Jesus Christ, 20 years. Half-Life is now as much of a retro game as Space Invaders was at the time of Half-Life's release.

"Can't really go off the rails"
Shows footage of him playing the "On a rail" chapter

I remember watching the whole train ride for the first time, assuming it was a prerendered video, and so I didn't touch my keyboard and mouse. When Barney opened the train door at the end ("looks like you're running late!") I realized it was all realtime. So I restarted the game. :)

I remember when this game was released. I played it, and finally got to the surface. I was thinking "yeah, I guess I'm just about finished with the game, it was really good", and then I realized it just kept going, and going, and going... I actually sent an email to Valve, thanking for the excellent game. Someone called Gabe Newell replied and said "I'm glad you like the game, we worked really hard on it".

6 years back: Wolfstein 3D
6 years forward: Far Cry

This was a epic time in gaming history

27 years later... Damn we are old

"Throwing science at the wall to see what sticks."

Top-notch writing, my man.

Gordan Freeman is supposed to be 27?

Wow. That's weird. I always took him as middle-aged.

I was 30 when Half life came out. I can't wait to play Half Life 3 when I'm 80.

Ah yes, the crouch jump.  The gaming equivalent of learning to ollie on a skateboard.

Funfact, most CD Keys for Half Life will still activate on steam, and will even give you the hit game Ricochet with it. (along with a load more Valve Titles)

On a serious note that was a brilliant retrospective, and was exactly what the game deserved.

its a bummer that half life’s strongest enemy are ladders.

Wake up Mr. Freeman, wake up and smell the ashes.

That first scene on the train is unforgettable. It was a different way of telling stories within video games.
I was also more of a Unreal Tournament kind of guy, but the legacy that Half-Life left is undeniable.

I remember being scared when the guy with the faucet eye came on the loading screen. In 99 I was 6 years old. This was one of the first PC games I was ever exposed to and I remember it being the most awesome thing I had ever seen. I would think about this game, along with the other half life games, all day during school. It will always be special to me.

Just a small detail that I noticed about the CD cover: there's a chemical equation written in it "ln(2)/lambda" and that is the equation to calculate the half-life time of a substance in a chemical reaction of first order!

Wake up Mr.Freeman it's been 20 years

The fact that Half-Life is presented as one continuous level, divided only by loading screens, really made this game feel like you're embarking on an epic adventure in real-time. It's probably one of the few games that aren't open world to give me that same feeling.

Half-life made me like the color orange alot more...is that strange?

3:28
Freeman (Thinking): Ah, looks like I'm not the only one who's late! SUCKER!

Announcer: The time is 8:47AM

Freeman (Thinking): Shit! I didn't realize I was that late!