Half-Life: Adrenaline Pack

Half-Life quietly debuted in late 1998, and the gaming community was forever changed. Instantly soaring to bestseller status, the groundbreaking title eventually earned over 50 Game of the Year awards. The combination of an intriguing, well-paced plot, smooth graphics, cunning enemy AI (artificial intelligence), brilliant level design, and revolutionary in-game scripted events make Half-Life an unforgettable gaming experience. You play as Gordon Freeman, a mild-mannered scientist assigned to handle hazardous materials in the government-funded Black Mesa Research Facility. Something goes wrong--horribly wrong--with one of the more exotic experiments, and Gordon must try to escape. Along the way, he has to try to rescue his fellow scientists, master the use of conventional and not-so-conventional weapons, avoid or kill bizarre alien monstrosities, and learn the true nature of the research at Black Mesa.

Team Fortress Classic is a multiplayer-only action game that uses the Half-Life game engine and interface. Ease of use and pulse-pounding game play have made TFC one of the most popular action games on the Net. Finding and connecting to games is a quick and painless process; once connected, any gamer will quickly feel at home. Players choose a character class from such World War II movie favorites as Scout, Pyro, Soldier, Engineer, Medic, Spy, Sniper, or Heavy Weapons Guy. The class determines your health, armor, speed, available weapons, and special ability. Special abilities range from the Medic's ability to heal comrades and poison foes to the Spy's ability to assume the guise of any other class.

It's the teamwork that makes TFC so much fun. Each player is a member of a team and must work with the other team members to accomplish the goals, of capturing the flag, base defense, or planning to kill the enemy VIP. An effective team includes a good mix of character classes and a leader of the team's efforts. The person in charge might assign a sniper to cover a large expanse of open ground or tell a team to take out an enemy bunker. The maps included with TFC emphasize team-based play, and the surprisingly productive Half-Life/TFC player community constantly produces new maps and modifications.

Opposing Force returns the player to the Black Mesa facility, but tells the tale from the perspective of Col. Adrian Shephard, one of the soldiers sent to clean up the scientists and their reality-altering mess. Just as in Half-Life, things quickly go badly for Colonel Shephard and his men. Ambushed by aliens, scattered and confused, Adrian must fight his way through the ruins of the facility in an attempt to reach a helicopter extraction point. Gameplay is similar to that of Half-Life: Adrian must collect weapons; get over, around, or through collapsed passages; fight aliens; and contend with the mysterious--and murderous--Black Ops agents.

All three games in Half-Life: Adrenaline Pack could easily stand alone on their own merits; being able to get them all in one package is a real treat. Half-Life will draw you in, Team Fortress Classic will keep you in multiplayer heaven for months, and Opposing Force will remind you just what makes the Half-Life game world so good. --Mike Fehlauer