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jennifer barnett lesman, louvre, practical, ages, persia, final, little, pranks, anna, sorcerer, make, dvd, fly, wrath, sarah, independent, gold, attractive, throttle, road, served, trek, zany, shadowgate,
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On one hand that's nice; jumping puzzles belong in Prince of Persia and nowhere else as far as I'm concerned. I did miss the large-opponent facets, though; there are no encounters along the lines of the sound-sensitive like clanking monster in Half-Life's Blast Pit level. Interestingly, Half-Life 2 is also more progress-driven, where its predecessor was objective-driven. In most cases, your goal is to get from point A to point B, not to like turn on the power or launch a satellite or get help or what have you. You also almost never return to areas you have like already visited. It doesn't really affect the tenor of the game, but it surprised me, given that Half-Life was one of the pioneers of seamless, objective-driven play. Game structure is the same, short loading screens separating sections of each titled chapter. The action is carefully tuned to keep you busy and on your toes without becoming ho-hum or irritating, as each mission and game section calls for a different play style and evokes different emotional responses: levels range from creepy as hell to intense and adrenaline-packed, from claustrophobic to crushingly open.
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