[wages of sin]

I suppose we will have to agree to disagree.

IMO, after playing Half Life 2 on the Xbox and now owning Orange box, I must say that this game IMO, is one of the most overated games in gaming history. Enjoyable? yes. High production values? of course. However, after playing it for myself after reading and hearing all of the acclaim, I wasn't impressed at all.

Now, addressing Half Lifes story. At no point did I care about Gordon Freeman or anyone in the game. I didn't feel connected to the story at all and frankly, I found Freeman to be a boring character.

With that being said, I don't see how anyone missed the story of the Halo games while playing them. I knew what was going on at all times, part of which made me more drawn into the game.

One does not have to read the books to get the story or be pulled into it. The books simply offer more of the universe for those who are interested. The story in and of itself my be common in gaming however, its the way that it's presented to the gamer that makes it work. It's not that the Halo games are perfect mind you, it's simply that they take all the elements of what makes a great game great: story, music, graphics, gameplay etc., and makes them work together, virtually flawlessly.

Let me reiterate, the story as is told in the games is more than sufficient, especially considering the fact that it's an FPS. When you combine that with the books, comics etc., it's a truly enthralling experience that I would suggest you engage yourself in.