On November 16, 2004, PC gamers got their first chance to play the acclaimed shooter Half-Life 2. One year to the day later, Xbox owners will finally get their turn at headcrab-blastin'. Valve and its new distribution partner, Electronic Arts, have begun shipping the Xbox version of Half-Life 2 to stores, where the first copies will go on sale Wednesday.

　　"It will start appearing at speciality shops tomorrow, and other locations through the end of this week," Valve director of marketing Doug Lombardi confirmed to GameSpot. "On the other side of the Atlantic, it's scheduled to be in stores this Friday."

　　Like its PC sibling, the Xbox Half-Life 2 continues the adventures of hazard-suit-wearin', crowbar-totin' physicist Gordon Freeman, who saved the world from an alien invasion at the end of Half-Life. Or did he? Half-Life 2 begins several years after Half-Life's Black Mesa incident, after a mysterious enemy known as the Combine has conquered the planet and installed a human puppet government to carry out its rule. Freeman begins the game in City 17, a mysterious Eastern European metropolis serving as a giant prison for its human citizens.

　　Half-Life 2 for the PC earned critical accolades for its graphics and its gameplay. To find out if the Xbox version stands up to its forbear, check out GameSpot's full review.