Half-Life: Blue Shift

 PC
User Score
8.1

Generally favorable reviews- based on 739 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 508 out of 739
  2. Mixed: 186 out of 739
  3. Negative: 45 out of 739
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. ScottS.
    Dec 30, 2007
    6
    You can't go wrong with half-life, yet blue shift does kinda leave you hanging with a short gameplay. But it does have its advanteges, the enhance pack and opposing force+opposing force capture the flag. who know barney calhoun, such a minor roll in half life 1, could play such a big roll in half life 2?
  2. CRL
    Jul 25, 2011
    6
    There are several things that kill Blue Shift. There's the shortness of the game itself. There's the fact that there are less weapons than in the original game. There's no boss fight at the end. There's really no climax of any kind (even though the story is a little interesting). However it is enjoyable for the brief time you'll spend playing it, and it gives a solid third side to theThere are several things that kill Blue Shift. There's the shortness of the game itself. There's the fact that there are less weapons than in the original game. There's no boss fight at the end. There's really no climax of any kind (even though the story is a little interesting). However it is enjoyable for the brief time you'll spend playing it, and it gives a solid third side to the Half-Life storyline, which is why it still deserves a 6.… Expand
  3. TAMPjackoon
    Oct 6, 2011
    6
    Now I love all the Half-Life games, it's really my favorite game franchise, and that's really saying something. But this one didn't cut it for me, unlike HL:OF, there are no new weapons or enemies (even though this was released later) and while it is still like HL1, the puzzles are no longer fun, the gameplay hasn't changed much, but it's kind of a grind, you wanna play it just for theNow I love all the Half-Life games, it's really my favorite game franchise, and that's really saying something. But this one didn't cut it for me, unlike HL:OF, there are no new weapons or enemies (even though this was released later) and while it is still like HL1, the puzzles are no longer fun, the gameplay hasn't changed much, but it's kind of a grind, you wanna play it just for the sake of being a fan. I wouldn't say it's worth it, sorry.… Expand
  4. Onlyclassicvg1
    Jun 24, 2020
    7
    En este juego nuevamente viviremos el accidente de Gordon Freeman, pero con la diferencia de que esta vez no seremos el héroe (Half-Life) ni el villano involuntario (Opposing Force), sino que estaremos justo en el centro de ambos bandos. El juego nos convierte en Barney Calhoun, uno de los muchos guardias de seguridad de Black Mesa, quien vive al mismo tiempo que Gordon Freeman elEn este juego nuevamente viviremos el accidente de Gordon Freeman, pero con la diferencia de que esta vez no seremos el héroe (Half-Life) ni el villano involuntario (Opposing Force), sino que estaremos justo en el centro de ambos bandos. El juego nos convierte en Barney Calhoun, uno de los muchos guardias de seguridad de Black Mesa, quien vive al mismo tiempo que Gordon Freeman el incidente de Black Mesa, pero en otros momentos y lugares .… Expand
  5. Alone_Boy_
    Sep 24, 2020
    6
    Half-Life: Blue Shift is the weakest part of the Half-Life saga. Unlike Opposing Force, it has no new enemies, no new weapons, -besides a new playable character Barney- almost nothing new at all. Game also has an uninteresting and the weakest story in the series. Gameplay is still fun but that's it. Only play it if you want to complete the series.
  6. CrapFactory
    May 20, 2002
    6
    It definitely doesn't meet the HL standards but it is fun to kill stuff and the HD pack rocks!
  7. ColinP.
    May 9, 2006
    7
    its nice that they made a game that is intergated to half life. but it so short and the story is a littal to happy for my tase. like at the end when they drive of in to the sun seat.
  8. DavidK.
    May 7, 2006
    7
    Game is good but is much shorter than the other two original Half-Life games.
  9. RobR.
    Jun 10, 2007
    7
    All the half life games have a distinct feeling, Shoot em' up, solve a puzzle, stand in awe, shoot em' up, solve a puzzle, repeat, which is great, however, Blue Shift is missing it. Not only is it incredibly short, I felt it to be rather tedious and only played through it because of the connecting story line to half life. The ending also leaves MUCH to be desired. But, it is All the half life games have a distinct feeling, Shoot em' up, solve a puzzle, stand in awe, shoot em' up, solve a puzzle, repeat, which is great, however, Blue Shift is missing it. Not only is it incredibly short, I felt it to be rather tedious and only played through it because of the connecting story line to half life. The ending also leaves MUCH to be desired. But, it is somewhat enjoyable if you play this game before half life, I'm sure you'll enjoy it much more than I did. The multiplayer is also classic half life deathmatch and adds replay value.… Expand
  10. V-Man
    Jun 26, 2007
    7
    This is an average game and because of the fact that it's basically Half Life with a new story, but it's so short therefore making me minus another point. I think this had the potential to be a great game but there wasn't enough new material as all it added was a new story and better models, and if it included a bit more I would rate it better but sadly it didn't.
  11. RichardH
    May 7, 2006
    6
    A rather lacklustre excursion compared to the much superior Opposing Force - nothing terribly exceptional in the way of gameplay. On the plus side, it was a free download thanks to registration through Steam.
  12. KentH.
    Dec 16, 2007
    5
    Unfortunetly, this games reeks of "cash-in". It's way too short, and the severe lack of diversity of weapons is highly disappointing. It did, however, provide some interesting insight into the Half - life story and showed some background of Barney Calhoun. It is merely Half - life, without the weapons, length or charms. It is, in it's own right, a decent game though.
  13. 7h3w@$D
    Feb 4, 2007
    6
    Game is.... ok. Its way too short tho. I beat it in 3 hours. I was really expecting a cool boss fight, like at the end of OpFor and HL1, but no. I also wanted to see if there was a conversation with the gman at the end, like in HL1 and OpFor, but, sadly, no.
  14. T.Det.
    May 10, 2009
    7
    Half-Life: Blue Shift does kick ass, but besides the High Def. Pack and you getting to play a Barney, this game is way too short and is a weak edition to the franchise. I beat the entire game in 1 hour! If your a Half-Life fan like me, you will be pretty disappointed when you get down to it. In the beginning, you are just trying to get out of Black Mesa, and about 1/2 way through, you get Half-Life: Blue Shift does kick ass, but besides the High Def. Pack and you getting to play a Barney, this game is way too short and is a weak edition to the franchise. I beat the entire game in 1 hour! If your a Half-Life fan like me, you will be pretty disappointed when you get down to it. In the beginning, you are just trying to get out of Black Mesa, and about 1/2 way through, you get into the important plot, but it all ends right after it. Bottom line, it is a very weak expansion to the franchise, and it is way too expensive considering how short it is.… Expand
  15. HunterL.
    Aug 16, 2001
    6
    Short, nothing new, but still fun.
  16. PIRANHAg.
    Dec 23, 2003
    7
    Good pack for price... NO NEW WEAPONS AND MONSTERS?????!!!!!!
  17. xZippy
    Mar 28, 2013
    6
    Doesn't come remotely close to Opposing Force, but still worth buying and playing. Blue Shift gives an interesting extra viewpoint in the Half-Life 1 story, but it's not as interesting as the previous expansion. With Opposing Force, you got all these new weapons, characters and enemies that one could call it Half-Life 1.5. This isn't the case with Blue Shift, as the loads of extra contentDoesn't come remotely close to Opposing Force, but still worth buying and playing. Blue Shift gives an interesting extra viewpoint in the Half-Life 1 story, but it's not as interesting as the previous expansion. With Opposing Force, you got all these new weapons, characters and enemies that one could call it Half-Life 1.5. This isn't the case with Blue Shift, as the loads of extra content aren't there anymore. Again though, it's still the worth money and a full playthrough.… Expand
  18. dajhorn
    Nov 28, 2012
    7
    When you've gorged on the other Half-Life games, Blue Shift is like going back to the fridge for leftovers after midnight. It is a good game, but not the place to start.
  19. Klewer
    Nov 15, 2012
    7
    A good expansion which puts you back in to the amazing Half-Life universe. While a little short it is a great experience to be back at Black Mesa experiencing what it has to offer.
  20. eriksonis
    Feb 23, 2013
    6
    This game does not live up to half life standards it is short and boring. No new weapons is presented in this mod. The only good thing is a HD models pack, almost all models are updated. I do recommend this only to hardcore half life fans to look at the black mesa incident from other point of view.
  21. ritardedartkid
    Aug 17, 2014
    7
    Out of the 3 games that make up Half-Life 1 this was my least favorite. It adds nothing new to the story and is easily forgettable. It's not a bad game, it's just not up to par with HL1 and Opposing Force. If you're looking for games to skip in the collection then I'd definitely vote for this one.
  22. MichMart
    Mar 1, 2014
    7
    I think this is the worst Half-Life game. It's very short and the environment has not much to offer (for example a long hallway with little variety). Nevertheless it's somehow a good game for me.
  23. Tomle1202
    Nov 28, 2022
    6
    Blue Shift felt weirdly short and constrained especially after the excellent Opposing Force.
  24. Honestcritic19
    Sep 20, 2014
    7
    A decent expansion to the original half life. Though its the shortest and story wise weakest of the series its still worth getting on a sale if you want more half life.
  25. azeitona
    Dec 10, 2014
    7
    To sum it up...

    PROS: +Nice new graphics and new models +New perspective of the Black Mesa incident +Half Life games are always appealing to me, even when they're not that good CONS: -A little too short for my taste -The recycled gameplay from the last games. At least it didn't have the stupid aliens invented by Gearbox for Opposing Force Should you try it? Yes, but only    To sum it up...

    PROS:

    +Nice new graphics and new models
    +New perspective of the Black Mesa incident
    +Half Life games are always appealing to me, even when they're not that good

    CONS:

    -A little too short for my taste
    -The recycled gameplay from the last games. At least it didn't have the stupid aliens invented by Gearbox for Opposing Force

    Should you try it? Yes, but only if you really liked the original Half Life. If you liked Opposing Force, you will also like Blue Shift, but will find it rather short too.    … Expand
  26. PSPMan3000
    Mar 3, 2020
    6
    I heard this was really bad and like

    yeah? kinda? It's not awful. It's extremely skippable because it's so short and ends with no fanfare. Kinda sad to see such a great premise was done so dirty. I think if this had been 4 hours longer It'd be an 8 instead of this.

    Honestly this got uninstalled after I beat it. No need to ever come back to this.
  27. JustSomeGamer
    Jun 16, 2016
    7
    This was an amazing game............almost two decades ago. Don't expect so much from this game, as it can't really be compared to modern games. It's was revolutionary a long time ago and it set the standard for the fps games for a long time, but in this day and age it is nothing more than a decent game that didn't age very well.....
  28. DreamEaglr
    Apr 8, 2020
    7
    Набор не самых плохих карт для первой части.

    Главный плюс, что у врагов более сбалансированное здоровье, отчего сражаться в разы интереснее. Но в остальном ничего нового.
  29. LordFarquad
    Apr 20, 2020
    6
    Неплохое дополнение к оригинальной игре, но нудно как по мне. Историю закончили, мне понравились пасхалки на Гордона Фримена. А так 6 из 10.
  30. sebastianali
    Nov 2, 2019
    7
    Mientras que me gustan los gráficos algo renovados y la interacción con Rosenberg, el juego es mas de lo mismo y encima es mas corto, ademas de tener algunos glitches del Half Life original. Puede decepcionarte, pero eso no quiere decir que no te divierta!
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

96
#96 Best PC Game of 2001
3
#3 Most Discussed PC Game of 2001

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
71

Mixed or average reviews - based on 19 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 6 out of 19
  2. Mixed: 13 out of 19
  3. Negative: 0 out of 19
  1. Gamer's Pulse
    80
    A nice return to a classic game scenario, but is far too short and fails to bring anything new to the series. While playing Blue Shift was fun, I would compare the experience to eating Chinese food. No sooner had I finished, than I wanted more.
    Read full review
  2. Yahoo!
    60
    As it stands, it's almost in the realm of the type of content you expect to freely download.
    Read full review
  3. Happy Puppy
    80
    Just know that you're in for a short ride that will leave you yearning for a full-fledged sequel.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »