I have watched my brother play Half Life 1 in 1999 and I have played it multiple times over the years.

The main questions you may have are the following:

1) Is this game a good 'modernisation' of Half Life 1?
A: Yes, it is a good modernisation and some things are explained in a broader sense than the original.

2)Is the game a proper 'spiritual successor' to HL1?
A: No, it sadly isn't. The game just didn't feel as good as HL1 for some reason.

To elaborate on some things:

The shadows and lighting are a huge pain in the ass and it took me multiple console fixes to make it playable yet still very annoying.

The Xen section overstayed it's welcome. I was dying to be over it because it stretched so much and was more an annoyance than enjoyment. Some sections are nice such as the Vortigaunt village and fact they are not hostile against you as they are slaves.

The blast pit section in the original game has more 'OOMPF' than in this modernisation. I don't know why but the miniboss didn't feel as threatening as the original.

Lastly the weapons didn't feel as impactful as the original.


The only big plus I give to the game is the fact in Xen you can find scientist outposts which is staying true to the story that they have ventured to the border world and collected crystal samples.

I have watched my brother play Half Life 1 in 1999 and I have played it multiple times over the years. The main questions you may have are the following: 1) Is this game a good 'modernisation' of Half Life 1? A: Yes, it is a good modernisation and some things are explained in a broader sense than the original. 2)Is the game a proper 'spiritual successor' to HL1? A: No, it sadly isn't. The game just didn't feel as good as HL1 for some reason. To elaborate on some things: The shadows and lighting are a huge pain in the ass and it took me multiple console fixes to make it playable yet still very annoying. The Xen section overstayed it's welcome. I was dying to be over it because it stretched so much and was more an annoyance than enjoyment. Some sections are nice such as the Vortigaunt village and fact they are not hostile against you as they are slaves. The blast pit section in the original game has more 'OOMPF' than in this modernisation. I don't know why but the miniboss didn't feel as threatening as the original. Lastly the weapons didn't feel as impactful as the original. The only big plus I give to the game is the fact in Xen you can find scientist outposts which is staying true to the story that they have ventured to the border world and collected crystal samples.