I don't get to have Alyx?? (HL2 related spoilers)

[Stravo]

I recently finished Half Life 2 and was horrified by the ending. You mean that's it?! I beat the bad guy I don't get a piece of that sweet Alyx and I don't get to find out what this whole mess was all about?? What the hell is going on with Earth? Who was that alien slug Breen was talking to? What is the Combine? Why was Ravenholme so damned scary and cool?

Great game, beautiful and I mean beautiful graphics but the ending was really sour. Yuck man its called a sense of accomplishment, some sense of closure something to say that this isn't just another step before the inevitable sequel.

Does anyone have any info about the game and what the current theories of who the G-Man is and what the hell Freeman is going through and will we see that yummy Alyx again?

[The Grim Squeaker]

The expansion pack should have plenty of Alyx "action" (Not that type ) .

There are alsough rumours of another downloadable expansion pack that would let you play as A but that's nearly pure rumour.

[Alyeska]

I recently finished Half Life 2 and was horrified by the ending. You mean that's it?! I beat the bad guy I don't get a piece of that sweet Alyx and I don't get to find out what this whole mess was all about?? What the hell is going on with Earth? Who was that alien slug Breen was talking to? What is the Combine? Why was Ravenholme so damned scary and cool?

Great game, beautiful and I mean beautiful graphics but the ending was really sour. Yuck man its called a sense of accomplishment, some sense of closure something to say that this isn't just another step before the inevitable sequel.

Does anyone have any info about the game and what the current theories of who the G-Man is and what the hell Freeman is going through and will we see that yummy Alyx again?

Download the HL2 Aftermath trailer. Alyx is going to be a big part of that game. It seems that somehow Gordon escaped the G-man and he's pissed.

[Mr Bean]

I recently finished Half Life 2 and was horrified by the ending. You mean that's it?! I beat the bad guy I don't get a piece of that sweet Alyx and I don't get to find out what this whole mess was all about??

You will, so to speak, Aftermath is just that Aftermath. You will know much more and much less once it is released

What the hell is going on with Earth?

The Cascade that Gordon caused in HL 1(Not his fault but he did shove the sample into the anti-mass spectromiter causing the whole clusterfuck) did more than just fuck over Black Mesa. Shortley thereafter the portal storms in Black Mesa spread across the entire world. Headcrabs and bullsquids were poping up in the wild. Mutants and random aliens were getting ported onto earth confused and pissed and trigger happy.

Then the Combine attacked. You can read the results of what happened then in the newspaper clippings up on the walls in Black Mesa East(Or West whichever)

Who was that alien slug Breen was talking to? What is the Combine?

The Slug was Breen's benifactor and boss. The Combine itself is a group of aliens races that invade other aliens subjecated the natives and intergrating them into the Combine. The Combine you fought on Earth are either Bio-modded humans(Stronger, faster smarter, harder to kill and loyal) and Modded Human technology with alien tech.

Why was Ravenholme so damned scary and cool?

First home of the Resistance, The Combine used headcrab missles to spread thousands to tens of thousands of headcrabs all over the entire village at once. Many died, got made into zomibes the rest fled for it or died to the zombies.

Does anyone have any info about the game and what the current theories of who the G-Man is and what the hell Freeman is going through and will we see that yummy Alyx again?

We will seen Alyx soon as for what the G-Man is... well he could be very many many things.
But from what we know of Aftermath... He is pissed. A man who makes space-time his bitch is pissed. Things can't be good.

[InnocentBystander]

It's part of the game's feel, a sense of confusion. You, Gordon Freeman, have no clue what the hell is going on, and no one will let you get a word in edgewise. There are a few newspaper clippings here and there that have useful info, but you can pretty much figure out the important parts on your own. Global calamity, Alien invasion. As to why Ravenholme is completely full of zombies. That's pretty easy, Headcrabs are the culprit... lots of headcrabs. I acutally forget if there are lots of headcrab delivery shells lying around, but it's fairly obvious that the place had a big headcrab problem. For all we know towns like Ravenholme all over the world are full of zombies.

[Ford Prefect]

Ah hah, you should try and find the fragfiles page on Half-Life. I myself will try and get a hold of the URL for you, it will help you make sense of it, or at the very least give you something to consider.

[DPDarkPrimus]

Ravenholm was a settlement for those who had escaped City 17, and possibly those who had escaped before the war. The Combine shelled it with headcrabs a while back.

Feeling frustrated about Alyx is all part of the game- you're supposed to become emotionally invested in her character, and so you understandably feel pissed when the G-Man rips you away from her, leaving her to her (thought-possible but now disproven) doom, or even as another pawn of his. I don't think they cared much about people with your sort of attachment though, Stravo. After all, the game takes place all in 1st person, and Gordan isn't supposed to speak.

The very reason people don't fill you in is because it's assumed that you knew what was going on. The rebels, anyways- in-game dialogue hints that Breen knew about your "detainment".

[Alyeska]

The one big problem is Gordon not being told what went on. He's been gone and should have asked what was going on. He should have sat Kleiner down and asked "What the fuck happened? One moment I was in Black Mesa, the next I was on this train and I haven't a clue whats going on."

[Xon]

The Cascade that Gordon caused in HL 1(Not his fault but he did shove the sample into the anti-mass spectromiter causing the whole clusterfuck)

The Cascade was going to happen no matter who pushed the sample into the anti-mass spectromiter thingy. The whole thing was planned to begin with.

[Alyeska]

The Cascade that Gordon caused in HL 1(Not his fault but he did shove the sample into the anti-mass spectromiter causing the whole clusterfuck)

The Cascade was going to happen no matter who pushed the sample into the anti-mass spectromiter thingy. The whole thing was planned to begin with.

Source?

[Xon]

The Cascade that Gordon caused in HL 1(Not his fault but he did shove the sample into the anti-mass spectromiter causing the whole clusterfuck)

The Cascade was going to happen no matter who pushed the sample into the anti-mass spectromiter thingy. The whole thing was planned to begin with.

Source?

Black Mesa was a disaster from the get go, there is a reason you see a nuclear materials leak on the tram ride in. The "clean up" was just as bungled as everything else. Some time before Gordan triggered the Cascade, you learn that the Xen forces were already on the offensive against humanity, the whole "collecting" the collection teams bit.

The Administrator (and G-man) had a special interest in the test Gordan was helping in. And he was just a glorified lab tech.

Just think about what Gordon's job was. Flip a few buttons(which passes control over to someone else), and push the sample cart into the device. He had no control over the actual experiment and nor did he even have a clue what it was doing anyway. Any idiot could have shoved the cart into the device which caused the problem, Gordan was just the lowest ranked pleb with a HEV suit.

[Oberleutnant]

@ Stravo

Here is an excellent indepth analysis of the events in Half Life universe: http://members.shaw.ca/halflifestory/ I can't recommend it enough! Even though some of the information is conjecture, it really helps to understand the bigger picture and is worth taking a good look at. I personally agree with his every theory, and the next time you play the game it will be a completely different experience.

Kudos to Valve for their innovative way to tell a game's story without throwing all the information at the player like that.

[Stravo]

@ Stravo

Here is an excellent analysis of the events in Half Life universe: http://members.shaw.ca/halflifestory/ I can't recommend it enough. Even though some of the information is conjecture, it really helps to understand the bigger picture and is worth taking a good look at. The next time you play the game, it will be a completely different experience. Kudos to Valve for their innovative way to tell a game's story without throwing all the information at the player like that.

Thanks Oberleutant and yes I certainly enjoy the game storytelling and how they leave you in the dark as much as thr character you play but there are times when I thought "you know I paid $50 for this thing and I have no clue whats going on. An audience in a movie would at least have a bone thrown at it in terms of plot explanation."

as an interesting aside my daughter LOVED "Dog". She nearly cried when Dog was carried away by the drop ship and we didn't see him for awhile. So I guess big giant robots do appeal to girls.

And it was very nice to see a female character that wasn't just an excuse to see pixalted tits and ass shaking. My daughter was cheering Alyx on as she fought beside me in Nova Prospekt. Kudos to Valve for the characterizations in the game.

[Tiger Ace]

Stravo thats awesome, did she like the Dog 'stage' where you learn about the gravity gun? I allways replayed it because it was much better.

[Oberleutnant]

You're welcome.

And it was very nice to see a female character that wasn't just an excuse to see pixalted tits and ass shaking.

I think they achieved the perfect balance between good looks and credibility. While she is nice-looking (can't believe I'm saying something like this about a game character), she's not your typical busty computer game babe with pornstar-esque Britney Spears look. There's something rough about her and it just fits everything perfectly.

Damn, I gotta play through Half-Life 2 for the second time before my studies start... I suppose there are already some single player mods out, too. Too bad most mod developers just seem to think that there's still market for some Counter-Strike clone ("just like CS, but better!!!11"), while I'd much rather have a short, but rewarding single-player experience.

[2000AD]

Another essay that i re-discovered. It's long and surprisingly deep thinking considering the subject is a video game.

HL2: Under the surface

It does make some good points though.

[Julhelm]

I suppose there are already some single player mods out, too. Too bad most mod developers just seem to think that there's still market for some Counter-Strike clone ("just like CS, but better!!!11"), while I'd much rather have a short, but rewarding single-player experience.

Quoted for fucking emphasis.