I know most real gamers have long since beat both Half-Life 2 and Halo 2 but up until about 10 min. ago I hadn't beaten either.  In December I canceled my subscription to GameFly for a while since I figured with Halo 2 and Half-Life 2 I had plenty of gaming ahead of me.  With the holidays and vacations I didn't game much until January.  I decided that I should set out to beat both Half-Life2 and Halo 2. 

What I found was that Half-Life 2 was  much more engrossing that Halo2.  In fact, Halo 2 has become a bit of a chore to beat.  It's getting repetitive.  Something I never felt with Half-Life2.  Valve really set the bar high with the first Half-Life, and the completely shattered it with the sequel.  It's not just about the graphics, the sound, or the game play.  It's the way they meld all of these aspects into a compelling story.  The game is intense.  Something I rarely feel for a game.

I'm not saying that Halo2 is a bad game.  I still like it, but it doesn't even come close to Half-Life 2.

Good job Valve.