It is almost a crime this is completely free with how much quality work was put into this. Without a doubt this is now my favorite Half-Life 2 modification. It is very rare when you get to play as the opposing force in a game, especially one that has you actually being an opposing force instead of using it more for a game title. Looking at you, HL1:OpFor. Speaking of that old expansion pack, this mod blows me away with its addition of various alien enemies throughout the game. This mod adds Bullsquids, Gonomes, Race X Pit Drones, and more various creatures that are always interesting to come across throughout the course of the game.

The combat mechanics feel wonderful to play around with and spice up HL2's combat quite well. The animation team did fantastic, the soundtrack is amazing, the voice acting is surprisingly very good, the story is superbly well done, and the overall execution of this sequel is handled greatly. Level design is perfect and the pacing is done in a way that no one level feels like it overstays its welcome. The classic FPS one-liners also add a very unique charm to this mod that just about every modern AAA game can't beat.

You can really feel that the devs gave this mod their all, especially when it comes to the story. I can't imagine how many re-works it went through to get to the point where it could be plausible to use at least most of this as canon material. It shares the same level of polish that official valve games do, and that's a hard bar to reach. I'll definitely be revisiting this mod quite a few times over years to come.

Unironically my only 'gripe' with the mod lies with the voice actor for the rebels' radio guy. I've got nothing against him personally for the current voice acting, but I just feel his lines could be improved upon. To me it feels like he's not giving any real emotion into his deliveries; like he's holding back. If by some weird chance he manages to see this review, I encourage him to keep practicing his voice work to overcome this trait.

I miss you, Niko. Hope you're doing well.