Half-Life was extremely well-produced. It has a really cool story that’s a bit vague so you’re always hungry for more. I think one of their big innovations was in storytelling because there were no cutscenes or text to read at all. You’d just organically pick up details for the most part. The graphics were also great for the time and the settings were more realistic compared to other games of the time. Gordon Freeman wasn’t some superhero, he was just some fuckin’ new guy at the company that got roped into a bunch of bullshit.

There was a modern remake by a 3rd party that was really good, check it out: https://store.steampowered.com/app/362890/Black_Mesa/