Writing Throwback: Half-Life: Opposing Force

Second last old review, again 14 years old. Hold on to your butts.

Review

Do you like first person shooters? I do not, or should I say did not. I remember when Quake and Unreal all came out, I could not stand those games. Then along came Half-Life by Valve Software. I played it and played it and played it; I was hooked. Then I found out Sierra was releasing an official add-on for Half-Life called Opposing Force. Gearbox Software made this add-on, but the question remained, is it any good?

This time around you play as the marines from Half-Life. You are Corporal Adrian Shepherd sent to the Black Mesa Research Facility to eliminate Gordon Freeman. Unfortunately, you get separated from your unit due to attacking aliens but it was for the best as almost all of the remaining marines were killed, so things are looking up. As such your mission has been aborted, your new mission is to get out alive using any means possible and if by chance you still find Freeman, kill him.

The reversal of characters makes this game interesting. You still go through some of the old places Freeman went through but this time you may arrive earlier, later or even at the same time as Freeman. The difference though is that you also get to go to some places Freeman was not allowed entrance to. Because of that you get a little more alien interaction as your travels take you deeper into Black Mesa.

As you move through the game this time, you will notice a few new things like weapons. How does a combat knife, wrench, pistol with laser site, sniper rifle, and a new machine gun sound? They do not change the game much, but more weapons can be handy. You also have new talents like climbing and swinging on a rope. It is tricky at first, but it does add to the game. This is a feature I think we will see used better though in the future.

You also can control marines the same way as the guards in Half-Life. This time though they have skills, like an engineer who can open locked doors and the medic who will heal you. They will also open fire when a hostile situation arises which is quite a bit as you are not alone. There are the original aliens plus a few new ones as you are seated deeper in Black Mesa like the pit drone — a fast little creature that shoots at you. There is also the shock trooper — a more advanced version of the head crab human — and some big guys which I will let you see for yourself.

Graphically it is almost identical to Half-Life (it is an add-on remember, not a new game) with the exception of the new weapons. This time your protection is the PCV vest which replaces you HEV suit, so the on-screen display is different. The question remains, is it a worthy purchase and the answer is yes. If you remember that this is an add-on, not a full game then you will enjoy it. If you loved Half-Life though you will love this as well.