John Romero on Half-Life 2: "I believe any FPS developed after Half-Life 2 was influenced by it"

John Romero has told Retro Gamer that he believes "any FPS developed after Half-Life 2 was influenced by it".

The legendary Doom developer was speaking to the magazine in their latest issue, which you can pick up now, about the impact the series has had on first person shooters as a whole. Romero also adds in the piece: "It raised the bar of the genre. The key points of influence are a strong story, gameplay pacing, world realism, weapon variety and physics use.” 

He's one of several developers who help explain why Half-Life and it's follow-up are held in such high regard. Another is Jonathan Chey, a developer on System Shock 2 as well as a co-founder of Bioshock developer Irrational Games, who discuss how Half-Life influenced System Shock 2 late in its development. 

Chey tells Retro Gamer: “Although System Shock had already established itself as something distinct from the Doom-style run-and-gun shooters in terms of its commitment to worldbuilding and simulation, Half-Life showed us how to blend some of those ideas with more accessible gameplay mechanics.”

The feature also catches up with Adam Engels, Project Lead on the Black Mesa remake of the original Half-Life, as well as David Speyrer, who worked as a developer on Half-Life 2. It's a must-read if you've ever spent time in Black Mesa or City 17 (and even if you haven't). 

Elsewhere in the magazine, there's a look back at the N64 port of Resident Evil 2, the history of Disaster Report, a comprehensive review of Doom 64, as well as plenty more features on the classic games you love. 

Or, why not subscribe to Retro Gamer from only £9 a month, getting each issue delivered direct to your door?