I don't think people that post these kinds of messages are single player FPS gamers. What you are talking about is either a multiplayer game (with unlimited replayability) or a RTS. Single Player FPS games are going to be pretty linear and will be completable in a weekend. But just like a movie, you wait for years for it to come out, then it is over in 2 hours. Does that make it a bad movie? I think not. I haven't finished HL2 yet, but I am really looking forward to playing it again. It is FUN. I don't care much for story, so getting the same story is fine by me. Hell, I don't even know what the story is this first time through!