• Half-Life Chat V12 - 9 = 3
    999 replies, posted
Also somehow I doubt you'd put a guy on his first day in work into a high-tech protective suit and then dump him in a room with some beam machine to push some stuff into some other stuff while watching what happens.
I dunno, weren't the Hazard suit dudes pretty expendable? Maybe not his first day, but people in those jobs usually have a high chance of death from shit going wrong.
The suit was to protect against radiation and the dangers of their questionable testing. I don't think the HEV guys were meant to be espendible as much as they were thrust into danger. All those people needed traiing in use of the suit and getting used to moving around in it. The HEV suit isn't supposed to be something you throw on and go for a casual walk. Plus they're probably expensive. All the dead ones you see in Xen were likely sent in to try and stop the resonance cascade, or were cut off and trapped there when it happened.
Usually, on the first day of your new job, you don't actually work, you mostly get toured around, told how shit works, where you get equipment and stuff you need, where's your locker etc. And people knew you so it def wasn't Gordon's first day.
Gordon goes through the Hazard Course on May 16, the morning of the disaster. Gordon begins his training at 7:30 AM, returns to the Level 3 Dormitories afterwards, and then boards the tram heading to the Sector C test labs at 8:47 AM. Half-Life 2 specifies that, from Breen's own words, Gordon only worked a "brief tenure" at Black Mesa. Gordon received his letter of acceptance from Black Mesa on May 5. The resonance cascade occurred on May 16.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ZlOhSt_qW0 somebody remake this with gordon as homer, and the ships as all the different factions in the series
Gordon's employment letter is dated 5th of May, and gives him a few days to wrap up his current affairs in Austria, and says that he should start work no later than the 15th May. Some people have assumed that means he started work on the 15th, but no later means he could actually have started on the 10th or something like that. In the PS2 manual, Gearbox did a Hazard Course timetable which had Gordon doing his HEV training on the morning of the 16th May. Which makes sense, as they didn't know exactly what day Gordon would start, but knew he would have started work by the 16th. The PS2 Hazard Course also has an extra bit at the start where you speak to some scientists before doing training, and they comment on having a systems crash. Because there was also a systems crash on the day of the accident, people have inferred that to mean that Gordon did his HEV training on the same day as the disaster. But of course it's entirely possible that there was a crash on the day of his training, and another crash on the day of the disaster, weeks or months later. Barney's letter in the Blue Shift manual says he is being reassigned to Blue Shift on the 16th May. But in Blue Shift there's nothing to suggest that it is Barneys first day working that shift in that part of the facility, he could have had that shift for weeks. Adrian Shephard's diary is first dated 3rd March, with the last entry being 15th March. He says its been confirmed they are training for a mission at Black Mesa, and to be ready in case "it" happens tomorrow. Some fans have taken that to mean that "it" really did happen the next day, the 16th, and that Gearbox screwed up and put March instead of May. Personally, however, I think Gearbox did mean March. Perhaps on the 16th March the Lambda team did some experiment that meant there was a risk of some aliens running loose in Black Mesa, but actually the experiment went fine, so the HECU ended up not seeing any action until months later - the resonance cascade. The one that's really awkward, though, is that the PS2 manual also has a letter to Dr. Colette Green about the Xen crystal sample, dated 5th May - the same date as Gordon's employment letter. It says that they've decided to change the sample in the upcoming experiment, to a purer and larger sample. And to make sure that the sample is ready to be delivered to Dr. Freeman on the day of the experiment. Without this letter, it could seem plausible that Gordon started work at Black Mesa some time between the 5th and 15th May, did various Anomalous Materials experiments for weeks or months, and then disaster happened later that year. But with the fateful experiment already being planned on 5th May - with the dreaded 'purest sample yet' - that would mean the experiment must have happened within days, or at most weeks, of Gordon starting work. The letter doesn't specify the date of the experiment, but the fact that they are planning it on 5th May - the same day Gordon's employment was confirmed - makes it seem like the administrator was conspiring to get Gordon working at Black Mesa in time to run this particular experiment. Also, in Decay, the security guard at the start has a line about "Everyone's talking about the new guy, Freeman." It's not his first day, though, as Dr Keller says "Freeman is late. AGAIN. I don't know what Kleiner sees in him." So the implication is that Gordon has been there for a few days, or at most a few weeks. So the idea that Gordon only worked at Black Mesa for a few days was something Gearbox invented in the PS2 version of Half-Life. There's no evidence for it anywhere else. And Marc Laidlaw has stated that Gordon worked there for several months. And there's that line in Episode 1 about how Barney and Gordon used to race each other through the vents to get into Kleiner's office when he locked himself out.
The desk guard that Barney first meets in the Area 3 Medium Security Facilities tells him he hopes "[he's] ready for a long shift." This is indicative of Barney commencing the very beginning of his Blue Shift, not ending it. We also know Barney's Blue Shift was scheduled to end on August 15. This means the resonance cascade could not have occurred months after Gordon received his letter of acceptance to Black Mesa. At most, it would have been roughly a month later, but we know it was May 16 since it coincides with the timing of his Hazard Course training (i.e. it goes out of its way to establish that it precedes the disaster). Again, Breen called Gordon's time at Black Mesa a "brief tenure." That's Marc, not anyone at Gearbox. Additionally, we know Gordon did not have his retinal scan performed at the time of the incident, something Barney had performed before May 12. This is why Gordon can't use any retinal scanners throughout his game since he had only been on the job for a brief period. For him to go without retinal scanner access for months goes against the idea of very specifically referencing his lack of retinal access to begin with. He hasn't.
Here you go. Per your request, I put as little effort into it as possible. https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/109778/755cc415-2294-4534-a138-27b22d7c1b35/gordonnavy.webm
that's unironically excellent
It's all in the ponytail.
I made an ambulance. https://i.imgur.com/g5bj38P.png
I should have posted it, if anyone wanted it. Credit to themanclaw's prop pack for the base texture. Recommended to use for EP1 because there's a white van crashed right outside the hospital lobby and that is what inspired me to make that van an ambulance.
I really like him too (it helps that he is really funny and the casserole gag is great), but I feel that sometimes he veers a little too far into the storywriting blunder known as "Oops we made every character think the sun shines out of the hero's ass, better make this guy a total prick to compensate".
I like that Magnusson doesn't suck Gordon's cock like most other characters. The fact that Barney treats Gordon as an equal, or at least on a relatable level rather than talking at him or about him in his presence makes him also more likeable than Alyx, IMO.
Erm, "I hope you're ready for a looong shift," is just referring to his shift that day. They've had a system crash, various doors and elevators aren't working, scientists are complaining about not being able to access their files, etc. So it's going to be a long irritating day. People say "I work the night shift" or "I work the day shift" or "I work the 10 till 6 shift"... and that's like saying "I work Blue Shift" or "I work Red Shift." But people also say "Can you cover my shift tomorrow?" or ""God, will this shift never end?!" and that means they are just talking about their scheduled hours today or tomorrow. If there was any proof that the accident actually happened on May 16th, then you'd be right that the letter indicates that Barney had been working in that part of the facility for just one day before the disaster. He started on Blue Shift on May 15th, it all went wrong on May 16th. But there isn't actually any proof that May 16th is the fateful day. If Gordon worked there for 3 weeks, or even 6 months, that would still be a 'brief tenure'. I always took the thing about the retinal scan not being necessary 'at this time' was because he was a lowly research associate that isn't yet trusted to let himself into the Anomalous Materials control room / test chamber anyway. While Barney was a security guard, he needed retinal scanner access because his entire job is letting people into high security areas. That said... you have raised a good point. Gordon's security clearance is Level 3, and there are signs/screens in Anomalous Materials that say "Security Clearance: Level 03", so you'd expect him to have high enough clearance, and therefore you'd expect him to be given retinal scanner access for all the doors. But hey, maybe Gordon has clearance to work in those areas, but doesn't have the clearance to let himself in or out. In fact it seems like none of the scientists have clearance to let themselves into the main airlock between the transit system at the lobby, as the security guard stationed there is supposed to check people's ID cards, press a code to unlock the train, and then press another code to open the airlock to the labs. Similarly, I imagine that the security guard who guards the retinal scanner down to the lower level - the one who tells Gordon he needs to wear his Hazard Suit, and that "you're in the barrel today" - is responsible for checking everyone and using the retinal scanner to let everyone in or out. His job would seem a bit superfluous if everyone except Gordon has retinal clearance to open that door themselves. But when it comes to the lower level, the scientists themselves have scanner access and let themselves into and out of the area between the control room and the test chamber. That's the only bit that I'd expect Gordon to have access to. Maybe he's just not worked there long enough for him to be given that kind of access. Or maybe it's just because Gordon's lazy. He was half an hour late for work on the day of the experiment, despite living in his workplace. The train-journey between the dorms and the lab is only 5 minutes, so managing to be half an hour late suggests Gordon doesn't have the greatest work ethic. Perhaps he just couldn't be bothered to make a special trip to the Personnel Department to get himself retinal scanned for the sake of opening the one door that he has sufficient security clearance to open! Hmm, you're right, I thought there was an old Marc Laidlaw quote saying he'd worked there for months, but I can't find that now so maybe I imagined it. However, when someone mentioned to Marc that Gearbox implied that the disaster happened on Gordon's first day... Originally posted by Marc Laidlaw: Hm...I don't remember stating that the Black Mesa Incident occurred on Gordon's first day of work. (Barney sure acts like he's known gordon a while) Although I might have. Shrug. Source: Marc Laidlaw Vault | ValveTime.net | Valve News, Forums, Steam Now if instead Marc had intended for the disaster to happen just one week after Gordon's first day at work, it seems like that Marc would have mentioned that. He'd have said something like "I don't remember stating that the Black Mesa Incident occurred on Gordon's first day of work, but it wasn't long after." But instead it was long enough for Barney to have known Gordon for "a while". Furthermore, when someone asked Marc whether Gordon did the Hazard Course on the day of the disaster, or perhaps the day before it, and he replied: Originally posted by Marc Laidlaw: The Hazard Course was done well before the rest of the game, at the very beginning of Gordon's employment. Sources: Word of God Has Spoken news The Hazard Course timetable says that Gordon did HEV training on 16th May. Marc Laidlaw has stated that the Hazard Course was 'well before', and 'at the very beginning' of Gordon's employment. Therefore, the disaster did not happen on 16th May. The only evidence that ever implied that the disaster was on the same day as the Hazard Course was the fact that the PS2 version of the Hazard Course has a scientist say "Why aren't these sensors working? I hope they aren't needed for today's training run..." Then he sees Gordon, says that things are in a 'state of commotion' but "the training facility software should be in working condition". People assumed those computer problems were part of the same system crash that happened on the morning of the disaster. (Including me, back when I did the incident timeline on my Lamda Project, and later when I did the incident timeline for the Planet Half-Life Wiki.) But with Marc Laidlaw's confirmation that the Hazard Course was not on the same day... well, it's just a coincidence. Black Mesa was plagued by computer problems. Evidence for the disaster happening within a week or two of Gordon starting work: 1) A security guard line at the start of Decay - "Everyone's talking about the new guy, Freeman." Done by Gearbox Software, not Valve. 2) The letter to Collette in the PS2 manual, dated 11th May, talking about delivering the sample to Gordon for the experiment. It would be odd for that letter to be done weeks or months before the experiment, so that does rather imply that it happened just a few days later. Again, done by Gearbox, not Valve. Evidence for the disaster happening several weeks or months after Gordon started work: 1) Gordon was good buddies with Barney. As Marc Laidlaw put it, in HL2 "Barney sure acts like he's known gordon a while". 2) Gordon was also good friends with Eli, and met his wife and baby. (Although of course that could have happened even if he'd only worked there a few days, especially if his old mentor Kleiner introduced them.) 3) In Episode 1, Alyx says that Barney told her how Gordon and Barney used to race each other through the vents to get into Kleiner's office, whenever he locked himself out. The wording implies this happened several times. Quite a lot of hijinks for Gordon and Barney to get up to together, if Gordon had only just started working there and they only knew each other a week or so. 4) In Opposing Force, there's a picture of Gordon as 'Employee of the Month'. Hard to do if you've worked somewhere less than a week and haven't conducted any experiments yet. (Of course this could just be dismissed as a joke or easter egg.) 5) Everyone in the Anomalous Materials lab greets Gordon by name, wishes him a good morning, etc. Impressive given that many of them are old, absent-minded professors who keep losing their glasses and coffee cups. Hard to imagine Gordon became good enough friends/acquaintances with them all for them to remember his name if he worked there for only a week or two. In a workplace of 50 colleagues I had a hard time remembering all my colleagues' names after a year of working there. 6) Gordon knows everyone well enough that he can get away with pulling pranks on his colleagues like setting off the security alarm, turning off light switches, messing with the microwave, etc. Who the hell would have the gumption to do that in their first week? 7) In HL2 there's a photo of Gordon posing with the rest of the Anomalous Materials team, and administrator Dr. Breen. If Gordon was only there a week or two, it's surprising he just happened to be there when they did a team photo. (Entirely possible, of course - I'm just saying it's a funny coincidence.) 8) In HL1, scientists throughout the entire facility have random lines like "Gordon, who'd have that that you'd have survived!" And "Ah, Freeman, I see that you are in this mess too." And even ones that don't know Gordon's name say "Ah, you are from the Anomalous Materials lab. Yes, I recognise you." Surely Gordon couldn't have that many friends and acquaintances in other departments if he'd only worked at Black Mesa for a week. 9) Planet Half-Life had a Half-Life story synopsis written by Marc Laidlaw. It included Gordon's backstory, such as his doctoral thesis at MIT and other tidbits like that. And it said "Each morning you ride the train to work from the employee dorms, you put on your environmental protection suit, you enter the test chamber," and then "But this morning is different. This morning, your test lab is suddenly the most important place on Earth - because something is going seriously wrong." The thing about 'every morning' doesn't really fit with the idea that Gordon had only just started work and was doing his first or second experiment in the test chamber. It suggests something that he's done long enough that it has become routine. Similarly, the Canadian box for Half-Life said "Just another day at the office. Or so you thought...until your experiment blew up in your face". Various other story synopsis describe "It was supposed to be a routine experiment" or "another day at the office". The way I see it, when Valve made Half-Life, their intention was that Gordon had worked there for a few months. They continued with that attitude in Half-Life 2. But when Gearbox was making the PS2 version of Half-Life, someone at Gearbox got it in their head that Gordon had only been at Black Mesa for a day or two, despite that not really making sense given that Gordon was pretty well established at Black Mesa and had a bunch of good friends. Valve/Marc Laidlaw's attitude to the whole "Are Gearbox expansions canon?" thing has been that they are semi-canon, they are true until contradicted by Valve... and Valve doesn't think about the Gearbox expansions so they will happily accidentally contradict them. And so Gearbox's idea that Gordon worked there for a day or two... well, Valve have thoroughly contradicted that. That's a Gearbox idea, that's only in the PS2 port, that's been shot down by word of god.
He has no reason to, Gordon certainly isn't anywhere near his intellectual level seeing as Gordon acts more like a nerdy Doom Slayer than a scientist. As far as he's concerned Freeman is just a weapon to be used, a really good one mind you and a symbol of the rebellion but Gordon isn't the one coming up with any long term plans.
YourEvilTwin broke this statement down a lot more in depth, but as an addendum, having worked security, the term 'long shift', not security-specific, mind, usually means that you're gonna be stationed somewhere incredibly dull and very uneventful -- as it seems Barney's Blue Shift post was going to be, since he was in a less-trafficked, more 'techy' section of the facility. The most you can do really is walk around -- if you're allowed to -- and look busy.
That's intentional, Breen even mentions it in a speech during Route Canal. We now have direct confirmation of a disruptor in our midst, one who has acquired an almost messianic reputation in the minds of certain citizens. His figure is synonymous with the darkest urges of instinct, ignorance and decay. Some of the worst excesses of the Black Mesa Incident have been laid directly at his feet. And yet unsophisticated minds continue to imbue him with romantic power, giving him such dangerous poetic labels as the One Free Man, the Opener of the Way. I chalk this up to people like Barney being old pals with Gordon, they don't need to act shyly around him. Heck Barney practically is Gordon's equal, even more than Alyx. Even though he never had Gman's eye, he escaped Black Mesa with a team of personnel he assembled, then went on to act as a spy for the resistance, before leading the charge through much of City 17, second only to you.
You're all wrong, Gordon's back story and employment time doesn't matter, its all an aesthetic made to suit the game engine. /s
Barney is an unsung hero who is probably three times as badass as Gordon because he never had no fancy dancy power armor, he just had his wits and a nine milimeter. And yet he will still gladly buy Gordon a beer whenever he asks, 'cos he's just that fucking cool. https://files.facepunch.com/forum/upload/229956/b2add92b-4e6a-4987-b94a-4034898cec91/becausethenight.jpg
Okay I can recognise where most of these security guards are from but why the fuck is there two whole clown ones
If you want the mystery spoiled for you I can, but it might be funnier if you never know.
Unfortunately that does not automatically make it good writing. Amen.
I think it's fine, I'm probably bias while talking about my favourite game of all time but Gordon is a man who personally ended the Black Mesa Incident, only to vanish off the face of the Earth for two decades, then one day he just plops back into existence and goes right back to what he was doing before; start killing invading aliens. Oh, and he looks exactly the same as he did two decades ago when he started. That alone sounds messianic as shit, and for people with no knowledge of the Gman, there's not a lot of explanations other than 'this guy is literally the fucking messiah'. I do think a lot of people in the resistance have deified Gordon, and the Combine's fear of him likely only made the case for him stronger. All he did was exist for a few minutes and now the Combine are scrambling to dismantle the resistance, mobilizing the metropolice and when he goes off the radar, scrambing dropships and soldiers to put down resistance networks outside of the city. People like Kleiner and Barney are old pals so of course they treat him more as an equal, but they also the only ones that know the truth about where he had been, and were bargaining for his return. It's also good to remember that a great deal of Earth's population were young children at the time of the invasion, and coupled with the drugs in the water, may have zero memory of what the world was like before, so the idea of a deity returning to liberate humanity probably doesn't sound any more outlandish than their own lives as slaves to an alien empire from a different dimension.
What's the rightmost one supposed to be?
I'm pretty sure it's Barney from Heart of Evil mod.
Now that you mention it that is a very interesting piece of the lore that is not often talked about. I wondered what they offered in return? Breen also hints that he had at least the opportunity to bid for Gordon's services from the G-man. I wonder what had happened then?
The real lore question is does Gordon just poop in the suit or does a little hatch open and it just falls out mid conversation.
Seeing as how HL1 and HL2 and the Episodes happened over the span of a week (HL1 is 2 days, HL2 is 3 days, Episode One is 1 day, Episode 2 is 1 day) and how HL1 began early in the morning and Gordon was late for work, he probably didn't had anything for breakfast and since he wasn't seen eating anything in the games, it meant he had nothing to poop out.
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.