Animated Half-Life 2 short is a real treat for the ears

Stepan Yurov’s animated recap of Half-Life 2 isn’t just a cute exercise in fan art. It’s a reminder that the series’ sound effects are iconic. I don’t think it overstates the case to say that if more people played videogames, Half-Life’s sound effects would be every bit as well known as Star Wars’. The sound design is just that good.

And while I’m really glad Valve isn’t milking the Half-Life franchise with DLC and add-ons and quick n’ dirty sequels, Yurov’s short reminds me that I miss Dog and Alyx (I don’t really miss Gordon Freeman, because he was always such a non-entity, by design). But I mostly miss Valve’s world building prowess applied to single-player games.