I have always been rather interested in how the Half-Life plot is presented, especially in HL1 and its remake. It is so subtle that it leads many to think that there is no purpose-driven plot for most of the game, but the missions that different people give you are actually incredibly logical, consistent and intuitive. When I was a kid and played Half-Life for the first time, I really only got the “get to the test chamber” and “kill nihilanth” parts of the plot; the beginning and the end. But I was a kid. Now, after years of playing and replaying Half-Life and now Black Mesa, I’ve become a nerd -the kind of nerd that gets stupidly excited at the sight of charts. So I made one all about it.
I’m not trying to make a point other than how much of a bunch of geniuses Valve were. I know most Half-Life and Black Mesa fans will know all of this by heart. I just think it’d be fun to lay it out in such a way; I’m not making the point that the game would be better off with traditional game mission levels, but quite the opposite; Valve was one of the first to elegantly fit logical and instinctive missions throughout a continuous game. Some developers today could still learn from this narrative style.
That was the point of its critical acclaim; obviously many games already had a story (some really good ones too, mostly in adventure games and RPGs), but Valve made a totally linear game feel organic. How did they do it? By refining storytelling itself for an interactive medium; by having people in the game give you missions that are simple enough and make sense but, at the same time, move the plot along quite nicely; or better yet, they make YOU actually move the plot along. Things happen all around you, but you are the one who actually advances the plot; and you may not even notice it because your actions just make so goddamn sense in a very straightforward way. In other words, you can only do one thing; but it is what you would probably do anyway, so the world feels much greater than it actually is.
So, not only do they achieve this without the book-y medium of exposition, but they mostly dispense of the “show and don’t tell” film mantra: they use your intuitive interaction through the game to tell a story. Still, there is a big part of “show”, but it is in subtle scripted sequences and semi-hidden texts; they are there if YOU look for them, which adds interaction, instead of shoving them in your face. There is literally no necessary exposition. The sequels screw this up a little, but still excel at it overall.
In this chart, plot-centric chapters (e.g. Questionable Ethics), puzzle-centric chapters (e.g. Blast Pit) and boss-centric chapters (e.g. Gonarch’s Lair) do not constitute as missions themselves since none are explicitly given; if the game wasn’t linear, they could conceivably be ignored. From a mission-centric point of view, these are just obstacles in the way of the actual objective. However, plot-crucial sub-missions (On A Rail) are not ignored, since the completion of the main mission hinges directly on these. I’m including the ending too, although we don’t have it yet for Black Mesa.
Mission 1 - Get to the test chamber
You are running late. Suit up, get to the test chamber and do your job.
Chapters: Anomalous Materials
Given [by lobby desk guard]: at the beginning of Chapter 2: Anomalous Materials
Fulfilled: by the end of Chapter 2: Anomalous Materials
Mission 2 - Get to the surface
The test has opened a dimensional portal and aliens are invading. Get to the surface for help.
Chapters: Unforeseen Consequences, Office Complex, We’ve Got Hostiles
Given [by scientist Eli Vance]: at the beginning of Chapter 3: Unforeseen Consequences
Nullified*: by the beginning-to-two thirds through Chapter 5: We’ve Got Hostiles
*Partially nullified when “the help” arrive and start killing everyone; totally nullified when you get to the surface but get forced back inside by an artillery bombardment.
Mission 3 - Get to the Lambda Complex
The Lambda science team may be able to “end this catastrophe.” Get to them at the heart of the Lambda Complex at the other end of the facility using the decommissioned old rail system beyond the silo.
Chapters: We’ve Got Hostiles, Blast Pit, Power Up, [On A Rail], Apprehension, Residue Processing, Questionable Ethics, Surface Tension, Forget About Freeman, [Lambda Core]
Given [by a scientist]: at the end of Chapter 5: We’ve Got Hostiles
Halted: at the beginning of Chapter 8: On A Rail [Mission 3.1 given]
[INDENT]Mission 3.1 - Launch the rocket
Lambda can close the dimensional portal with a satellite. Launch the satellite delivery rocket.
Chapters: On A Rail
Given [by a scientist through a guard]: at the beginning of Chapter 8: On A Rail
Fulfilled [nullified*]: by the end of Chapter 8: On A Rail
*Unbeknownst to you, it is technically nullified as the satellite is later blocked by Nihilanth.[/INDENT]
Resumed: at the end of Chapter 8: On A Rail [Mission 3.1 fulfilled]
Fulfilled: by the end of Chapter 14: Lambda Core.
Mission 4 - Kill the Nihilanth
The portal between dimensions is being created and maintained by a single powerful being -you must kill it.
Chapters: Lambda Core, Xen, Gonarch’s Lair, Interloper, Nihilanth
Given [by the Lambda science team]: at the end of Chapter 14: Lambda Core.
Fulfilled: by the end of Chapter 18: Nihilanth.
Mission 5 - Choose your fate [Accept the job / Refuse and die]
The G-Man offers you a job -accept it or refuse and die at the hands of an alien army.
Chapters: Endgame
Given [by the G-Man]: all throughout Epilogue: Endgame.
Fulfilled*: at the end of Epilogue: Endgame.
*Technically not fulfilled but nullified if refusal is chosen, as it is both deadly and non-canonical.
If I get this OCD anytime soon, I might have to calm my nerves again by trying the same thing with Half-Life 2 and episodes, although I suspect they will actually be much shorter, especially in the episodes. In Episode One, you basically have two main missions: the core stabilization and the escape from the city. Maybe the ending escort mission can be considered a plot-vital sub-mission, but that’s a stretch. And, even though it is larger and feels more complex, there is also two main missions in Episode Two; reaching White Forest and defending the base, with the sub-missions of saving Alyx.
I hope that, maybe, this has helped some fans realize certain details on the structure and cohesion of the game that they might not have realized otherwise. But, honestly, most of all, I hope that really obsessive people find this kind of narrative layout as oddly soothing as I do.
