[QUOTE="Eyezonmii"][QUOTE="biggest_loser"]Valve are gods in this industry IMO. I mean, they are one of the few developers I can buy a game from without a demo because I know it will be of a high standard.
Most of those games you've mentioned have settled for polished game play - which I'm sure they do quite well, COD4 in particular is an excellent game. But what Valve have provided for this industry is innovation. Not just for their games - HL2, L4D, Portal in particular - but also revolutionised the distribution of games through Steam.
When HL2 first came out it was easily the best looking game on the market and the engine still holds up quite well now.
Please don't even mention Cliffy. Its very easy by their standards to design a generic shooter and polish it to perfection, rather than to take risks with narrative techniques and provide innovation through physics puzzles or co-operative game play.
biggest_loser
Gears of War in general took risks and made small innovations to gameplay...of course epic had influences, but they did there own stuff. I don't get what' so special about valve, people seem to just think Half-life, that game is old, and for its time good, sure..(not IMO, gravity gun, WHOOPTY DOO) Only company you should conisder GODS are those who respect every platform. I'm not speaking about everyone in value but this guys a douche. And the guy you quoted, forget cliffy, think EPIC and the whole team, the guy didn't do it all on his own. What were some of these risk and small innovations?
Half-Life 1 redefined how to tell a story in a game. I don't mean to be rude here, but have you ever played it? If you haven't the first 30 minutes of that game have no action in them. You see the functions of a facility and you are immersed so well into the fiction of everything you are doing, where you, who you are etc. That was back in 1998 - where no really cared about storytelling.
HL2 used the same narrative techniques only it was much more improved with the most life-like NPC character I've ever seen in a game, Alyx Vance. The first episode in particular expands on your physical and emotion interaction with her.
The gravity gun was imperative to the way physics were used in games. Before it was merely ragdoll stuff, like how bodies slump. Now you can use physics through the gravity gun, in puzzles and combat (like picking up enemies or throwing grenades back). This had never been done before.
And also I don't think there are many games, particular Gears lol, that would have as much success with such diversity of environments and gameplay as the HL games :P
Thats just HL. Would you like me to go through Left 4 Dead or are you alright now?
Reloading, Using the shoulder button, it's like a mini game and works so well (needing to get it on the spot for an active reload, increasing shot power) Having your gun jam in the heat of battle is awesome (if missed) The cover system, pretty much unique to anything out there, from the way you hit the wall and bounce off them. Chainsaw gun (need i say more) How weapons are aligned to the D-pad, for quick access. ( can't be too sure on this one, but don't recall any other game using it in the same fashion) and lastly, Making a 3rd person shooter control like a first person shooter. One last thing, How gears of war 2 level designs all have little unique puzzles to them, needing avoid things and how the enviroment works towards gameplay (hail, etc) A lot isn't just straight forward shooting this and proceeding. (sure it has bene done before, but Epic has done it better)
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