From time to time I release whatever content I have of the game to my beta testers, they play it and give me feedback, this time I told them to write a small review on the latest version of the game released in November 2009 and then post all of them together here on moddb, my friend Dylan Melly had this idea and I tought "why not?". So here they are, all the reviews written by my fellow beta testers on the last internal release of the mod:
Review by: Pedro Oliveira AKA NightmarePRT
First of all this mod proves that old game engines can be modified to the point of being able to stand out in today’s media. The mod has intense action and absolutely creepy hence being inspired on F.E.A.R but it isn’t a nowhere near a ripoff meaning that it has its unique feel, not because of its limitations but because off the authors unique design. People who like tense atmosphere, creepy moments and brutal firefights will probably like this mod, the graphics aren’t top notch, but graphic freaks will like the look of the game. So in conclusion I seriously recommend this game especially for those who didn’t like the end of the original half-life.
PEACE
Review by: Devin Dulude AKA Awkook
Hunk is a master at his work. The maps are designed incredibly well, the horror in the mod fits with everything else in it, and it has intense gameplay that you should definitely play.
Review by: Lukács András AKA Highlander
I'm the one who programmed the renderers that Hunk's using, and of course I'm also one of his beta testers. Since I was supposed to write a review, I'm going forward.
Gameplay:
Gameplay is partly regularly fun HL gameplay, but it's got quite some improvements, such as more realistic weaponry, which I really liked. NPC's aren't changed too much, but they are used in horror elements in quite a good way, which turned out to be very spooky in fact. The horror elements have got quite a lot of F.E.A.R. in them; which is used in a very good way. This mod isn't always about shooting though. In fact, one of the main differences from HL is that it's got quite a lot of exploration, longer pauses between firefights. Overall I don't have anything to criticize on the gameplay side.
10/10
Level design:
Level design in HL: EP2 is pretty much generic, although it's in a very early beta stage, so most likely Hunk will try and improve some of the areas which I had considered lacking on many levels. It seems to me that the mod mostly grows more complex as it goes forward, the level design is especially better as you go more into the game, only the first few chapters have anything really lacking.
7/10
Story:
Contrary to what most people think, this mod actually fits in quite well with the HL storyline, and manages to disturb these least. I personally think that a very good addition to the storyline was the introduction of readable text documents with a HUD display, that was very interesting. The story is in fact the core of this mod, and Hunk did a great job at this part.
10/10
All together:
9/10
Review by: André Abreu AKA @br3u
This mod takes place exactly when Half-Life 1 left off, it develops during the aftermath of the Black mesa Incident, the horror moments based in F.E.A.R’S environment makes the mod’s gameplay unique to all other Half-Life mods I played, the graphics engine like everybody knows is really old but it’s being optimized so it’s definitely worth a try.
Review by: Dylan Melly AKA Doommarine23
Well, what can you say about an Alpha of a mod? Typically you don't expect much, but my friend Hunk has really impressed me. The attention to mapping detail is amazing, the HD models and graphics (By many people of the HL modding community) are well fit and nice. The mod captures the perfect feeling of Half-Life, Resident Evil and F.E.A.R which is a very impressive feat. It's an impressive mod that has a lot of heart and a lot of promise.
Review by: Tiago Leites AKA Orochi Axxon
I am a retro gaming fan, so that means Half-Life isn’t one of my favorite games, but this mod got my attention and it made me feel like playing it. In fact the mod also made me want to play Half-Life to
better understand it.
Now let’s talk more about the game itself:
First:
I noticed that the mod’s mapping is very realistic, makes sense and has a type of detail that I appreciate;
Second:
I loved the soundtrack of the game, it captures very well the essence of the moment in the game making me want to play it, creating an atmosphere of tension and terror that many players will definitely love;
Third:
The argument is original, I am aware of it and I help on it’s creation, I think Hunk has done a good job, not overreacting on it to the point of making it irrational and ridiculous;
Fourth and last:
I loved the existence of Easter eggs in the game, it made me want to explore everything just to find them.
I give this game a 8.5/10 for it’s originality and fun gameplay, I just don’t give it more because I’m not a big fan of Half-Life, so that means I’m also not a big fan of it’s storyline, and that’s necessary to better enjoy this mod.
P.S: A warning for the game rushers that only play games so they can tell they finished it: You are going to miss much because this game has to be played slowly to be truly appreciated and to feel the
tension and terror it casts on the players.
