I would have to say that the increased focus on story was unnecessary. HL
didn't need a story, and it was exciting enough. I love a good plotline when
it's necessary, but it just felt like it was slowing down the game in HL2.

I've only played three levels but I agree about the audio and video
stutter. Does seem wrong to release a game that routinely jerks, the
sound breaks up, and the frame rate slows down (and I am convinced it's
not my pc at fault - so there!!). But aside from that, I have liked
what I have played so far. Graphics are fantastic. Perhaps Valve can
release a deluxe version which plays smoother - be it with reduced
polygon detail to remove the slow frame rate and uneven left right
movement, or a version which is identical to the current one in detail
but with the bugs removed.

I think Half Life 2 - the deluxe version, available as a large Steam
download would solve all the problems. :) Perhaps Valve is working on
it.

Except in levels like Anthills, where you are on a narrow stretch of sand
etc, I never got the feeling of being more than 10 feet from the path that
everyone must have followed. In Doom, you had an environment where you did
rooms and areas where you actually had lots more freedom of choice.

Easy to fix: expect less and play slower :)  I'd agree, though - it's a fun
game, but not earth-shatteringly good.  

Agreed.  It just adds another thing to go wrong.

This really bothered me, and it detracted from the feeling of immersion.  Most of the levels felt far too planned to be real.  The best game in this area
I've seen is Far Cry, and I was hoping that HL2 would expand on freedom and
enemy AI rather than reverting to keeping the player on the path.  It's a
good path, but it's too clearly a path.

I also wished there were more logic puzzles (as opposed to physics puzzles),
where a player could observe things and later use that knowledge to get past
obstacles.
--
Mark Rafn    dagon@dagon.net    <http://www.dagon.net/>