Half-Life
  
PC


Warning the Following is a walkthrough of Half-Life. Please, DO NOT READ FROM START TO FINISH. If you do, you'll just ruin the game. And this is one heck of a game - so try not to spoil it. Enjoy!
Half-life: Walkthrough 


  Three basic tips can help you get started. 
First, even if you are an experienced HEV suit user, you should avail
yourself of the Hazard Course. It teaches you how to use the suit (the
equivalent of armor in other games) to its fullest advantage, and that
special long jump module could save your life.

Second, as Black Mesa deals with a wide variety of "special" experiments,
it is important to remember that many useful items are stored in the plethora
of wooden crates and containers throughout the lab. Smash 'em all and look
inside-but avoid the ones marked "Explosives" if you know what's good for
you.

Third, remember that the guards and scientists are your friends; they
can watch your back, heal you, and even get you out of a sticky situation.
Often, if one dies, you cannot continue. Save early and often.

Chapter 1: Anomalous Materials

This is mostly cinematics, an intro that sets the mood and is pretty
cool in its own right. Not much to do, though. After the intro train ride,
explore the lab a bit, talk to people, find your (Gordon Freeman's) locker,
the HEV suit, then proceed to the test chamber. In the test chamber listen
to your instructions, and follow them to the letter. Then watch as all
hell breaks loose….


 

Chapter 2: Unforeseen Consequences

Now you're into the game proper. Use the sputtering retinal scan device
to get the door to open slightly. As you make your way out don't miss the
crowbar on the floor (you will need it). You will need to have a scientist
follow you to activate the next retinal scanner.


In the main lobby go through the hole (smash the vent) to enter the
next room. Proceed to the area with the hound-eye beasts (they look like
Smithfield hams with legs). Find a square vent hole leading downwards (to
save health, kill the zombie on the other side of the bars first). Enter
the sewer, find the other square hole vent (in the ceiling this time) and
the valve. Turn the valve, which floods the tunnel, swim up through that
second hole.

On the descending platform dodge the falling head crabs by moving side
to side. Later use ledges to avoid the falling floor pipes. And you can
use the crates to make a bridge in the water, or just swim around until
you can ascend on the other side.

Chapter 3: Office Complex

Avoid the dangling live wire and use the vent to enter the room with
the scientists (watch out for the 'fisher-tongue' critters on the ceiling).
There is an electrical room, and you can shut off the power there. Exit
through the door and now you can safely bypass the live wire.

When you find the guard in the little control room, try and save him
by killing the zombie who attacks him. Do it fast enough, and he'll survive
to let you in, where you can pick up a shotgun, some ammo, and other nifty
toys.

In the flooded room turn the power off with the light-switch, making
the water safe to navigate. Open the vent and exit the room, but beware
of the fan blade in the vent shaft (duck to proceed).

Guards make good diversions for the annoying head crabs and security
guns you'll find on the stairs. Proceed to the freezer….

Hit the red switch at the far end, and use the ladder to enter the duct
system. Jump onto the moving platform from the upper levels of the shelves,
and move on through the vent.

The elevator is out. Make a running jump and push 'up' to grab and climb the 
  ladder. Continue moving around the shaft climbing ladders until you reach the 
  top of the elevator, and break the vent with the crowbar to drop down. 


    


    


   Chapter 4: We've got Hostiles 
Jump or duck to avoid the red or blue trip lasers (red activates sentry
guns, and blue sets off nasty explosions).

Fight the soldiers, but if aliens are around, let them kill each other.
Beware flanking tactics and grenades from the soldiers (they are very smart).
Continue on until you can take the elevator to the surface.

An Osprey drops guards on the surface to massacre you. Kill all on the
ground and make for the bunker (if you wait, the plane airdrops more, and
more…). Don't hesitate, explosions are constantly rocking the ground and
will eventually get you if you dally.

In the vent system avoid the fan, kill the soldiers, and use the middle
vent (the other two go nowhere) and find a computer panel; activate it
to exit.

Chapter 5: Blast Pit


Find the train/tram, jump on it and hit 'use' to activate it (forward
makes it go faster). Best of all it runs down a lot of the monsters in
the tunnel. Note: at full speed the train will break through the barrier
and send you flying (not necessarily a bad thing as you can still continue
providing you can afford the health), use the boxes to climb past the slime
to the pipe.

Continue on and see what is happening at the Test Fire Chamber. Its
not a pretty sight, but that horrible monster needs to be killed… how convenient
that it is sitting under a rocket engine. To fire the engine and kill the
critter, you must provide oxygen, power, and fuel. To do this you must
get past the tentacles….

You have two choices: you can walk and crouch past and descend to the
various hallways that lead to the controls rooms, or you can use grenades
or shotgun blasts to cause the tentacles to retreat briefly (then you run
for it, repeating the blast at every platform). When going after the oxygen,
fuel and power switches, remember: the order is not important.

Oxygen & Fuel switches: Go down to the level directly below you,
and break the boards with your crowbar to exit the chamber. Cross the bridge
(hint: don't shoot at the alien on the bridge, those boxes explode and
will make you have to jump across) and follow the red and blue pipes down
the hallway. Break the sewer grate and drop into the pipes, follow the
pipe and turn left, then climb up.

Approach the huge fan and before pushing the button you'd better save
the game (this is dangerous). Hit the button and run up the ladder hopefully
avoiding the fan blades now in motion. Once the fan hits full speed jump
toward it and ride the air current up to the boarded up ceiling (use your
crowbar to break them). Use the vent to get to the Oxygen/Fuel control
room and activate both. Exit by using the ladder and head back for the
test chamber and the giant tentacle monster.

Power switch: Descend to the lowest level, avoiding the tentacles as
you did before (explosives or skulking). The walkways have huge holes in
them and these jumps are tough, save first. It helps to look downward to
time the jump better.

Once across you will see a huge puddle of water on the floor (this will
become electrified soon, so you might want to arrange the boxes to form
a bridge now) move across it and enter the room. Avoid or kill the fisher/tongue
creatures that hang from the ceiling and activate the elevator with the
button.

Look to your right when it arrives; see that ladder? As the lift descends,
but before it breaks and falls, make a flying leap for that ladder. Descend
the ladder to the radioactive goo and piping. Walk on the pipes to avoid
damage. Find the generator room and activate both switches (do not do this
while on top of it though, or you'll become all dead and crispy). Watch
the spinning platform to get the timing right and exit the generator room
safely. Climb the ladder again, and look for a platform to jump to.

Once you reach that puddle again you will either have it easy (you made
a box bridge before hand) or hard (you didn't); the electrified pool is
extremely damaging. If you have set up the boxes, cross using them. If
not you can move two crates to form a bridge most of the way, but it will
still cost you around 20 health to make it across.

Now that the oxygen, fuel, and power are on, you can make some fried
calamari by ascending to the top and hitting the now active test fire button.
Watch the tentacles go boom (you won't take damage if you back away as
far as you can go away from the window, but you'll miss a pretty explosion).

Exit through the hole once occupied by the tentacle monster. Fall through
the center or you will die by hitting the slanted ground first. Grab the
.357 magnum at the bottom of the pool. Swim around until you find a broken
pipe to swim through, walk on the pipes until you reach one suspended by
cables.

Look across and see a very hard jump to an opening with a broken grate.
Make the jump and beware, the pipe ahead will break (note the wall discoloration);
if you fall with the pipe you will perish, so jump back as it falls. Use
the small ledges on the sides to make a controlled descent into the room.
Kill the head crab under the table and collect the power-ups.

CHAPTER 6: Power Up

Through the tunnel you come upon an open area where there is a massive
firefight going on. A gargantuan armored alien beast is making short work
of a handful of the government's best and bravest. They don't deserve your
help; after all, haven't they been trying their best to perforate your
geeky skin? Make a break for the open passageway (across from you, behind
the beast) as soon as you can. Waiting for the soldiers to die just makes
the beastie gun for you (not good).

When you reach the red doors, find the valve-wheel, turn it until the
doors open and climb up through the opening. Follow the signs to the Power
Generator (signs mark the route). Shoot the trip mines below you, or simply
send a detpack (those explosives you may have found) down the elevator
without you.

After the elevator take the stairs down to the bottom, enter the flooded
room (watch out, those fish-things pack a tiny bite, but you can kill them
with your crowbar) and destroy the boxes obstructing the generator. Climb
up one level of those stairs to turn on the fan. Then head back to where
the gargantua is waiting (by now all the soldiers are dead). Rush past
the beast and go immediately to your left down the corridor. Find the switch,
and then head back to the corridor you that you just came from.

You need to find the track control room. You'll find it by going up
and leaping across the hole. There is a wounded guard there who'll talk
with you a while — if you like. Turn on the power and the beast will eventually
walk into the electric stream and die. Or, before you do any of this you
will find that monster killable if you use explosives. Grenades, detpacks,
— whatever you got so long as it goes boom. Frankly, though, it's not worth
the ammo. Fry him.

Ride the train to the middle of the room, go back to the track control
room and use the switch to turn the train to the other track. Then ride
the train through the boxes.

Chapter 7: On a Rail

Tips for the enormous train areas:


Shoot the arrow-signs to switch the track. Stop the train whenever
you find an area with monsters, doors, or ladders. It is much more dangerous
to go through this area without the train (but it can be done) as the water
and train rail are electrified. Look for switches, boxes, sentry guns,
and monsters. If you seem to be going in circles on the train find an arrow
sign to shoot so you switch tracks.


When you come upon soldiers using mounted rocket launchers get off the
train, crouch, and use your big weapons to fry them. The rockets pass harmlessly
overhead if you are crouched (the train can protect you from these as well,
simply crouch and speed by them, but you will sometimes miss power-ups).

Finally, after much rail travel, you will come upon a nasty situation.
A huge bunker with a cannon in it, a machine gun nest on the left, and
an open area with lots of soldiers around the corner. Use a grenade to
take out the machine gunner, and hide behind the boxes to avoid cannon-fire.
You can push the boxes ahead of you to get in closer to the bunker. If
you are lucky you can run past the bunker, into the corridor, guns a'blazing
and hope to take out the soldiers fast enough. But you can buy yourself
a little time to snipe if you take out that cannon. Rush it, climb atop
it, and drop a grenade or detpack into it is one way. Or throw grenades
at the top and hope you get lucky by killing the gunner.

Now you come upon a staircase, with lots of red-laser trip mines. Since
there are no sentry guns you may figure you can jump these safely. You
thought wrong. See the explosives lining the walls? What you need to do
is push the boxes under the second laser, run back and up the stairs, moving
under the first laser (crouch). Then jump onto the box, then over the last
laser and to the door. Watch out for a couple of soldiers nearby.

Move along until you find the launch controls. Launch the rocket, and
stay at the window for the show! Remember you have to exit the way you
came, which means avoiding the trip mine staircase!


 


 

Chapter 8: Apprehension

Get on the train and start her up, you are in for a hell of a ride.
You get the opportunity to get off the train before it crashes, and you
can do that, but you can also ride it all the way down the hole into the
drink. Swim to the bottom of the pool and release the crates down there,
when they float to the surface you can use them as a bridge to get to the
other side corridor.

Lots of swimming, lots of searching, but soon enough you'll enter a
large room with a pool and a suspended cage. Climb up to the top of the
cage and grab the crossbow before descending into it. Use the switch to
drop the cage into the drink. Kill the LARGE fish monster with the crossbow
(the 9mm pistol also works —none of your other weapons work underwater…
except the trip mines, which make for a satisfying, but difficult, kill).

If you are fast you can skip the fish, but it is much easier to open
the grate and leave the room by killing it first.

When you reach the large control room with the three huge pistons you
have to turn them on, and then jump from one to the other to reach the
suspended catwalk. Kill all the monsters and then the scientist will let
you into the room. He tells you there isn't anything but danger in the
cold room (believe him) and run like mad through it (the cold does damage)
until you find the ladder that leads out.

After the nice guard gets assassinated mid-sentence you will have to
face one of the greatest enemies a 3D action game has given us. The leather
clad sniper/assassin girls. These quick moving targets are best dispatched
with the crossbow from afar (use zoom mode) or by relentlessly chasing
them through the room with the machine gun or shotgun blazing. Once they
are all killed (there are three), you can move up the catwalk to the platform
and use the wheel to open the door.

There appears to be no way to avoid what happens next. Gordon gets captured
by two sadistic guards who figure its better to kill him and hide the body
than deal with the paperwork. So they place you in a Batman TV series (the
Adam West 60's version) deathtrap, and then they don't wait around to see
if it works.

No weapons, but you still have your HEV suit and the walls start closing
in on you. Carefully but quickly, climb the crates to the ledge, wait until
the walls close and use them as a bridge to the other side. Grab the crowbar
and break open the grate to leave the room.

Chapter 9: Residue Processing


Lots of traps, noxious gasses, radioactive mess, and danger in this
sprawling jump-fest of a level…


 

BASIC TIPS:


Save often, jump carefully, and time your movements through moving
machinery well.

When you reach the large vats use the plungers to make it to the other
side. Duck under the grinding wheels. Upon reaching the control room note
the conveyer belts and the massive pounders, move all three switches to
the up position and go and press the green button. Don't dally, they pounders
don't stop for long, run up either conveyer.

Jump from conveyer belt to conveyer belt until you see two conveyers
side by side, get to the one of your left. To get rid of the nasty trip
mine around the corner you want to drop a detpack on the belt, wait around
five seconds, and detonate (be sure to backpedal to avoid the blast).

Chapter 10: Questionable Ethics


Shoot the electrode switch on the fence to open the door. Once inside
note the terrifying monster behind the glass, take a deep breath, then
break the glass over the switch, and press the button. Fight the monster
with whatever weapon you wish but note the armored areas, only fire into
areas that give you that yellow-green blood reward.

Run around and try to let the monsters fight the soldiers for you, once
the battle is over pick off the survivors. Find four rooms with switches
and turn on all the lasers. Then find the room with the sign that says
"Do Not Obstruct Laser Shield". Move the box underneath the laser and then
press the button, which lowers the shield and the box obstructs it from
blocking the beam. The beam burns through the wall and you have your way
out… but be sure to pick up the funky gun from the scientists in one of
the other laser rooms before you leave.

Chapter 11: Surface Tension

A situation like this isn't pretty. You have a dam in front of you,
with a bunker shooting bazooka rounds, a long drop off to one side, and
a pool of water with a vicious monster fish on the other… oh, and don't
forget the lethal attack helicopter circling above. You can destroy the
chopper but it is extremely difficult and not really worth the effort.
Head immediately into the water, and up the ladder to the tower on the
far side. Try and keep the tower between you and the chopper, also beware
the snipers on the dam; head inside and pull the switch. Jump back into
the water and kill the fish, or avoid it. Make for the wall of the dam
and find the red wheel. Turn it and swim through the open grate.

In the next clearing you'll find another seemingly bad situation, a
familiar looking tentacle monster guards some ammo and power-ups (again
a grenade will buy you time to grab it, but it isn't necessary), the attack
chopper is still tracking you, and these odd bulges in the ground keep
sending head crabs your way. Best to head over to the small hole to the
right. Watch out… there is a mine field beyond.


Use grenades or your machine gun to detonate the mines before proceeding.
Continue on until you find a red wheel to turn and then head back to the
now open grate. Be careful, this fall will kill you… use the ladder to
descend.

This next area, an open area of pipes, canals, and sand bunkers, displays
Half-Life's brilliant soldier AI perfectly — much to your chagrin. The
best way to handle this situation is to climb up the ladder, pop up fast
like a gofer, use the crossbow or .357 magnum to quickly dispatch nearby
soldiers, and pop back down fast. Move quickly, as the soldiers will soon
begin sending grenades down all nearby holes. Repeat this process with
as many of the pipe tunnels as possible. As far as the tank is concerned
— the laser guided missile launcher is recommended, as is jumping on it
and dropping a couple detpacks. Strafe and try to use grenades or missiles
to destroy the next armored vehicle, which while somewhat lighter than
the tank is no less deadly.

In this area proceed cautiously. Avoid trip mines and land mines, and
watch out for snipers (two of them) in the windows (a rocket or grenade
works wonders here). Blow up the barrels to knock out the power and crawl
under the barbed wire to get to the fallen power lines. Climb to the roof
and jump into the hole.

DO NOT SET OFF ANY TRIP MINES IN THE NEXT AREA! Why? Because there are
a couple of nukes in the warehouse and some idiot decided to trip mine
the entire area. Be careful when moving crates as some of them can pass
through, or are connected to, trip mines. The easiest way to handle this
tense situation is to turn your computer off — just kidding. Find the crate
that rests on a simple lift and destroy it. Push a crate to the stairs
and jump over the laser line, enter the control room carefully and activate
the lift (if you didn't destroy that crate… boom). From the lift at its
highest position jump into the central area and descend to safety.

Around a corner you'll find some big aliens; let the soldiers take care
of them for you. Round the corner and kill any survivors and strafe to
kill the tank. As you continue, watch out for a sniper in the window as
you round the second corner (this sniper can make continuing impossible
if she kills the nearby guard). Go up the stairs and find the guard. Have
him open the locked storage room for you, and grab the power-ups. Go through
the window and leap to the opposing ledge. Climb up on the roof and drop
down to take care of any opposition. Then climb back up and proceed to
the opposite hallway (use the rafters).

The next clearing features more of those hornet gun armed aliens and
a circling transport regularly dropping troopers. Let them fight it out
while you make a dash for the tunnel. Move through the tunnel until you
reach the alley where you left that guard you needed to open the locked
door. Enter the room, grab some health from the station and move up the
stairs and up to the big cannon. Use the cannon to kill any soldiers and
blast open the big door you can barely see to your left.

Whew! Use any of the mounted machine guns to clear the waves upon waves
of aliens coming at you and use the 'bounce crater' trampoline to jump
the wall. Break open the grating and beware the insect-things (called snarks).
Kill or avoid them (they self-destruct after around 25 seconds). Enter
the shaft, kill the soldiers in the next room, and use the tank to kill
the aliens that appear. Use the mechanic's lift to exit the room , then
use the bounce crater to get to the next area.

Now use the green map to call in airstrikes to get out of here. Call
one on the wall across the moat, the fortress door, and the tower before
you. Climb across the moat on the fallen tower and you are done.

Chapter 12: Forget about Freeman

No real puzzles here, just a lot of enemies and killing — have fun!

As the ceiling and walls come down try to climb up and through the newly
created hallway. Proceed and fight your way through. Hint: You can avoid
the tank by running like mad to the elevator. Watch for ambushes, sentry
guns, and trip mines.

Chapter 13: Lambda Core

After the snipers are dispatched kill all monsters you find. Once finished
the scientist opens the door; grab the big experimental gun he's been building.
Activate each cooling system switch and enter the water, swim to the reactor
and activate both switches. Climb out and hurry as the reactor begins shooting
lightning.

Time it correctly to use the teleporter to get yourself inside the core
and on the rotating platform. Jump across to each door in turn, then up
to the next level of the puzzle. It's challenging but fairly obvious once
you get a good look at it. Once finished open the door and meet the scientist
and the guard, listen to their story and grab everything they offer you.

Once the process for activating the big teleporter (that allows you
to bring the pain to the alien world) starts, try and kill the flying aliens
as fast as possible… don't let them kill the scientist opening the 'porter.
Once he says go… you'd better hurry.

Chapter 14: Xen

Welcome to Half-Life Super Mario style. Use your super long jump ability
to go from floating platform to floating platform, and don't fall. If you
see a pool of water from now on, stand in it and it will slowly heal you.

In the big chamber on the center island 'use' each of the strange mushroom
things, then break the webbing imprisoning the floating lights (butterfly
things). They each go to an open mushroom and activates the teleporter.

Chapter 15: Gonarch's Lair

Head crabs have to come from somewhere right? Ugh, she is a bad momma.
Aim for the egg sack on the bottom of this exceedingly strange monster.
If it releases pupae versions of the head crabs, use the hornet gun on
them. Once Gonarch runs away follow her to the next area and keep fighting,
while trying to stay alive. If low on health try and get to the hole and
drop down to the ledge below, watching for adult head crabs. In the tunnels
down there you'll find some ammo and a healing pool. Then use the bounce
crater to re-enter the fray.

After you do enough damage a third area opens up and you fall into a
pit. Fire at the sack repeatedly until Gonarch drops down with you. Then
hide behind the strange tree things until you eventually kill her. Note
that you can, if careful, avoid being sucked into the pit until you're
good and ready. Toss some grenades and det packs in on top of old Gonarch
to soften 'er up before getting up close and personal.

Chapter 16: Interloper

Look for a yellow colored area inside the cave, remove the webs and
ride the white tower elevator to the top. More jumping, just like in Xen,
but this time it's much harder. Jump from floating rock to floating rock
until you come within range of those strange winged bird things - jump
on one of them and ride its back to the teleporter.

Use a grenade or walk slowly past another tentacle monster and proceed
to the next teleporter. Once you enter the factory you'll see why those
lightning spewing beasties are called slaves --kill them if you like, but
they won't attack you. The fliers are what you need to worry about. Take
the lifts to the conveyers and enter the one that doesn't have a blue forcefield.
In the next area avoid destroying the large barrels… they contain hornet
toting aliens with a bad attitude.

Enter the red vents to find a large room with spinning cog-like lifts,
ride them all the way up to another teleporter.

Chapter 17: Nihilanth

Welcome to the end boss… watch out, he may look like a big baby, and
he is quite cranky, but he has powers that will annoy the hell out of you.
Avoid the lightening balls he throws, but most of all use the rock formations
as cover when he tosses a green energy ball. These teleport you to the
most annoying mini-levels you'll face.

The idea here is to destroy the three triangles. You have to use the
bounce craters to get high enough to nail the last one and then start shooting
at Nihilanth's big ole head. After enough hits his head opens up and you
need to send a couple detpacks, grenades, or yourself inside there to destroy
his brain. Good luck, you will need it!

Once the big baby is destroyed you are treated to a wonderful cutscene featuring 
  that suited character you may've seen. He sheds much light on this affair and 
  gives you a choice of outcomes for the endgame. I won't reveal these to you, 
  though; after all, you have to do something for yourself! 


    
 
  
Thanks to Revolution reader COOL-SWEDE!