

Implementing a punishing gameplay works if the experience is tailored for it. This is likely the biggest mistake of this mod. These bomb sequences will require you to have near perfect timing, movement and aim and pray you do not quicksave at the wrong time as otherwise you will be stuck in a failure loop unless you reload an earlier save. Unfortunately this implementation will result in utter hell and frustration for most players in several mandatory sequences of the mod known as bomb sequences. Bullets hit hard and any mistake you make is a harsh punishment.

The base difficulty is much higher than standard HL2 as the author went for realistic style gameplay. The mod suffers from many mapping/design flaws and the few interesting elements are not enough to save the overall experience. There is definitely something interesting about it, but the implementation is all-around average.

The retail MP7's grenade model is still named "ar2_grenade.mdl". This texture is still in the leak files, as seen below. Screenshots featuring the OICW in Half-Life 2: Raising the Bar show an early model with a texture that made it look very damaged and used-up. Interestingly, the scope on the OICW when unzoomed is broken in-game (it shows a solid light green instead of the scope texture), while it works properly when viewed with the leak model viewer. It appears that its grenade function was moved to the SMG1 by the time the files were leaked, as getting close to the SMG grenades in the WC map pack map zoo_item causes the message "AR2 Grenades" to appear on the screen. While not working in the leak (it is in the source code, but is disabled), it was shown working in promotional videos. In real life, the OICW features a grenade launcher. It uses medium rounds, which are also used by the AK-47, the MP5K, and the 9mm Pistol. However, this can somewhat be reduced by crouching. Its recoil makes it very difficult to control past five shots in a row. In the Half-Life 2 leak, the OICW, based on the real-world XM29 OICW by Heckler & Koch and Alliant Techsystems, is essentially a Pulse Rifle with a scope and a built-in grenade launcher instead of the energy ball thrower. Early Combine Soldiers and their OICWs stationed in City 17, based on artwork by Viktor Antonov.
