History of Half-Life (1998 - 2020)

00:00:07.300crowbars headcrabs

00:00:09.980Black Mesa the g-man even if you're a

00:00:13.970casual gamer

00:00:15.019you've probably heard these terms used

00:00:16.580together before if not because of the

00:00:19.070ground breaking experiences that are a

00:00:20.660part of but because of the years of

00:00:22.550speculation regarding the experiences

00:00:24.380that have yet to come so for today's

00:00:26.720video

00:00:27.380in celebration of the upcoming release

00:00:29.180of half-life Alex I want to share with

00:00:31.759you the complete history of one of

00:00:33.380gaming's most influential series of all

00:00:35.420time half-life

00:00:38.340[Music]

00:01:05.630half-life is a series of first-person

00:01:07.950video games developed by valve software

00:01:10.430they Center primarily around a man named

00:01:13.110Gordon Freeman whose PhD in theoretical

00:01:15.720physics and unusual proficiency with a

00:01:18.300crowbar make him the ideal candidate for

00:01:20.550fighting back against a seemingly

00:01:21.990unstoppable alien invasion the series

00:01:24.930has influenced countless shooter games

00:01:26.880with its uniquely narrative-driven

00:01:28.290experience and is directly responsible

00:01:30.990for valves of rise in popularity

00:01:32.580throughout the 2000s resulting in the

00:01:35.220creation of several successful spin-off

00:01:36.900franchises along with the Steam desktop

00:01:39.330client that is mostly defined PC gaming

00:01:41.670for the past decade so what exactly

00:01:44.040about this first-person shooter game has

00:01:46.229earned it its legendary status among the

00:01:48.090industry and why has it taken valve 13

00:01:51.060years to finally release a new entry to

00:01:53.970help break it all down let's take it all

00:01:55.770the way back to the creation of valve

00:01:57.690itself in 1996 two software developers

00:02:05.100Gabe Newell and Mike Harrington left

00:02:07.500their jobs at Microsoft to form their

00:02:09.269own private game development studio

00:02:10.950called valve software the pair were

00:02:13.530inspired heavily by the success of ed

00:02:15.269software's quake and were convinced that

00:02:17.400they could make an even more narrative

00:02:19.080focused shooter experience this was of

00:02:21.810course not a common goal of game

00:02:23.370designers in the mid-90s and it proved

00:02:25.590to be an especially risky investment

00:02:27.360especially considering the commercial

00:02:29.220shortcomings of games like System Shock

00:02:30.690but valve didn't shy away from the idea

00:02:33.180and hired writer Marc Laidlaw to

00:02:35.340construct the game's plot Laidlaw

00:02:37.080inspired heavily by Stephen King's the

00:02:39.390mist and an old 1960s science fiction

00:02:42.030show pieced together ideas for a game

00:02:44.310set in a secret government facility

00:02:45.780under siege by bizarre otherworldly

00:02:48.510creatures but rather than just have the

00:02:51.150player run through each stage guns

00:02:52.799blazing valve wanted to have the player

00:02:54.930feel connected with the world with

00:02:56.700friendly companions that would

00:02:57.930communicate with the player directly and

00:02:59.519provide meaningful context for the

00:03:01.110action to help make this world a reality

00:03:03.570valve acquired a license to use the

00:03:05.519quake engine and then made several

00:03:07.380tweaks to it in order to allow for

00:03:08.730advanced artificial intelligence

00:03:10.130according to gabe newell the changes

00:03:12.570made were substantial leaving barely any

00:03:14.880of the original quake code intact

00:03:16.780and the engine would later be referred

00:03:18.250to as gold source in order to

00:03:20.200differentiate itself from future

00:03:21.819iterations of Valve's primary game

00:03:23.440engine as development continued into

00:03:29.2601997 the project ran into some major

00:03:31.930roadblocks the first was the search for

00:03:34.300a publisher to help distribute the game

00:03:36.160with games like doom and quake

00:03:38.200dominating the scene it was difficult to

00:03:40.239convince anyone that a shooter with any

00:03:42.069form of dialogue would be received well

00:03:43.840by audiences Sierra entertainment having

00:03:46.510previously missed out on an opportunity

00:03:47.800to publish doom were eager to jump on

00:03:50.050board and the game was set to release in

00:03:52.180September of the same year but as the

00:03:57.640team near the deadline many felt that

00:03:59.560the game simply wasn't fun to play the

00:04:02.260levels were dull and lacked any sort of

00:04:04.180distinct flow and the artificial

00:04:06.069intelligence failed to live up to

00:04:07.540expectations recognizing that the game

00:04:10.030simply wouldn't be worth releasing in

00:04:11.709its weak state valve made a costly

00:04:13.810decision and delayed the game by an

00:04:15.819entire year they then took a small group

00:04:18.430of individuals from each department and

00:04:20.169had them essentially build one big super

00:04:22.240level that contained all of the coolest

00:04:24.280moments and mechanics built so far this

00:04:26.919approach proved to be extremely helpful

00:04:28.810allowing each section lead to have a

00:04:30.790benchmark from what made a level

00:04:32.169interesting and fun to play the studio

00:04:34.810then formed something that valve

00:04:36.070referred to as a cabal that would meet

00:04:38.410four times a week as a sort of

00:04:39.820brainstorming session to bounce ideas

00:04:41.320off each other this changed the

00:04:43.180atmosphere in the studio dramatically

00:04:45.039allowing for more creative expression

00:04:46.990and unique ideas to come forth something

00:04:49.419that would prove to be a critical

00:04:50.740component in the developer success by

00:04:53.1691998 the team had a solid direction

00:04:55.570moving forward

00:04:56.440with things like environment being given

00:04:58.390an extra amount of attention to help

00:05:00.160differentiate itself from the sea of

00:05:01.930other shooters valve showed off their

00:05:04.090project at the Electronic Entertainment

00:05:05.590Expo to an overwhelmingly positive

00:05:07.479response

00:05:10.770the game was looking good with only a

00:05:13.150few months left before release

00:05:14.680but then valve ran into another

00:05:16.479devastating roadblock with a critical

00:05:18.970technical error nearly wiping out all of

00:05:20.830their work thankfully with only two

00:05:23.169months to spare they were able to

00:05:24.699scrounge together fragments of the code

00:05:26.380from everyone's computer in the office

00:05:28.120essentially piecing the project back

00:05:29.800together and in November of 1998 valve

00:05:32.919finally unleashed half-life and changed

00:05:35.470the gaming scene forever in the original

00:05:38.349half-life players assume the role of

00:05:39.910gordon freeman a renowned physicist who

00:05:42.280was given a job at a top-secret

00:05:43.539government research site called black

00:05:45.550mesa

00:05:46.030black mesa is a massive underground

00:05:48.490facility filled with the top minds all

00:05:50.590working on several highly confidential

00:05:52.509projects one day as freeman is using his

00:05:58.539advanced degree to press buttons and

00:06:00.370push carts around something goes

00:06:01.960terribly wrong resulting in what the

00:06:04.000scientists refer to as a resonance

00:06:05.830cascade opening portals between earth

00:06:08.139and an alien dimension called Xen

00:06:13.759interdimensional monsters like headcrabs

00:06:16.349and vortigaunts then begin attacking the

00:06:18.300Black Mesa staff forcing Gordon to

00:06:20.580spring into action beating everything

00:06:22.379down with his trusty crowbar but as

00:06:27.120Gordon begins to make his way topside it

00:06:29.099becomes clear that the government

00:06:30.509intends to cover up the incident and

00:06:32.219instructs military forces to begin

00:06:34.080cleansing the site adding an interesting

00:06:36.539twist to the narrative throughout the

00:06:38.370players journey they're also followed by

00:06:40.169a mysterious seemingly I'm the present

00:06:42.389man in a blue suit commonly referred to

00:06:44.580as the g-man whose identity and purpose

00:06:47.189in the narrative still remains a mystery

00:06:49.020to this day

00:06:52.520hoplites story may seem basic and cliche

00:06:55.560by today's standards but in 1998 it was

00:06:58.349basically unheard of to have any sort of

00:07:00.569meaningful connection with the world or

00:07:02.189its characters in a shooter game other

00:07:07.379games like System Shock had done it

00:07:09.180before but not quite to this degree

00:07:11.389characters will actually recognize the

00:07:13.650player shouting at Gordon's name and

00:07:15.719bringing up casual conversation to help

00:07:17.580expand on the backstory in some

00:07:19.650instances characters can be recruited to

00:07:21.629follow the player around either

00:07:23.159assisting with a locked door or even

00:07:25.289helping in combat the AI is also

00:07:27.900responsible for helping to explain the

00:07:29.460game rules with scripted sequences of AI

00:07:31.949being killed by new threats giving

00:07:33.870players a hint on how to avoid meeting

00:07:35.580the same fate

00:07:41.080[Music]

00:07:42.530these techniques coupled with the

00:07:44.730excellent level layouts help to make

00:07:46.560Black Mesa feel like a genuinely real

00:07:48.750place the locals what players explore

00:07:51.210basic amenities like offices labs and

00:07:53.880rest areas along with things like the

00:07:55.800electric transit system waste management

00:07:57.960area and the bordering cliff sides all

00:08:00.060these story elements and environments

00:08:02.760combine to make half-light a remarkably

00:08:04.950immersive experience but of course

00:08:07.200that's only half of the equation as

00:08:09.690halflife and its core is still a

00:08:11.640first-person shooter after a lengthy

00:08:15.210narrative sequence sets the stage for

00:08:16.830the action players are thrown into a

00:08:18.630gauntlet of increasingly more

00:08:20.100challenging encounters with enemies

00:08:21.510involving quick strafing maneuvers and

00:08:23.790as much firepower as possible like most

00:08:26.760shooters pairs are slowly introduced to

00:08:28.860new weapons throughout the game starting

00:08:30.750with basic firearms like a pistol

00:08:32.430shotgun and an mp5 and eventually being

00:08:35.099equipped with more powerful armaments

00:08:36.780like the rocket launcher Gauss gun and

00:08:38.909the experimental gluon gun the players

00:08:43.560are snow is riped with variety each

00:08:45.870offering their own unique benefits for

00:08:47.700players to take advantage of depending

00:08:49.320on the situation to go along with these

00:08:51.570weapons or a diverse selection of

00:08:53.160enemies both human and alien players

00:08:56.160start off fighting weaker enemies like

00:08:57.780the iconic headcrabs

00:08:59.190and their subsequent zombie hosts but

00:09:01.440will soon be met with more powerful

00:09:03.089adversaries like intelligent government

00:09:05.130commandos assassins alien grunts and the

00:09:08.040towering guards

00:09:13.290half-white also mixes up the gameplay

00:09:15.520loop by incorporating some white puzzle

00:09:17.650solving and platforming sequences these

00:09:20.170are arguably not the game's strongest

00:09:21.790assets especially the late Zen based

00:09:24.100stages but they succeed in mixing up the

00:09:26.470monotony of shooting alien baddies for

00:09:28.360hours on end once players complete the

00:09:30.580game's single-player experience they can

00:09:32.140also jump online into the hectic 32

00:09:34.600player competitive deathmatch complete

00:09:36.910with a set of character models to choose

00:09:38.170from and unique maps based around the

00:09:40.120Black Mesa facility overall half-light

00:09:45.400greatly exceeded Valve's expectations

00:09:47.470with sales more than doubling their

00:09:49.570initial estimates in a cheap high

00:09:51.730critical acclaim across the gaming scene

00:09:53.470with sites like IGN calling it the

00:09:55.810definitive singleplayer FPS game

00:09:58.020audiences everywhere embraced the game's

00:10:00.460deeply immersive environments and a part

00:10:02.830of the game for trying to do something

00:10:04.240different with non-stop shooting

00:10:06.040galleries being mixed with more

00:10:07.600thoughtful world building and puzzle

00:10:09.250solving half life help to put valve on

00:10:11.740the map as a serious contender in the

00:10:13.690industry and has been the source of

00:10:15.940inspiration for countless games since

00:10:17.680many of which have been derived directly

00:10:19.839from its own code including fan made

00:10:22.120mods like counter-strike Team Fortress

00:10:24.010and day of defeat with valves newfound

00:10:26.800success the studio turned their

00:10:28.360attention to the next major step both

00:10:29.920for half-life and their brand identity

00:10:31.959as valve dwelled way on their next

00:10:35.200project they reached out to gearbox

00:10:36.970software to work on various ports and

00:10:38.680expansions for half-life the first

00:10:40.810expansion called opposing force gives

00:10:42.880players a chance to experience the

00:10:44.110events of the Black Mesa incident from a

00:10:45.820soldier's perspective

00:10:48.529the players character named Adrienne

00:10:51.209Shepard is part of the response team

00:10:53.069responsible for wiping any trace of the

00:10:54.990alien invasion along with its witnesses

00:10:56.910but after crash-landing and being forced

00:10:59.670to survive against waves of alien foes

00:11:01.500things take a turn for the worst as a

00:11:03.660new race of aliens enter the scene and

00:11:05.759complicate matters further this

00:11:07.589expansion helps to fill in the gaps at

00:11:09.329the end of the original game while also

00:11:11.279introducing new questions adding even

00:11:13.589more to the overarching plot from a game

00:11:16.290perspective opposing force place mostly

00:11:18.360the same though players can now interact

00:11:20.550with a few friendly soldiers in unique

00:11:22.259ways with NPCs like medics able to heal

00:11:25.019the player and engineers that will help

00:11:26.819clear obstructions in doorways after the

00:11:30.779positive reception to opposing force

00:11:32.459gearbox began working on a special Sega

00:11:34.740Dreamcast part of the original half-life

00:11:36.209complete with an exclusive story

00:11:38.399expansion that would feature a playable

00:11:40.050black mesas security guard but only a

00:11:42.480month before the game was set to release

00:11:44.100the port was cancelled by Sierra

00:11:45.660entertainment and the new expansion

00:11:47.339instead released again for the PC along

00:11:50.310with an additional high-definition model

00:11:52.079pack that increased the quality of the

00:11:53.639character models in the base game the

00:11:55.620expansion named blue shift is a lot like

00:11:58.050opposing force and that players control

00:12:00.300another witness to the Black Mesa

00:12:01.829incident a security officer named Barney

00:12:04.529Calhoun the story helps to explain how

00:12:07.139some of the characters managed to escape

00:12:08.699the facility but it's otherwise a much

00:12:10.949less remarkable addition to the

00:12:12.269experience it features a less weapon

00:12:14.490variety less enemies and fails to

00:12:16.410introduce anything really different to

00:12:17.970the formula Gearbox's final expansion

00:12:20.610beliefs in 2001 this time exclusively

00:12:23.459for the PlayStation 2 as part of a new

00:12:25.529port of the original game unlike the

00:12:28.050other two expansions decay features a

00:12:30.389unique two-player co-op campaign with

00:12:32.730two female scientists that once again

00:12:34.980were witnesses to the Black Mesa

00:12:36.509incident the game can be played in

00:12:38.850split-screen we're in a sort of

00:12:40.350asynchronous single-player Meriden where

00:12:42.779the player is forced to press a button

00:12:43.829to swap back and forth between dr.

00:12:45.660Greene and dr. cross a complete

00:12:47.699objective separately this version of

00:12:49.769half-life along with this unique co-op

00:12:51.720expansion where bed with familiar praise

00:12:53.699from gaming journalists though many

00:12:55.920noted that the new decay mode wasn't

00:12:57.959quite as interesting as the past two

00:12:59.370expansions as it straight away from its

00:13:01.860that a bit too much in favor for more

00:13:04.079puzzle oriented game play after gearbox

00:13:06.990wrapped up work on their final expansion

00:13:08.490attention turned back to valve who had

00:13:10.589been steadily working on the future of

00:13:12.300their game engine architecture their new

00:13:14.850engine referred to as source was built

00:13:17.310to be more modular allowing for periodic

00:13:19.440updates to gradually improve its

00:13:20.910capabilities but this design would

00:13:23.310require continuous updates on the client

00:13:25.230side so valve

00:13:26.519simultaneously worked on building the

00:13:27.899foundation of what would later become

00:13:29.399the Steam desktop application in the

00:13:32.220early 2000s gamers were not on board

00:13:34.500with the idea of installing a separate

00:13:35.970update distribution program games after

00:13:38.579all were typically installed using

00:13:40.410physical disks and updated manually

00:13:42.089through patches listed on each

00:13:43.440developer's website but Gabe Newell

00:13:45.779sought to do away with this outdated

00:13:47.610concept and stepped away from game

00:13:49.709development in order to focus his time

00:13:51.450more exclusively to this new venture the

00:13:54.180client was unsurprisingly not popular

00:13:56.339upon release with many citing technical

00:13:58.709issues and accusing it of hogging

00:14:00.300resources but valve remained determined

00:14:03.089and thus steam was born as a team of

00:14:11.310engineers worked on fine-tuning their

00:14:12.930new distribution method the core

00:14:14.730development team at valve continued to

00:14:16.500work on development of the source engine

00:14:18.060with an increased emphasis on advanced

00:14:20.430character facial manipulation and the

00:14:22.380incorporation of Havoc's physics

00:14:24.060software both of which would serve to

00:14:26.399once again raise the bar for the

00:14:27.930industry with these new tools at their

00:14:30.089disposal the next half-life would

00:14:31.740undergo years of development early

00:14:34.019concepts had the player traveling across

00:14:35.670planets fighting aliens but this was

00:14:37.890later scrapped in favor of unique

00:14:39.720Eastern European City under martial law

00:14:42.300by a ruthless force of humanoid alien

00:14:44.699overlords just like with the original

00:14:46.890game the development teams utilized

00:14:48.510cabal's to brainstorm unique and

00:14:50.100interesting concepts and constructed a

00:14:52.019new prototype map that would help paint

00:14:54.060a clearer picture of how the new source

00:14:55.769tools could be used to create engaging

00:14:57.420scenarios as development continued Gabe

00:15:00.240Newell would periodically be shown

00:15:01.769samples of the project offering

00:15:03.510suggestions and ways to improve on the

00:15:05.399formula but he wasn't quite as involved

00:15:07.949as he used to be by 2003 nearly four

00:15:10.829years since work had begun valve was

00:15:12.930finally ready to show off the progress

00:15:14.640and

00:15:15.390heretic gameplay traveler to be shown at

00:15:17.100the Electronic Entertainment Expo the

00:15:19.800height for the game was through the roof

00:15:21.660while it wasn't quite as visually

00:15:23.670impressive as stage competitors like

00:15:25.320Doom 3 half way to still manage to steal

00:15:27.960the show with its groundbreaking physics

00:15:30.390manipulation and its unprecedented

00:15:32.130attention to environmental detail city

00:15:34.80017 looked to be a real place to explore

00:15:37.440deep with history and intrigue and the

00:15:40.440gameplay shown was incredible with many

00:15:42.810questioning whether valve was showing

00:15:44.520fake scripted sequences in the months

00:15:47.100following its reveal the hyper half-life

00:15:49.0202 mounted significantly fans were

00:15:51.420growing impatient and the late 2003

00:15:53.400release date was coming up fast

00:15:55.110then only a week before its release Gabe

00:15:57.960Newell made the devastating announcement

00:15:59.400that half-life 2 would need to be

00:16:01.530delayed this disappointment was followed

00:16:03.720soon after by a major data theft of vows

00:16:05.970unfinished work resulting in a leak of

00:16:08.370both the code for the source engine and

00:16:10.050an incomplete version of the game itself

00:16:12.140morale hit an all-time low moving into

00:16:15.1202004 as hours were increased for staff

00:16:17.670and development costs stacked higher by

00:16:20.640March the game was finally in a more

00:16:22.410playable state and the team spent the

00:16:24.540remainder of their time fine-tuning the

00:16:26.250experience as the new 2004 release date

00:16:29.190approached valve began to market the

00:16:30.720game more than ever and even agreed to

00:16:32.700have a third party develop a

00:16:34.020side-scrolling platformer based on the

00:16:35.520half-life universe half-life 2 was on

00:16:38.010track to become a major hit and valve

00:16:40.140knew it seeing it as a major opportunity

00:16:42.660to really push their new desktop client

00:16:44.760using the source engine they

00:16:46.560simultaneously built new versions of fan

00:16:48.540paper games including counter-strike day

00:16:50.880of defeat and a disappointing port of

00:16:52.830half-life these titles along with

00:16:56.340half-life 2 served as the first major

00:16:58.410incentive to install steam and in

00:17:00.630October of 2004 valve finally released

00:17:03.300the highly anticipated half-life 2

00:17:05.400half-life 2 takes place several years

00:17:07.949after the events of the original game

00:17:09.420with gordon freeman finally awakening

00:17:11.970from stasis and departing a train into

00:17:13.829an Eastern European style city called

00:17:15.720city 17 that is ruled by a new race of

00:17:18.540aliens called the combine

00:17:22.220as Freeman explores more of the city it

00:17:24.930becomes clear that during his stasis the

00:17:27.060combine have conquered the planet and

00:17:28.830have forced the remaining human

00:17:30.360survivors into submission

00:17:31.890while there's some familiar elements

00:17:33.930from the original game like portals n

00:17:36.060creatures in the HEV suit half-life 2

00:17:38.760feels like a drastically different

00:17:39.960experience the world is rich with detail

00:17:43.170with tons of scripted sequences to

00:17:45.510expand upon the lore along with plenty

00:17:47.700of environmental storytelling

00:17:48.660opportunities the beautiful Eastern

00:17:53.010European countryside contrasts heavily

00:17:55.320with the harsh metal combine structures

00:17:57.450creating a setting unlike any other in

00:18:00.090videogames at the time but it's the

00:18:02.700characters that really steal the show

00:18:04.260with much more expressive animations and

00:18:06.900personality than in the past I better

00:18:09.810hurry characters from the Black Mesa

00:18:11.700incident return including Barney Calhoun

00:18:14.070dr. kleiner and Eli the latter two of

00:18:17.070which were never really introduced

00:18:18.660before they're also joined by series

00:18:20.790newcomers like Alex Vance and her pet

00:18:22.860robot dog both of which give the game a

00:18:25.710refreshing amount of personality it's a

00:18:28.260very ambitious story something that's

00:18:30.600also reflected in the design of its

00:18:32.220gameplay players are no longer

00:18:34.740restricted to the narrow halls of a

00:18:36.330government facility but can now explore

00:18:38.700a much larger environment filled with

00:18:41.010alternate paths and secret loot stashes

00:18:43.460while the game is still very much linear

00:18:45.960there's a sense of exploration and

00:18:47.880discovery this time around assist it

00:18:50.010even further by the inclusion of large

00:18:51.840vehicle sections that players can have

00:18:53.640complete control over but quite possibly

00:18:56.580the biggest change to half-life 2's

00:18:58.050gameplay is how it incorporates physics

00:19:00.000into the action almost everything not

00:19:02.910nailed down can be interacted with in

00:19:04.980the sequel either by picking it up and

00:19:07.110walking around with it or by means of

00:19:09.240the new gravity gun that can pick up

00:19:11.430even larger objects and blast them away

00:19:13.320with tremendous force

00:19:17.419half-life 2's physics allow for much

00:19:19.740more interesting puzzle designs like

00:19:21.900needing to account for buoyancy or

00:19:23.700weight displacement in order to reach

00:19:25.289new paths players can even manipulate

00:19:27.179the world's physics to defeat enemies

00:19:28.980either by blasting them with heavy

00:19:30.750objects or causing debris to crash down

00:19:32.880on top of them and while it's tempting

00:19:34.799to play around with the physics as much

00:19:36.390as possible players will still need to

00:19:38.130wield more conventional weapons like

00:19:40.380pistols shotguns assault rifles and of

00:19:43.140course

00:19:43.620Gordon's trusty crowbar good luck out

00:19:45.659there buddy weapons now all feature an

00:19:49.230alternate fire allowing for even more

00:19:51.210varied approaches to enemy encounters

00:19:52.880the enemies have also seen a few tweaks

00:19:55.260the primary enemies face throughout the

00:19:57.510game or the combine the mostly

00:20:02.760militaristic infantry force that are

00:20:04.799often backed up by powerful alien

00:20:06.240vehicles and flying drones other enemies

00:20:09.000include the new insectoid ant lion

00:20:11.039creatures that serve as more of a

00:20:12.840neutral combatant and the return of the

00:20:15.330head crabs some of which have evolved to

00:20:17.610be even more deadly and aggressive

00:20:21.529half-life 2 was a massive success

00:20:23.990exceeding fan expectations it released

00:20:27.210to a glowing critical response without

00:20:29.190words like games by and the New York

00:20:31.230Times giving it their highest scores

00:20:32.940many praised the game for its beautiful

00:20:35.190storytelling components and more

00:20:36.960interesting characters while others

00:20:38.909applauded valve for their genius

00:20:40.350implementation of physics into the

00:20:42.210gameplay design and while this certainly

00:20:44.159helped to strengthen the half-life

00:20:45.690series the most important outcome of the

00:20:47.880sequel success was how it impacted

00:20:49.770Valve's new Steam client with the help

00:20:52.380of counter-strike source day of defeat

00:20:54.270source and now half-life 2 steam was off

00:20:57.179at a running start and valve finally had

00:20:59.610the freedom to expand their brand

00:21:01.020significantly they began welcoming other

00:21:03.899game developers to distribute their

00:21:05.429games on the steam store taking a

00:21:07.470sizeable percentage of the sales and

00:21:09.510quickly became the undisputed champion

00:21:11.490of the digital PC game marketplace

00:21:13.730meanwhile software engineers at valve

00:21:16.140also continued to build upon the source

00:21:18.000engine enhancing things like character

00:21:19.980facial animations artificial

00:21:21.600intelligence and implementing new HDR

00:21:23.850wedding effects to showcase these

00:21:26.130effects valve released half-life 2 Lost

00:21:28.440Coast

00:21:29.770of demo using old script material for

00:21:32.020half-life 2 this along with the release

00:21:34.540of a standalone deathmatch mode help to

00:21:36.640hold fans over as they waited anxiously

00:21:38.320for a follow-up to half-life twos major

00:21:40.630cliffhanger in 2006 valve explained how

00:21:43.840they plan on handling half life's

00:21:45.309ambitious narrative moving forward

00:21:47.040rather than keeping fans waiting for

00:21:49.510several years at a time fans could now

00:21:51.700expect a trilogy of episodes released

00:21:53.830roughly 6 to 8 months apart from each

00:21:56.020other along with additional episodes

00:21:58.030created by third-party developers like

00:21:59.830Junction point and Arkane Studios the

00:22:03.670first episode released in 2006 and takes

00:22:06.370place directly after the events of

00:22:07.870half-life 2 with Gordon and Alex need to

00:22:10.750escape the ruins of the collapsing

00:22:12.370Citadel unlike the base game episode 1

00:22:17.050features a much more focused narrative

00:22:18.970experience scripted events play a bigger

00:22:21.490role in the layout in the AI especially

00:22:23.950Alex now react more directly to the

00:22:26.170player's actions while not as lengthy as

00:22:28.660the base game episode 1 was still well

00:22:31.059received by fans many praised it for its

00:22:33.790more interesting story and solid

00:22:35.320gameplay design and its next cliffhanger

00:22:37.780kept players wanting more to help

00:22:40.450streamline efforts valve simultaneously

00:22:42.700had a separate team working on the

00:22:44.170development of episode 2 that again

00:22:46.420would pick up directly after the events

00:22:48.309of the past adventure episode 2 kicks

00:22:51.250off with Gordon and Alex having just

00:22:53.110survived a massive train wreck and

00:22:54.730centers on the pair traveling the

00:22:56.440neighbouring countryside as they attempt

00:22:58.150to reach a resistance base called white

00:22:59.890forest episode 2 adds even more to the

00:23:02.800half-life series with a major story

00:23:04.840revelation new enemies like the combine

00:23:07.059hunters and advisors and an epic

00:23:09.670showdown with several more Striders

00:23:11.580recognizing its significance valve also

00:23:14.050packaged episode 2 with two more unique

00:23:16.360projects a sequel to team fortress and a

00:23:19.360new spin-off puzzle series set in the

00:23:21.250half-life universe called

00:23:22.450portal this package called the orange

00:23:25.090box was hugely successful especially the

00:23:27.850surprise hit portal that valve initially

00:23:29.980planned as an experimental project with

00:23:32.800its success valve recognized the

00:23:34.600potential of diversifying its portfolio

00:23:36.330and continued to expand with additional

00:23:38.800portal content like first slice and

00:23:40.570still alive

00:23:41.950with constant updates to counter-strike

00:23:43.870and Team Fortress 2 both of which

00:23:45.910developed a massive following the orange

00:23:48.970box also came packaged with a teaser for

00:23:51.070a new game developed by Turtle Rock

00:23:53.020Studios but even with all the new hype

00:23:55.420and attention that valves side projects

00:23:57.130were garnering fans of half-life were

00:23:58.990still left in shock after the

00:24:00.490cliffhanger at the end of episode 2

00:24:02.290hopeful that episode 3 would provide a

00:24:04.960satisfying closure but that closure

00:24:07.420never came rise and shine mr. Freeman

00:24:19.480rise and shine December 2007 that's when

00:24:26.710episode 3 was supposed to release that

00:24:29.350was the month players would be able to

00:24:30.790explore the ruins of the borealis

00:24:32.350trapped in the Arctic ice but December

00:24:34.810came and went with complete silence

00:24:36.780according to an interview with Doug

00:24:38.740Lombardi a marketing director of red

00:24:40.660valve episode 3 was delayed a year and

00:24:43.300put blame on new experiences like left 4

00:24:45.490dead and Team Fortress 2 for pulling

00:24:47.050focus away but then the weight rolled

00:24:49.390into 2009 with fake leaks starting to

00:24:52.060emerge causing significant market

00:24:54.160confusion and fan frustration this

00:24:56.500frustration reached a fevered pitch in

00:24:58.5402009 when instead of information on the

00:25:01.120future of half-life valve instead

00:25:03.070decided to announce a sequel to left 4

00:25:05.020dead only a year after its original game

00:25:07.570released written petitions and protests

00:25:10.600began to emerge as fans demanded

00:25:12.460information from valve but valve

00:25:14.380remained silent KP Newell finally broke

00:25:17.290that silence in early 2010 bringing up a

00:25:20.410few ideas regarding introducing more

00:25:22.330psychological horror but a few months

00:25:24.340later valve did it again and announced a

00:25:26.650sequel to a different property this time

00:25:28.390portal by 2011 hope for a conclusion to

00:25:32.260the story began to fade as both Lombardi

00:25:34.630and co-writer Chet Faliszek stated that

00:25:37.030they had nothing to share regarding

00:25:38.560half-life throughout the course of the

00:25:40.4502010s half-life 3 started to turn into a

00:25:42.820sort of urban legend fans started to

00:25:45.430find hints and everything valve did

00:25:47.170piecing together numbers in hopes of

00:25:49.300finding a shred of evidence of what to

00:25:50.950expect

00:25:51.600fake t-shirts were made fake websites

00:25:54.580started to crop

00:25:55.420and jokes about valve failing to count

00:25:57.520to three started to become commonplace

00:25:59.340even games that were once criticized for

00:26:01.870occupying valves development time like

00:26:03.700left 4 dead and portal are now in the

00:26:05.800same boat with fans of each series

00:26:08.020waiting desperately for news on a new

00:26:10.060entry following the success of steam

00:26:12.250valve had seemingly begun to move into

00:26:14.410more of an administrative role with game

00:26:16.810development becoming a low priority

00:26:19.950the additional episodes Gabe Newell had

00:26:22.570promised back in 2006 had also fallen

00:26:24.730through the first was a prequel created

00:26:27.160by junction point studios that would

00:26:29.080have shown how the zombie infested town

00:26:30.700of Ravenholm

00:26:31.540had initially fallen apart it would have

00:26:33.970featured a new magnet based weapon along

00:26:36.400with more backstory for father Grigori a

00:26:38.530character featured briefly in the base

00:26:40.240game but this project would never see

00:26:42.790the light of day and the studio was

00:26:44.710eventually purchased by Disney to create

00:26:46.630the platformer Epic Mickey in 2011

00:26:50.170another data theft occurred this time at

00:26:52.600idose interactive among the files stolen

00:26:55.000were CBS that suggested the team of

00:26:57.310developers from Arkane studios had been

00:26:59.320collaborating with valve to create a

00:27:00.850separate half-life episode this episode

00:27:03.160given the working name returned to Raven

00:27:05.830home would have seen players travel back

00:27:07.840to the zombie infested town after the

00:27:09.640events of half-life 2 story the project

00:27:12.220was in development for only a short

00:27:13.840while around the same time that valve

00:27:15.670was working on episodes 1 & 2 but it was

00:27:18.400also cancelled this time out of fear

00:27:20.710that the material would have been

00:27:21.880redundant and uninteresting valve

00:27:24.400subsequently shifted their focus even

00:27:26.500more towards other projects the released

00:27:28.930games like an updated counter-strike

00:27:30.760called global Offensive and dota 2 but

00:27:33.820information regarding half-life remained

00:27:35.740non-existent in 2016 lead writer of

00:27:38.980half-life Marc Laidlaw left valve after

00:27:41.410an internal disagreement and decided to

00:27:43.600turn his focus into writing his own

00:27:45.220stories instead a year later Laidlaw

00:27:47.920helped to ease the pain half vice

00:27:49.420mysterious disappearance had caused fans

00:27:51.220by releasing a cryptic summary of

00:27:53.200episode threes narrative it details the

00:27:55.780journey players would have taken to the

00:27:57.250Arctic to find the wrecked remains of

00:27:59.080the borealis trapped in a glacier

00:28:00.820constantly faced shifting through time

00:28:02.850to avoid interfering with any of Valve's

00:28:05.590future plans with the property the

00:28:07.390entire three-page document

00:28:09.130voices distinct names and locations with

00:28:11.050nonsense ones including le vaunt instead

00:28:14.440of Eli Vance and the Hyperborea

00:28:16.930instead of the borealis and while it's

00:28:19.660not technically canon this was the

00:28:21.850initial intention for the final episode

00:28:23.470of half-life 2 and with that bittersweet

00:28:26.530reveal it seemed as though all hope was

00:28:28.570lost for the legendary franchise however

00:28:34.780this turned out to not be the case

00:28:36.630throughout the mid 2010 dad was working

00:28:39.340on ways to innovate with the half-life

00:28:40.960formula one of half-life's most defining

00:28:43.570features after all was how it

00:28:45.040transcended industry norms and what

00:28:47.560better way to do so today then to make

00:28:49.570the ultimate killer application for the

00:28:51.490emerging interest in virtual reality

00:28:53.610valve worked closely with a tech company

00:28:55.960called HTC to develop the HTC vive

00:28:58.690allowing them to familiarize themselves

00:29:00.730with the software and technology to help

00:29:03.880showcase their efforts they designed a

00:29:05.530sort of demo reel called the lab with

00:29:08.170one demo in particular being part of a

00:29:10.360larger project involving half-life

00:29:12.070finally in November of 2019 valve

00:29:15.100revealed the VR exclusive half-life Alex

00:29:17.770the final entry so far in the half-life

00:29:20.260series half-life alex is a prologue to

00:29:22.780half-life 2 and follows side character

00:29:25.180Alex advance as she fights against

00:29:27.160combine forces in city 17 based on the

00:29:30.850trailer shown players will need to make

00:29:32.440use of their VR headsets to manipulate

00:29:34.420the environment directly both for

00:29:36.550dealing with enemies and solving puzzles

00:29:37.990the game's announcement has since driven

00:29:40.630up sales for VR headsets but we'll have

00:29:43.300to wait and see if Alex will finally be

00:29:45.250virtual reality's first truly killer app

00:29:47.650and whether like its predecessors it

00:29:50.110will change the scape of gaming forever

00:29:51.760and you can expect a full coverage of

00:29:54.160half-life Alex including comparisons and

00:29:56.290a detailed review next month that is

00:29:58.510assuming valve manages to meet their

00:30:00.400deadline and doesn't go sound for

00:30:01.930another decade

00:30:04.700crowbars headcrabs Black Mesa and the

00:30:07.639g-man now you have the full story what

00:30:11.090started as an opportunity to build a

00:30:12.710narrative driven experience has exploded

00:30:14.690into one of gaming's most revered gaming

00:30:17.029icons half-life represents more than

00:30:19.730just a fun shooter experience with an

00:30:21.470interesting story it helps to signify

00:30:23.749the start of a new era in the

00:30:25.340first-person shooter genre the original

00:30:27.769game popularized the idea of

00:30:29.359implementing story into the shooting

00:30:31.009formula with rocket launchers and

00:30:32.929machine guns being coupled together with

00:30:34.879unique locations and characters

00:30:36.580half-life 2 expanded upon these concepts

00:30:39.409while also incorporating advanced

00:30:41.389technologies like physics more

00:30:42.919seamlessly into the gameplay and also

00:30:44.929helped to jumpstart steam and here we

00:30:47.539are in 2020 with half-life Alex aiming

00:30:50.389to conquer the vr space which if history

00:30:53.299is any indication could very much end up

00:30:55.609being the case so what do you guys think

00:30:58.279is half-life Alex the next step for the

00:31:00.499series or Rory is still holding out hope

00:31:02.720for half-life 3 let me know in the

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00:31:39.780[Music]