Episode One is a solid entry in the Half Life series, but what ultimately kills it, is its length.
The Bad: It'll take you around 4-6 hours to finish the thing.
Okay, this'll be a relatively short review. Also, I'm fueling myself with diet coke and ice cream right now, (EXPLOSIVE COMBINATION!) so if I go overboard, I apologize.
In the previous game "Half-Life 2", Gordon Freeman (main character) and Alyx Vance (sexy sidekick) had just been saved from an explosion in the Dr. Breens citadel by the vortigants, and a mysterious man (dressed in a suit and holding a briefcase...like he's some kind of bigshot....who does he think he is? And why is he stalking Gordon and Alyx? Is he some kind of stalker who gets kicks out of people fighting for their ****ing lives? Get a job!). Once safely outside of the citadel, Gordon is discovered by D.O.G underneath some debris. Once Alyx and Gordon regroup, they discover that the citadel could blow at any moment...again. So the whole idea rotates around Alyx and Gordon giving themselves, and some other people, a little more time so that they can escape from City 17 before it blows up.
Now for the gameplay. Unlike the last game where, every time you got reunited with Alyx, you got separated a couple of minutes afterwards by some really stupid event, this game rotates around teamwork. Alyx has a handgun with unlimited ammo (greedy son of a *****, taking all of the ammo for herself), and is a big help when it comes down to you, her, and twenty antlions. The controls are basically the same as the last game, and, yes, you still have the gravity gun. So, what's new? Well...ummmm...you and Alyx working together is pretty much it...
The graphics still rock. They look the same as the last game, with a couple of tweaks to make certain details stand out.
The music and sounds are also awesome. Intense music kicks in at just the right time, and gunfire, objects, and especially the voice acting, just sound amazing.
Now for the games biggest, and only flaw: 4-6 hours of gameplay. I'm dead serious. That's not to say that there's plenty of action, because there is. It's just strange that you're still gathering weapons at the very last level of the game, and hardly ever get to use them. However, the game does covers a lot of ground. It's just a shame that you'll beat the game the day you get it.
Well, that's it. In short: It's an awesome game, but it only lasts about 4-6 hours, so....I don't know...I don't think you can rent PC games. Well....buy the Orange Box, or play this game at a friends house or something. If you're a huge fan of Half-Life, then go ahead and buy it, just make sure that you buy a used copy at the lowest price possible.