Episode 3?

[cyk]

Man, Raising the Bar HL2 would have been awesome. Air Exchange? Resource removals? Sweet.

Just a thought brought up by the "no water" argument.

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

Well, those bits were cut for a reason. Either they didn't work, or some better plot point emerged. The air exchange can't possibly work anymore as the rebels all seem to breathe fine.

 

[99.vikram]

And her orgasms lol

:naughty:

 

[Oppressor]

It is mentioned in an interview with Gabe that the episodes are NOT Half-Life 3, but merely the end of the episodic trilogy. If anyone could add me in with that link I would indeed be grateful

 

[Asknoone]

Man, Raising the Bar HL2 would have been awesome. Air Exchange? Resource removals? Sweet.

Just a thought brought up by the "no water" argument.

Resource removal is already taking place. Air Exchange and the original HL2 storyline sucked.

It is mentioned in an interview with Gabe that the episodes are NOT Half-Life 3, but merely the end of the episodic trilogy. If anyone could add me in with that link I would indeed be grateful

No, the Episode trilogy IS Half-life 3. Half-life 3 isn't the end of Half-life, and the Episode trilogy is pretty much HL3. Lombardi said that the episode trilogy was the end of the HL2 arc, rather than the end of HL.

 

[Deleted member 56031]

Finally someone agrees with me!

 

[ShadowJustice]

So Half-life 3 will be Half-life 4.

I wonder if Gordon is ever going to visit other dimensions. The possibility of all the combine off-world colonies...

Other plot elements I'd like to see in the future episodes:

-Fake Gordon Freemans infiltrating the resistance.
-A trip to an alternative earth-like dimension where Breen is a good scientist fighting against Isac Kleiner's evil empire of combine terror
-A chapter with a flying and high tech vehicle (at the beginning of the sequence the commands should be messed up, to reflect the fact that gordon is learning how to fly the vehicle as you play; he is a genius after all)
-Gordon using a "host body" to teleport to a combine homeworld and break havoc



Other gameplay ideas (I'm not talking about the future hl2 episodes, but also hl3, hl4 and so on)

-A weapon\grenade\vehicle construction system. Gordon is a genius and it would be uber cool to build weapons, explosive devices or vehicles (or even dog-like robots) starting from debris and combine materials you find scattered all over the game (remember, I'm talking of hl3 and hl4, so we are talking about a very far future)
-More non linear chapters (I'm dying to see the open-ended sequences in episode two)
-The portal gun

 

[ríomhaire]

Man, Raising the Bar HL2 would have been awesome. Air Exchange? Resource removals? Sweet.

Nova Prospekt is much better than the original Air Exchange design.
Transforming people into horrifing slaves > Stealing air
Antlions allies > Human allies (more unique anyway)

So Half-life 3 will be Half-life 4.

I wonder if Gordon is ever going to visit other dimensions. The possibility of all the combine off-world colonies...

Other plot elements I'd like to see in the future episodes:

-Fake Gordon Freemans infiltrating the resistance.
-Gordon using a "host body" to teleport to a combine homeworld and break havoc
-A trip to an alternative earth-like dimension where Breen is a good scientist fighting against Isac Kleiner's evil empire of combine terror

You can't possibly be serious, they're worse than "Gman is Gordon Freeman from the future"

-A chapter with a flying and high tech vehicle (at the beginning of the sequence the commands should be messed up, to reflect the fact that gordon is learning how to fly the vehicle as you play; he is a genius after all)

1: I don't think Source can offer levels large enough to play with a flying vehicle properly (yet, anyway), the level would have to be so restricting that you would lose all the point of having a flying machine. And having the controls scrambled would be annoying.

-A weapon\grenade\vehicle construction system. Gordon is a genius and it would be uber cool to build weapons, explosive devices or vehicles (or even dog-like robots) starting from debris and combine materials you find scattered all over the game (remember, I'm talking of hl3 and hl4, so we are talking about a very far future)

Doesn't seam like HL's game style at all.

-More non linear chapters (I'm dying to see the open-ended sequences in episode two)

Open =/= non-linear and I highly doubt any HL game (at least one staring Gordon) will be non-linear.

-The portal gun

Well, Valve have said they may use it in more types of gameplay depending on feedback from Portal.

 

[Asknoone]

-More non linear chapters (I'm dying to see the open-ended sequences in episode two)

I like linear, so I hope they don't over do it.

 

[chimpmunk]

Well, those bits were cut for a reason. Either they didn't work, or some better plot point emerged. The air exchange can't possibly work anymore as the rebels all seem to breathe fine.

Where are the proof there is no air exchange? The air may not be downright deadly.
But if the air is perfectly fine, why are Combine soldiers wearing gasmasks?

You think the combine care enough about normal humans to protect from breathing air that is "dangerous on the long term"?

 

[Asknoone]

There's no Air Exchange.

 

[chimpmunk]

I demand arguments.
The "drain" teleport was cut out of the game but is still part of it (the oceans are still lowering), same goes with the incenerator (is that correct name, the combine that cleans organic matter with a flame thrower).

The same goes with the air exchange.

 

[MorganFreeman911]

Its the...
...
...
CREMATOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOR!*echo*

 

[kupocake]

Half-Life 2 Episodes are Half-Life 2 Episodes. They are not "Half-Life 3" until they are called "Half-Life 3". They are however, the third Half-Life game.

So Half-life 3 will be Half-life 4.

Valve are not going to abandon simple principles of numbering. That would be ridiculous. If the next chunk after Half-Life 2 Episodes is going to have any number after it (assuming that the HL2 Episodes series doesn't just continue on and on), it will be "Half-Life 3" regardless of the fact that it is the forth Half-Life game.

The "drain" teleport was cut out of the game but is still part of it (the oceans are still lowering)

Just because an environmental effect is still present, it doesn't have to be caused by the same phenomenon. Water levels may have dropped due to other environmental factors. Perhaps the Combine use vast quantities of water in the Citadel, or perhaps to cool the citadel or generate electricity or something.

same goes with the incenerator (is that correct name, the combine that cleans organic matter with a flame thrower).

The Cremator is not proven to be canonical. It's head IS, however, the fact that it is a Cremator's head and not some random piece of salvaged machinary cannot be proved.

The same goes with the air exchange.

Your reasonining above actually has some structure, here it doesn't. In the case of the giant teleport, the symptom still exists in the game. In the case of the Cremator, a part of the creature still exists in the game. With the air exchange, there is not a single symptom or allusion to its existence in the game. Everyone seems to find it very easy to breathe the earth's air, and the fact that it is being replaced is not mentioned by a single character. More importantly, the Air Exchange goes hand in hand with a arid wasteland beyond the walls of City 17. This simply does not exist: the wastelands have been replaced with a thriving forest, and the coast seems pretty well off itself.

The one tiniest exception to this, is the fact that the Combine wear masks. The function of the masks is surely more about being menacing and hiding the identities of those behind them. Doctor Breen of all people seems perfectly fine without one, and he would surely know if the air wasn't breathable.

 

[chimpmunk]

Half-Life 2 Episodes are Half-Life 2 Episodes. They are not "Half-Life 3" until they are called "Half-Life 3". They are however, the third Half-Life game.

Valve are not going to abandon simple principles of numbering. That would be ridiculous. If the next chunk after Half-Life 2 Episodes is going to have any number after it (assuming that the HL2 Episodes series doesn't just continue on and on), it will be "Half-Life 3" regardless of the fact that it is the forth Half-Life game.

Just because an environmental effect is still present, it doesn't have to be caused by the same phenomenon. Water levels may have dropped due to other environmental factors. Perhaps the Combine use vast quantities of water in the Citadel, or perhaps to cool the citadel or generate electricity or something.

The Cremator is not proven to be canonical. It's head IS, however, the fact that it is a Cremator's head and not some random piece of salvaged machinary cannot be proved.

Your reasonining above actually has some structure, here it doesn't. In the case of the giant teleport, the symptom still exists in the game. In the case of the Cremator, a part of the creature still exists in the game. With the air exchange, there is not a single symptom or allusion to its existence in the game. Everyone seems to find it very easy to breathe the earth's air, and the fact that it is being replaced is not mentioned by a single character. More importantly, the Air Exchange goes hand in hand with a arid wasteland beyond the walls of City 17. This simply does not exist: the wastelands have been replaced with a thriving forest, and the coast seems pretty well off itself.

The one tiniest exception to this, is the fact that the Combine wear masks. The function of the masks is surely more about being menacing and hiding the identities of those behind them. Doctor Breen of all people seems perfectly fine without one, and he would surely know if the air wasn't breathable.

You are probably right on the air exchange topic.

But denying cremators exist in the HL2 universe? It is certain the head in the formol in eli's lab WAS a cremator's head. Another proof: why is it that all the bodies you find (already dead that is) are burnt?
Raising the bar states that cremator are some sort of combine "janitor", burning biological matter in a "cleaning" process.

As for the teleport draining the oceans, I find it hard to blame global warming for a drop of, what? 10 meters? Maybe more, of the sea level, if it had been 50-100 years, maybe, but 10-15 years? Definatly a teleport drain I'd say.

 

[kupocake]

But denying cremators exist in the HL2 universe? It is certain the head in the formol in eli's lab WAS a cremator's head.

We only know it's a cremator's head because we have seen the cremator in concept art etc. The biggest problem with assuming that they actually exist is that the one reference anyone in the final game makes to it, it's obvious that they don't have a clue what it is: "Alyx brings back the strangest things". If the cremators DO exist, and they have anything like their original purpose, why on earth doesn't Eli recognise one of their heads?

Another proof: why is it that all the bodies you find (already dead that is) are burnt?

It isn't the case that "all" the bodies are burnt. Some of them are. Bodies can be quite horrifically burnt by using simple, mundane boring fire, and that seems very much to be what happened in the case of the burnt corpses at the coastal house. Also, i'm not sure on this at all without my copy of RtB in the house, but I think the cremator may have been burning material away with acid rather than flames. Acid burns would look very different.

Raising the bar states that cremator are some sort of combine "janitor", burning biological matter in a "cleaning" process.

Leaving black and charred corpses isn't particuarly "clean", you'd expect the cremators to have finished the job. More to the point, the burnt corpses we see are outside of the typical City 17 dominion, in the sewer system, the canals along the coast.

As for the teleport draining the oceans, I find it hard to blame global warming for a drop of, what? 10 meters? Maybe more, of the sea level, if it had been 50-100 years, maybe, but 10-15 years? Definatly a teleport drain I'd say.

I never specifically mentioned Global warming. I favour that it's the citadel or some other piece of combine tech responsible for collecting or using seawater. But then, the imagery of boats in a dried up sea is doubtlessly taken from the real-world example of the Aral sea, which was the result of botched irrigation. Due to the geography of eastern europe, we're more likely talking about a City 17 that is near a smaller Sea than one that is near a vast ocean. And when we're talking about the relative merits of a theory where the world's water bodies are reduced by a giant teleport, it's not hard to then allow any other kind of extreme or unrealistic environmental explanation. The bottom line is that there is no proof of the Teleport drain theory, just the existance of a symptom that doesn't rule it out.

edit: with regards to the function of the cremator head, I think the best example is this: What if HL2 didn't have an Elite Combine Soldier. Now, if that distinctive head was in the jar at BME, would we claim it as proof that Combine Assassin's exist in the HL2 universe?

 

[chimpmunk]

edit: with regards to the function of the cremator head, I think the best example is this: What if HL2 didn't have an Elite Combine Soldier. Now, if that distinctive head was in the jar at BME, would we claim it as proof that Combine Assassin's exist in the HL2 universe?

I'd be actually enclined to say "yes".

We have seen the synths but never fought them, but they are still there, and I think it's fair to assume we haven't seen everything the Combine has or every kind of xen alien (yet, at least). So I think it's totally possible the cremator is still there, without interacting with gordon.

Also, the burnt bodies are another clue to the cremator's existence, and if cremators are in fact absent of the HL2 universe, why are all those bodies burnt?

(actually, I think this deserves a mail to VALVe).

As for the teleport drain, I agree what we see may be a lowered sea and not the ocean (and the ocean may well be in it's normal state), but the idea of a teleport drain is still a very likely possibility.

 

[ríomhaire]

Half-Life 2 Episodes are Half-Life 2 Episodes. They are not "Half-Life 3" until they are called "Half-Life 3". They are however, the third Half-Life game.

Valve are not going to abandon simple principles of numbering. That would be ridiculous. If the next chunk after Half-Life 2 Episodes is going to have any number after it (assuming that the HL2 Episodes series doesn't just continue on and on), it will be "Half-Life 3" regardless of the fact that it is the forth Half-Life game.

If only people would get that into their heads.

Just because an environmental effect is still present, it doesn't have to be caused by the same phenomenon. Water levels may have dropped due to other environmental factors. Perhaps the Combine use vast quantities of water in the Citadel, or perhaps to cool the citadel or generate electricity or something.

I don't think even 30+ citadels would drain the oceans of that much water, remember the law of concervation of matter, water can't just get used up by the citadels and disapear. I remember as well as the Combine draining thing I seem to remember one story idea Valve came up with is that the oceans where draining to Xen through a portal that remained from the portal storms.

The Cremator is not proven to be canonical. It's head IS, however, the fact that it is a Cremator's head and not some random piece of salvaged machinary cannot be proved.

True, you'd also think they would have recognised it or realised that it was something's head if it actually was a cremator's head
"We still don't know what that does"

As for the teleport draining the oceans, I find it hard to blame global warming for a drop of, what? 10 meters? Maybe more, of the sea level, if it had been 50-100 years, maybe, but 10-15 years? Definatly a teleport drain I'd say.

Global warming can't magicly drain the oceans, where would the water go?

 

[Azner]

It was all a dream.

I've actually managed to never have seen a movie or book or anything that actually ended with the whole thing being a dream, and I think it would be cool.

Not a dream, Gordon had burned marks all over him and he was in cryonic sleep, when he entered the test chamber he fainted and everything else was just his imagination.

Well its just a theory we gotten hold off in some thread here.

 

[Solver]

I wonder if there'll be any time gap at all between Ep2 and Ep3. Ep1 starts right where HL2 ends, and Ep2 starts right where Ep1 ends. Ep3 will probably also start when Ep2 ends. The only reason why there might be a gap, for story consistency, would be if the G-Man places Freeman back into stasis at the end of Ep2. While the G-Man regaining control over Freeman is plausible, it would require for him to again be released from stasis at the start of Ep3, which I don't think Valve would go for, as that was done as the opening of Ep1.

Well, the episodes still look like a good measure of fun. Of course, it's obvious anyway that Valve will delay Ep3. If Ep2 gets released in summer 2007, means likely that the initial Ep3 estimate will be around Christmas 2007 but knowing Valve get pushed back to March 2008 or something.

 

[AKIRA]

ep 2 is supposed to be released summer 07?! 5 hours of gameplay takes a whole year?!

 

[Solver]

That gameplay doesn't have excellent quality out of blue air, you know. According to the Valve guys themselves, they could release it in a month or two, but it wouldn't be as polished and fine-tuned as they want to see it. Given that Valve consistently provides polished games with great attention to detail, I would indeed rather wait a few extra months and have it live up to the standards I've come to expect.

 

[Ap2000]

lol Half-Life 2 etc is set in Russia already

Russia ?

Not all of east-europe is russia lolz...
afai can remember Lew only said "somewhere in former soviet russia", right ?

 

[Shift]

yeah i lot of the eastern counties have russian style dialect and writting like ukraine and bulgaria etc

read on

 

[Solver]

As it's been said many times, HL2 is set in a fictional location in Eastern Europe, inspired by various real ex-Soviet locations, but not representing any specific one.

Mind you, the writing of Russian, Ukrainian and Bulgarian is pretty different, too .

 

[Shift]

Well they do look the same'ish xD

 

[586FAC75]

Viktor Antonov, concept artist for a lot of the designs in Half Life 2 was bought up in Sofia, Bulgaria. Looking at the pictures here, you can see where he got some of the inspiration for city 17 architecture.

 

[ríomhaire]

ep 2 is supposed to be released summer 07?! 5 hours of gameplay takes a whole year?!

~6 hours of Valve-quality gameplay takes a whole year.

 

[Solver]

Viktor Antonov, concept artist for a lot of the designs in Half Life 2 was bought up in Sofia, Bulgaria. Looking at the pictures here, you can see where he got some of the inspiration for city 17 architecture.

Yes, Sofia is certainly one of the inspirations. The coastal parts are quite reminiscent of Latvia, then there's a "Cafe Baltic", etc. So it just shows further that City 17 is a blend of many real-life locations. And Valve said that they took some of the inspiration for Ep2 from Estonia.

 

[Ridge]

~6 hours of Valve-quality gameplay takes a whole year.

Werd. This isnt the crap the Battlefield series has become, releasing a new one every year...

 

[Walter]

Russia ?

Not all of east-europe is russia lolz...
afai can remember Lew only said "somewhere in former soviet russia", right ?

former soviet russia ? ... you mean the union. But actually , Eastern Europe is Something like....eastern ukraine, Russia, that tiny part of Kazakhstan.

 

[99.vikram]

former soviet russia ? ... you mean the union.

In Soviet Russia, the union means YOU!

 

[Azner]

LOL! at vikram

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

Indeed *does gay laugh*

 

[bigburpco]

/me runs away from gaaay man.

 

[Hurlxy]

ep 2 is supposed to be released summer 07?! 5 hours of gameplay takes a whole year?!

not even 5 hours;(

 

[Reginald]

not even 5 hours;(

Source?

Episode 2 is supposed to be marginally longer than Episode 2, which provided at least 12 hours gameplay. Once through on the three difficulty settings and once with the commentary. So Episode 2 should in theory provide about 14 or so hours.

There is a difference between amount of gameplay and the speed that you can run through the game once without noticing storyline points and then going to whine on a forum like a child whose ice cream fell in the mud.

[/bad_mood]

 

[ríomhaire]

not even 5 hours;(

By playtesters' accounts and offical word from Valve EP2 is longer than EP1 which had an average play-time of four and a half to five hours. Plus Portal which is reportadly approximatly 3 hours long. Plus TF2 which is as long as you want it to be.

 

[Solver]

Yeah, I'm hoping for at least 1.5 hours more playtime in Ep2. Ep1 was about 5 hours for me. It had excellent pacing and everything, but still, I'd prefer Ep2 to be somewhat longer.

Of course, the number should be doubled anyway - commentaries make it worth going through a second time after finishing.

 

[Shift]

~6 hours of Valve-quality gameplay takes a whole year.

It wont be 6 hours, more like 4.