Half-Life 4/Ideas and speculation

[Frosty Dr.]

Now, we all seem to be waiting on HL3, but to think about a HL4 would be more interesting, as we'd have no clue what it would be about, and it's mystery makes it exciting somehow. I randomly came up with this plot here.

If you don't want to read this whole plot here, just skip to the bottom of the page and speculate on what HL4 might be like if Valve took it into consideration after HL3.

HL4 would be after all this mess going about in HL3, destroying the Borealis for example, destroying the Combine, etc. as far as Valve goes, they've probabely taken into account making a HL4 if HL3 goes well enough and doesn't end Half-Life altogether. HL3's gonna be mainly about the Borealis and learning further on about G-man, HL4 might be about the second generation after the Combine... (a second Generation!! So imagine if Gordon and Alyx, uh, had a kid....)

HL4 starts off a long time after HL3...

(1): Gordon's kid reaches about 17 or 18, the Combine haven't been entirely been killed but have not gotten their grip on the Earth again, their only scattered forces on Earth gathering up together an army to get at Gordon and/or his family (well, he escaped them, got them mad, killed them, etc. so why wouldn't they want him?) Gordon goes on a mission alone to gather up the Resistance team.

They head on to find this Combine army, and get captured, probably killed, after no return for two weeks, everyone at home start to get worried, then Gordon's kid, oh come on, I feel as if he/she needs a temporary name, I'd bet it to be a dude, so as a temporary name I'd go with Jordan (lol). Then Jordan and Alyx head off to find Gordon.


(2): After searching with Resistance members, they come across this place (why am I imagining this whole plot so far to be in some snowy environment?) in the rocks, or some secret Combine hideout, it is noticeable by showings of slight Combine tech around the entrance. They plan to ambush these Combine.

They do it, but only to realise that Gordon and some of the fellow Resistance members with him are gone, this place was only a temp. place to hold them. While at this base, they manage to pinpoint the next location of the Combine, and possibley where Gordon's being held. This whole journey all leads to a bigger place that DOES hold the Combine army gathered together. Now, Alyx is determined to believe that Gordon is still alive while most of the Res. members are starting to get convinced he's dead...


(3): As this jouney continues, Jordan get's a vision, or more like, he sees and meets G-man, G-man states to Jordan that if he wishes to see his father alive, he must complete a test for G-man, G-man has in mind that Jordan could posses the similar abilities to Gordon as well as special abilities, and he is therefore interested in him.

Alyx, Jordan, and their Resistance team find this Combine army. Jordan convinces everyone to stay behind, as they try to tell him it's too dangerous to go alone into the clutches of the Combine without a fight, eh, anyway, (so yeah, he goes and let's himself get captured) he doesn't just do this out of random, G-man told him this was part of his test, and he must go. The Combine almost thought to kill him, but they see he wants to be taken, Jordan get's in there, right in the middle of their army, and what he does from here on out is special. Jordan sends an EMP shockwave into the whole area and shatters the Combine eardrums!! lol (ok that was uncalled for) So turns out Jordan has a secret weapon he built in secret, and G-man wanted to see how it works, as well as see how well Jordan's ability is.

Ok. now, that. was. long. but we aren't done yet.

Part (4) of this big plot!: Gordon, as well as Alyx, are suprised to see that Jordan created a giant EMP shockwave into a small device, HA, (anything's possible in stories) Gordon, on the otherhand, is beaten up, now, if the team had been any longer, the Combine would've killed him then and there. The team head on back homewards, Jordan receives messages from G-man, telling him he did a great job... Then the whole Gordon working for G-man begins again, and if Gordon can see it, he'll stop the same things repeating themselves, and tells Jordan that whatever he does, not to listen to the man in the blue suit with a brief case.... The End.

And rumors of a HL4: episode 1 take place, for these are the times of Jordan Freeman!

Important bit: *phew* What a lot to get off my chest, thanks for reading if you read that enitre thing! Now, comment time! Also if you have anything better, some part needs something a little more in it, OR something more exciting! be so kind as to share it! It's comment time, what do you think of that plot? Also speculate about HL4 and what it might be like after HL3, we already know a lot about HL3, enough to make up it's story, but of course, Valve will be the ones to give us HL3's official story plot.

[Polar Express]

First of all, I love the idea of Jordan Freeman. That name just fits Valve's quirky sense of humor, without being too silly for Half-Life. I think that the story you have here is good, but personally, I don't think that the protagonist should find Gordon, at least not this early in the storyline.

This is for two reasons:
1. Having Gordon around this early in the game would almost necessitate some lines of dialogue from him. When we're playing as Gordon, it isn't that odd that he never speaks, but when we play as someone other than Gordon it would seem somewhat out of place to have him be completely silent. Of course, the alternative would be to have Gordon speak, but if Metroid: Other M has taught me anything; no.

(Side note: I think that it would be hilarious if Alyx mentioned something about all of the late night talks she would have with Gordon about what the world was like before Black Mesa. "We would always stay up late at night talking about our lives; what we stand for, and why we are the way we are." she might say. This would be a great comedy moment, because we've never once seen Gordon Freeman speak, but having Alyx suggest the idea that they would stay up late at night talking seems completely out of character for Gordon. Yet it all happened off camera. Hilarious, yes?)

2. Having Jordon struggling with the fact that his father has been abducted and possibly killed by the Combine gives Jordan motivation as a character. He has to find his dad. He has to. This would also allow the story develop past what you have planned here. What you have is a great first act, but I think that it could be more fulfilling as a story and as a video game to have the story be a little bit longer.

For example, Jordan finally finds his dad Gordon in the massive Combine complex, similarly to what you mentioned above, but this time something goes wrong. Just as Jordan is about to free his dad, an Advisor or some other sort of vile alien comes and steals Gordon away, taking him through a portal to Xen/Combine-Homeworld/some other alien planet.

This would be tragic for Jordan. He learned his dad was alive, he almost rescued him, yet he failed, and had his dad was stolen from him at the last moment. This would be a great story moment, which would motivate Jordan and the player for the second act. And to top it all off, this would all be accomplished without a single line of dialogue.

Then there could be a second act where Jordan frees Gordon, only to discover some bigger threat, which would be a fulfilling climax for the game, I believe. (Of course, I have no idea what this unforseen threat would be. Any ideas?)

Overall, what you came up with is pretty awesome, ๖ۣۜPeaceRλptor. I'm really glad that you made a seperate post for this. Great job!

I'm excited to continue speculating about Half-Life 4, because you never want to be caught unprepared by unforseen consequences. ;)

[Frosty Dr.]

Messaggio originale di revrad65:

Then there could be a second act where Jordan frees Gordon, only to discover some bigger threat, which would be a fulfilling climax for the game, I believe. (Of course, I have no idea what this unforseen threat would be. Any ideas?)

Well, overall, yes, thanks for that whole big post, it all makes sense, and as I would've said, I made it up as I went along, so I didn't have real time to think up much about the plot, ok now to that little part I quoted from you. I have a great idea to what this threat could be, we know the Nihilanth was controller of the aliens on Xen,and was killed by Gordon in HL1, now, just think, if Gordon was taken to the Combine Overworld, don't you think there would be a big boss kinda like the Nihilanth? Yes, I'm saying a big boss commanding the Combine to do it's will, and this big boss can pose a great threat to Earth if it is released, it could become unstoppable! So it's up to Jordan to take on his father's role as a big hero, and defeat this boss before he is released, also note that the Combine overworld has toxic gas, so I'm not sure how they would even survive, maybe the HEV suit with it's helmet, that'd make sense.

[Polar Express]

That would be so awesome! It could be a two part boss fight, with the first part taking place on the Combine Overworld. Jordan fights this evil, twisted beast. [It could be either a creation of the Combine (like the transhuman army and the rest of the Universal Union), or simply the big bad boss of the the Combine.]

After seemingly destroying this boss-thing, Jordan would begin to leave and head back to earth through some sort of a portal. However, if G-Man has taught us anything, it's that when we think everything is perfect and safe, we should prepare for unforseen consequences.

Just as Jordan arrives back at Kraken Base, (or some other rebel base) our big bad boss pours out of the portal just before it closes. Then a huge firefight erupts between the rebel forces and this creature. However, this beast is destroying the base and overrunning the resistance forces. It seems that all hope is lost, but Jordan goes and confronts the beast.

[INSERT AWESOME BOSS BATTLE WITH EPIC GAMEPLAY HERE]

The battle ends with the creature hitting Jordan and knocking him on the ground. Well, that's it. Game over. Jordan's gonna die.

Or so we think. Gordon Freeman, Jordan's dad and protagonist of the Half-Life Trilogy, arrives just in time to save his son. Gordon uses the Gravity Gun, and overcharges it, and shoots some unusually large object (a helicopter or something?) at the beast. This distracts the beast, and gives Jordan just enough time to stand up and witness the beast destroy Gordon in a cinematic spectacle.

Well, that stinks. That really stinks.

[INSERT AWESOMER BOSS BATTLE WHERE JORDAN AVENGES HIS FATHER'S DEATH WITH EPIC GAMEPLAY]

Jordan destroys the creature, protects the base, and saves the day. Yet, he lost. He lost his dad. The ending would be bittersweet. Bittersweet indeed.

Alyx mourns Gordon's death. Cut to black. Make us wait another nine years for Half-Life 5.



So, what do you think? Did I kill Gordon prematurely? I think that some type of ending like this would be good, but it would prevent Gordan from being a protagonist in future games. And we all know how much Valve likes its Freeman.

Regardless, Half-Life 4 is probably going to rock. :)

[Frosty Dr.]

Well, I think it'd be ok if Gordon got killed in HL4, he's been with us for so long already, I'll say that after I finish HL3 in the future. Anyway I'm thinking that part might remind me of how Alyx lost her father, it's TOOO similar, lol... Maybe a different death scene could take place. So right now, this whole Half-Life 4 plot seems to be getting big, pour it all together and we've got a full-on story, maybe you or I should consider getting a job at Valve, (maybe when I get a bit older though) maybe as a storywriter or spokesperson, heh heh heh.... Valve would be glad to have more brilliant minds on their team. LALTS!!! (Laughs A Little Then Stops)

[Polar Express]

Honestly, I was going for a bit of subtle parallelism with Eli's and Gordon's deaths. However, I agree with you. They are a bit too similar. Gordon could die in HL4, maybe in a manner similar to what I suggested, but tweaked a bit. Maybe before Gordon dies we'd even be able to fight alongside him?

If Valve hired us, it would show the company's good taste in character. :) Honestly, I wouldn't mind working for Valve, (I'd probably be a level designer or conceptualist) but I don't think that it's really my calling. Still, if Mr. Laidlaw came up to me and said, "Wanna work at Valve?" I would probably say yes. Laugh out loud. :)

You know, Valve has a huge snack bar. I'm not kidding. It looks awesome.

Back on topic, I think that having Alyx around for HL5 would be a good idea. She would have had to deal with so much loss, losing Gordon and Eli, it would add a tragic air to her character. It would make her second guess letting Jordan put himself in danger. Hey, that sounds good enough of a plot point for Half-Life 5. Half-Life 6, anyone?

Ah, you know what. I bet by the time they get to HL6 they'll start adding subtitles. Hmm...

Half-Life 6: Entirety
Half-Life 6: Seclusion
Half-Life 6: Revival
Half-Life 6: Star Wars
Half-Life 6: lolcats
Half-Life 6: ...um, wow, I'm really scraping the bottom of the barrel now. Aren't I?

So, yeah. Any subtitle ideas for future Half-Life games?

[Frosty Dr.]

Lol, somehow you might be going a bit too far ahead, we still don't even know if they'll make a HL4 yet. Maybe someone could convince Valve it's a great idea? Heheh....

[Lx]

There wont be no HL4 because Gordon will be lost in eternity after 3th sequel and Alyx will stay with Barney.

[Frosty Dr.]

How do you know that? Besides, Barney and Alyx, not gonna happen. I really don't like when someone comes in and spoils everything, either it's a trick or the truth, it's not the nicest thing to do in reality. Since there's no legitimate info on it, I don't think that's true at all. :|

[Lx]

I don't know anything, that is just what I think :) dont be mad about it :)

[Polar Express]

Messaggio originale di ๖ۣۜPeaceRλptor:

Lol, somehow you might be going a bit too far ahead, we still don't even know if they'll make a HL4 yet. Maybe someone could convince Valve it's a great idea? Heheh....

I need more Half-Life. Maahweeer!

...In all seriousness, the other Half-Life games will probably not come out for a long time. My predictions? I'm glad that I pretended you asked.

HL3: 2-3 years
HL4: a decade or eight
HL5: Restoration... no. Intros- no. Okay forget the title. I predict we won't see HL5. There are two reasons for this:
1. We will have all passed away with no hope to have our consciousness uploaded to a computer like GLaDOS.
2. Some other reason... uh, probably an apocalypse or something.

Messaggio originale di λenka (LMMJ):

There wont be no HL4 because Gordon will be lost in eternity after 3th sequel and Alyx will stay with Barney.

Darn it! You just spoiled the ending. I thought Kleiner was going to get together with Alyx!

[Frosty Dr.]

Messaggio originale di λenka (LMMJ):

I don't know anything, that is just what I think :) dont be mad about it :)

Nah, I knew it. :)

Messaggio originale di revrad65:

Messaggio originale di ๖ۣۜPeaceRλptor:

Lol, somehow you might be going a bit too far ahead, we still don't even know if they'll make a HL4 yet. Maybe someone could convince Valve it's a great idea? Heheh....

I need more Half-Life. Maahweeer!

...In all seriousness, the other Half-Life games will probably not come out for a long time. My predictions? I'm glad that I pretended you asked.

HL3: 2-3 years
HL4: a decade or eight
HL5: Restoration... no. Intros- no. Okay forget the title. I predict we won't see HL5. There are two reasons for this:
1. We will have all passed away with no hope to have our consciousness uploaded to a computer like GLaDOS.
2. Some other reason... uh, probably an apocalypse or something.

Messaggio originale di λenka (LMMJ):

There wont be no HL4 because Gordon will be lost in eternity after 3th sequel and Alyx will stay with Barney.

Darn it! You just spoiled the ending. I thought Kleiner was going to get together with Alyx!

Though, I've always hoped that they would never end Half Life, I don't want a sad ending! So when we play HL3, when it comes, maybe from now, ranging from a year to three, we'll be able to see if it doesn't end yet, but I feel as if it will 'cause I'm thinking Valve won't want to make a HL4 because everyone will complain again, and the waiting will take place, and surely we'll all be tooo old by that time, wait, no, Valve will be toooo old.... But if HL3 ends in that specific manner again, we'll know a HL4, or, HL3: Episode 1, will take place.

[Pulowski]

and valve stumbles upon this

"WHAT IS THIS NUMBER, 4?? IS IT WITCHCRAFT? BURN IT!!! BURN IT ALLL!!!!!!"

[Polar Express]

Messaggio originale di Israphelo:

and valve stumbles upon this

"WHAT IS THIS NUMBER, 4?? IS IT WITCHCRAFT? BURN IT!!! BURN IT ALLL!!!!!!"

Valve is trinumeral. The company only believes in the numbers 0, 1, and 2.

It all makes sense... sort of. Maybe they will make a Half-Life 2: Episode 2: Episode 1?

[MR.SHIT DICK SHIT PUSSY]

One thing at a time man... Small steps man, we'll think about Half Life 4 a few dozen years after Half Life 3 has been released.

[Jimmi Stixx]

I remember when the first Half Life was brand new sonny! That was 50 years ago. Now all you punk kids get to play HL4 and you don't even appreciate it! When I was your age we would play games for years before we set them down. We would never complain either.

I Started and failed a bussiness. I Married had 10 kids and then devorced her and left her cold with no child support then dated a long string 20 somethings! I pulled a bus from Canada to Mexico with my teeth. Fought in WW3. Wrote the great American novel. Even invented the first time machine just so I could make this post.

Now in my elderly years I can say the only thing worth doing in my life was play Half Life. The decades between HL4 and HL3 were nothing but a pit of emptiness and drudgery. That was only made worth while when I finally played my first hour of HL4. It was glorious!

HL3 wasen't bad either.