8 dollars for 3 hours of content. It was worth every penny.

A great follow up to Half-Life 2, expanding the story, and keeping the excellent gunplay while making things fresh and new for those who have played the games before. A modern classic that deserves a good playthrough, or two, or more.
(It is pretty short though)

hi my name's ryoni and i'm a community leader (check the badge) and i can honestly say that if you want to be more like me you should definitely play this game.

it will help you succeed in life and maybe one day you too can be a leader

edited: language

A really good game. Not as good as Half-Life 2 though

Nothing else to say really

9/10

episode 1 is episode fun
you get to episode run with your episode gravity gun

Initially, this review was going to be negative and not reccomend it.

The start of the game, is not exactly endearing. It is very difficult to get immersed in what is happening, and the fact that you play Gordon Freeman again (yes, I know he is the main protagonist of the series, but he is just that - the main one). I felt that this was the perfect opportunity to play as Alyx, or Barney again. Someone other than Gordon, indeed, I was more of the mind that this game would have been more interesting if it had changed tact, and the purpose was to find Gordon after the events of Half-Life 2.

Either way, going through the opening chapter of this game was tedius. Mind-numbingly so. It was not enjoyable, it was not great storytelling and it definitely did not flow well. Alyx as an NPC Mary-Sue that offered constant exposition became annoying very very quickly. This issue with Alyx would only continue as the game progressed. Too much emphasis was placed on doing things in a buddy-cop fashion, but without the laughs associated with that genre.

The game didn't get too much better for a while. The reliance on the game to pair you up with Alyx had many of the same issues that you got with Half-Life 2 and the squads, they would constantly get in your way. And Alyx would do that with a repetitive glee that could only be described as malicious. I also found that this game seemed buggier than Half-Life 2 in that you could get caught on so much more debris.

The game also has a predisposition to clunky gameplay, revisitng many of the poorer elements used in the series, such as platforming and un-inspired puzzles. But at least you can still shoot things up with the SMG, Pulse Rifle and Crossbow.

However, the game did start picking up once you got to the final chapter and met up with an old friend again. I believe that this sequence and the final mini-boss fight at the end were the saving grace of Half-Life 2: Episode One. They raised the score of the game enough for me to recommend this game. Unfortunately, though, whilst it tips the scales on the fun side, this game did not enhance the lore of the series.

3/5 - only get if on special.

I'm Rick Harrison, and this is my pawn shop. I work here with my old man and my son, Big Hoss. Everything in here has a story and a price. One thing I've learned after 21 years - you never know what is gonna come through that door.

**ACHIEVEMENTS CLEARED (13/13)**
personal score: A-RANK
price paid: 49.99 USDs // orange box
price history: buy at a 75%+ price cut
select guide: installing source engine mods
third-party support: mod db // there is no steam workshop support

the exciting prequel to half life 2 episode 2