Half-Life 2 Theories and Observations *Spoilers*

[sirchee]

***SPOILERS***SPOILERS****SPOILERS***SPOILERS****






























Ok, here's the deal. I want this thread to be the end all for discussion on the mysteries of Half-Life. I will compile all the facts given in the end and try to make some sense of it all. I'm looking for any theories on who the g-man is, what exactly happened to earth during the 10 or so years Gordon is away, who are the real players in the games (who are the people with the most control in the game), and what are people not telling you...

Please add on to these if you see anything I leave out.

Facts:

G-MAN

-The g-man is impervious to any human or alien. He can summon teleportation holes without any visible use of machinery. He has the power to stop time for a short while atleast (or maybe just slow it down), and possibly to make other changes in time. He can put people in a stasis (possibly freezing time for them alone). He speaks of "employers" in HL1. In HL2, the g-man says things to the effect that he offers Freeman's surfaces for some payment. And this last fact of the g-man I have not confirmed, but supposedly you see him talking briefly to a rebel, maybe a leader.

-Almost at the end, Dr. Breen briefly talks to you about a "contract" for your services. Alyx and Eli seemed very threatened by the direction the conversation was taking, and shouted at you to not listen to him. They were the most frightened (understandably in their situation) and antagonizing when Breen started talking about this. Judith Mossman made her move to undermine Breen here, of all places.

WHAT HAPPENS ON EARTH IN GORDON'S DISAPPEARANCE

-In Black Mesa East, there is a bulletin board with clippings that explain more than most parts of the game (with the exception to the end). A 7-hour war took place some days after the resonance cascade Freeman set loose in Black Mesa. There was a brief struggle of the combined human forces against an alien invasion. Whether or not the human race was close to defeat (although surrender would most likely occur only if this was the case), Dr. Breen, the former Black Mesa administrator who wanted the experiment Freeman performs to be done even with the doubts of some scientists, arranges the complete and total surrender of all Earth forces. This gives him a limited amount of power or the invading alien forces and the subjugated humans.

-The Citadel: a massive monolith in the middle of City17 (which looks east European, very very similar to Austrian architecture, maybe Vienna), slowly spreads its base across the sprawling urban settlement. It rises atleast 3 miles into the sky, probably more because it disappears into the cloud canopy. It is a factory for the alien forces, a home for a massive teleportation device at its pinnacle, and the place for changing humans into some sick twisted form of themselves (it is worthy to note they must be guarded, so they might not be completely domicile).

-Soldiers: most I can get from it is there are some humans fighting for the aliens to get out of being changed and eradicated first. There is a drawing of a monkey brain, a human brain, and a combine soldier brain together in a row. This could mean many things, but some maybe the aliens lobotomized many humans.

-Rebel forces: a rebel force grows under the leadership of Eli Vance, Alyx, and Barney. They harbor Black Mesa scientists who survived the incident to help advance their technology and give them an advantage over the aliens.

POWER PLAYERS: (this next subject I will talk about the facts first, then my interpretation because I'm afraid I'll forget to give my opinion)

Dr. Breen- Apparent leader of combine forces, has alien masters or "benefactors", negotiated surrender of Earth. Breen seems to give out propaganda right and left, in the beginning he is very fearful of Gordon, and gives a red alert for the citadel and alien forces are so thick they are literally POURING out of the citadel. He does not seem to be the overall power player in this confusing game that surrounds Gordon Freeman. He is a pawn of aliens and does what they say. What were his motivations for rushing the experiment in Black Mesa? Did he have some knowledge no other human had? Did he know of aliens and the broader universe as he does in HL2? Or was he just foolish? We may never know.

Xen aliens- A border world. A dimension that connects dimensions. Xen, as I always suspected, was never the real threat. (I will get into this later, but not in this facts section)

Nihilanth- the only enigmatic character in the original Half-Life besides the g-man. Unlike the g-man, however, the mystery of Nihilanth, a uniquely powerful and impressive being in a dimension of fairly stupid and unimpressively powerful creatures, was solved to the extent that it mattered to the player. All of Nihilanth's knowledge and secrets of Gordon, the g-man, and other dimensions were forever lost to us with his death. If you look carefully when you battle him, he has surgery scars, manacles, and uses machinery to float. This suggests he was yet another pawn for a greater player in this game. (Once again, I suspected this before HL2 was announced).
On all the threads I have read regarding HL2 theories, they always seem to forget to mention Nihilanth. In the end of HL2 in the citadel, chasing after Dr. Breen, you see him briefly talking to an alien on a huge screen. This alien is sluglike and has a lot of machinery on him. My theory on Nihilanth is that he is an exile from one of the big alien races taking part in the invasion of earth and Black Mesa. I do not think he is a native to Xen, but that he was exiled there. Whether he is from the same race as the alien in the end of HL2, I do not know, but I am positive that he was, in some way, working not against Earth forces, but against the aliens. I have many theories on why he chose to invade Earth. There are factories for making the hornet shooting 9ft tall aliens, and he amassed a huge amount of aliens to fight for him. Whether he was intending to use Earth as a foothold to get revenge, take Earth's resources, was attempting to migrate from Xen to Earth (it seemed to be breaking up), or whatever... I cannot be sure, but all of these are plausible theories.

G-man - the most enigmatic character in the game, we know almost nothing about the person or his intentions. We know he is using Freeman, but for what ultimate purpose. The g-man most assuredly does not seem the kind of man who is out for some kind of reward. He has his own agenda, and of all the people and aliens you ever come into contact with, he seems to be the one that is not a pawn, but a HUGE power player. (I wasn't sure at the end of HL1, I thought he could be a pawn for an even larger player, but HL2 gives me very good reason to believe that he is in complete control of any situation). As far as I can gather, the g-man puts Freeman in situations to complete a specific objective the g-man has in mind. If the rumour about him talking to a rebel is true, then it could likely mean that the earth's rebel forces arranged some kind of deal to defeat their alien overlords.
Apparently, the G-man is offering your "services" to the highest bidder.

WHAT ARE PEOPLE NOT TELLING YOU

Lots. So much. Most of what I gathered of the storyline is from the subtle hints throughout the game that aren't blatantly stated by the characters. Alyx and Eli seem to want to keep some information from you. The g-man keeps everything from you. Of all people, I find it extremely ironic that your immediate antagonist, Dr. Breen, is actually the most open and truthful with you.

"...this will be revealed in the course of....well, I'm really not at liberty to say." It is worthy to note that the g-man said the word "time" six, SIX times in his speech. He omits what could very likely be the word "time" at the end. Of course, another equally likely thing he was going to say was the AMOUNT of time. Such as months, years, decades, centuries, even millenia. If it took 10 years to be released from stasis between HL1 and HL2, who knows how long it could take btw then 2nd and third! It is very likely it will take place far in the future, but who knows?

I really want to hear what people say, hopefully you read all of it when you post. There are many things in the storyline I neglected to put up because I'm kinda tired, but I'll get back on it. I really want to get a very plausible story together and send it to Valve. I am 99% sure they haven't even realized the conclusion yet, but I want to send it to them anyways. I also have many theories on the end. I could talk for hours on the implications in what the g-man says in the end of the game.

 

[burner69]

My view:
G-man: God figure, making sure things run as they should - running fate's course or whatever.
Gordon: Used by g-man to make things run as they should.

All other characters; unimportant.

Simple religious metaphor, just our Jesus (gordon) apparently duznt know wat he's really up to.

Loads more to it of course, but that's the underlying principle.

 

[KagePrototype]

-The Citadel: a massive monolith in the middle of City17 (which looks east European, very very similar to Austrian architecture, maybe Vienna), slowly spreads its base across the sprawling urban settlement. It rises atleast 3 miles into the sky, probably more because it disappears into the cloud canopy. It is a factory for the alien forces, a home for a massive teleportation device at its pinnacle, and the place for changing humans into some sick twisted form of themselves (it is worthy to note they must be guarded, so they might not be completely domicile).

I figured this happens at Nova Prospekt, you can see one of them on a monitor. They're just used at the Citadel for cheap labour.

My interpretation...

My guess is that the Gman is fighting the combine, only using other people to do his dirty work, having people like Gordon act as "the muscle" so to speak (why he doesn't do it himself, I don't know). I reckon he is from another world that was once under Combine control, but was liberated, and now he spends his time helping others get rid of the combine (I doubt he really looks human, it's probably some sort of disguise). Xen is simply another world that the combine has over-run, eating up it's resources and enslaving it's population (the vortigaunts, or "alien slaves", who created the alien grunts in the factories you visited in Xen). By sabotaging the original experiment (Gman convincing the science personel to overload the capacitors, through whatever means), Xen aliens flood onto Earth. I'm guessing that the Gman wanted the two species to start some sort of inter-galatic war, and I'm also guessing that Gman thought the humans could win. Eventually, Freeman manages to kill Nihilanth (who also seems to be enslaved by Combine, or appointed like Breen), and pave the way for other forces to take over Xen (Gman says that Xen is "under our control" at the end of the game). Gman, now impressed by Freeman's actions, forces him into employment, storing him for whenever he is needed again.

Now, I'm guessing that the combine took back control over Xen, and then targetted Earth as an act of revenge. The 7-hour war happens, and Breen (the admin of Black mesa) manages to form a pact, and thus is appointed the administrator of Earth. Now, because of Freemans almost messianic status amongst the citizens, the Gman thought it would be a good idea to drop Freeman into the middle of this mess, hoping that his presence might start a second retaliation to the combine. Well, suffice to say, he did just that, and as soon as the citadel exploded at the end, the Gman figured the job was done and pulled Gordon out right at the last second. This is why the game ends here, your mission is effectively complete. He says that he has received some "interesting offers" for Freeman's handywork, which leads me to beleive that he might sell your "contract" to other people in need (Breen mentions something about Gordon's contract "being open to the highest bidder" when you talk with him at the end).

So, to tie up a few other loose ends...why are the vortigaunts helping the rebels? Well, because they were freed when killing Nihilanth, they seemed to be also dedicated to the cause of fighing against the combine. I'm guessing that Freeman's messianic status came from them, because of what you did for them. The citizens seemed to have just latched onto the idea over time. The rest of the Xen aliens (headcrabs, barnacles) are used to keep people in the cities (as well as the Ant Lions, who I think are either from yet another world the combine invaded, or just more Xen wild life we didn't see before). Because these animals are just wild life, they don't care much for their liberation. So headcrab shells are used on places like Ravenholm, to keep the resistance to a minimum. Barnacles and Ant Lions are placed in certain places, to keep people from trying to escape the cities.

Nova Prospekt acts as a prison of sorts, where people are tortured and turned into "stalkers", who are the skinny things that walk around the citadel. I can't be the only one that made the comparions between these stalkers, and the alien slaves working in a factory from HL1? The metrocops are the "civil protection units", who seem to be volunteers. The actual combine soldiers might also be volunteers, I'm not sure. I'm guessing that volunteers are shipped to Nova Prospekt and given the appropiate brain-washing procedure.

 

[Feath]

Did you notice that Kleiner seemed to be expecting you. When Barney talks to him at the start he says "I expected more warning". I think maybe you were hired by the resistance.

Also, when you meet the first Vortigaunt and that guy guarding the underground railroad (At the start of Route Kanal), they are watching the G-man on TV. And the Vortigaunt says "We serve the same mystery". Possibly referring to the G-man.

And this is from Raising the bar. It's a cut sequence from the game. I haven't got the book but this part was on one of "Look inside things" on the Prima Website.

* Eli powers up the slide projector. A white image flashes on the wall of his room, where he has hung a white sheet.

ELI
Let's see now... Where does this start?

The following images appear as he speaks
* Aeiral view of Black Mesa
* Inbound train
* Test Chamber

ELI
Black Mesa. Let's not dwell on that. Nobody's blaming you, we all have to accept some responsibility. What matters is what we do next. I'll get to that. After the disaster, well... Let's just say the ripples kept spreading.

The next few scenses have the feel of Norman Rockwell in Hell.
* Headcrabs leaping onto shoppers from supermarket shelves
* Bullsquid chasing a family from a suburban house; pack of houndeyes running down
Elm Street
* Gargantua overturning a tractor as a farmer flees across a Nebraska field
* Ichtoyosaur materialising in a public pool. right under a nose pinching kid who just jumped off the high-dive.

ELI
The countryside, the suburbs, all those hard-to-patrol places got pretty much uninhabitable. People started crowding into the cities for protection.

* People clustered at a cyclone fence topped with razor wire, city skyline rising behind them; cops stand tensely on guard towers, lasing away at headcrab zombies outside the perimeter.

ELI

There was an illusion of safety, for a time. And then the citadels appeared. It happened in a split second, all over the world. A chunk would disappear from the center of a city, to be replaced an instant later by one of these headquarters for the Combine. Invasion Central.

* City-center completely erased, buildings sheared off, an enormous pit appearing out of nowhere, and people falling into it
* The same view, with a Citadel towering at the center of all

ELI
Say hello to your new masters

* Cremators, striders, Combine machines pouring out of the Citadel into the city. Combine dropships tearing through the air.

ELI
Oh, we resisted.

* Tanks, soldiers, human army advancing on the Citadel
* The same troops reduced to ashes, completely obliterated

ELI
Earth put up a fight that lasted all of seven hours.

* A smouldering Pentagon shaped pile of ashes

ELI

An then one man who had suited (??) about all the power a man can seize in a crisis, used that power to arrange our surrender.

* The Consul, at the foot of the (something) Tower, wearing a headset Hands rasied high to the dropships as he proclaims Earth's surrender.

ELI
They call him the Consul now. It worked out fine for him He speaks for the Combine, he shares in their power. As for the rest of us...

* Views of City 17, citizens slouching along
* Air Exchange bleching black fumes
* Drained seabed with beached ships, whale bones

ELI

Well, you've seen the state of things. They're replacing the air with something we can hardly breathe. They're draining the ocean. We don't don't if they're preparing our planet for new residents, or just stripping it of every possible resource. All we know is that we have to stop them. And that's where you come in, Mr Freeman. It's up to you.

* The Projector goes dark

 

[Fury]

I know the answer!!!!
GMan = Neo !!!!
:E

J/K Nice reasoning sirchee!

 

[Doombringer]

Well, that cut sequence just about sums everything up. It's a shame they removed it.

 

[Muhwi]

Well, that cut sequence just about sums everything up. It's a shame they removed it.

I was already wondering how I could have missed something that big..

 

[SlipgateSlider]

It is also interesting that Dr. Kleiner got ahold of your old Mark IV Hazard suit to upgrade it to a Mark V, and Barney had your crowbar from Black Mesa that the Gman took in the end of Half-Life. This also suggests that the resistance science-team was in contact with the Gman who probably gave them these items in preparation for their "mail order savior" or something like that.

 

[SlipgateSlider]

As far as that cut slideshow goes, there are likely many things in it that hold true but since it was cut from the game much of what is says might have been changed or removed from the Half-Life universe's actual timeline by Valve. There are definitely some clues in their but it should not be taken as 100% accurate.

 

[nrjizer]

Good thread.

 

[Kangy]

I want to know what the Resistance payed the Gman, if he does deliver Minute Mail Messiahs. He already seems to be godlike, perhaps he's being payed by some higher being to deliver Gordon wherever he wants...and now that he has what he wants, he's taking bids from buyers now, rather than doing a higher being's work.

 

[Crash Happy]

Assume Barney was joking about you leaving the crowbar behind. It's supposed to be a gag I think, I mean why on earth would anyone want it? If they were to get equipment from the GMan he'd give you something decent wouldn't he?

I was struck by Kliener and Barney saying they expected more warning it doesn't have to mean they were in contact with GMan (to their knowledge). Breens boss must have told him about your setup and as the game progresses he actualy sounds more bothered, as if he can see the way things are heading. Yet until you storm into the citidel controled areas you don't seem to be having much impact.
Also, it appears to be illogical to say that the resistance managed to get you on contract when we know that in the final scene GMan says that he and his boss's are getting interesting offers but that normaly they wouldn't entertain these. This is as a result of what you've done in HL2, so presumably you weren't on hire at that point.

Lastly, the whole world has gone to hell. The combine hold pretty much the technological advantage (they have striders, we've got some stuff but in general the underground has some pistols and SMG's. Hardly cutting edge). What exactly can our resource stripped world offer a bunch of aliens whose lower-level management can themselves alter time, create portals and gawd knows what else?

 

[Mightyvvhitey]

I think it should be noted that when you go the the boat checkpoint where you recieve the gun, after the vorginaut is done *Speak with him!* he will talk with you almost endlessly about what happened by killing the nilianth. he says things like "we are saddend by the cords you have cut but is not our place to forgive" wich refers to when you were in BMR and shot and killed a LOT of alien slaves. (like you had any other choice :sniper and he speaks of the joys of freedom ect. it makes a lot of sesne to me, but after a while of listening to him, his speech got on my nerves. he talks like he smokes 10 packs a day and runs out of breath with each sentance.

Anyhow, it made a very large plot point to me

 

[MrWynd]

if Gman is so powerful, what could motivate him in payment? it doesnt seem money would be of any use to him.

 

[Crash Happy]

Nice reading skills MrWynd.

 

[sirchee]

Good points guys. I didn't pick up the Raising the Bar book, but from what you tell me it seems to answer some of the burning questions us HL2 fans have. Do you know whether or not that was the old storyline, the new, or a mix of both?

Remember the new enemies in Opposing Force? They seemed a lot different than the original Xen aliens. That leads me to believe that the combine were actively sending scouts. at the very least. through portals to check out the place. There were the 7ft tall aliens with the freeze guns and the giant slugs that shot out purple energy, kind of like what you glimpsed at on the top of the citadel? The slug like aliens were very similar to the alien Dr. Breen was talking to you saw on the big screen on the top of the citadel. Remember in HL1 how there were "mini nihilanths" floating around attacking you. Maybe the gigantic slug thing on the monitor has similar things in the form of the slugs in Opposing Forces? This could mean that Nihilanth was part of that alien race, or maybe he was a huge power player, but was exiled from a group of supremely powerful alien beings. Maybe a triumvirate? I dunno.

 

[nagual678]

what heavily bothers me but no one seemed to pay much attention to, are those kind of black missiles you see bombardings of (before getting the airboat, or on the airboat when it hits a factory and you have to avoid the falling "tower"). if the game limited to sometimes let you see headcrabs+headcrabbed people , you could just assume that earth did not get rid of them since the black mesa incident.

but who is launching them ? the combine seem to fight them, but again, they may just be a tool. i THINK i have seen some laying around at the end of the game when you have to go with barney deactivating the generators. they were neatly put on a table, as if they were not fired.

what is the purpose of the headcrabs, since humanity is no longer (and has never actually been) a threat to the combines ? and where do the modified headcrabs (poison and "fast") come from ? are they just in for the "cool" factor (as in "valve just didnt have the idea/the time for doing them in HL1 so they just kinda slipped them in HL2 hoping they would get along with the "classic" ones without too many questions being asked).. or have they been developed ? and as i said, who is bombarding them on earth, and to what purpose ?

it seems that the Xen race is still having a word in the story..

 

[NotVisible]

G-Man = Government man. For which Government I am not sure, probably one from the future.

-Soldiers...there is a drawing of a monkey brain, a human brain, and a combine soldier brain together in a row. ...

Possibly evolution?

 

[Crash Happy]

The Combine appear to be using the headcrab's as terror weapons. They have no direct control over them, or the zombies. I'm not so sure that the Headcrabs have been altered, maybe that is the case but it struck me that they look like they continue to develop if they don't attach. Just like in OpFor it loked like a zombie would continue to develop if it had long enough. After all the Gonarch seemed to be the headcrab Mother. Species usualy continue to develop until they too can procreate. Obviously earth is not their usual environment.

GMan was the name given by us, the fans, to describe the unnamed man. G-Men were FBI agents and since he looks like a Suit it seemed to fit.

 

[pooter]

I put this in another thread, but I think the Combine are launching headcraps as weapons despite the fact it'll attack their (human) Overwatch allies. They just don't give a damn, which shows how ruthless they are.

 

[NotVisible]

G-Man = Government man. For which Government I am not sure, probably one from the future.

-Soldiers...there is a drawing of a monkey brain, a human brain, and a combine soldier brain together in a row. ...

Possibly evolution?

 

[Crash Happy]

So good you had to post it twice? And still not a correct conclusion.

 

[SlipgateSlider]

In the end of the game when the Gman suggested that his employers (does he say "we" or "I"? for some reason I remember it as "I", which could suggest that the Gman has gone rogue and no longer answers to employers) would not normally entertain the bids on your services that they have been recieving, I got the impresssion that the Gman was referring to those specific bids. The Gman and his employers might normally operate under certain guidelines, but the most recent offers have been made by factions they normally wouldn't deal with (The Combine perhaps?) this might suggest that some allegience has been made behind the scene between two factions that were previously enemies (the Gman's faction and the Combine). The only thing is, if the Nihilanth at the end of Half-Life was indeed a rogue member of the Overlord race, the combine would likley have wanted him destoryed which means that Gordon has been inadvertantly serving the Combine since HL1.

 

[Asknoone]

I think Gman is just hsi nickname and has nothing to do with the governemnt at all.

A few facts:

Your goal from gman: To destroy the dark fusion reactor and cut off the combine from earth. (alyx said it pwoers there tunneling entaglement device, so without it they cant tunnel through from there universe)

I think the combine were in control of xen at the time, they had the nihalinth in shackles (and was used to teleport things), they had the thumpers in xen (like in coast where they are obviously draining the ocean) and they had the factory producing grunts and such.

Also to back this up Nihalinth says: "Thieves...they are all thieves"

The combine are stripping the place of resources.

 

[SlipgateSlider]

the combine were stripping xen of its resources or at least had done so at one point (I'm pretty sure ther xen crystals work as a decaying reciever for zero point energy, which i do not want to explain but there are some interesting websites devoted to) but I had the impression that the nihilanth was the only remaining member of his race who was a free thinker, the shackles suggest that he was once under control of the Combine ("slaves we all are slaves" suggests that he thinks even his modicum of freedom is an illusion) but has broken free and is attempting to gain control for himself through domination of Xen and production of the alien grunts in the "interloper" factories. The name "interloper" might apply to more than Freeman intruding in the factories, it could mean that the Nihilanth is interfering with the designs of the Combine (universal union). "The last I am the last" means that the rest of his race has joiined the union, as dr. breen wants humanity to do.

 

[Juice]

1. Headcrab rockets are shot into towns and populated areas to force people to move into the protected citys (aka City 17, 16, 15 ect). Where their supply of headcrabs come from I don't know, I mean where does a headcrab from from any way....

2.Once people are in the citys they are turned into those skiny things (Stalkers), they are striped of all humanity and are made to do labor.

3. I forget if all the combine are humans that are brainwashed or aliens, I know theres a model in the hl2 files thats a "striped combine" that is like a stalker but with his eyes and a huge hole in his neck.

Either way the combine are tools of the Benifactors, who they really are I don't know.

Xen was a slave of the Benifactors and was forced to invade earth for them, thas why the (its late I forget their names) so and so are working with the ristance. Because they feel like they are colaberators not slaves to the human race.

I also remember reading / hearing the combine and the benfactors are part orgainc and part machine (as we see with the gun ships and strykers and what not) which might be why they pick humans cause we see so easy to adapt to that life style (stalkers, combine).

Freeman and the Gman? no clue, but its apparent that every one knows more than you and you're just a tool. But what a tool! We know Alyx wants you .

 

[Asknoone]

The Combine are the benefactors, what you see from the stalkers and overwatch soldiers are humans augmented with combine technology. Theres nto a single combine alien on earth, the only time you see them is when breen is talking to the advisor

 

[mayfer]

why the hell did they cut all of the important/fun scenes from the game?
this cut scene is MAJOR!
why did they hide EVERYTHING which give information about the story? you're going to say you had to discover them yourself, but to be honest that crappy newspaper didn't say much at all.

 

[[Matt]]

why the hell did they cut all of the important/fun scenes from the game?
this cut scene is MAJOR!
why did they hide EVERYTHING which give information about the story? you're going to say you had to discover them yourself, but to be honest that crappy newspaper didn't say much at all.

you DO have to look for it yourself... if you press use on the notice board in eli's lab with the newspaper cut outs pinned on it Eli comes over and explains how the combine won the 7 hour war and how breen was placed in charge...

 

[Unfocused]

Why do we call G-Man this name? He is not named in HL1 or HL2 like that. In fact he is not named at all I think. Is he gman because that's the name of the player model in HL1 multiplayer?

 

[KagePrototype]

Why do we call G-Man this name? He is not named in HL1 or HL2 like that. In fact he is not named at all I think. Is he gman because that's the name of the player model in HL1 multiplayer?

Yup.

 

[Moth]

-The Citadel: the place for changing humans into some sick twisted form of themselves.

I would like to bring to your attention this quote directly from the Half-Life 2 Prima strategy guide:

This withered slave is known as a Stalker. It appears that if you'd taken the train at the beginning of the adventure, Nova Prospekt scientists would have severed your higher brain functions, experimented on you in any number of foul and depraved ways, embedded a number of blackened nano-devices into your skin, and slowly watched you lose all your humanity. You'd then be known by the codename 'Stalker', and sent on any number of menial duties inside this vast structure. Be glad you made friends with Barney - he's the one who saved you from this fate worse than death!

Was this the Combine's plan for humanity? - enslavement?

 

[HEaP]

At the end when Breen is running away from you , did anyone manage to hear his conversation with the combine adviser? About saving is arse, and building a relay somewhere else??? I think the combine’s primary objective is to invade a bigger enemy who is not humanity! Humanity is just in the way!

Like xzen was the border world for earth to teleport to places, earth is the border world for the combine to get to their primary target.

The combine were going to exterminate the human race, getting them out of the way so they can build their relay that will enable their teleportation device to reach their primary target.

Breen sees this so decides to surrender the earth to the combine to save the human race from extinction. The combine try to suppress the humans with the collars things they use on vorts but they don’t work. So they perform surgery removing parts of the human brain and replacing it with alien components creating a easily controllable, loyal trans-humans, spreading propaganda saying this is the next step in human evolution. The humans becoming a valuable resource to the combine. In breens eyes, saving man kind from eradication!

Alien slaves were used to invade Earth, so a Human slave army will be used to I as a first wave to invade the primary target! Who??? Maybe they are the g-mans employers????

 

[miked4o7]

In the end of the game when the Gman suggested that his employers (does he say "we" or "I"? for some reason I remember it as "I", which could suggest that the Gman has gone rogue and no longer answers to employers) would not normally entertain the bids on your services that they have been recieving, I got the impresssion that the Gman was referring to those specific bids. The Gman and his employers might normally operate under certain guidelines, but the most recent offers have been made by factions they normally wouldn't deal with (The Combine perhaps?) this might suggest that some allegience has been made behind the scene between two factions that were previously enemies (the Gman's faction and the Combine).

I think it might be more likely that he's referring to certain alien factions other than the combine. I remember in a couple different G-man sightings, the G-man was talking to to the Vortigaunts.

Of course it could still be the combine, or something else completely.... we'll see.

 

[ViolenceJack]

-The Citadel: a massive monolith in the middle of City17 (which looks east European, very very similar to Austrian architecture, maybe Vienna)

The setting is rather funny considdering was at the University of Innsbruck in Austria before he went on to Black Mesa.

Also i consider the combine to be like the borg off star trek. Part machine part biological and adapt to there surrounds which is why combine look human because they are humans brought into the combine.

That bit when you see the G-man talking to the resistance guy was probably the one that gives you the rocket launcher. Its kind of funny as well that he basicly just forces it on you. I mean youve only seen him for a minute and hes basicly giving you orders. Alot of people say that as well like all the stop off points at highway 17. They seem to basicly order you around and wouldnt let you pass.

i think everyone knows whats going on with you (Freeman), Apart from you.

 

[ViolenceJack]

I just no cliped the the area with the resistance guy talking to the g-man and it is the commander/captain what ever he is. The one that gives rocket launcher.

 

[Fighter]

I am guessing that City 17 is in former USSR territory. There are a few signs on the buildings that are in Russian. And it has both the traditional East European architecture and those rectangular appartment blocks that are common in former USSR.

 

[ktimekiller]

let me expain how gman got his name, in the hl folder, that man, with the suite was named gman, in a file, not the game, so people started to use the term gman, and then every hl player knew the term gman, then valve finally picked it up, and started using it too. i know valve started using it, because in the 2k3 e3 vids, the person expaining the tape uses the term gman alot

 

[SlipgateSlider]

Does anyone have a screenshot of the Gman talking to the alien slave? I must have missed that... the vort that you see powering the TV in the underground railroad lookout post during Route Kanal says "We serve the same mystery", meaning that the vorts and gordon both work for the Gman. Later another Vort says something like "The lesser master has fallen (Nihilanth) and the greater must fall in time". Since Gordon and the Vorts both call the Gman master this Vort might be prophesizing the death of the Gman. I think that the name "Gman" from the Half-Life files was likely assigned to the character because most HL players assumed (or at least I did) that he was a government agent while playing through the first game. I began to doubt that he worked for any earthly government as soon as I heard him talk in the end of HL. I would not be surprised if the Combine is planning on invading the Gman's world... that would explain why he sends Gordon in to wreck shop in City 17 and it might also explain what he's talking about at the end. Maybe the Gman has gone against his race and is bargaining for his own life by seeling Gordon's services to the Combine. "These are extraordinary times".

 

[Moth]

The 'slug' that Breen was talking to is revealed in the Strat guide as being the 'Combine Advisor'. Essentially this *IS* the combine. The strat guide also mentions that it is telepathic, therefore controlling and overseeing everything that goes on throughout the citadel and probably controlling all combine troops including the streetcops by way of their 'nano-augmented' brain parts (this is hinted at in the strat guide)

You may simply be overlooking the fact that the advisor (affectionately referred to from now on as 'big sluggy')
is able to distort Breen's way of thinking any way it wants to via telepathy. Breen will go along with anything big sluggy wills him to, including believing that the human race is destined to become 'something better than we could ever have imagined' despite the fact that they are being labotomized and turned into slaves for an essentially borg-like race.

Therefore Breen thinks he is preventing the human race from becoming extenct but really it's just Big sluggy making him think that.

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