'Half-Life 2' players call in sick

pr0digal jenius · Nov 27, 2004, 03:07 AM

Hundreds of buyers of "Half-Life 2," the hotly anticipated shooting game released last week, are reporting in developer Valve Software's user forums that they feel queasy and often develop a bad headache after playing the game for as little as an hour.

Far from sounding aggrieved, enthusiastic players greet the incipient hurling as evidence of the game's sophisticated graphics. "I am impressed and sickened (literally) by the level of detail," one player wrote.

Players have all kind of theories for beating the curse of the green gills, from taking Dramamine 30 minutes before playing the game to adjusting monitor settings to avoid possible conflicts with overhead lights.

We look forward to "Half-Life 3" being packaged with an airsickness bag and a Scopolamine patch.
___________________
Source: C|Net

pr0digal jenius · Nov 27, 2004, 03:08 AM

if they would just change the FOV to 90........

jeffro29 · Nov 27, 2004, 03:22 AM

I played through the whole game and now i'm half way through it on the hardest setting. I've never got sick once what a bunch of pussies lol. Get real it's just a game not a roller coaster or a horror show lol lol lol.

nForcer · Nov 27, 2004, 03:56 AM

I played the first few minutes of it on my LCD monitor and can see how someone could get 'fustrated' visually. I thought it was just the fact I had gone 26 hours w/o sleep but apparently I'm not the only one.

pr0digal jenius · Nov 27, 2004, 04:10 AM

no..the default FOV in HL2 is 75, when most games are 90, so it provides a very disorienting view

Bicka · Nov 27, 2004, 05:18 AM

Disorienting in what sense?

I've played through HL2 at 75 and haven't felt the slightest bit sickness (19inch monitor).

Like I said before in a previous thread, I don't see the major difference going from 75 to 90...you get to see a bit more, faces appear further away slightly, but apart from all that I don't see what could be causing it.

BWX · Nov 27, 2004, 05:30 AM

The difference between 75 and 90 fov is huge. just going from 75 to 80 there is a pretty big difference. I also played through once on medium and now I'm half way through on hard setting (both fov 90) and never once felt sick, got a migrane or wanted to hurl. fov 75 gave me a little headache though, it feels too claustrophobic.. I lost a lot of sleep playing this great game though.

No_Style · Nov 27, 2004, 05:44 AM

Everybody isn't the same. We're not all clones here. Some people may get headaches from it, some people don't. I personally did feel a lil woozy after playing the game with FOV 75. I just can't believe they actually put it at 75

Dom · Nov 27, 2004, 06:48 AM

I played trough the whole game with the FOV on 75 - no problem. I have bad eyesight, wonder if that has anything to do with it.

PoopyTheJ · Nov 27, 2004, 07:19 AM

I started playing the game and after about 5 minutes I felt a bit disoriented and cramped. 5 minutes it took for the FOV at 75 to really feel uncofortable for me it was a bit har dto put my finger on what was going on exactly but as soonas I started feeling cramped and unable to really follow the action changed FOV to 95 and all is good. Course can't play it for 2 more days....ugggh family vacations.....but it's really funny this shows up on a magazine not really for the enthusiast community it must be much more widespread than I thought, or the game is tha t much more popular, only how long did it take them to p/u on the story...

BWX · Nov 27, 2004, 07:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by PoopyTheJ

action changed FOV to 95 and all is good. Course can't play it for 2 more days....ugggh family vacations....

I know it sucks, I am away until Mon. and I am going into HL2 withdrawal. I wonder if that could be categorized as a new sickness?

I read the New tweakguide and found quite a few things I want to try, that's only making it worse.. I love my family and everything, but I need to try out some of those new (too me) cvars.

Asmoday · Nov 27, 2004, 12:49 PM

I also felt a little "motionsick" @ 75, it all went away when i put the FOV to 90....

@/2ct!< · Nov 27, 2004, 07:13 PM

I dont have the game yet, can anyone explain FOV. (Is it easy to change?)

No_Style · Nov 27, 2004, 07:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by @/2ct!<

I dont have the game yet, can anyone explain FOV. (Is it easy to change?)

FOV = Field of View

The reason why some people get sick because they're not used to the FOV in HL2. It's not a natural FOV like in other FPS. FOV of 90 is usually used for games and a lot of people are more comfortable with that.

It's very easy to change, the command is:

fov 90

Bicka · Nov 27, 2004, 10:10 PM

I think you need to use:

sv_cheats 1

then:

fov 90

in the console...but seriously I don't believe this is what's causing ppl to feel ill.

Comparison:
fov 75
fov 90

Ev!L-aLphA · Nov 27, 2004, 10:16 PM

i played at regular fov and i never felt sick throughout the whole game ... weird

Paradox Enigma · Nov 28, 2004, 03:46 AM

Heh - I figured that people were calling in sick to work - so they could keep playing. Didn't think it was literal...

They'll call this the "Freeman epidemic" of '04.

BWX · Nov 28, 2004, 05:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bicka

I think you need to use:

sv_cheats 1

then:

fov 90

in the console...but seriously I don't believe this is what's causing ppl to feel ill.

Comparison:
fov 75
fov 90

Or make a new txt doc in C:\Program Files\Valve\Steam\SteamApps\YOUR USER NAME\half-life 2\hl2\cfg Then name in autoexec.cfg and in that type the text in green:

[COLOR=Lime]sv_cheats "1"
fov "85"[/COLOR]
cl_showfps "1"
cl_smooth "0"
fps_max "55"
snd_mixahead "0.05"

also add in whatever other tweaks you want there.

CDsDontBurn · Nov 28, 2004, 10:50 PM

the only part where i felt queasy was on the hover boat part. everywhere else i felt just fine.

Nov 27, 2004, 03:07 AM	#1
pr0digal jenius Delete Me Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 14,648 Rep Power: 0	'Half-Life 2' players call in sick Hundreds of buyers of "Half-Life 2," the hotly anticipated shooting game released last week, are reporting in developer Valve Software's user forums that they feel queasy and often develop a bad headache after playing the game for as little as an hour. Far from sounding aggrieved, enthusiastic players greet the incipient hurling as evidence of the game's sophisticated graphics. "I am impressed and sickened (literally) by the level of detail," one player wrote. Players have all kind of theories for beating the curse of the green gills, from taking Dramamine 30 minutes before playing the game to adjusting monitor settings to avoid possible conflicts with overhead lights. We look forward to "Half-Life 3" being packaged with an airsickness bag and a Scopolamine patch. ___________________ Source: C\|Net

Nov 27, 2004, 03:22 AM	#3
jeffro29 DriverHeaven Lover Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: Nebraska Posts: 109 Rep Power: 0	I played through the whole game and now i'm half way through it on the hardest setting. I've never got sick once what a bunch of pussies lol. Get real it's just a game not a roller coaster or a horror show lol lol lol. __________________ A good stable OC is a good steal in speed.

Nov 27, 2004, 05:30 AM	#7
BWX unplugged Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: USNY Posts: 19,669 Rep Power: 110 System Specs	The difference between 75 and 90 fov is huge. just going from 75 to 80 there is a pretty big difference. I also played through once on medium and now I'm half way through on hard setting (both fov 90) and never once felt sick, got a migrane or wanted to hurl. fov 75 gave me a little headache though, it feels too claustrophobic.. I lost a lot of sleep playing this great game though. __________________

Nov 27, 2004, 05:44 AM	#8
No_Style Styleless Wonder Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Ottawa, Ontario Posts: 6,034 Rep Power: 0	Everybody isn't the same. We're not all clones here. Some people may get headaches from it, some people don't. I personally did feel a lil woozy after playing the game with FOV 75. I just can't believe they actually put it at 75 __________________ "The Best Style Is No Style" Specifications Here

Nov 27, 2004, 07:19 AM	#10
PoopyTheJ DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Location: Ohio Posts: 1,588 Rep Power: 66	I started playing the game and after about 5 minutes I felt a bit disoriented and cramped. 5 minutes it took for the FOV at 75 to really feel uncofortable for me it was a bit har dto put my finger on what was going on exactly but as soonas I started feeling cramped and unable to really follow the action changed FOV to 95 and all is good. Course can't play it for 2 more days....ugggh family vacations.....but it's really funny this shows up on a magazine not really for the enthusiast community it must be much more widespread than I thought, or the game is tha t much more popular, only how long did it take them to p/u on the story... __________________ [COLOR=Blue]“Alright boys, let’s start her up and see why she doesn’t work.” - John Fritz "I aim to misbehave" Malcolm Reynolds ATI Catalyst Beta Tester[/COLOR]

Nov 27, 2004, 03:08 AM	Thread Starter #2
pr0digal jenius Delete Me Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 14,648 Rep Power: 0	if they would just change the FOV to 90........

Nov 27, 2004, 03:56 AM	#4
nForcer Twice the fun! Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 1,404 Rep Power: 0	I played the first few minutes of it on my LCD monitor and can see how someone could get 'fustrated' visually. I thought it was just the fact I had gone 26 hours w/o sleep but apparently I'm not the only one.

Nov 27, 2004, 04:10 AM	Thread Starter #5
pr0digal jenius Delete Me Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 14,648 Rep Power: 0	no..the default FOV in HL2 is 75, when most games are 90, so it provides a very disorienting view

Nov 27, 2004, 05:18 AM	#6
Bicka DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 670 Rep Power: 0	Disorienting in what sense? I've played through HL2 at 75 and haven't felt the slightest bit sickness (19inch monitor). Like I said before in a previous thread, I don't see the major difference going from 75 to 90...you get to see a bit more, faces appear further away slightly, but apart from all that I don't see what could be causing it.

Nov 27, 2004, 06:48 AM	#9
Dom DriverHeaven Extreme Member Join Date: Jun 2002 Posts: 12,940 Rep Power: 0	I played trough the whole game with the FOV on 75 - no problem. I have bad eyesight, wonder if that has anything to do with it.

Nov 27, 2004, 12:49 PM	#12
Asmoday Demonic Join Date: May 2002 Location: In the cold, dark north... Posts: 5,198 Rep Power: 92 System Specs	I also felt a little "motionsick" @ 75, it all went away when i put the FOV to 90.... __________________ How You can help Hardwareheaven by using Digg

Nov 27, 2004, 07:13 PM	#13
@/2ct!< HardwareHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Not Vegas, anymore :( Posts: 1,391 Rep Power: 0	I dont have the game yet, can anyone explain FOV. (Is it easy to change?) __________________

Nov 27, 2004, 10:10 PM	#15
Bicka DriverHeaven Senior Member Join Date: Oct 2003 Posts: 670 Rep Power: 0	I think you need to use: sv_cheats 1 then: fov 90 in the console...but seriously I don't believe this is what's causing ppl to feel ill. Comparison: fov 75 fov 90

Nov 27, 2004, 10:16 PM	#16
Ev!L-aLphA \| n f e c t e D Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: California Posts: 4,111 Rep Power: 0	i played at regular fov and i never felt sick throughout the whole game ... weird __________________ R.I.P 8/8/04 4/21/08

Nov 28, 2004, 03:46 AM	#17
Paradox Enigma Lurker Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Planet Earth (I think) Posts: 126 Rep Power: 0	Heh - I figured that people were calling in sick to work - so they could keep playing. Didn't think it was literal... They'll call this the "Freeman epidemic" of '04.

Nov 28, 2004, 10:50 PM	#19
CDsDontBurn Lurking DriverHeaven Join Date: May 2003 Location: Southern California Posts: 22,789 Rep Power: 235 System Specs	the only part where i felt queasy was on the hover boat part. everywhere else i felt just fine. __________________ Her First Day \| A year later