City 17

Frank

Frank

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I was wondering, why is the city called City 17? Que?
My guess is:
City 17 was an experiment that went wrong, and it was the 17th city that they tried the experiment on. Or maybe it's not even world we know that we play in, maybe it's a 17th universe, earth etc.
I thought of this when I thought back on Hitman: Codename 47, since he was a clone and he was number 47. There's something up with that number...more than we know!
*plays Twillight Zone theme*
 
They already City 17 was somewhere in Europe.
 
Yeah, I know, but WHAT is City 17? Sounds like an experiment to me
 
to me, city 17 sounds like a code name. i'd guess it's how the gman refers to it.

also, making it "city 17" instead of london or prague or rome gives the designers more flexibility. they can just design a city from scratch; they don't have to worry about faithfully copying a real one.
 
Just sounds like a working title for the city, that just seemed to stick =)
 
Originally posted by Frank
Yeah, I know, but WHAT is City 17? Sounds like an experiment to me
Click to expand...

Like Vaults? ;)

Let's not spoil, if you know what I meant, ok? Ok.
 
I believe that City 17 is one of the 17 remaining cities on Earth, due to the Combine rule over the rest of the planet. And since there's only 17 instead of the tens of thousands that Earth usually has, humans just call them by number.
 
Originally posted by stigmata
I believe that City 17 is one of the 17 remaining cities on Earth, due to the Combine rule over the rest of the planet. And since there's only 17 instead of the tens of thousands that Earth usually has, humans just call them by number.
Click to expand...

Interesting thought...Or maybe the combines has given the cities numbers so they can keep a count on what city is the next to get demolished?
 
I think that it means that it is going to be based there, in Europe. Remember in HL when you went outside, it looked like Arizona or something. Unless you can think of another place that has canyons like that.
btw, i live on the east coast, so I might have Arizona mixed up with another state, like Nevada. I dunno.:rolleyes:
 
I just reckon it's this really good way of referring to an anonymous, futuristic, fictional city... I mean, if it was simply Prague it wouldn't be quite as mysterious. Plus, you can take as many liberties as you want with a city that YOU have created. Plus, 17's a cool number.
On the other hand, it probably holds some plot significance
 
have they specifically said its a city in europe, ir just a european style city?

maybe its a european style city built as a colony on another planet...maybe the 17th city built on a small human colony on Xen?

im just throwing out ideas, people.
 
Well everyone knows this is based on Earth, six or ten years after HL1, with almost completely depleted resources right? The combine and Xen are taking over the planet, and the last survivors are holed up in Eastern Europe in a city called City 17. <--- That's as much as Valve has told us.

There could be any number of cities, and the numbers could mean almost anything, but I'm sticking with my notion that it's one of the 17 remaining cities on Earth.
 
Originally posted by Cr@zY T3rr0r!$t
I think that it means that it is going to be based there, in Europe. Remember in HL when you went outside, it looked like Arizona or something. Unless you can think of another place that has canyons like that.
btw, i live on the east coast, so I might have Arizona mixed up with another state, like Nevada. I dunno.:rolleyes:
Click to expand...

It was Black Mesa, New Mexico
 
Originally posted by SupaKoopa
have they specifically said its a city in europe, ir just a european style city?
Click to expand...
I'm pretty sure that it's supposed to be in Eastern Europe but I may be mistaken.
 
Originally posted by stigmata
There could be any number of cities, and the numbers could mean almost anything, but I'm sticking with my notion that it's one of the 17 remaining cities on Earth.
Click to expand...
Would seem far fetched that it would take place in just the number 17 then. Besides, if its a war, City 1-16 could have been easily destroyed, making it City 1 :)
I think more on the any number of cities then. Humans have moved into defended cities to try to fend of the alien threat. City 17 just happens to be one of the latest battlefields for the invasion, and Gordons friends just happen to be there, so he goes of to rescue them.

Or it is a an alien experiement for breeding Combine troopers, they have just given them a brushed up city calling it City 17... Though that big city eating complex doesnt make sense, unless its the alien enemy of the aliens :)
 
I do believe somewhat that the name "City 17" is a code name that the rebels use.....
 
Any one remember Judge Dredd, the citys in that where numbers the main one being Mega City 1. Only a few citys are left due to the waist land that is earth. So HL2 citys could be like that, the world has been damadged or like people have been saying about the citys being last stand for the humans.
 
Originally posted by stigmata
I believe that City 17 is one of the 17 remaining cities on Earth, due to the Combine rule over the rest of the planet. And since there's only 17 instead of the tens of thousands that Earth usually has, humans just call them by number.
Click to expand...

wow Im gona go ahead and agree with this guy
 
Russian people are really rather sexy people.

(Ooof! Gorbachov! Oof!)
 
My theory: City 17 belongs to a colony controlled by the British-that' why they speak english. And the Combine are trying to prevent the City 17 dudes from gaining independence.
 
City 17 is what the combine have named it because they are aliens, and they do not care for the given names of cities. they just gave them all #s
 
...I apologize if my theory didn't make sense.
Here's a more clearer theory:
City 17-A city that belongs to(insert colony name here)
That colony used to be controlled by:Russians(Explains why there is the cryllic) And the US/UK took it from them. The US/UK creates the combine to control the colony. The militia are trying to win independence.
 
Okay folks, here's what I got out of the video from even before this debate started.

City 17 isn't the city itself. It's the GIANT FRIGGIN SELF-EXPANDING TOWER SYSTEM build by the combine. And it was the 17th one of them built (on earth anyway.) Whatever HUMAN city it was placed in doesn't matter.

Anyway, that's just my opinion.
 
No. That's the Combine Citadel. City17 is the city. Cunningly named, no?


Edit: Great sig by the way:E
 
Originally posted by stigmata
Well everyone knows this is based on Earth, six or ten years after HL1, with almost completely depleted resources right? The combine and Xen are taking over the planet, and the last survivors are holed up in Eastern Europe in a city called City 17. <--- That's as much as Valve has told us.

There could be any number of cities, and the numbers could mean almost anything, but I'm sticking with my notion that it's one of the 17 remaining cities on Earth.
Click to expand...

Wow that description makes me really want to go into battle when I think of HL2 , it will make fighting alot more fun if you are among the last free Humans in this city. I can already tell the story is going to be awsome.
 
I hope that it is one of those 'we are the last few remaining humans on earth...' kind of things. Cause I'll be like 'Every life must be preserved, die alien scum!!!!'. It'll give people a reason to fight, unlike these storys with 'we must stop these aliens before they take the earth', casue if one of your men die, its like 'ah well, another guy will take his place, there are like over 1 billion people on the earth...' kinda thing.
I know Half-Life 2's story is going to be so brilliant!
 
Maybe the cities have become Zoos, with the Combine studying humans.

They could use numbers instead of names, we don't know how the Combine think.

I'm assuming they are alien, of course. That's mainly due to the end of the Marc Laidlaw interview.

EDIT: Expanded
 
I think the name comes from the dark days of the cold war. The Russians built entire cities and populated them with people who did nothing but develop WMD. They were totally self sufficient and cut off from the rest of the country and the world. No one was allowed to leave unless they were dead or died trying to get out. I saw a piece about these cities on Sixty Minutes a couple of years ago. The old Soviet Union had several, most of which this day and age are deserted.
 
I think city seventeen is just that, a city dubed "17". As in most Sci-Fi or futureistic stories city's or places can be named after number because of the rapidly expanding populace.(It was named 17 before the invasion, of course.) Just another thoery.
 
17 is the number of times most of us will be playing the SP game the first month.
 
City 17 to me, is basically a city over run by Combine and isn't called City 17 for any specific reason. Europe has just ran out of names.
 
Yeah Europe is full of friggin towns. Probably just thought "Sod this naming stuff, I'm off to the pub for a pint. Just use numbers."

What is the significance of the name of Black Mesa again? I heard it once but can't remember. Is it something to do with chemistry/physics?
 
Black Mesa is an actual real life place.

The place in Half Life wasn't just Black Mesa, it was Black Mesa Research Facility.
 
Originally posted by Tredoslop
City 17 to me, is basically a city over run by Combine and isn't called City 17 for any specific reason. Europe has just ran out of names.
Click to expand...
We cant really run out of names. We can always adopt the US naming convention.
New Stockholm sounds rather neat :)

I think its a logical thing why its named City 17 on a design basis: They dont want direct link to any European city. Just like Black Mesa RF didnt have any direct link to any US military research facility. Leaves much space to move in, and much less people complain about that its all wrong...
 
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