Neat facts about HL1

[Roland Deschain]

I used to live in Germany around the time that HL1 came out (now I live in Toronto), and got my first glime of HL1 at a friends. Naturally enough I bought the game the following day.

Here's the funny part: Germany, at that time, had trouble with killing people in videogames, so all the soldiers in the game were replaced by the most horrible rendered, square robots. Even the sound files were replaced by robot speach which nobody could understand. At the time that was the most annoying thing in the game (I mean the game didn't look like it was taking place in the future).

You could have guessed my relive when I rebought my US edition.

There must be other neat facts about HL1, so bring them out.

[Eejit]

There was some kind of 'tanker' level in the first edition apparently, which was later removed.
Don't know if it's true or not though.

[Roland Deschain]

remeber the first versions of Counter Strike with all the vehicles, those were so buggy and annoying.

[Foxtrot]

This is a great thread, but I don't think I know any...

[Chris_D]

Half-Life was nearly called Quiver... I imagine they changed this because of the strong similarity to Quake though :)

Essentially Half-Life would have originally only been any good as a Quake mission pack. It had no story, little to no engine enhancements and was graphically inferior to Blood 2 and Quake 2 that were starting to make an appearance. This was when they took the decision to completely scrap everything and decided to start fresh and they delayed the game for a further year. It was during this year that Half-Life became what we know it as today.

It makes you think, if they hadn't had delayed the game for a further year, Half-Life would have been a long forgotten memory. But it was actually a delay, a gamer's worse nightmare, that saved the day. That's why I'm glad they delayed it on September 30th and would be perfectly happy if they delayed it again.

[Prince of China]

Half-Life was nearly called Quiver... I imagine they changed this because of the strong similarity to Quake though :)

Essentially Half-Life would have originally only been any good as a Quake mission pack. It had no story, little to no engine enhancements and was graphically inferior to Blood 2 and Quake 2 that were starting to make an appearance. This was when they took the decision to completely scrap everything and decided to start fresh and they delayed the game for a further year. It was during this year that Half-Life became what we know it as today.

It makes you think, if they hadn't had delayed the game for a further year, Half-Life would have been a long forgotten memory. But it was actually a delay, a gamer's worse nightmare, that saved the day. That's why I'm glad they delayed it on September 30th and would be perfectly happy if they delayed it again.
There's actually a game called Quiver.
And Gordon used to be Ivan the Space Biker.

[Hazar]

You can blow up one of the scientists lunch in the microwave at the beginning of the game. :p

[AJ Rimmer]

There is a weird face on a poster in a toilet booth in the beginning of Blue Shift

[Rupertvdb]

The game content includes several enemy which are never presented during the game.

[The Dark Elf]

If you play the audio backwards you can hear a satanic message

[Foxtrot]

Isn't there a hidden frog in the game? It is only in one spot...or is that a joke?

[AJ Rimmer]

The game content includes several enemy which are never presented during the game.
Isn't one of them the quickly abondoned Teletubby grunt?

[A2597]

the lunch one was fun. :)

Oh, and HL is the only universe where soda is HEALTHY! :D

[Foxtrot]

the lunch one was fun. :)

Oh, and HL is the only universe where soda is HEALTHY! :D
What do you mean soda is healthy?

[Prince of China]

Isn't there a hidden frog in the game? It is only in one spot...or is that a joke?
It's an easter egg, and so is that toilet booth message.
And in Blue-Shift, if you use noclip to fly around that same level with the toilet and stuff, you can find this mysterious room with weird moving shapes that make you feel like you're moving when you're not.

[Brian Damage]

If you drink soda in the game, Foxtrot, you get a single-unit health boost...

Oh, yeah, and the names on the lockers in the locker room at the start are all developers or other people who worked on Half Life. I don't think anyone had said that, yet...

[Foxtrot]

I did not know that. Same thing happens in a lot of games, like SS2.

[Brian Damage]

It can be really useful sometimes...

[AcousticToad]

There's a cool part on Unforseen Concequences, when you get back to the main entrance of Black Mesa (where you came in, the big doors) shoot the panel next to the door, they will open and you will see a scientist standing on the walkway that you came from at the start, run up to him and...well... :naughty:

There's a handy 9mm clip out there with Barney too.

[ShadowFox]

Could somebody post a screenshot of these robots?

[Aphal]

Could somebody post a screenshot of these robots?

I'm pretty sure they're the HLDM robo model that's in the game already. You can fire up HL and take a look.

[ShadowFox]

I'm pretty sure they're the HLDM robo model that's in the game already. You can fire up HL and take a look.
Oh.. lmao.

[pat_thetic]

Can someone post a ss?

[Dalamari]

I just found the frog in BS when you go to xen, the chumfrog's lair, it owns.

[LAYP]

The names on the lockers in the bathroom in the beginning of Half-Life, and the names on the footlockers in the Opposing Force training level, are the names of people who worked on both games.


As of 2004, Half-Life is the highest-selling first-person shooter of all time, with sales of over 10 million copies worldwide.


The security guard is named Barney after Lecter's guard in Silence of the Lambs, The (1991).


Inside the files of this game, there is an extended line from the G-Man character, if you choose not to join him. He says the identical "Well, it looks like we wont be working together. No regrets Mr. Freeman," but goes on to comment on there being "a few survivors of your personal holocaust" who would "like to meet the man responsible for the total annihilation of their race".


The Black Mesa PA system is composed of single words, instead of entire lines of dialogue. This allows dynamic creation of PA messages by level designers. Most of these single words are not used in the game proper, but were created so that independent level designers could make realistic sounding PA messages for their levels, instead of relying on default ones.



Also in blue shift did anybody notice barney was the only one in which the main character escapes from the Black Mesa incident. The main character in Opposing Force becomes trapped in Xen, and Gordon Freeman from the original game is forced to work for the G-Man.

[AcousticToad]

Shepard went to work with the G-Man too, he was given an ultimatum saying either join him or die '...to convey you somewhere you can do no possible harm, and where no harm can come to you. Im sure you'll agree there are worse alternatives'

[Dalamari]

I was just lookin thru HLMV and found the un-used option to add a silencer, guess this never made it to the final product.

Also if you noclip when you first start a new HL game there should be a room somewhere that is completely empty and has a lone scientist in it.

[Ames]

There was some kind of 'tanker' level in the first edition apparently, which was later removed.
Don't know if it's true or not though.

Are you talking about this??!?!? :D

http://www.forumplanet.com/planethalflife/topic.asp?fid=2718&tid=657822&p=1

[AJ Rimmer]

I've always wondered if that's true or not.

[pat_thetic]

WTF? Dinosaurs? I do not remember that!

[nw909]

Before the game was released, the vending machines used to include the following drink brand names:

-Fruitopia
-Coca Cola
-Minute Maid
-Surge

but were changed to

-Soda Pop
-Soda Pop
-Enjoy
-Enjoy

And if this is wrong I care not.

[Dalamari]

KEEP THIS THREAD ALIVE PEOPLE **BUMPAGE**

Oh and on Blue Shift if you check one of the security cams you can see Gina bringing the crystal to the test chamber, which sets the scene for HL: Decay

[Pauly]

whats halflife decay???? lol and whats with the planet halflife thread, i am really confused, if peopel are bluffing or not

[Edcrab]

In an old version of HL (possibly removed in current patch) you can leap out of the starting tram without the aid of cheats if you face the back window and crouch leap out of it as it begins to move from the cinematic fade-in.

Houndeyes started off as friendlies, but beta testers shot them on sight and that mentality caused them to be recreated as hostile aliens.

[AcousticToad]

In the initial release of the game, on the Aprehension map, i definitley remember seeing a marine (red beret marine) stoop in the tracks waving, he then lept to the right but the track didn't blow up, instead the train carried on through the barrier's and planted itself into some sandbags bufore blowing up.

I have never been able to re-create that :(

Also, the First PC Gamer UK mag I bought had a mini walk-through in it, plus the Level editing tutorial (thats what got me started on HL mapping first map I made filled every unit on one map because i didn't know how to transition heh) it said in the walk-through that when the Nihilanth's head opens up, either blow it up or jump in through the teleporter to end the game. It seems that was scrapped in the final product :(

[nw909]

In the first HL the scientists and barneys had very ugly faces with large bulginging eyes.

Gordons initial design was a short fat man in a mustard yellow hazard suit with a long beard and strange haircut.

edit: http://www.planethalflife.com/nostalgia/hl-screenshots1.html

[Mechagodzilla]

I just found the frog in BS when you go to xen, the chumfrog's lair, it owns.

Man, that's the only HL secret I haven't found. Can you tell me where it is?

To find the first BS frog, collect every single bullet in the armory and fire them all at the cardboard box in Barney's locker.

[Top Secret]

Half-Life
Opposing Force
and Blue Shift

Are all scientific terms.

"It makes you think, if they hadn't had delayed the game for a further year, Half-Life would have been a long forgotten memory. But it was actually a delay, a gamer's worse nightmare, that saved the day. That's why I'm glad they delayed it on September 30th and would be perfectly happy if they delayed it again." - Chris_D

Thanks for the new sig.

[FoB_Ed]

The security guard is named Barney after Lecter's guard in Silence of the Lambs, The (1991).

I heard that Barney named after the security guard Barney from The Andy Griffith Show.

[Pressure]

The crystal you used during the test that created the cascade is the same as the crystals that were protecting Nihilanth at the end of the game.

[egon]

gonarch is based on shelob in lord of the ring (shelob's lair - gonarch's lair, both are giant spiders)

WTF? Dinosaurs? I do not remember that!

sigh its a fake ppl, cant believe some ppl actually believed this thread :P damn funny though.