So, the death of a main character (EXTREME spoilers)

[shaun forsdyke]

I like the thought that Alyx's idle animations in Ep 3 might be changed from the kind of quirky smiles and shuffling around to someone kneeling down, remembering her dad. Also her tone of voice etc.

Ok, didnt explain that very well at all. It will be interesting to see how they develop her character.

 

[leib10]

I'm really, really not looking forward to having the new Alyx around.

 

[Cheomesh]

She's going to be all emo :<

 

[Narvi]

But i think the way Eli died is a bit much even for Valve. It's one thing to empty my shotgun secondary in an smelly zombie houling and running to tear me to bits, it's a completely other thing to be stuck on a wall while daughter watches her only left parent being grabbed by a big ugly caterpillar and his brain shattered to bits by the monster's 'tongue'. Not to mention the blood and Alyx's screams...and her crying at the end...
Yeah, i know, sorta dramatic...but sorta way too brutal, don't you think? Maybe Eli had to die, but why this way? It's not something heroic, he was helpless.

The way he died made his death needless.

Death isn't always clean and heroic. I like how he went out, dramatically speaking.

 

[leib10]

She's going to be all emo :<

They could go that route, but I think they're smarter than that. It's not going to be fun for the player to have a sidekick that's bitching and moaning the whole time. It's going to get really annoying really fast.

Or, they could do what we saw during the first Hunter battle- an angry, vengeful, and more determined Alyx (they hinted in the commentary that this is foreshadowing for her later behavior). I would much rather have them go this route than the "emo" one.

 

[Mythics]

Epic finale: Gordon and Alex debating if they should use Borealis? xD

 

[Andrew LB]

I highly doubt it. I truly believe that Valve will put all the thousands of pieces of the puzzle which we've been speculating on since HL2 and have either a great victory by humanity or a more dark and sinister conclusion. The game will definitely have a SOLID ending IMO with probably a chance of leaving things not completely answered in order to eventually make Half Life 3.

A few things I MUST have answered:

1. Who is the G-Man and his employers.
2. Who really controls the Combine. (i doubt advisers since their name gives their job description.
3. Chell's part in Episode 3.
4. Will Barney come back?
5. Will Lamarr return.... (j/k) He's in earth's orbit now.

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

But i think the way Eli died is a bit much even for Valve. It's one thing to empty my shotgun secondary in an smelly zombie houling and running to tear me to bits, it's a completely other thing to be stuck on a wall while daughter watches her only left parent being grabbed by a big ugly caterpillar and his brain shattered to bits by the monster's 'tongue'. Not to mention the blood and Alyx's screams...and her crying at the end...
Yeah, i know, sorta dramatic...but sorta way too brutal, don't you think? Maybe Eli had to die, but why this way? It's not something heroic, he was helpless.

The way he died made his death needless.

Half life does a good job at avioding cliches, herioc deaths are one of them. I think it was much better how eli tried to get alyx to look away. The blood and alyx's screams made it all the more awesome (and sad).

 

[heer0]

Don't take me wrong, the finale was great from emotional and animation level. Still, it looked to me a bit artifical. At the very end, in an UNGUARDED hangar, not even perimeter sentries, with dog SUDDENLY disappear to somewhere a moment earlier. Everything went ideal for the bugs to attack. The only logical excuse is if the G-Man have done this...helped those...nits.

 

[Shift]

DOG went away first most likely because he calculated that something wasn't right and went off to investigate, came back to find that he was correct.

 

[soulslicer]

you are all right..

in hl2 and ep1, and ep2, she was always smiling at you through out whenever you were with her..now she is going to be all emo in ep3.. :C

 

[Kevin]

1.You could tell something was going to go awfully wrong from the moment Dog ran off. It was obvious he had detected something, which was not supposed to be there.

2.I don't think Alyx will get all emo. I believe she will become the exact opposite of emo. Angry...determined...and sensitive to any subject, regarding her father or his death. I'd like to see her torturing the combine in any way she can.
Like disarming a combine soldier and torturing him by repeatedly shooting him in the legs and slowly moving upwards with every shot.

And it would completely rock, if she would think of the most painful and disgusting way of killing an advisor.

 

[Frraksurred]

I definately think she'll have it in for the advisors. One way or another, she is going to exact some revenge on them in Ep3.

Then she is going to fall into Gordon's arms and weep, whispering something like "it's over", and they are going to teleport off into the sunset to live happily ever after.

... at least until HL3. :E

 

[heer0]

...
Like disarming a combine soldier and torturing him by repeatedly shooting him in the legs and slowly moving upwards with every shot.

And it would completely rock, if she would think of the most painful and disgusting way of killing an advisor.

Omg this will make Alyx look very different from what we've been get used to. Maybe sad and crushed, but to a point. Making her bloodthursty ain't gonna be cool.

Plus, i won't give her the pleasure to waste the advizors while this is our job!

 

[Kevin]

I'd rather leave that job to her, because she has the right to avenge her father. But if there are more than one, i'd be...happy to HELP...:flame:

 

[Cheomesh]

I definately think she'll have it in for the advisors. One way or another, she is going to exact some revenge on them in Ep3.

Then she is going to fall into Gordon's arms and weep, whispering something like "it's over", and they are going to teleport off into the sunset to live happily ever after.

... at least until HL3. :E

Gordon Babies :|

 

[comradpoplin1]

Id just like to comment on one thing i think wont get answerd by episode 3 that i think people are hoping for.

Who is the Gman, I think this is one of those things that will remain a secret its what gives Gman his edge it also creates a vast amount of story in the half life world so to reveal these facts would make ther game take a differant path wich i dont think they are trying to do. It also enables the game to be span over a far vaster time space and gives the options to just drop freeman in the middle of the action with no prior need for back story, put simply he is there because the Gman said it was so.

 

[heer0]

^ you have a point, maybe we'll never realy know who the G-Man is. And what will happen if we save the world in ep3 and there is no more Combine suppression to fight? I don't think Gordon will go and build a house near the sea, fishing for leeches all day and watch the kids run around...lol

 

[comradpoplin1]

i think the gordon freeman will turn into a bored crying freeman (see what i done there ) some how though i doubt there will be piece for too long as HL3 is an allmost certanty, that is unless valve employees dont want hunted

 

[Shift]

I definately think she'll have it in for the advisors. One way or another, she is going to exact some revenge on them in Ep3.

Then she is going to fall into Gordon's arms and weep, whispering something like "it's over", and they are going to teleport off into the sunset to live happily ever after.

... at least until HL3. :E

Then I throw up.

 

[Rugerdie]

Ok Picture this for a Great Alex moment in Ep.3....

As we all know Valve does not take the player out of 1st Person because they want the experience to feel real, but in recent installments Valve has taken control of the players view and restricted movement most notably (Alex's Injury/Healing, Advisers sequences)

What if once the Advisor has been trapped underneath rubble, Alex runs up on it and unloads her clip into it. All the while the Player is within a foot or so (By some clever constraint) and sees that Alex has obviously killed the advisor and is still attacking it. The players view and control would be manipulated to pull Alex off the carcass kicking and screaming. She turns around pauses (Gazing into Gordons Eyes) for a second and clings to the player Heaving and sobbing.

A scene comparable to the hug that Alex gives Gordon at the Beginning of Ep 1 but with much more emotion.

I think that this would be a powerful scene that could really add some thing to Gordon's character and Further his relationship with Alex (Bow chica wowo wow J/K

 

[Frraksurred]

Then I throw up.

Perhaps... but it's more likely Valve will suck us into the story so much that you'll end up loving every minute of it. :hmph:

 

[dead-memory]

Hey,
Maybe, when the combine killed Eli he sucked his knowledge out too
therefore letting the advisers to know about the g-mans existence...

 

[Absinthe]

But i think the way Eli died is a bit much even for Valve. It's one thing to empty my shotgun secondary in an smelly zombie houling and running to tear me to bits, it's a completely other thing to be stuck on a wall while daughter watches her only left parent being grabbed by a big ugly caterpillar and his brain shattered to bits by the monster's 'tongue'. Not to mention the blood and Alyx's screams...and her crying at the end...
Yeah, i know, sorta dramatic...but sorta way too brutal, don't you think? Maybe Eli had to die, but why this way? It's not something heroic, he was helpless.

The way he died made his death needless.

That's what made it so effective, though.

It was brutal. Messy, wrenching, and undignified. That's what gave it the punch. It reminds you that bad shit still happens in the HL2 universe, and not just when the player's in stasis.

If it had been anything else, it wouldn't have measured up.

 

[Iron_cube]

I found it funny how the pipe he used to defend himself is the same one used by the guy when you first meet the manhacks.

Yey.

 

[Black Op]

Hey,
Maybe, when the combine killed Eli he sucked his knowledge out too
therefore letting the advisers to know about the g-mans existence...

The Advisors would have already known about G-Man's involvement from Administrator Breen if they didn't know already. :|

 

[heer0]

The advisors are 'boss' creatures that can't just die from bullets (maybe they physicly can but Valve won't just give us the pleasure to kill it this way).

I suppose there will be some sort of a scene where you will need to 'trap' or 'hunt' down the advisor using the objects around you. Maybe Alyx will be around to assist you somehow, but i don't expect Valve to give her all the pleasure. After all, Eli was our frend too.

I can really see Gordon jumping and hiding around to avoid the advisor's attacks (probably using the gravgun to deflect the flying rubble the bug throws at him) while trying to reach the wire holding a big steel container above...a moment later and we'll have a worm omelette...:E

 

[Shift]

Perhaps... but it's more likely Valve will suck us into the story so much that you'll end up loving every minute of it. :hmph:

The whole, its over and now me and you are a couple thing with Alyx will not happen, not only is it incredibly cliche its also incredibly corny.

I will put money on EP3 not ending happily at all, something bad will happen and it will lead straight into the next story arc.

 

[Atomic_Piggy]

The whole, its over and now me and you are a couple thing with Alyx will not happen, not only is it incredibly cliche its also incredibly corny.

I will put money on EP3 not ending happily at all, something bad will happen and it will lead straight into the next story arc.

Unforeseen Consequences...

 

[Irksome]

I bet Valve is going to give us a "oh man I'm going to go slash my wrists and wear makeup" kinda ending.

 

[Crash Happy]

I don't understand proclomations that Valve simply must not do <whatever> and similar. As far as I'm concerned they can do whatever the hell they like, if it hangs together well then Alyx could run off with a slug version of Breen and have lots of little slugettes. I just want a good game, they haven't let me down so far.

 

[Iron_cube]

Advisor versus blue gravitygun could lead to some interesting prop battle, if it somehow cannot paralyse you.

Debris and junk tennis with an advisor, weee.

 

[CombineOfficer66]

Man the thing with me is that i had two blows when i saw Eli die. I beat Halo 3 and i have read those books and beaten the 1,2, and now 3. So i see Johnson die. Man i was going insane and couldn’t cope with it. Screw MC Johnson is dead! Then i say "Hey. i have HL2 P2. Im at the last level lets go beat that so i go to bed tonight with a happy ending!" Eli dies... Two blows form my favorite games... Eli and Johnson on the same night... At least Johnson didn’t die getting his brain sucked out but Eli... screw halo... I do think Alyx with be viscous in part 3. i can see Alyx kneeling over a crippled Advisor taunting him, cutting off his tongue, ripping his robotic arms, yelling at it about her father, then kill it. Throw down her gun and say "I'm done..."

I can see it happen. Though not before letting Gordon (we) cripple the thing for her! >=)

 

[DrAbysmal]

The advisors are 'boss' creatures that can't just die from bullets (maybe they physicly can but Valve won't just give us the pleasure to kill it this way).

It would also seem to me that the advisor's telekinesis would allow it to avoid projectile attacks... if you fire a rocket at it, it's not going to just float there and get hit, it's going to grab it and throw it back or deflect it. Probably the same with bullets too. There has to be a way to avoid being slammed into the wall or thrown in the air by mind beams too - so far we are powerless against advisors because they just paralyze you and do whatever they want. Something we discover on the Borealis could very well counter the advisor's mental attacks, or maybe the Vortigaunts help in some way... but obviously fighting advisors will be more involved than simply shooting it.

 

[Godron]

I'm with Absinthe on Eli's death. Undignifyed and helpless it was, and that made it much more painfull. There were no cliches here, and that made it much more immersive.
I didn't actually feel as bad when Eli died as I did when Alyx got stabbed, though. I suppose I was more prepared to see him die, and I was more tired because I'd been playing for a fair bit.
As for the advisors, let's remember Gabe Newell's quote "You can't show the player a massive bomb and not let him blow it up", or something like that. I'm sure we'll see some advisor ownage in Ep3, and it's very likely Alyx will have a big part in it. I'm not sure exactly how they'll pull that off, though... we've always been powerless against them in the past, but D0G showed that it is possible to ambush them, and that their telekinesis doesn't make then invincible.

EDIT: So that "8 pounds payload discrepancy" was Lammar... curses. That was rather unnecessary.

 

[Acepilotf14]

Lamarr wouldn't do anything bad!

Would he?

 

[Iron_cube]

Lamarr wouldn't do anything bad!

Would he?

Would *she*?

 

[Chabo]

I suspect that battles with Advisers in Ep3 will be rather like the battles with Gunships and Striders in HL2. You start out facing up against one at a time and it's like "OMG I DID IT!!", and by 2/3 the way through the episode, you're facing off against 2 or 3 at a time, no sweat.

I think where the real challenge in Ep3 will lie is facing off against Advisers that have grown past the larval stage. Imagine an Adviser the size of the Nihilanth. That would be crazy.

 

[heer0]

Lamarr wouldn't do anything bad!

Would he?

Lamarr was deliberately put by Magnusson into the rocket and sent through the portal. That pesky little thing sabotaged the Combine's entire plans

 

[sk0aL]

I was more upset about the fact that we didn't get anymore info on the G-man rather than Eli's death.

I've become immune to watching important characters die in video games when my heart was ripped out with the Death of Aeris in FF7 that I witnessed as a wee lad.