The best value EVER

Today I want to talk about the single greatest value in video games ever; The Orange Box. This five game combination features Half-Life 2(with both expansions) in all of it's glory, along with the long awaited Team Fortress 2 and a new single player experience dubbed Portal. The game ships this week for PC and Xbox 360, and will appear on the PS3 in the coming weeks.

Half-Life 2 needs no introduction. This game has been praised as one of the greatest games of all time, nabbing over 50 game-of-the-year awards. Publication PC Gamer also called the title the “Best PC Game Ever.”

Half-Life 2: Episode 1 was named action game of the year by Gamespy last year and for good reason. The episodic wonder was a very impressive addition to an already fantastic game. Episode 2 will also improve on the original story, with the action taking place in the beautiful White Forest outside of City 17. These two episodes combined with the original game make an experience that will last way beyond the normal time of a FPS.

Team Fortress 2 is the main element of this package and the part that most people will spend years playing. Valve has taken time to get TF2 ready, but the wait will be worth it. The class based multiplayer thriller has been deemed the online multiplayer GOTY, which is quite a compliment considering the upcoming Call of Duty 4 and Unreal Tournament III.

Portal is an interesting game mode that puts on a new spin on the puzzle genre. Players must manipulate time and space to get through levels. I am looking forward to checking this mode out simply for the new factor.

The Orange Box is filled with tons of quality and should not be missed. Circuit City will have the PC version for $37.99 on Tuesday, which is a fantastic deal. Be sure to check out my review for The Orange Box in the October 18th issue of The Chanticleer.