I think the reason hl2 episode 1 was so short was because there weren't many puzzles and the puzzles that are in the game are easy, so you don't need to spend that much time on puzzles. I beat the game in barely 3 hours and then started at chapter 2 and completed the majority of the game in an hour. #1. Showing 1 - 1 of 1 comments. CHa9re.