Ahh yes, Half-life 2. Everyone wanted it in 2004. Everybody still wants it now. Half-life 2 was probably the best game I have ever played In my entire life. That's hard to get out of a game reviewer but I love it more than I loved E.T. for the Atari 2600. It is so incredibly deep and detailed. The story is this (as I'm sure you've hear 30 billion times.) You play Gordon Freeman and you are on a train arriving in Dr.Breen's post apocalyptic world (whatever you'd like to call it.) You get off this train and walk around until you get to a point where you see this Metro Police Officer and he wants to take you into his back room, At first you see a red chair, with blood below it. Being myself I naturally assumed that this chair was so that the officer could brutally rape you. To my misfortune that officer was actually Barney from our previous Half-Life installment. He blathers on about how he owes you a beer and he shouldn't have cheated on his wife with you, or so that's what I got out of it. From that point on, you actually get a chance to play around with the physics, you stack up some boxes and jump out a window. Into a pit of dangerous barbs? no. a little alleyway thing. The odd thing is though, that alleyway doesn't have any other way out besides a door. It's just blocked in. What the fuck is that? How am I supposed to deal crack there without getting busted by the Officers? Anyway I continued on, picked up a soda can, walked out and went to the back of the level, went inside a building saw some people talking to me, went outside on a roof and and them walked along the edges. At this point you have to stay on the edges and not get killed by the Officers who are shooting at you in a professional manner (thanks for the good AI, Valve.. you bastards.) I continued inside an old looking building walked down some steps and turned around, the steps are broken, thanks to the Havok engine (which I would like to mention, if I have everything on high in the graphics, my card explodes in some pretty colors, I've had to replace it multiple times.) Then I walk into the hallway from here, and shit, tons of officers are walking my way, they have stunsticks, which at that point I assumed a few of them were going up my ass. Unfortunately the Story line left me pissed again.

At this time the lovable broad Alyx Vance saved my ass from Stun Stick trauma and fought off the baddies. She then took me to a lab underground. Which I was greeted by an old favorite Dr. Kleiner. He was looking for his headcrab. Barney walks in strolling like a pimp and helps me get into my HEV suit. KICK ASS.

Then we go over to play with Dr. Kleiner's new toy. I'll give you a hint, It wasn't his penis. Anyway.. So I furthered on to his machine-o-ray to help transport me elsewhere. It turns out he has ADD and can't properly create a molecular transportation device. It messes up and puts me outside the window Barney runs out and tosses me my crowbar and then I'm pitted against all odds.

I'm going to summarize the next part of the game into a list:

-Officers
-Manhacks
-Sewer
-Sewer
-Puzzle
-Manhacks
-Manhacks
-Manhacks
-Manhacks
-Manhacks
-Sewer
-More Combines
-Done.

It continues on and eventually after a pain-staking read through a walk-through we get to drive stuff!
We do a little bit of that, and then we get to meet Alyx's dog. You have to catch stuff with your gravity gun, which makes it bearable.
Then the combines/officers/fuckall come to get you. Since you don't want a stun stick anal raping, you run. You are inside the airlock talking to Eli Vance (Alyx's Father). He instructs you to leave, but don't go to Ravenholm. You promptly kick him in the nuts and tell him to sod off, You're going to Ravenholm.

Ravenholm:
-Zombies
-Zombies
-HEADCRAB ZOMBIE!
-Done

*Insert something witty about Nova Prospekt Here*

The game goes on a little more and then the end where you get some more awesome dialogue from Gman, then game over.

If you're wondering why I wrote less towards the end, well I got lazy.

Now, this game is too important to be fucked with so I rated it separately for each part. (I just don't want it to watch me sleep at night.)

Graphics: 11/10
Audio: 10/10
Gameplay: 9/10 (I'm not much of a deep story person, because I lose interest when it renders something shiny in front of me.)
Zombies: 10/10 (I pissed myself so many times that I needed to buy new Cargo Shorts.)
Overall: 10/10

Also, on a side note

House = Gordon Freeman?

You decide.