Opposing Force

Opposing Force, the two words rabid fans of Half-Life are anxiously awaiting. We've played the demo and have the inside scoop with screenshots to show for it. Op For isn't out until November but you can get a quick trip back to Black Mesa right now.

Opposing Force, the two words rabid fans of Half-Life are anxiously awaiting. Not quite a sequel but more than your average expansion pack, it's the follow-up to what was arguably the best action game of '98. Gearbox Software has been given the awesome responsibility of telling the rest of Half-Life's story.

The rest? Exactly. Gordon Freeman only saw half the picture. In Op For, you'll see the other half--not through the eyes of a scientist, but as one of the soldiers sent in to deal with the mess those scientists have created.

For diehard fans, of course, this is old news. They want specifics. They want me to reveal new weapons, characters, skills, aliens, and story. Having played Op For and talked to director Randy Pitchford, I'm prepared to do just that.

A pit drone takes a swipe at me.

You are Corporal Adrian Shephard, sent in the day all hell breaks loose at the Black Mesa research facility. On your way in, things don't go quite according to plan. Separated from the other soldiers, you find yourself as Gordon was--scared and alone. Don't count on a supporting squad of men when you start the game. Alone, but with a mission, you set off to find other soldiers...and stay alive.

"If Op For began with the player being in the best possible situation, the game would quickly devolve into a typical first-person shooter with some nice features," explained Pitchford. "We're trying to give players the same feelings of vulnerability and tension experienced in the first part of Half-Life--something very few other first-person shooters have succeeded in doing."

A Voltigore's electricity flies.

The game will offer six new chapters of story. And these chapters will be as large or larger than the ones in the original game, making Op For single-play about half as long as Half-Life. Not bad for an expansion pack. The first third of the single-player game will coincide with the time Gordon Freeman is on Earth--and you will see him. But you won't interact with him to a degree that could change Half-Life's story, so forget fraggin' Freemen.

On the other hand, you will feel the consequences of his actions at times. To use a seesaw as a metaphor, you may go up when Gordon is going down. The soldiers begin to pull out of Black Mesa prior to Freeman leaving Earth, and guess what: Cpl. Shephard is going to be left behind. Survival in the face of overwhelming odds is what these soldier types are trained for, isn't it?

You won't remain alone, however: You can enlist other remaining soldiers to help you. Like the guards in HL, they'll follow you and start to fight if they see enemies. However, unlike the guards, they'll use squad tactics, can kick a lot of ass, can follow in groups larger than two, and have much-improved AI to deal with friendly fire.

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