Half Life 2 vs Doom 3

[ThePentiumGuy]

Hey guys,

I just want your opinion on what's going to be the better game.

 

I'm leaning more towards Half Life 2, after seeing some of the videos.

 

Please dont start a flame war here, as im just asking for opinions, each game will have its own advantages and disadvantages. For once, it seems as though the physics engine in Half Life 2 seems a bit better, as well as the graphics quality. The legacy of both games is incredible.

 

I know there's a ton of forums that talk about this, but I want your opinion.

 

-The Pentium Guy-

[Menge]

since Doom3 has gone gold yesterday, we'll be able to review it in some weeks (Aug 3rd US/Aug 13th UK).

 

about HL2.... i dont know how long.... but i guess i'll be busy playing Doom3 till them :P

[PWNettle]

There's a good chance I'll try both. I'm kind of ignorant to what they're bringing to the table. If I were to base my pick on previous iterations I'd definitely go with Halflife.

 

Paul

[Volte]

Having been a Doom fiend for approximately 10 years now, I'm gonna have to go with Doom 3; that is, if my computer doesn't implode whilst attempting to play it. I don't plan to spend $700 on a new computer just for one game which may or may not have good gameplay (since Romero left id Software, and he was the brains behind the gameplay in the original Doom).

[mutant]

Volte, I think Romero went down together with Daikatana.

:)

[PlausiblyDamp]

I'm surprised the profanity filter allows the word 'Daikatana' to be used.

[Volte]

Actually he's back to his roots making adventure/arcade-style games with Tom Hall at Monkeystone Games, as well as working at Midway Entertainment. I think Daikatana was just a fluke. :p

[Nerseus]

1 more for HL2.

[divil]

I'm going to buy Doom 3 to play on the big screen with the lights out. I want it because I think it's going to frighten me. I'm going to buy Half Life 2 because I expect it to push the limits of interactivity and be replayable for a long time, like the original was.

[samsmithnz]

I'm another one who is going to have to wait and see how the games are... its hard to tell from a couple screenshots... I hope the gore is still in Doom 3, I kind of miss it...

[Jay1b]

HL2 will get the bigger following, but i think Doom3 will have the gameplay.

 

Although i expect both will major let down and wont live upto the hype!

[ThePentiumGuy]

i beleive that Doom3 is coming out a month before HL2... This might mess up HL2's sales, unless people are willing to buy both games.. or if they're true HL fans and buy HL2 -_^

 

i'm getting both :D,

 

btw has anyone heard this rumor about HL2:

they're gonna sell 3 different HL2 versions, one more expensive than the other...

one is for SP, one is for SP and MP, one is a deluxe version of both SP and MP.. seeing the half life 2 trailer, at the very end there are 3 HL2 boxes... i think this might be true o_O!

[samsmithnz]

Yeh pentium I have heard that there is going to be a varied price structure for HL2, depending on whether you just want the multiplayer part or not. We'll see what that actually means. They'll probably try to sell it as two games @ $100 :eek:

 

And I don't think that Halflife 2 will be seen on shelves until at least October, (according to my latest FHM), if it even makes it by Christmas!

[Jay1b]

I heard that Doom3 Requires a P4 1500, 384mb RAM, 128mb graphics card and a 2gb hd space for min install.

 

Blows my computer out of the water, and my works computer. Pretty much spec'ed me out and i kind of hate the thought of buying a new comp when my trusty old P3 800 can handle anything (outside of games) with absolutely no trouble at all!

[samsmithnz]

Its funny to think that its games that keep most computers on the leading edge...

[tekgod01]

Its funny to think that its games that keep most computers on the leading edge...

 

Don't you mean "Bleeding edge?" Every time a new "must-have" game comes out, I'm selling blood so I can get the latest video card/memory upgrade/hard drive/cpu just so I can play it.

 

Thief III rules

Deus Ex wasn't worth it

HalfLife2 should be worth it

Halo2 better be worth it

Doom3 - As long as they upgrade the graphics, they can keep the mission style the same and it would be worth it.

 

My vote is for Doom3 - id/Activision would have to go out of their way to screw it up.

[Jay1b]

Activision have a good reputation for taking the money and running. Namely release something as buggy as Africa, then provide no patches for it as they already have ur money and are therefore not interested. Just look at Medival Total War if u want an example. Where on the other boot Blizzard have just released the 16th patch for WarCraft3 RoC, and its not even that buggy!

[Nerseus]

I think Doom3 will have great sales, but not as big as HL2. I think HL2 will become at least as big as the original. Nothing that I've seen of Doom 3 has shown me that it has great replayability or a "suck you in" factor except the graphics, which lots of games have. Maybe it has the scare factor and of course the "Doom" legacy, but I just don't get excited thinking about Doom 3.

 

I think people really like the idea of being sucked into a great story inside a great environment like HL2 seems to be shooting for. That's one reason why the Grand Theft Auto 3+ series did so well - you felt like you could do almost anything and yet still follow the plot. Doom 3 seems similar to Unreal 2, great graphics but not much in terms of plot.

 

-ner

[JRichmond]

Definitly Half-Life 2.

 

I've already had nightmares from the screenshots of Doom 3. I probably wouldn't sleep for a month if I ever try to play it. :eek:

[samsmithnz]

After seeing the initial reviews about Doom 3, I think Half Life 2 will have a real run for its money. The expectation for Doom 3 isn't anywhere as high as Half Life 2. The fact that Doom 3 actually HAS a story this time around is a big surprise!

 

Should be interesting to see what happens...

[wyrd]

Doom 3 got an 8.5 from GameSpot, just a FYI. Probably the most reliable review site out there (my opinion, of course). Mag reviews (which is pretty much all I've seen) always seem to be way off the mark for my tastes.

[Volte]

I don't know how GameSpot can be the most reliable, since their reviews are written by several different people. Same goes for all the other review sites. I tend to just ignore them and play it for myself.

[PWNettle]

I have mixed feelings about GameSpot reviews and reviews in general. I used to have a lot of respect for GameSpot but they've done several terrible reviews over the years and often come across as extremely arrogant. I tend to read reviews from several sites, hope to play a demo, then make a reasonably educated purchase.

 

I'm about 6 hours into the Doom3 single player campaign. The game is defnitely a techincal achievement with insane graphics and remarkably smooth gameplay considering the graphics (from the perspective of someone playing it on an AMD 3000+, 1g RAM, ATI Radeon Pro 9800).

 

I've read that the SP campaign is only about 20 hours long, which is pretty standard these days IF the campaign is of high quality. I think so far the campaign is of high quality but I seriously doubt I'd want to play through it a second time - at least not for a long time. The campaign is highly immersive and scary as hell (I've had chills and/or a racing heart many times so far) but it's also extremely linear, has some (well done) scripted scenes, is pretty much repetitive corridor/room/indoor fighting, and has some annoyances (well covered in the GameSpot review) like the flashlight and trivial plot elements via the PDA). Unless you're a hardcore Doom person I think it'd be somewhat tedious to play through Doom3 more than once - compared to other somewhat similar titles like Halflife, FarCry, or Call of Duty.

 

I kind of don't like how Doom3 maintains suspense by what I consider cheesy mechanisms (like darkness and shadow), stealth undead, critters continually materializing behind you, and the fact that somehow this base is littered with a ridiculous amount of secret compartments perfectly sized to contain minions of hell. Oh gee, I'm in a room. Oh gee...the lights just suddenly went out and two huge secret compartments opened up unleashing demons from hell. I wonder who designed THIS starbase. Normally you'd think an expensive Mars base would be efficiently designed to conserve materials and space - which wouldn't likely involve lots of extra secret compartments just in case all hell breaks loose and zombies and demons need somewhere to chill while waiting for the hero to pass by. Seriously - some of these zombies were recently base personnel and now they're "hiding" in secret compartments?

 

Anyways....

 

I kind of prefer the terror that FarCry inspires where the damage model is more realistic, the enemies use the same weapons as you, and the enemies scare you in broad daylight because they have decent AI and if you make the slightest mistake you're in serious trouble - compared to Doom3 where you can take surreal amounts of damage and terror is maintained through a lot of very fantastic means.

 

Another thing that bothers me about Doom3 is the jacked up price tag. Yeah, it's only $5 more than your average premium game and yeah, it has insane graphics - but is it really worthy of the extra money, especially if this starts a bad trend in everyone jacking up game prices?

 

Anyways, due to what I see as limited replayablity, the jacked up price, and the elements of ridiculousness that detract from anotherwise solid gameplay experience I'd have a hard time rating Doom3 really high. Doom3 is technically brilliant and graphically amazing and is highly immersive but I think if you judge the entire package you have to consider its negative elements too.

 

Ultimately no matter how I'd rate Doom3 I think it's worth playing if you can afford it and have a machine that will run it. Even if you can't replay it that much and even if it does have some cheese factors it's definitely worth playing for the graphics, for the carnage and gore, and for the simple fact that this game will immerse you and scare the crap out of you.

 

Paul

[Jay1b]

I remember when games were designed to last 100 hours, now they all only last about 20. I think they spend so much on graphics and sound that they forget about the game play or length because they run out of money.

 

Personally i would rather have another few levels in MaxPayne2 then be able to turn on and off taps and flush the toilet.

[samsmithnz]

When were they ever designed to last 100 hours? Even a LONG game of Civ only lasts 25 hours.