i tried to finish HL1 like 2 years ago but i just couldn't.... it just looks so dated now :(

still, the story was good

Um what about adventure games like LoZ. The rest I agree with. 

For some reason a lot of people considered LoZ to be an RPG back then. But more importantly I hadn't played LoZ at that point, as college had caused me to miss later NES games, and skip the entire SNES era, so the statement still stands.

Half life is still the best FPS ever in my eyes. The original Doom is second. Half life changed the face of FPS games, and all modern FPS owe homage to half life's cinematic style, and story telling.

Half-Life 1 is kind of dated by now, but still loads of fun. On one hand, the action and seamless levels give the game perfect pacing, and a lot of the weapons (a big alien hand that fires weird missiles? Hell yes!) are still fun even today. On the other, the jumping puzzles are sort of tired, and the blocky graphics and poor-quality sound haven't aged well.

And, yes, there was a version released for PS2: a port by Gearbox, to be exact, who upped the polygon count, redid a lot of the textures, and added a nifty co-op mode. It also has 16:9 widescreen support, which, along with the better graphics, take the pain away of having to play it in 640x480.

Now, Half-Life 2... I'm about 12 hours in at the moment, and unless the ending turns out to let down, I'm convinced that this IS the perfect FPS.

Halflife 2 is amazinger. :p

The ending in HL2 is kickass (no spoilers) but it's not going to answer many questions, so much as raise more. But it's just awesome.

I think the first half life has held up incredibly well. Fun just never becomes dated.

As a first person shooter, Half Life is great and does so many things right. The thing I hate though is when so many people literally bum the game for it's storyline when quite frankly there's no story worth telling!

HL1 + 2 = Excellent games, pisspoor stories though!

This is a rant I've done time and time again and I still hold firmly by it, and I've played through the HL games many many times and the story still has about as many holes in it as you could possibly squeeze into a block of cheese.

The story is by no means a complex or original story, but at that point it had never ever ever been done that well, or drew you in that much. You weren't seeing the story as some sort of 3rd person watching it unfold from some other guy's perspective. You really were right there while it was happening. I've beat it I don't know how many times, but each time I play it I still get sucked in. When the soldiers show up and that scientist thinks they are about to save him, and they just mow him down. That still sends chills up my spine.

Half-Life is a stunning game, and I'm reminded of its perpetual greatness every time I walk into my office; I have the Half-Life GOTY mousepad!
This game had a huge impact on me and was the main thing that railed me unto modern PC gaming and really sparked my interest for shooters, which before HL was a genre filled with scant realism, gimmicky sci-fi mumbo jumbo and sheer idiocy.

A few words about the sequel;
Just as good a game when measured against its peers, nothing comes even close in my opinion.
There are indeed a couple of "tedious" bits, but that's just a form of pacing in my eyes, and its not downright boring at any point.
The production values and overall feel is a lot better in HL 2 and it reeks of proffessional touch and finesse.
AI, visuals and not to mention physics rivals even some brand new shooters and was nothing short of a revolution when it released!
The two episodes are very well made as well, allthough there's a lack of proper action in Ep 1 in many peoples opinion (including mine).
It does gain you insight into the whole HL universe though, and you get yo bond with a few characters more than in the main game in most parts op Ep 1.
Episode 2 is simply the best piece of FPS action there is imo, and I played with a huge grin and wild eyes all the way through!
The Source engine still looks damn good and the gameplay elements are honed to near perfection!
It is one of only 2-3 PC games that has a firm hold on vehicle control among other things, and the plot thickens to a glorious, heartpounding epos rarely seen in the mostly shallow FPS genre.

All I can conclude is; you'll enjoy HL 2 every bit as much as the original, and you'll be overly critical to every FPS game you play afterwards.
Wonder why PC gamers were never much into Halo? Look no further.