they could throw them on Steam easy enough and let me pick the parts I want.

They are available seperately on Steam. I bought TF2 and Portal this weekend because I already owned HL2 and Episode 1.

I loved Portal and I hope they make a sequal. I haven't had much of a chance to play TF2 but it looks very good.

[Sheep]

I need TF2 and EP2. I don't really care for Portal, doesn't seem to float my dingy.

I wish you could buy just TF2 and EP2 in stores. I hate buying online. I want a freaking disk!

SheepStar

[Wafflesomd]

Originally Posted by Sheep

I need TF2 and EP2. I don't really care for Portal, doesn't seem to float my dingy.

I wish you could buy just TF2 and EP2 in stores. I hate buying online. I want a freaking disk!

SheepStar

You can. Not separately, that would be dumb.

[Sheep]

Originally Posted by Wafflesomd

You can. Not separately, that would be dumb.

I don't want to buy HL2 and EP1 again. THAT would be dumb.

SheepStar