Half-Life (PC, 1998)
Graphics-8/8.5** Sound-8 Control-7.5/6.5# Challenge-7.5 Story-7
Level Design-7.5/6.5* Frustration-6.5/7.5* Fun-7.5 Originality-6.5
Overall Score-7.5
*Level 8/on a rail, parts of level 12, parts of the final levels
**Texture mod
#Low grav parts
+
Pretty good VA overall
Various scripted events add to the atmosphere and world building (the experiment, scenery breaking down/falling over/exploding, surprise attacks and enemies scuttling across a narrow corridor in the distance - later used in Dead Space, enemies attacking NPCs, NPCs commenting on your actions, G-man appearances, etc; System Shock, Strife and Daggerfall are some earlier FP view games that have them, King's Quest/Maniac Mansion/Clash at Demonhead are some earlier games that have them)
Pretty early attempt at a cinematic, more action adventure-like experience with no CGI cutscenes for the FPS genre (Ultima Underworld, System Shock and Strife can be seen as precursors but had intro and ending cutscenes and NPCs generally didn't talk without entering a dialogue mode with them - In SS1 Shodan would address the player at certain points, Dark Forces 2 had some talking NPCs (couldn't make them tell you stuff or follow you though) and scripted events but also various cutscenes)
Can sometimes listen in on marine conversations (later used in Deus Ex and VtM: Bloodlines) and radio communications (Bionic Commando)
Good sense of vulnerability early on (start without a weapon+the scripted events) and at a few other points such as when reaching the surface (continuously spawning enemies+chopper attack) or at the beginning of level 7. Also after the kidnapping in level 9 (lose all weapons)
Some decent puzzles (raise/lower water levels to progress, turning off the electricity in one room affects it in adjacent rooms, boxes as platforms - Unreal?, minor stealth element (avoiding the tentacle monster by walking and/or crouching and using grenades), triple conveyor belt+crushers part, platforming puzzle near lasers in level 12, final boss fight) and some good puzzles (push box to get to a spot where you can disable a turret, electricity trap used to take out the big alien in level 7, laser beam in level 11)
Some alternate solutions to problems (can let a guard in the beginning die to grab his gun, saving another guard lets you access some locked in items, can let a turret deal with some enemies and/or turn it off, use traps or direct combat against some enemies, usable steam trap in level 14, etc)
Can tell NPCs to follow or wait after the disaster (same context sensitive use button though, no dialogue/command options). Can fight alongside NPC guards, while scientists can open certain doors if you make them follow you
Some funny moments (scientist hiding in a container)
Gain a talking suit with a built-in flashlight during the intro gameplay (start with a light item in Dark Forces 2)
Some exploding barrels/tanks and other destructible terrain (not consistent though; Cabal, Rampage, Doom, etc.)
Various hidden items and some optional detours for items and some breakable walls with subtle clues to their location. Detour paths sometimes also loop back to the main path like a shortcut
Some physics improvements from previous FP games (can break some objects piece by piece, can push boxes into water and have them float downstream, can pull smaller boxes though this is pretty wonky - seems intended to also be used to "kick" boxes forward and sideways)
Some enemy infighting
Fairly unusual premise for the time (you're a scientist who's late for a physics experiment in a secret research facility placed underground, a portal to another dimension is opened and you end up fighting both aliens and marines sent by the government to take out the aliens and any witnesses; inspired by X-Files?)
More natural feeling environments overall compared to most previous FPS games (Dark Forces 2 also had them to an extent)
Pretty good ambient sfx design (positional audio with headphones)
Some interesting enemies (relatively impressive marine and assassin enemy AI in some ways (they seek cover, retreat when hit and try to drive the player from their cover by throwing grenades, sound tracking, assassins also move really fast) - when they work as intended anyway, barnacles - placed in ceilings and pull you upwards and eat you if you don't react fast enough, the alien enemies that teleport around)
Headshots (3x damage; Virtua Cop, RE1, Team Fortress) and armored body parts take less damage from your shots
Some interesting level gimmicks (fire doors triggered if a grenade blows up near the button, slippery surfaces, bridges partially collapsing if you destroy the exploding barrels on them making for trickier platforming, upwards air stream - Sonic 3/Quake/Dark Forces 2, crushing traps as platforms in level 9, crushing trap after the kidnapping, spring platforms, some cannons - some turret segments are a bit dull however, air strike control panel in level 12, portal maze+moving platforms besides the issues mentioned below, alien spawning eggs/containers in the final level - should avoid shooting these)
Generally good hinting/teasing about parts of levels you can get to later (Doom, Quake, Zelda, etc)
Long jump item (Mario 64, required for some parts but you gain it very late in the game)
Optional tutorial
Some large scale environmental effects (water levels, tentacles, air strike at end of level 12, etc; FF3, Populous, Metroid II & Super Metroid, Lemmings, Strife, MM Legends, Dark Forces 2)
Hazards also affect enemies
Some new enemies appearing when backtracking through levels (levels 7 and 14 for example)
Some huge models (Dark Forces 2 though these are organic with more advanced texturing and animation)
Can skip some parts by creating platforms using the placeable laser trip mines (kinda tricky though), as well as some parts by making NPCs open doors for you (this is tricky and glitchy however as they're not supposed to be doing it, can also skip some parts with grenade or tau ricochet jumps)
Lets you ambush some enemies (Dark Forces 2)
Relatively large weapons arsenal (14 in total)
Some fun weapons (satchel charge/remote controlled bombs, rocket launcher, tau cannon, gluon gun - kinda like the ghostbusters guns, crossbow, laser trip mines)
Most weapons feature an alternate firing mode (shotgun - 2x ammo shot, machine gun - grenade launcher, crossbow - sniping mode, tau cannon - charged shot which can go through multiple enemies and some walls, hivehand - rapid fire straight ahead)
Good feedback from most weapons
One pretty good boss (penultimate one/gonarch)
Difficulty options (easy-hard; only changes player/enemy/item stats however)
Two different endings (kinda crappy alternate/bad ending (if you choose not to work for G-Man) though - he somehow strips you of your weapons and teleports you into an army of aliens and then it cuts to credits after a short text message. The player also has no real incentive to choose the "good" one besides the threat of death)
+/-
Linear structure w/ optional sidetracking (level 14/lambda core is partially non-linear if you want it to be)
The Black Mesa complex in the game is mostly an interconnected world rather than separate levels and it's possible to backtrack through large parts of the game (inventory items and stats also carry over between levels, after launching the rocket you backtrack a bit to progress) - there are some points of no return however (beginning of level 5 for example) and generally it's not useful to go back
Save anywhere (multiple slots, shows current area and time taken)
Pretty frequent healing and armor stations (System Shock). Healing ponds on the alien planet (these are kinda slow though)
Silent protagonist (non-interactive dialogue)
Can't grab and climb ledges - sometimes you can instead crouch climb to reach slightly higher
Pretty severe fall damage (about 60-70 HP from falling 2 standard floors)
No consequences for killing NPCs unless they are mandatory for progression (can kill the guards early on for their weapons for example). Can't ask a guard that you have to leave behind for their gun/ammo sadly
Frequent (but short nowadays) loading which can happen in the middle of a hallway for example rather than when moving between rooms
G-Man seems based on X-Files
Can't kill G-Man
Can't pick up and place or throw smaller boxes
Some aim assist (optional in Dark Forces 2)
No text or audio logs and no diaries (for lore or gameplay hints; System Shock, UU)
Can't completely save NPCs unlike in Abe's Oddysee for example. Also can't give them orders from afar
Can't hit enemies in melee through wide gratings - can shoot them however
Healing items can't be carried around for later use
Safe spots when dealing with turrets and some ranged enemies (can shoot them without them being able to shoot you)
Some insta-death pits
Some levels have much fewer detours
Can't push NPCs (Dark Forces 2)
Some mannable turrets but some of them kinda suck (can't man the rocket launcher ones). The ones around level 13 let you destroy some gates which is pretty fun
Can't pick a remotely detonated bomb/satchel charge back up after having placed it+can't throw it very high or far
Mostly ambient OST, Pretty cheesy credits theme
Enemies can't open doors? (Dark Forces 2; some can destroy boxes however)
Have to stand still for a bit for rocket launcher shots to hit their target properly
Can't deflect any enemy shots back at them (Dark Forces 2)
No temporary invincibility or super damage or super speed power ups
No flamethrower and the machine gun doesn't deal with swarms of small enemies that well
Enemies don't drop health? (it's still mostly plentiful but in a few cases it might not be worth to fight the enemies in a room)
Doesn't show you what pressing a switch does to something if it's in another room (generally not an issue though)
The hivehand/clawlike alien weapon with semi-homing shots and regenerating ammo is kind of weak but in some situations it's OP due to enemies not reacting to it
Some unavoidable damage (unless you take it extremely slow perhaps)
-
Can't skip or speed up the intro cutscene (in-game tram ride)
Some control/interface issues (no map system (not that hard to find the path forward but you'll probably miss some detours and hidden paths plus backtracking can take longer than it should thanks to some samey looking corridors here and there, in some levels you can see a partial map as an in-game framed image but it's not very useful and can't be taken with you), your avatar slides off of boxes going down the stream in water instead of following along with them, no subtitles (Dark Forces 2) and no message log - sometimes there are NPC or radio communications that you'll miss due to focusing on something else at the moment and in some parts you get a short briefing from an NPC, occasional issues when stepping out of water, sometimes fairly easy to get semi-stuck on obstacles when moving around (parts of "on a rail" when moving to the side of the track for example), box physics sometimes flip out when pulling one, if you hold jump while jumping towards a ladder you'll let go of it, sideways jumping onto a ladder while running could've been easier, poor forward momentum during low grav jumps without using the long jump item which instead adds too much for some segments)
Some trial & error (hard to spot the 247 code before the teleporter maze with moving platforms+there's a teleporter taking you back to the beginning of that segment near the end of level 14, some cheap insta-death traps such as near the entrance to the building where the experiment took place or the beginning of level 9/apprehension and some high damage ones (end of level 6/blast pit), some surprise attacks, sometimes overly large hit boxes on hazards - fan room, turrets on easels also react to noise - not just the nearby red lasers, moving on steeply sloped ground (level 6/blast pit), near invincible alien enemy at the beginning of level 7/power up, getting the rail car in level 8 to switch tracks at some points, weird surprise attack after a loading zone+can go through what looks like electricity traps without taking damage in the on a rail level, can't hear marines moving - there could've been an energy driven suit upgrade or item to let you do it, kind of easy to take the wrong path in parts of level 10/processing and have to redo part of it, snark attack in level 12 vent, kinda hard to tell where to go in the final level and if you try to long jump onto a flying orca it won't work so you might rule those out as a solution (the second kind of springs near the beginning here are also a red herring))
Unskippable bootup logos
Enemies sometimes don't react to your presence properly (sometimes you can even hit an enemy with a grenade or a long range weapon without a reaction), The aliens are mostly dumb and the marines sometimes are as well
Some red herrings or missed opportunities puzzle-wise (in sewers - looks like a decent physics puzzles but the boxes don't fit int holes further down the stream, in level 5 - the scientists surrounded by laser traps and near turrets (no point in saving them), )
Some tedious aspects (the low grav platforming during the last phase of the final boss and the boss fight overall kind of lacks intensity, annoying vertical platforming segment+low gravity effect+kinda hard to tell the platforms from the background during the final boss fight, mine field part+descending the mountainside+too many entrenched snipers in level 12+not enough grenades in the early half of that level (should've led you towards the hatch switch before the hatch, leads to quite a slow paced level overall), most of level 8/on a rail - kinda maze-like+the rail car aspect makes it slow+entrenched marines in some parts+it's a bit too long, kinda slow intro gameplay w/ some waiting around for NPCs to move into position to help you progress - not that long though, detours occasionally get too long without opening up a shortcut to the main path or leading to anything better than what you'd find otherwise, some aren't worth it in terms of the reward period (there could've been one or two more risky ones that led to getting a better weapon or a suit upgrade or higher grenade carrying capacity - Doom/Quake is a bit better with this), some dead space and a few dead ends, some long and slow elevator rides, some of the backtracking in level 6, overly spongy tanks and transport airplanes - 4-5 rockets for the former, the tanks that hit you instantly, some escort parts are too long and convoluted considering the lacking NPC AI, NPCs tend to move slowly when going to open a door for you)
Sometimes inconsistent properties to objects (wooden door after the sewers which could only be broken by waiting for an enemy to decide to break through - should've been able to break it myself, cardboard boxes that are breakable but not movable, )
Some NPCs can't be talked to and some say the same thing with the same voice, Some can't be talked to from behind
Some parts would've been more impactful or scary with better lighting effects and more of a scripted soundtrack (various parts are also dead silent in terms of the OST)
Doesn't keep track of found secrets or other stats like deaths or headshots (didn't need to signpost it but having some stats to check in the menu or even after beating it would've been cool; Doom, System Shock, Dark Forces 2, etc.)
World interaction is sometimes a bit limited (bathroom stalls, fire extinguisher, etc)
Various NPCs are surprisingly calm given the situation
Somewhat scratchy voices overall, Some 2D objects and low res textures, Sometimes overly boxy geometry or architecture, When hitting unbreakable glass with the crowbar the audiovisual effect used belongs to the gunshot instead
Need to activate the console externally (cmd prompt or file properties; for cheats)
Snarks kinda suck both to fight and usually as a weapon (except if you use them more like grenades but they're not as fun)
Difficulty spikes at level 12 and the end of level 14.
The airstrike part of level 12 could've had more of a sense of urgency after taking out the blue alien
Cartoonishly evil marines without exceptions
Notes:
-Need to use OpenGL graphics for the non-steam version to run on a modern PC
Bugs:
-Can get completely stuck between objects in some parts of level 8/on a rail and level 12/tension (in the latter it tends to happen if right next to a wall when entering a loading zone)
-If you back away from someone who's speaking to you then they might stop talking and you can't repeat the message (happened with a facility entrance guard for me)
-The surviving scientist after the experiment sometimes follows you (and dies) and sometimes refuses
-Sometimes crashes when alt-tabbing
-NPCs sometimes don't start following if you quickly start running after telling them to
-Some ladders in level 4/office complex level would sometimes bounce me backwards when I moved into them
-The blue alien in level 7/power up sometimes has to be reminded to follow you
-Forcing NPCs to open doors: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-W2E2on-tgM
-Hit detection bug in level 12 made me fly backwards without there being an explosion there beforehand in the garage
-Weapons sometimes stop being able to reload without first switching to a different weapon
Level Design-7.5/6.5* Frustration-6.5/7.5* Fun-7.5 Originality-6.5
Overall Score-7.5
*Level 8/on a rail, parts of level 12, parts of the final levels
**Texture mod
#Low grav parts
+
Pretty good VA overall
Various scripted events add to the atmosphere and world building (the experiment, scenery breaking down/falling over/exploding, surprise attacks and enemies scuttling across a narrow corridor in the distance - later used in Dead Space, enemies attacking NPCs, NPCs commenting on your actions, G-man appearances, etc; System Shock, Strife and Daggerfall are some earlier FP view games that have them, King's Quest/Maniac Mansion/Clash at Demonhead are some earlier games that have them)
Pretty early attempt at a cinematic, more action adventure-like experience with no CGI cutscenes for the FPS genre (Ultima Underworld, System Shock and Strife can be seen as precursors but had intro and ending cutscenes and NPCs generally didn't talk without entering a dialogue mode with them - In SS1 Shodan would address the player at certain points, Dark Forces 2 had some talking NPCs (couldn't make them tell you stuff or follow you though) and scripted events but also various cutscenes)
Can sometimes listen in on marine conversations (later used in Deus Ex and VtM: Bloodlines) and radio communications (Bionic Commando)
Good sense of vulnerability early on (start without a weapon+the scripted events) and at a few other points such as when reaching the surface (continuously spawning enemies+chopper attack) or at the beginning of level 7. Also after the kidnapping in level 9 (lose all weapons)
Some decent puzzles (raise/lower water levels to progress, turning off the electricity in one room affects it in adjacent rooms, boxes as platforms - Unreal?, minor stealth element (avoiding the tentacle monster by walking and/or crouching and using grenades), triple conveyor belt+crushers part, platforming puzzle near lasers in level 12, final boss fight) and some good puzzles (push box to get to a spot where you can disable a turret, electricity trap used to take out the big alien in level 7, laser beam in level 11)
Some alternate solutions to problems (can let a guard in the beginning die to grab his gun, saving another guard lets you access some locked in items, can let a turret deal with some enemies and/or turn it off, use traps or direct combat against some enemies, usable steam trap in level 14, etc)
Can tell NPCs to follow or wait after the disaster (same context sensitive use button though, no dialogue/command options). Can fight alongside NPC guards, while scientists can open certain doors if you make them follow you
Some funny moments (scientist hiding in a container)
Gain a talking suit with a built-in flashlight during the intro gameplay (start with a light item in Dark Forces 2)
Some exploding barrels/tanks and other destructible terrain (not consistent though; Cabal, Rampage, Doom, etc.)
Various hidden items and some optional detours for items and some breakable walls with subtle clues to their location. Detour paths sometimes also loop back to the main path like a shortcut
Some physics improvements from previous FP games (can break some objects piece by piece, can push boxes into water and have them float downstream, can pull smaller boxes though this is pretty wonky - seems intended to also be used to "kick" boxes forward and sideways)
Some enemy infighting
Fairly unusual premise for the time (you're a scientist who's late for a physics experiment in a secret research facility placed underground, a portal to another dimension is opened and you end up fighting both aliens and marines sent by the government to take out the aliens and any witnesses; inspired by X-Files?)
More natural feeling environments overall compared to most previous FPS games (Dark Forces 2 also had them to an extent)
Pretty good ambient sfx design (positional audio with headphones)
Some interesting enemies (relatively impressive marine and assassin enemy AI in some ways (they seek cover, retreat when hit and try to drive the player from their cover by throwing grenades, sound tracking, assassins also move really fast) - when they work as intended anyway, barnacles - placed in ceilings and pull you upwards and eat you if you don't react fast enough, the alien enemies that teleport around)
Headshots (3x damage; Virtua Cop, RE1, Team Fortress) and armored body parts take less damage from your shots
Some interesting level gimmicks (fire doors triggered if a grenade blows up near the button, slippery surfaces, bridges partially collapsing if you destroy the exploding barrels on them making for trickier platforming, upwards air stream - Sonic 3/Quake/Dark Forces 2, crushing traps as platforms in level 9, crushing trap after the kidnapping, spring platforms, some cannons - some turret segments are a bit dull however, air strike control panel in level 12, portal maze+moving platforms besides the issues mentioned below, alien spawning eggs/containers in the final level - should avoid shooting these)
Generally good hinting/teasing about parts of levels you can get to later (Doom, Quake, Zelda, etc)
Long jump item (Mario 64, required for some parts but you gain it very late in the game)
Optional tutorial
Some large scale environmental effects (water levels, tentacles, air strike at end of level 12, etc; FF3, Populous, Metroid II & Super Metroid, Lemmings, Strife, MM Legends, Dark Forces 2)
Hazards also affect enemies
Some new enemies appearing when backtracking through levels (levels 7 and 14 for example)
Some huge models (Dark Forces 2 though these are organic with more advanced texturing and animation)
Can skip some parts by creating platforms using the placeable laser trip mines (kinda tricky though), as well as some parts by making NPCs open doors for you (this is tricky and glitchy however as they're not supposed to be doing it, can also skip some parts with grenade or tau ricochet jumps)
Lets you ambush some enemies (Dark Forces 2)
Relatively large weapons arsenal (14 in total)
Some fun weapons (satchel charge/remote controlled bombs, rocket launcher, tau cannon, gluon gun - kinda like the ghostbusters guns, crossbow, laser trip mines)
Most weapons feature an alternate firing mode (shotgun - 2x ammo shot, machine gun - grenade launcher, crossbow - sniping mode, tau cannon - charged shot which can go through multiple enemies and some walls, hivehand - rapid fire straight ahead)
Good feedback from most weapons
One pretty good boss (penultimate one/gonarch)
Difficulty options (easy-hard; only changes player/enemy/item stats however)
Two different endings (kinda crappy alternate/bad ending (if you choose not to work for G-Man) though - he somehow strips you of your weapons and teleports you into an army of aliens and then it cuts to credits after a short text message. The player also has no real incentive to choose the "good" one besides the threat of death)
+/-
Linear structure w/ optional sidetracking (level 14/lambda core is partially non-linear if you want it to be)
The Black Mesa complex in the game is mostly an interconnected world rather than separate levels and it's possible to backtrack through large parts of the game (inventory items and stats also carry over between levels, after launching the rocket you backtrack a bit to progress) - there are some points of no return however (beginning of level 5 for example) and generally it's not useful to go back
Save anywhere (multiple slots, shows current area and time taken)
Pretty frequent healing and armor stations (System Shock). Healing ponds on the alien planet (these are kinda slow though)
Silent protagonist (non-interactive dialogue)
Can't grab and climb ledges - sometimes you can instead crouch climb to reach slightly higher
Pretty severe fall damage (about 60-70 HP from falling 2 standard floors)
No consequences for killing NPCs unless they are mandatory for progression (can kill the guards early on for their weapons for example). Can't ask a guard that you have to leave behind for their gun/ammo sadly
Frequent (but short nowadays) loading which can happen in the middle of a hallway for example rather than when moving between rooms
G-Man seems based on X-Files
Can't kill G-Man
Can't pick up and place or throw smaller boxes
Some aim assist (optional in Dark Forces 2)
No text or audio logs and no diaries (for lore or gameplay hints; System Shock, UU)
Can't completely save NPCs unlike in Abe's Oddysee for example. Also can't give them orders from afar
Can't hit enemies in melee through wide gratings - can shoot them however
Healing items can't be carried around for later use
Safe spots when dealing with turrets and some ranged enemies (can shoot them without them being able to shoot you)
Some insta-death pits
Some levels have much fewer detours
Can't push NPCs (Dark Forces 2)
Some mannable turrets but some of them kinda suck (can't man the rocket launcher ones). The ones around level 13 let you destroy some gates which is pretty fun
Can't pick a remotely detonated bomb/satchel charge back up after having placed it+can't throw it very high or far
Mostly ambient OST, Pretty cheesy credits theme
Enemies can't open doors? (Dark Forces 2; some can destroy boxes however)
Have to stand still for a bit for rocket launcher shots to hit their target properly
Can't deflect any enemy shots back at them (Dark Forces 2)
No temporary invincibility or super damage or super speed power ups
No flamethrower and the machine gun doesn't deal with swarms of small enemies that well
Enemies don't drop health? (it's still mostly plentiful but in a few cases it might not be worth to fight the enemies in a room)
Doesn't show you what pressing a switch does to something if it's in another room (generally not an issue though)
The hivehand/clawlike alien weapon with semi-homing shots and regenerating ammo is kind of weak but in some situations it's OP due to enemies not reacting to it
Some unavoidable damage (unless you take it extremely slow perhaps)
-
Can't skip or speed up the intro cutscene (in-game tram ride)
Some control/interface issues (no map system (not that hard to find the path forward but you'll probably miss some detours and hidden paths plus backtracking can take longer than it should thanks to some samey looking corridors here and there, in some levels you can see a partial map as an in-game framed image but it's not very useful and can't be taken with you), your avatar slides off of boxes going down the stream in water instead of following along with them, no subtitles (Dark Forces 2) and no message log - sometimes there are NPC or radio communications that you'll miss due to focusing on something else at the moment and in some parts you get a short briefing from an NPC, occasional issues when stepping out of water, sometimes fairly easy to get semi-stuck on obstacles when moving around (parts of "on a rail" when moving to the side of the track for example), box physics sometimes flip out when pulling one, if you hold jump while jumping towards a ladder you'll let go of it, sideways jumping onto a ladder while running could've been easier, poor forward momentum during low grav jumps without using the long jump item which instead adds too much for some segments)
Some trial & error (hard to spot the 247 code before the teleporter maze with moving platforms+there's a teleporter taking you back to the beginning of that segment near the end of level 14, some cheap insta-death traps such as near the entrance to the building where the experiment took place or the beginning of level 9/apprehension and some high damage ones (end of level 6/blast pit), some surprise attacks, sometimes overly large hit boxes on hazards - fan room, turrets on easels also react to noise - not just the nearby red lasers, moving on steeply sloped ground (level 6/blast pit), near invincible alien enemy at the beginning of level 7/power up, getting the rail car in level 8 to switch tracks at some points, weird surprise attack after a loading zone+can go through what looks like electricity traps without taking damage in the on a rail level, can't hear marines moving - there could've been an energy driven suit upgrade or item to let you do it, kind of easy to take the wrong path in parts of level 10/processing and have to redo part of it, snark attack in level 12 vent, kinda hard to tell where to go in the final level and if you try to long jump onto a flying orca it won't work so you might rule those out as a solution (the second kind of springs near the beginning here are also a red herring))
Unskippable bootup logos
Enemies sometimes don't react to your presence properly (sometimes you can even hit an enemy with a grenade or a long range weapon without a reaction), The aliens are mostly dumb and the marines sometimes are as well
Some red herrings or missed opportunities puzzle-wise (in sewers - looks like a decent physics puzzles but the boxes don't fit int holes further down the stream, in level 5 - the scientists surrounded by laser traps and near turrets (no point in saving them), )
Some tedious aspects (the low grav platforming during the last phase of the final boss and the boss fight overall kind of lacks intensity, annoying vertical platforming segment+low gravity effect+kinda hard to tell the platforms from the background during the final boss fight, mine field part+descending the mountainside+too many entrenched snipers in level 12+not enough grenades in the early half of that level (should've led you towards the hatch switch before the hatch, leads to quite a slow paced level overall), most of level 8/on a rail - kinda maze-like+the rail car aspect makes it slow+entrenched marines in some parts+it's a bit too long, kinda slow intro gameplay w/ some waiting around for NPCs to move into position to help you progress - not that long though, detours occasionally get too long without opening up a shortcut to the main path or leading to anything better than what you'd find otherwise, some aren't worth it in terms of the reward period (there could've been one or two more risky ones that led to getting a better weapon or a suit upgrade or higher grenade carrying capacity - Doom/Quake is a bit better with this), some dead space and a few dead ends, some long and slow elevator rides, some of the backtracking in level 6, overly spongy tanks and transport airplanes - 4-5 rockets for the former, the tanks that hit you instantly, some escort parts are too long and convoluted considering the lacking NPC AI, NPCs tend to move slowly when going to open a door for you)
Sometimes inconsistent properties to objects (wooden door after the sewers which could only be broken by waiting for an enemy to decide to break through - should've been able to break it myself, cardboard boxes that are breakable but not movable, )
Some NPCs can't be talked to and some say the same thing with the same voice, Some can't be talked to from behind
Some parts would've been more impactful or scary with better lighting effects and more of a scripted soundtrack (various parts are also dead silent in terms of the OST)
Doesn't keep track of found secrets or other stats like deaths or headshots (didn't need to signpost it but having some stats to check in the menu or even after beating it would've been cool; Doom, System Shock, Dark Forces 2, etc.)
World interaction is sometimes a bit limited (bathroom stalls, fire extinguisher, etc)
Various NPCs are surprisingly calm given the situation
Somewhat scratchy voices overall, Some 2D objects and low res textures, Sometimes overly boxy geometry or architecture, When hitting unbreakable glass with the crowbar the audiovisual effect used belongs to the gunshot instead
Need to activate the console externally (cmd prompt or file properties; for cheats)
Snarks kinda suck both to fight and usually as a weapon (except if you use them more like grenades but they're not as fun)
Difficulty spikes at level 12 and the end of level 14.
The airstrike part of level 12 could've had more of a sense of urgency after taking out the blue alien
Cartoonishly evil marines without exceptions
Notes:
-Need to use OpenGL graphics for the non-steam version to run on a modern PC
Bugs:
-Can get completely stuck between objects in some parts of level 8/on a rail and level 12/tension (in the latter it tends to happen if right next to a wall when entering a loading zone)
-If you back away from someone who's speaking to you then they might stop talking and you can't repeat the message (happened with a facility entrance guard for me)
-The surviving scientist after the experiment sometimes follows you (and dies) and sometimes refuses
-Sometimes crashes when alt-tabbing
-NPCs sometimes don't start following if you quickly start running after telling them to
-Some ladders in level 4/office complex level would sometimes bounce me backwards when I moved into them
-The blue alien in level 7/power up sometimes has to be reminded to follow you
-Forcing NPCs to open doors: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-W2E2on-tgM
-Hit detection bug in level 12 made me fly backwards without there being an explosion there beforehand in the garage
-Weapons sometimes stop being able to reload without first switching to a different weapon