What is the significance of the number 2056? (SPOILERS)

[Whitevan Candyman]

I've just finished playing this game and I absolutely loved it. While playing it, I noticed how often the number 2056 appears on walls and rooms and areas alike. It is even in a secret room, which gives an achievement upon finding it, the passcode to shut down AEGIS and in the ending credits. Virgil even mentions how weird it is to see the number so very often. Surely, there must be a reason why this number appears so very often throughout the game. So, what is the significance of the number 2056?

[Smidge204]

Going out on a limb here, but it's probably just a reference to the fact that one of the developers goes by the handle "LoneWolf2056"

[Dr.Doozer [TeamGT]]

It started as a little joke to put some of the numbers in maps to 2056, kind of like the "Bad Wolf" messages in Dr. Who. Then it got taken and turned into the AEGIS shut down code after a bit, but yeah, it did stem from LoenWolf2056's user name. The 2056 was his school testing code number.

[Whitevan Candyman]

That's neat, I really love those little details

[Dr. Scyth]

rly? i thought it was the year Portal Stories: MEL had Occured
was set in*

[symmetries_]

Originally posted by Dr. Cygnus:

rly? i thought it was the year Portal Stories: MEL had Occured

it probably is

[Dr.Doozer [TeamGT]]

Originally posted by Parkurist:

Originally posted by Dr. Cygnus:

rly? i thought it was the year Portal Stories: MEL had Occured

it probably is

I direct you to my previous comment on this matter. :)

[Cynix]

I always thought the number was the date of when the events of half life 1 happened so they made aegis to protect the facility from the deadly monsters of zen

[MartensoftWorld]

Originally posted by DENNIZY:

I always thought the number was the date of when the events of half life 1 happened so they made aegis to protect the facility from the deadly monsters of zen

If you haven't found out by now HL1's resonance cascade takes place sometime in the 90s to 2000s. It's established between the canon of Portal 1 and Portal 2, I think mostly 1 that Aperture was already essentially dead as a company, along with all it's employees right around or a bit before this time. They would not have known at all about any of these happenings, though Glados does make mention of what's gone on 'out there' at the end of Portal 1. AEGIS was built far before this time, though, and would have been a proto-glad0s more of a security system, remember that Aperture was trying to find any investors at all, and like Black mesa were desperate for military industrial contracts. A fully automated half-sentient security system would be quite useful to a lot of organizations. Anyways, Half life 2 takes place 20 years give or take after HL1, putting none of the games around 2056 unless we're talking fan works, most of which I'm pretty sure don't have any specific dates either, and Portal 2 is set so far after the events of Portal 1 as to make it canonically insignificant to half life, which was done by choice as the writers couldn't figure out how to make it work. If you're talking day/month/year perhaps it would line up with Half Life 1 still as some say the events of the game could take place as late as the later 2000s but that's debatable. Still would mean Aperture was defunct by that point.

[Dr. Scyth]

Originally posted by Dr. Cygnus:

rly? i thought it was the year Portal Stories: MEL had Occured

Holy Shte I was here before???

[Lemo]

portal stories mel 2 will release in 2056

[MrBricks]

Originally posted by Dr. Cygnus:

Originally posted by Dr. Cygnus:

rly? i thought it was the year Portal Stories: MEL had Occured

Holy Shte I was here before???

Yeah m8, how time flies. Holy crap this thread is 10 years old

[k1ba]

678452056