Wanting to try half life2 but questions about steam..

I'm wanting to buy HL2 but I've encountered the steam program with Dark Messiah, and it was a true head ache.
I got lucky and could play DM w/o steam, can you do the same with HL2?
and does counter strike source come with the game?
I'm also looking into FEAR, is it better than HL2?

Fear and HL2 are two very different great games. HL2 is more sci-fi action than FEAR which is more of a very very dark premise horror game. Both games are GREAT and have thier own look and feel. I enjoyed HL2 cause it was a great mix of nice graphics and story. FEAR is the same but i loved the dark mood of the game and thier many scary moments it had. Both games also have good online counterparts (HL2 being the most popular) and both look really good. Another great game is PREY. The Unreal Engine makes that game look GREAT. It reminded me alot of HL2 because of the great story that complimented the game. These three titles are highly recommended.

Stranger Dark Messiah would white out on the opening screen, meaning when I would open the game I could hear it but all I'd see is a white screen..
After researching it I found a way to by pass the steam program and it ran fine..
my system is an AMD 64+ 3200 , OCZ Memory 2-2-2-5, and a X1900XT 512.

I've read nightmares about HL2 and steam where peoples cd keys were already taken..

I've played the Demo's of HL2, FEAR, Prey and Far Cry, and was impressed with all four..
I was leaning more toward HL2 due to counter strike source, because I'm a huge BF2 fan, but won't buy the new EA game due to the spy ware..

Stranger, TY for all your help, should I download it from steam or store purchase it? I believe it can be done both ways.
If I download it will I lose my cd key if I ever have to reformat and re-buy the game?

I don't particularly like HL2 but if you're not buying it cos of stuff you heard about steam then ignore it. DL steam and play the game.

PREY uses the Doom 3 engine to back up stranger.

i've heard of this before form others. i have not had a problem with playing offline. i usually disconnect the phone line and then go into offline mode then reconnect.

I've detailed my complaints about HL2 extensively tbh. But in general it's just a game I don't gell with which is a shame given my love for HL1. FEAR by the way is also muck

Ah Half Life 2, how I remember phoning in to work that morning saying I was not feeling well. Ah the memories of waiting till 8AM for the game to be officially released. Oh and how I loved the tension as the preloaded files where all unpacked before my eyes in a 5-minuet light show that seemed to take an eternity. Even better was the whole day I was playing the game for with out a break for food and the second day I phoned in sick so that I could complete the game two days after it was officially released.

The game defiantly hooked me and after I completed the game Counter Strike: Source kept me keen for many months afterwards. I even played the game a second time till completion, and it felt just as good as it did playing the first time. Every level of the game felt different and new and every encounter with an enemy got your hart racing giving you that mortal feeling of danger.

The game was good and it defiantly gripped me and many others, yet you cant make everyone happy. And that’s where people like Wolfy come in to play to show us how different people can be. But I am almost certain in saying this, as I would hope the big man would agree. If you are new to FPS gaming or just not very well experienced then Half Life 2 probably even now will grab hold of your insides and not let you go till you have seen that end game sequence.

[EDIT]

To note on Steam, the software was buggy as hell when it was first released but now it has became stable and very well maintained. The only thing I still have a grumble about is the speeds in which you can download the games at. Since I have a 10 meg line at home you would think a service that comes with a game you have to pay some good money for would let you download at a fast enough speed. But that does not seem to be the case, be prepared to be downloaded that game for at least 3 or 4 hours after you purchase it over steam.

Saying that if you can download the files else where as I believe you used to be able to do that might be a better option as I believe with a fast enough connection you can download the full game in about 20 to 30 minuets.

Oh and FEAR was good too, but then big Robo did not like STALKER so again you can keep everyone happy all the time. Don’t worry though I wont go in to what makes stalker such a good game here.

just do as i have had to do when my internet connection was playing up a while back, disconnect completely from the internet then log into steam and select the offline mode. as long as you have logged in before it should let you.

Thanks, I'll try that

That's a great idea! I'm gonna do that next time, because redownloading all that stuff is a bitch.

What frsrblch is trying to say - "Stromm......you diabolic!"