Half-Life 2

From BillionQuotes

Quotes from the computer game Half-Life 2.

Contents 1 G-Man 2 Alyx Vance 3 Barney Calhoun 4 Doctor Breen 5 Dialogue 6 Citizens and Vortigaunts 7 Resistance soldiers 8 Breencasts 9 "The All-Knowing Vortigaunt"

G-Man

For the opening and ending of Half-Life 2, the mysterious G-Man makes a speech to the player, who is playing as Gordon Freeman.

Opening Speech:

• "Rise and shine, Mister Freeman, rise and... shine. Not that I wish... to imply that you have been sleeping on the job. No one is more deserving of a rest, and all the effort in the world would have gone to waste until... well... let's just say your hour has come again. The right man in the wrong place can make all the difference in the world. So wake up, Mister Freeman...wake up and...smell the ashes."

Ending Speech:

• "Time, Doctor Freeman? Is it really that...time... again? It seems as if you've only just arrived. You've done a great deal in a small time...span. You've done so well, in fact, that I've received some interesting offers for your services. Ordinarily I wouldn't contemplate them but, these are extraordinary times, hm? Rather than offer you the illusion of free choice, I will take the liberty of choosing for you if and when your time comes around again. I do apologize for what must seem to you an arbitrary imposition, Doctor Freeman. I trust it will all make sense to you in the course of...well...I'm really not at liberty to say. In the meantime, this is where I get off."

In the videos leading up to Half-Life 2's release, the G-Man played a prominent role in many of them, once again speaking directly to the player (who is assumed to be Gordon Freeman). Whether these have any relevancy on the storyline of the final version of the game is unknown.

• "We've been rather busy, in your absence, Mister Freeman."

• "Pay attention, Mister Freeman, I'm only going to say this once..."[The G-Man speaks a phrase in Korean]

• "Well, well... Isn't this just like old times?"

Alyx Vance

• "Man of few words, aren't you?"
• "I know we haven't known each other for very long, but... thanks for coming after me."
• "Do your worst. But... be careful."

Barney Calhoun

• "Now... [Barney takes off his mask] ... about that beer I owed you!"

• "It's your pet, the freaking head-humper!"

• "Did you hear a cat just now? That damn thing haunts me!" (See also: #Dialogue)

• "Good job, Gordon, throwing that switch and all. I can see your MIT education really pays for itself."

• "And if you see Dr. Breen, tell him I said F...[Loud crash, obscuring the next part of the quote]... you!" (Playback of this phrase from data files without the sound of the crash reveals that Barney has in fact said "fuck you", the only line in the game to ever use this word.)

Doctor Breen

• "Doctor Freeman, you really shouldn't be out there. At the moment of synapse as I teleport this chamber will be bathed in deadly particles that have yet to be named by human science. Perhaps when I have the leisure to do the work myself, I'll name one of them after you; that way you won't be completely forgotten. When the singularity collapses, I will be far away from here - in another universe, as a matter of fact. You on the other hand will be destroyed in every way it is possible to be destroyed, and even in some, which are essentially impossible!"

Doctor Breen in the teleportation chamber at the top of the Citadel. Evidently trying to psyche Gordon out.

Dialogue

• Doctor Kleiner: "This is a red letter day, we'll inaugurate the new teleport with a double transmission."
• Barney Calhoun: "You mean it's working? For real this time? Because... I still have nightmares about that cat."
• Alyx Vance: "What cat?"
• Doctor Kleiner: "Now, now, there is nothing to be worried about, we have made major strides since then, major strides."
• Alyx Vance: "What cat?"

---

• Doctor Kleiner: "Let's see, the massless field flux should self-limit and I have clamped the manifold parameters to include CY Hilbert and GC orbitfold inclusive. Conditions could hardly be more ideal."
• Barney Calhoun: "That's what you said last time."
• Alyx Vance: "Yeah, about that cat..."

As an aside, it's worth noting that in The Fly an early teleportation mishap with the Telepod causes a cat to disappear, but its disembodied meow is heard intermittently. The HL2 dialogue may be a reference or homage to this classic sci-fi/horror movie.

---

• Vortigaunt 1: "The Freeman must excuse us. It is rude of us to commune by flux-shifting in front of those whose vortal inputs are impaired."
• Vortigaunt 2: "Yes, we are vocalizing your auditory language as a matter of courtesy."
• Vortigaunt 1: "Unless we wish to say unflattering things about you."
• Vortigaunt 2: "Just so."

---

• Doctor Breen: "...carbon stars with ancient satellites colonized by sentient fungi. Gas giants, inhabited by vast meteorological intelligences, worlds stretched thin across the membranes where dimensions intersect...Impossible to describe with our limited vocabulary."
• Doctor Eli Vance: "What I've seen is also beyond words, Breen. Genocide, indescribable evil."(Eli spots Gordon) "Good...God"

---

• Doctor Breen: "I'm all but certain it was....Gordon Freeman..."

Citizens and Vortigaunts

• Samuel: (When the train stops) "[sighs] Well...end of the line".

• Vortigaunt ally: "This is the Freeman, the Combine's reckoning has come."

Resistance soldiers

• Resistance soldier: Sometimes, I dream of cheese.

• Resistance soldier: When this is all over, I'm gonna mate!

• Resistance soldier: To think all I ever wanted to do was sell insurance!

• Resistance soldier: When this is all over, I'm gonna... nah, who am I kidding?

• Resistance soldier: Gordon Freeman! You need to watch your step, this close to the Citadel, they've given over the streets to the Striders.

• Resistance soldier: (upon the player's death) Dibs on the suit! (referring to Gordon's HEV suit)

• Resistance soldier: (upon the player's death) He's done this before, he'll be okay!

• Resistance soldier: (upon the player's death) If you dare say "that's gotta hurt" I'll kill you.

• Resistance soldier: (upon the player's death) Wait a second...that's not Gordon Freeman!

• Leon, resistance captain: Gordon Freeman! I wouldn't believe it if I wasn't seeing it with my two eyes!

Breencasts

At several points during the game, the character Dr. Wallace Breen makes several announcements to the citizens of City 17, and, later in the game, Gordon Freeman himself. The following are transcripts of several of these announcements, referred to as "Breencasts."

Dr. Breen welcoming citizens to City 17:

Welcome. Welcome to City 17. </p>You have chosen, or been chosen, to relocate to one of our finest remaining urban centers. I thought so much of City 17 that I elected to establish my administration here, in the Citadel so thoughtfully provided by Our Benefactors. I've been proud to call City 17 my home. </p>And so, whether you are here to stay or passing through on your way to parts unknown - welcome to City 17. It's safer here.

This is the first Breencast in the game, which begins when Gordon steps off the tram into City 17 at the start of the game. The Citadel is first mentioned in this Breencast, as is the Combine being referred to as "Our Benefactors." The last sentence, "It's safer here," is mostly likely referring to the fact that, with only a few remaining cities left on Earth, City 17 is supposed to be a secure shelter for its citizens. Due to the fact that this Breencast repeats itself endlessly, and due to its context in reference to its location, it's believed to be a prerecorded message instead of a citywide Breencast.

Dr. Breen on instinct:

Let me read a letter I recently received. "Dear Dr. Breen, why has the Combine seen fit to suppress our reproductive cycle? Sincerely, a concerned citizen." </p>Thank you for writing, concerned. Of course, your question touches on one of the basic biological impulses, with all of its associated hopes and fears for the future of the species. I also detect some unspoken questions. Do Our Benefactors really know what's best for us? What gives them the right to make this kind of decision for mankind? Will they ever deactivate the suppression field and let us breed again? </p>Allow me to address the anxieties underlying your concerns, rather than try to answer every possible question you might have left unvoiced. First, let us consider the fact that for the first time ever, as a species, immortality is within our reach. This simple fact has far reaching implications; it requires radical rethinking and revision of our genetic imperatives. It also requires planning and forethought that run in direct opposition to our neural presets. </p>I find it helpful at times like these to remind myself that our true enemy is instinct. Instinct was our mother when we were an infant species. Instinct coddled us and kept us safe in those hardscrabble years when we hardened our sticks and cooked our first meals above a meager fire, and started at the shadows that leapt upon the cavern's walls. But inseparable from instinct is its dark twin, superstition. Instinct is inextricably bound to unreasoning impulses, and today we clearly see its true nature. Instinct has just become aware of its irrelevance, and like a cornered beast, it will not go down without a bloody fight. Instinct would inflict a fatal injury on our species. Instinct creates its own oppressors, and bids us rise up against them. Instinct tells us that the unknown is a threat, rather than an opportunity. Instinct slyly and covertly compels us away from change and progress. Instinct, therefore, must be expunged. It must be fought tooth and nail, beginning with the basest of human urges: the urge to reproduce. </p>We should thank Our Benefactors for giving us respite from this overpowering force. They have thrown a switch and exorcised our demons in a single stroke. They have given us the strength we never could have summoned to overcome this compulsion. They have given us purpose. They have turned our eyes toward the stars. </p>Let me assure you that the suppressing field will be shut off on the day that we have mastered ourselves, the day we can prove we no longer need it. And that day of transformation, I have it on good authority, is close at hand.

The above is one of the Breencasts that addresses the concerns of the citizens directly, and attempts to ease the frustration of citizens who are unhappy with the Combine's decision to halt reproductive cycles. The phrase in the fourth paragraph: "and started at the shadows that leapt upon the cavern's walls" may be an allusion to Plato's Allegory of the Cave.

Dr. Breen on Gordon Freeman:

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." </p>Let me remind all citizens of the dangers of magical thinking. We have scarcely begun to climb from the dark pit of our species' evolution! Let us not slide backward into oblivion, just as we have finally begun to see the light. If you see this so-called "Free Man," report him. Civic deeds do not go unrewarded, and contrariwise, complicity with his... cause... will not go unpunished. </p>Be wise, be safe. Be aware.

Breen's first public mentioning of Gordon Freeman is an attempt to divert the citizens of City 17 away from Gordon's fight of resistance. Again, Breen alludes to human evolution, stressing that the citizens avoid any actions that he believes will put a damper on human progress.

Dr. Breen addressing the Overwatch:

I have been asked to say a few words to the transhuman arm of Sector 17 Overwatch concerning recent successes in containing members of the resistance science team. </p>Let me say upfront that I regret having to temper my heartfelt congratulations with a strong measure of disappointment. But I wouldn't be doing my duty as your administrator if I didn't pass along the message I have received from Our Benefactors. </p>The capture of Eli Vance is an event of major significance, make no mistake. And while it's true that, conceivably, we could have taken him at almost any time in the last several years, the manner of his capture may have proved to have unexpected benefits. It cannot have gone unnoticed by all resistance members that Dr. Vance's capture coincided with the act of giving shelter to Gordon Freeman. This might cause other resistance members to think twice before harboring Dr. Freeman. It might cause them to question his allegiance; even prompt some to turn him out or turn him over to our cause. However, we cannot count on such developments. Dr. Freeman's reputation is such that other desperate renegades are likely to grant him a great deal of license in the spirit of spreading general chaos and terror. </p>This brings me to the one note of disappointment I must echo from Our Benefactors. Obviously I am not on the ground to closely command or second guess the dedicated forces of the Overwatch. But this does not mean I can shirk responsibility for recent lapses, and even outright failures on their part. I have been severely questioned about these shortcomings, and now I must put the question to you. How could one man have slipped through your forces' fingers, time and time again? How's it possible? This is not some agent provocateur or highly trained assassin we are discussing. Gordon Freeman is a theoretical physicist who had hardly earned the distinction of his Ph.D. at the time of the Black Mesa Incident. I have good reason to believe that in the intervening years he was in a state that precluded further development of covert skills. The man you have consistently failed to slow, let alone capture, is by all standards, simply that - an ordinary man. How can you have failed to apprehend him?! Well, I will leave the upbraiding for another time to the extent it proves necessary. </p>Now is the moment to redeem yourselves. If the transhuman forces are to prove themselves an indispensable augmentation to the Combine Overwatch, they will have to earn the privilege. I'm sure I don't have to remind you that the alternative, if you can call it that, is total extinction! In union with all the other unworthy branches of the species. Let's not allow it to come to that. I have done my best to convince Our Benefactors that you are the finest the species has to offer. So far, they have accepted my argument, but without concrete evidence to back it up, my words sound increasingly hollow even to me. </p>The burden of proof is on you, as is the consequence of failure. I'll just leave it at that.

Dr. Breen expresses his extreme frustration in the failure of the Overwatch to capture Gordon Freeman, who, as Breen says, is starting to get the attention of the Combine itself. An interesting sidenote is that the line "I have good reason to believe that in the intervening years he was in a state that precluded further development of covert skills," may indicate that he knew about Gordon's apparent "stasis" initiated by the G-Man.

Dr. Breen on collaboration:

It has come to my attention that some have lately called me a collaborator, as if such a term were shameful. I ask you, what greater endeavor exists than that of collaboration? In our current unparalleled enterprise, refusal to collaborate is simply a refusal to grow; an insistence on suicide, if you will. </p>Did the lung fish refuse to breathe air? It did not. It crept forth, boldly, while its brethren remained in the blackest ocean abyss, with lidless eyes forever staring at the dark, ignorant and doomed despite their eternal vigilance. Would we model ourselves on the trilobite? Are all the accomplishments of humanity fated to be nothing more than a layer of broken plastic shards, thinly strewn across a fossil bed, sandwiched between the burgess shale, and an eon's worth of mud? </p>In order to be true to our nature, and our destiny, we must aspire to greater things. We have outgrown our cradle. It is futile to cry for mother's milk when our true sustenance awaits us among the stars. And only the Universal Union, that small minds call the Combine, can carry us there. </p>Therefore I say yes, I am a collaborator. We must all collaborate, willingly, eagerly, if we expect to reap the benefits of unification. And reap we shall.

Breen, in the above quote, defends his position of accepting the Combine's rule on Earth. This Breencast appears to be made to quell citizen criticism and disagreement with the Combine's presence on Earth.

Dr. Breen addressing Gordon Freeman:

I'd like to take a moment to address you directly, Dr. Freeman. </p>Yes, I'm talking to you, the so-called "One Free Man." I have a question for you: how could you have thrown it all away? It staggers the mind. A man of science with the ability to sway reactionary and fearful minds toward the truth, choosing instead to embark on a path of ignorance and decay. Make no mistake Dr. Freeman - this is not a scientific revolution you have sparked, this is death and finality! </p>You have plunged humanity into freefall. Even if you offered your surrender now, I cannot guarantee that Our Benefactors would accept it. At the moment I fear they have begun to look upon even me with suspicion - so much for serving as humanity's representative. </p>Help me win back their trust, Dr. Freeman. Surrender while you still can. Help ensure that humanity's trust in you is not misguided. </p>Do what is right, Dr. Freeman. Serve mankind. Surrender.

The last Breencast has the Administrator pleading with Freeman to end his quest to bring down Breen at the Citadel. He also displays his fearfulness and disappointment with the Combine suspicious of his motives. The end of his message has a double meaning as a Twilight Zone reference, excluding the "surrender".

"The All-Knowing Vortigaunt"

In what appears to be a carefully hidden Easter egg, Half-Life 2 introduces a unique member of the Vortigaunt species during the course of the Water Hazard stage, occasionally referred to by fans as "The All-Knowing" (or "Sore Throat") Vortigaunt, who reveals various pieces of dialogue pertaining to Black Mesa, Xen, the G-Man, and Nihilanth, among several other topics. Samples of said dialogue, with some attempts at explanations, are shown below:

• "We remember the Freeman. We are coterminous."

May mean that all vortigaunts exist together, as if they are bound together in one mind. What one may experience, they all remember, and when one suffer, they all suffer. However, it seems more likely to mean that both Gordon and the Vortigaunts will meet the same end.

• "There is no distance between us. No false veil of time or space may intervene."
• "We see you still in Black Mesa. Clearly we see you in the Nihilanth's chamber."
• "We bear witness to the bright eternity of the Nihilanth's demise. You leap, you fall, we see you flash beyond the barriers."
• "For a brief time you joined with us. You are one. Between the worlds."
• "Communion of the vortessence. And that other: a deeper mystery. No deeper than the void itself."
• "We cannot forget those whose cords you cut. Forgiveness is not ours to bestow."

Clearly referring to all the vortigaunts Gordon killed in Half-Life.

• "Unity of purpose, the shattering of common shackles, a single road we tread."
• "Your song we sing and shall sing for eternity. No matter the consequences of this struggle."
• "You have brought us grief and jubilation beyond measure."

Another reference to how many Vortigaunts were killed by Freeman, while at the same time he freed the entire race from control.

• "We are there still, in observance of your final stroke."
• "While our own lay scattered at your feet, you severed the vortal cord that bound the Nihilanth to life, and to us."

Reference to the Vortigaunts who appeared in the Nihilanth's chamber to try to stop your destryoing him.

• "That sharp spur of hope has not dulled to this day. For once the lesser master lay defeated, we knew the greater must also fall in time."

"The lesser master" may be referring to the Nihilanth, and the greater the Combine that fought against him, or even some still unknown enemy.

• "With you beside us, a talisman of victory, the day of freedom draws nigh."
• "Your bright face obscures your darker mask."
• "We call you sib, although your mind and meaning are a mystery to us. "
• "Far distant eyes look out through yours."

Possibly breaking the fourth wall, meaning that the "far distant eyes" are the eyes of the person playing the game, or perhaps those of the G-Man.

• "Something secret steers us both. We shall not name it."

Perhaps again breaking of the fourth wall, or another reference to the G-Man.

• "We have endured these chafing bonds for eons, yet a single moment of further servitude seems intolerable!"
• "How often have we slipped our yoke, only to find it choking us again."
• "Let this war end in either total victory or our extinction. No further compromise shall we allow."
• "We take our stand beside you, here, upon this miserable rock."
• "The way ahead is dark for the moment."
• "What seems to you a sacrifice is merely, to us, an oscillation. We do not fear the interval of darkness."
• "We are a tapestry woven of vortessence. It is the same for you if only you would see it."
• "How many are there in you? Whose hopes and dreams do you encompass?"

Again, a possible reference to the players of the game.

Or, more likely, a reference to the members of the resistance in-game.

• "Could you but see the eyes inside your own, the minds in your mind, you would see how much we share."

Yet another possible reference to the players of the game.

• "We are you, Freeman. And you are us."
• "We have lost all dear to us."
• "The Combine will pay in kind for their depravity."
• "Hope is in sight."
• "This marks a turning point."
• "Such pessimism will doom us all."
• "We have survived darker times."
• "Our finest poet describes it thus: Gallum galla gilla ma."
• "You humans, always in the validity."
• "We deem this company inviolable."
• "Your companionship is greatly belabored."
• "Freeman, we could be of use to you."
• "We shall share the vortessence."
• "Our life is worthless unless spent on freedom."
• "We never dreamed to meet you in corporeal form."
• "Where to, now? And to what end?"

Note that some of these lines are also spoken by other vortigaunts encountered in Half-Life 2 (e.g. the vortigaunt who attaches the helicopter gun to Freeman's boat).

---

---