Valve delivered what it promised, a nonstop sci-fi action adventure with jaw-dropping results.
But that's not a reason at all to not love this game, I mean sure it was delivered to us through a crappy file sharing system that sometimes crashes on you, but you have to understand Valve and their protection rights against piracy. They've spent about 5 - 6 years creating the ultimate engine for Half-Life one's upcoming sequel. They needed to create something unique, something that will deliver 10 times the action and fun than the first game. From the way I see it, they kept their word on that and created an amazing game. Not only that, but the money they recieved from Half-Life one's market success, it was all spent on developing Half-Life 2's Source engine.
That's right, instead of buying a tiny island on Hawaii and a dozen ferraries, they spent each and every penny on Half-Life 2. That's a dedication you can't even buy off of eBay.
All in all, the sound is amazing, the graphics is spectacular, the levels are beautifully made and easy to navigate. The only con I have about this game, is the loading time on certain levels, it just takes longer than usual -- even with a super jacked-up PC. This game is great and I highly recommend people buy it instead of renting.
Happy gaming and give Steam a chance. ;)