Half Life story vs Halo story (spoilers abound)

I beat Half Life 2 yesterday after two marathon gaming sessions. It was a fantastic game and it was cool to see the old security guard from Black Mesa had survived. I was surprised by how fun the game was and the only annoying thing about the whole experience was that tiny part where you are racing around without a gun on your vehicle. Ok now to my point.

This game is severely lacking in story. It's a typical "resistance" type tale. The aliens have invaded and taken over placing a human stooge in charge. You are told to chase after people the whole game with no clear objective in mind. Early on people are already praising you as a freedom fighter when your greatest achievement has been shooting down a single helicopter. The Combine appear to be turning people into gray, jerkily moving slaves for no apparent reason. The red orb eyed aliens praise you as some kind of messiah type figure. If I remember the first game correctly it ends with you hopping around floating platforms in another dimension until you fight some giant monster then it...well my game would crash at the end so I don't know what happens after you beat it. I guess that qualifies you as an interdimensional messiah...:roll:

Halo on the other hand has clearly defined characters and factions that operate in a clearly defined universe. It's got twists and turns, ups and downs, and the whole time it is going somewhere.

At the end of Half Life 2 the G-Man makes it clear you are basically his errand boy he is hiring out to various strangers for unknown reasons. It's just a bunch of mysteries with no satisfying conclusion. It's nearly impossible to keep up the suspension of disbelief that humanity can field a resistance against the Combine once you go into their citadel.

At the end of Halo3 you have accomplished your mission and are floating into the unknown but everything is wrapped up from the original games.

In conclusion I don't see how you can say Half Life has a better story than Halo especially if you are arguing from the angle that Half Life is "original" and Halo is cliched.

I haven't played the other two episodes yet so maybe...things get more interesting from a story standpoint.

Halo has a story?Bromz

wtf get outta here. you lie?!

Half Life's isn't that good because they never answer any questions. Who the hell is G-man? Once these kind of things get answered then it will get better.

Also, Episodes 1 and 2 have waaaaay better stories than Half Life 2.

HALO STORY IS GARBAGE

period. (especially the end of the story arc which happened in the game of halo 3 that was TERRIBLE)

half life story innovated, and including ep 1 and 2, is still one of the best stories out there.

both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.TheDarkDisciple

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.Sir_BIGnuts

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

Half-Life is better because Halo is trash and only sold because of marketing and kids.

OH SNAP, did I just do a JiveT on a JiveT thread, I think I did, oh yes.

I didn't realize Halo had a story. I thought you just were just killing big gorillas and midgets because a 12 year old girl asked you to and occasionaly a generic black man assists you in some way.

But seriously,Halo has one of the worst plots ever told in a shooter,and Half-Life has one of the best. No competition here.

Also,someone above said Half-Life is bad because it doesn't answer questions. Isn't that the whole point? To keep you guessing? Let you come up with your own theories as to whats going on? An incentive to keep playing?

In Halo it's just: This guy is bad. I'm you're friend. You're goign to kill him and this is why. That's it. The TC said Halo is full of twists and turns. Are you on pot? Halohas the most straightforward,paper-thin plot in any shooter I've played.

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.Sir_BIGnuts

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

whatever works for you man. There has been HL, HL2, EP1, EP2, and the story has never made sense. Atleast with Halo there has been 3 games and in each one you have progressed further into the story. No pointless cliffhangers or anything like that. There's already 3 parts to HL2 and by the looks of it they can drag out another 10 episodes, is that what you want? It's like Valve is just trying to milk the fans.

HL fans will vote for HL for any reason they want. The only good thing to come from the series are its mods.

[QUOTE="Sir_BIGnuts"]

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.TheDarkDisciple

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

whatever works for you man. There has been HL, HL2, EP1, EP2, and the story has never made sense. Atleast with Halo there has been 3 games and in each one you have progressed further into the story. No pointless cliffhangers or anything like that. There's already 3 parts to HL2 and by the looks of it they can drag out another 10 episodes, is that what you want? It's like Valve is just trying to milk the fans.

HL fans will vote for HL for any reason they want. The only good thing to come from the series are its mods.

Umm theres only 3 Episodes, then its Half-Life 3 apperently.

Then again the same thing you said about "Half-Life" fanboys cant be said for Halo Fanboys? again, lemmings trademark "Hypocrisies" shining through as usual.

[QUOTE="Sir_BIGnuts"]

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.TheDarkDisciple

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

whatever works for you man. There has been HL, HL2, EP1, EP2, and the story has never made sense. Atleast with Halo there has been 3 games and in each one you have progressed further into the story. No pointless cliffhangers or anything like that. There's already 3 parts to HL2 and by the looks of it they can drag out another 10 episodes, is that what you want? It's like Valve is just trying to milk the fans.

HL fans will vote for HL for any reason they want. The only good thing to come from the series are its mods.

No pointless cliffhangers? I'm sorry I guess I watched a different ending to Halo 2 then you did. And if you can't understand Half-Lifes plot,then you either didn't play the first game,or made absolutely no effort to understand it at all.

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"][QUOTE="Sir_BIGnuts"]

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.Meu2k7

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

whatever works for you man. There has been HL, HL2, EP1, EP2, and the story has never made sense. Atleast with Halo there has been 3 games and in each one you have progressed further into the story. No pointless cliffhangers or anything like that. There's already 3 parts to HL2 and by the looks of it they can drag out another 10 episodes, is that what you want? It's like Valve is just trying to milk the fans.

HL fans will vote for HL for any reason they want. The only good thing to come from the series are its mods.

Umm theres only 3 Episodes, then its Half-Life 3 apperently.

Then again the same thing you said about "Half-Life" fanboys cant be said for Halo Fanboys? again, lemmings trademark "Hypocrisies" shining through as usual.

both are big franchises and will be big sellers, no doubt about that. But Bungie already said they want to work on new games. There will still be games like Halo Wars (looks promising for a spinoff) and eventually Halo 4 i'm sure.

I didn't realize Halo had a story. I thought you just were just killing big gorillas and midgets because a 12 year old girl asked you to and occasionaly a generic black man assists you in some way.

But seriously,Halo has one of the worst plots ever told in a shooter,and Half-Life has one of the best. No competition here.

Also,someone above said Half-Life is bad because it doesn't answer questions. Isn't that the whole point? To keep you guessing? Let you come up with your own theories as to whats going on? An incentive to keep playing?

In Halo it's just: This guy is bad. I'm you're friend. You're goign to kill him and this is why. That's it. The TC said Halo is full of twists and turns. Are you on pot? Halohas the most straightforward,paper-thin plot in any shooter I've played.

stephant_6

[QUOTE="Meu2k7"][QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"][QUOTE="Sir_BIGnuts"]

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.TheDarkDisciple

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

whatever works for you man. There has been HL, HL2, EP1, EP2, and the story has never made sense. Atleast with Halo there has been 3 games and in each one you have progressed further into the story. No pointless cliffhangers or anything like that. There's already 3 parts to HL2 and by the looks of it they can drag out another 10 episodes, is that what you want? It's like Valve is just trying to milk the fans.

HL fans will vote for HL for any reason they want. The only good thing to come from the series are its mods.

Umm theres only 3 Episodes, then its Half-Life 3 apperently.

Then again the same thing you said about "Half-Life" fanboys cant be said for Halo Fanboys? again, lemmings trademark "Hypocrisies" shining through as usual.

both are big franchises and will be big sellers, no doubt about that. But Bungie already said they want to work on new games. There will still be games like Halo Wars (looks promising for a spinoff) and eventually Halo 4 i'm sure.

The difference is that Halo, Halo 2, and Halo 3 are all basically the same gameplay wise. You can't say that about Half Life and Half Life 2. And most likely 6 years from now you won't be saying the same about Half Life 2 and Half Life 3.

Im gonna go out on a limb here and say that halos story kicked the crap out of HL2s, ep1, and 2. They both still suck, hell portal has a better plot than both.htekemerald

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"][QUOTE="Sir_BIGnuts"]

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.stephant_6

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

whatever works for you man. There has been HL, HL2, EP1, EP2, and the story has never made sense. Atleast with Halo there has been 3 games and in each one you have progressed further into the story. No pointless cliffhangers or anything like that. There's already 3 parts to HL2 and by the looks of it they can drag out another 10 episodes, is that what you want? It's like Valve is just trying to milk the fans.

HL fans will vote for HL for any reason they want. The only good thing to come from the series are its mods.

No pointless cliffhangers? I'm sorry I guess I watched a different ending to Halo 2 then you did. And if you can't understand Half-Lifes plot,then you either didn't play the first game,or made absolutely no effort to understand it at all.

well i never finished HL1, so you're right. But i've seen enoguh from HL2 and spoilers that the same stuff is going on. If you look back at HL1, how much has changed? not much aside from some new characters and the Combine. G-man still walks around mysteriously and tells Gordon all kinds of cryptic stuff. That's all i see atleast

[QUOTE="stephant_6"][QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"][QUOTE="Sir_BIGnuts"]

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]both suck. but i'd say Halo because it actually makes sense.TheDarkDisciple

God forbid you have to think and reflect upon a story in a game :roll:

whatever works for you man. There has been HL, HL2, EP1, EP2, and the story has never made sense. Atleast with Halo there has been 3 games and in each one you have progressed further into the story. No pointless cliffhangers or anything like that. There's already 3 parts to HL2 and by the looks of it they can drag out another 10 episodes, is that what you want? It's like Valve is just trying to milk the fans.

HL fans will vote for HL for any reason they want. The only good thing to come from the series are its mods.

No pointless cliffhangers? I'm sorry I guess I watched a different ending to Halo 2 then you did. And if you can't understand Half-Lifes plot,then you either didn't play the first game,or made absolutely no effort to understand it at all.

well i never finished HL1, so you're right. But i've seen enoguh from HL2 and spoilers that the same stuff is going on. If you look back at HL1, how much has changed? not much aside from some new characters and the Combine. G-man still walks around mysteriously and tells Gordon all kinds of cryptic stuff. That's all i see atleast

Not much has changed? It's official:you have no clue what you're talking about.

Half-Life 1: Game is set in a huge research facility,you're fighting aliens and US troops later on. All you're friends are dead and you're just trying to escape alive.

Half-Life 2: Set 10-20 years in the future. The combine has taken over and you join the resistance to help eliminate the combine and find out whats causing all of this to happen. In fact,the ONLY thign the same about HL 1 and 2 is the G-man,and headcrabs. That's it.

wow i was looking up HL stuff on youtube and found this :lol: wtf??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TtHIIX8d44&feature=related

wow i was looking up HL stuff on youtube and found this :lol: wtf??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TtHIIX8d44&feature=related

TheDarkDisciple

lemme guess, you were searching on youtube for the hl story because you actually had no clue what you were talking about earlier...

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]

wow i was looking up HL stuff on youtube and found this :lol: wtf??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TtHIIX8d44&feature=related

Arjdagr8

lemme guess, you were searching on youtube for the hl story because you actually had no clue what you were talking about earlier...

wouldn't it have been easier to use this?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Half-life_2

i own HL (played part of the game a while back) HL2, and Ep1. Now i just use them to play the mods.I've said what i think about the story and you guys keep telling me i don't know what i'm talking about, when i think i actually do. You guys just like to bash Halo at any mention of it.

[QUOTE="TheDarkDisciple"]

wow i was looking up HL stuff on youtube and found this :lol: wtf??

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6TtHIIX8d44&feature=related

Arjdagr8

lemme guess, you were searching on youtube for the hl story because you actually had no clue what you were talking about earlier...

Exactly. you haven't played the other 2 episodes yet. Virus214

you mean episode 2? ok then, i've heard about the ending ( don't know much more than that) but can you fill me in on other key moments or twists to the story that i might not know about? or anything that would show some sort of progression to the story at all?

I beat Half Life 2 yesterday after two marathon gaming sessions. It was a fantastic game and it was cool to see the old security guard from Black Mesa had survived. I was surprised by how fun the game was and the only annoying thing about the whole experience was that tiny part where you are racing around without a gun on your vehicle. Ok now to my point.

This game is severely lacking in story. It's a typical "resistance" type tale. The aliens have invaded and taken over placing a human stooge in charge. You are told to chase after people the whole game with no clear objective in mind. Early on people are already praising you as a freedom fighter when your greatest achievement has been shooting down a single helicopter. The Combine appear to be turning people into gray, jerkily moving slaves for no apparent reason. The red orb eyed aliens praise you as some kind of messiah type figure. If I remember the first game correctly it ends with you hopping around floating platforms in another dimension until you fight some giant monster then it...well my game would crash at the end so I don't know what happens after you beat it. I guess that qualifies you as an interdimensional messiah...:roll:

Halo on the other hand has clearly defined characters and factions that operate in a clearly defined universe. It's got twists and turns, ups and downs, and the whole time it is going somewhere.

At the end of Half Life 2 the G-Man makes it clear you are basically his errand boy he is hiring out to various strangers for unknown reasons. It's just a bunch of mysteries with no satisfying conclusion. It's nearly impossible to keep up the suspension of disbelief that humanity can field a resistance against the Combine once you go into their citadel.

At the end of Halo3 you have accomplished your mission and are floating into the unknown but everything is wrapped up from the original games.

In conclusion I don't see how you can say Half Life has a better story than Halo especially if you are arguing from the angle that Half Life is "original" and Halo is cliched.

I haven't played the other two episodes yet so maybe...things get more interesting from a story standpoint.

JiveT

i can guess you didnt play half life 1 right?

Neither are really that special. Halo has a more interesting universe imo, but the ingame story-telling is awful. Half-life 2 has interesting characters, and dialog but the plot never really gives you a solid direction, it feels like a rollercoaster that someone forces you to ride, without your consent, or say in the matter. They never give you any real reason as to why one person is able to take down wave after wave of an oppressive alien force. They have a stranglehold on earth and yet, they are morons, who are felled easily with exploding barrels, pistols and even their own weaponry. It makes no sense, unlike master chief who makes it seem plausible. It's frustrating either way. The only sci-fi story to really get it right in recent memory is Mass Effect, because it has a complex story, there are interesting character. The story keeps you guessing, but it also give you answers along the way, and it does it in a very satisfying way. Not giving answers for the sake of forcing you to move forward, and then not rewarding you, is a very unpleasant trait of teh Half-life series imo. And Halo's lack of atmosphere and generic characters get in the way of its compelling universe.DrinkDuff

lmao, atleast someone knows what i'm talking about. Like i said earlier though, Halo doesn't really have a great story either, i just find it more enjoyable and it actually makes sense.

Complete story so far in order of occurance.

Spoliers, of course.

[QUOTE="Virus214"]Exactly. you haven't played the other 2 episodes yet. TheDarkDisciple

you mean episode 2? ok then, i've heard about the ending ( don't know much more than that) but can you fill me in on other key moments or twists to the story that i might not know about? or anything that would show some sort of progression to the story at all?

The Story is about survival through gorands eyes, why do you need it spelt out? every small or big event is major story .... jsut because its not narated to death like Halos doesnt mean its not there... compeltely different approach.

also you said half-life's story is a bit of a blur, this for me was interpreted as how gordan freeman would experience the situation. he arrives in a post war city train knowing nothing for like the last 2 years or so...jack_michael

[QUOTE="jack_michael"]also you said half-life's story is a bit of a blur, this for me was interpreted as how gordan freeman would experience the situation. he arrives in a post war city train knowing nothing for like the last 2 years or so...Nintendo_Ownes7

sorry, buti thought 'the last year or so...' gave an indication it was a guess.