Even hunters, those unnerving mini-striders from Half-Life 2: Episode 2 are on your side, and it's oddly pleasing to see all that alien hardware and synthware fighting for you and not against you. It's a damn thrill to launch missiles from an APC while getting air support from Combine choppers and dropships. Like Portal 2 you even wind up with a chatty, comedy relief companion for a while, and best of all there are missions to fight your way through rebel outposts and strongholds with the full force of the Combine behind you. There are several big setpieces that, like Freeman's own adventures, range from huge combat missions to quiet puzzle-solving sessions to horror-based experiences as you find yourself alone in the dark with Xen monsters. Why? Who is this mysterious soldier, why does he seem to know you, and what does he want? That all unfolds as you move from Nova Prospekt to the frozen north in pursuit of traitorous researcher Judith Mossman. Another Combine Elite appears on TV screens occasionally and tries to hamper your progress. And while you may look like every other Combine Elite, your character is on a proper adventure, complete with a storyline, a real personality (unlike Freeman, he talks, and he's pretty funny at times), and even a nemesis.
