Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

I started downloading The Orange Box last night.  Not familiar with that?  It's Valve Software's new... uh, game package.  For $50, you get:
- Half-Life 2
- Half-Life 2 Episode One
- Half-Life 2 Episode Two
- Team Fortress 2
- Portal
- Some PopCap game, I don't remember

I played Portal for about an hour last night, which got me a fair way through the game.  It's a first person puzzler (the only shooting is done with the portal creation device) where you create portals (think gateways) in walls, floors, ceilings, etc.  The setting is a generic overly-sterilized environment where your only contact is a disembodied female computerized voice that seems there mostly to mess with your head (although some useful information is imparted). 

You get the feeling that all is not right with the system, even if it were working properly.  The dialogue was written by Chet and Erik of Old Man Murray fame.  (What?  You don't remember Old Man Murray?!  You young, hip whippersnappers.)  For those of you who aren't familiar with their work, it's biting and hilarious.  At one point the computerized voice informs you that the things it had previously told you were outright fabrications;  everything else from then on is suspect.

Hopefully I'll get to play some Episode 2 and Team Fortress 2 in the next few days.  Chime in on what you think of them!

I haven't posted anything about it because I'm to busy playing Team Fortress 2.

Wow, team fortress 2 is out? Great, I've only been waiting for it for like 8 years. Guess I need to go out and buy a copy. Hope they fixed pyros.

Phoenix M.D.

If you do look for Team Fortress 2, its in what is called The Orange Box which also comes with a ton of content. It's on PC, 360, and PS3.

Edit:  I completely spaced that it is pointed out in the first thread because, well because I'm an idiot sometimes.

I will have to pick this up for the 360 fo' sure.

It's funny, I finshed Portal last night and unlocked three Achievements.

On the PC version.

I have no idea where they're stored.

And yes, they fixed the Pyros, they fixed EVERYthing.   It's amazing. 

I wonder if Ambush and Dyremaker are going to make another set of mega mods for it. Well, first thing is first, need to go pick up a copy.

Yeah, buy it at a store if you can.  I downloaded it, and even with my 10 Mb/s connection, it took too long.  Which is an official measure of time, by the way.

I have a moderate connection and it took me about 30 minutes to download it, and that was right after they unlocked it on Steam so everyone and there mom was downloading it at that moment.

I beat portal, it was awesome. Too bad it was so short.

I really want to play Team Fortress 2.  How do it's system requirements compare to Half-Life 2?  I can run Half-Life 2 really well, so should I be okay for TF2?

You should be fine Hordini.

When they rap up the Half Life story line it better not suck.

You know that Gordon Freeman is Abraham Lincoln reincarnate, right? 

Posted By Iorek on 10/12/2007 6:30 AM
It's funny, I finshed Portal last night and unlocked three Achievements.

On the PC version.

I have no idea where they're stored.

Achievements are tied to your gamerscore which is kept and tracked on MS servers. Even if your 360 blows up and your computer melts (and you die) your gamerscore will remain safe online. Once you log back in on that account (say you were reincarnated), either on PC or on the 360, that information simply downloads back into your machine.

 

That part I knew, but I was simply confused because my Steam account is in no way linked to my Live account.  I guess I should set that connection up to increase my geek street cred gamer score.

I'm guessing the Orange Box is a PC DvD pack? Also I've been told The Orange Box is the only way to get Half-Life 2 from a store these days,is this true?

Thesoddt: The orange box is a PC DVD (singular). As far as I know, it’s the only way Half-Life 2 is currently being retailed. You might be able to dig up some really old original boxes of Half-Life 2, but unless you can pick it up for $15 or some similar bargain price, it’s not worth it. The orange box comes with not only half life 2, but also the 2 expansions. However, in my opinion, I bought team fortress 2 for $50 and it happened to come with half-life 2, the 2 expansions, and portal...all for free. Team fortress (the original quake mod) was the second best game ever made (just behind Master of Orion 2) and it looks like team fortress 2 is even better. Portal is also a very good game, but it’s really more of a mini game. I wouldn’t buy it on its own, but I’m very glad it was included in the orange box, because it was a lot of fun.

Thesoddt wrote:I'm guessing the Orange Box is a PC DvD pack? Also I've been told The Orange Box is the only way to get Half-Life 2 from a store these days,is this true?

No DVD drive?

Just download the Steam client from www.steampowered.com and download the game over Steam. It's more convenient and far better for the environment than buying the wasteful retail packaging. I buy almost all my games over Steam now. (Though for Crysis I had to cave in a buy a retail box.)

Iorek wrote:It's funny, I finshed Portal last night and unlocked three Achievements.

On the PC version.

I have no idea where they're stored.

Given it's linked to your Steam Account, I'd say there. The HaloBox version will be done via Live, but for the PC it'll be Steam.

Personally I just want Valve to hurry up and release Episode 3... or atleast give us a trailer!!!

BYE

Cool,yeah my computer doesn't get along well with DvD drives,tried about 5 different brands and models,none worked.

If you go and download steam, you can buy halflife 2 (and all the other valve games) online and direct download them. It will allow you to avoid that DVD issue.

Steam downloads = win. A long wait, but you'd have to wait to get the game home and install anyway. And once you buy it, there's no disk needed, and it can be retrieved at will anywhere.

Episode 2 = Amazing

I'm obsessed with the Half Life universe after picking up HL2 for the PC back in November. I spent most of the Christmas Holiday playing through what came in the Orange Box, in addition to Portal. And Mass Effect, of course.

Anyone know when Episode 3 is expected to release? The previous two came out about 13 months apart (with Ep1 coming out about a year and a half after Half Life 2), so I'm going to go out on a limb and say that I'm expecting a November/December release.

@HBMC:
I guess that means we'll probably see some trailers between now and spring time.

Have any of you all played the original Half Life? I didn't hear about this series until after they took it off the shelves, so I was wondering what your opinions were. I'm considering purchasing it from Steam, but I wanted to get some opinions. Thoughts?

CK

Half-Life 1 is a paragon of PC gaming. It revitalised the FPS genre back in 1998 and the only thing to top it since was Half-Life 2.

Buy it. The graphics are dated now (but you can get the Hi-Def pack if you get the Blue Shift expansion), but it is a tremendous game.

The expansions packs - especially Opposing Force - are fantastic as well.

BYE

I love the Orange Box. I have no idea how Valve is going to top themselves after this release.

I bought HL2 ages ago and never finished it. Then I got the OBox and decided to finish it. Of course after I played Portal. That was a sweet game and my only complaint was it is to short. Everyone is saying that.

Then I finished the HL series. Ep. 2 was intense. The end "boss" fight was frustrating until included the car. Can't wait until Ep. 3. Was Valve only going to make it a trilogy or were they going to do more episodes? Anyone know?

I still need to finish HL2, i never a good enough PC to run it so i bought OBox on PS3. So far its friggin sweet and Portal totally lived up to the hype.

I bought hl2 quite a while ago and I still have to finish it. It just didn't appeal to me once I got out of ravenholm. I thought that was the only really coolpart of singleplayer. Plus I like cs a lot more than hl2.

I love portals, definitely one of my all time favorites. The ending is awesome in this game and the hints throughout the game on how they are going to work it into episode three are neat to find as well. If you haven't got the orange box yet, it won game of the year for god's sake, you have to look into it if not buy it right now!

Is there absolutely no possibility to just buy portal? I already have almost all of the other games in the orange box and I'm not interested in HL2 episode 2 or 3.