Combine Attack

Summary

Gordan Freeman wakes up and regroups with Alyx and the other surviving civilians.  The Combine forces are on high alert, ambushing Gordan and Alyx right after they meet each other, forcing them to fight their way out to safety. 

Challenge

The goal of this project was to make a linear heavily scripted level with narrative elements in the level. It was my first time learning how to use the Hammer editor so many tools needed to be learned while I was developing the level. 

Pre-Production

Development Process

Blocking

The entirety of the level is blocked out using the hammer editor. 

Iterations 

After several playtests, I found that playtesters were struggling on certain sections of the level. One of the sections is at the beginning when players had to walk across a plank to then shoot a lock off a ladder. Some players never saw the lock and were unsure of what to do. I ended up removing the plank and made a bridge fall down when the wooden boards were all destroyed. A red explosive barrel is placed right next to it so it would attract players to shoot it. Additionally, I scripted a scanner NPC to appear and zoom onto the other side as a way to indicate to players where to go. 

The bridge section went through two iterations. At first, an encounter with a turret gunner forced the player to push forward until they reached a grenade supply box. The player would then throw a grenade to get rid of the gunner. This section was too clunky and not fun. Players were confused as it introduced a new mechanic in the fray of an intense moment. I ended up simplifying the bridge through a scripted sequence with the strider returning from earlier causing havoc, killing the Combine gunner in the chaos, and allowing the player to move forward. In the second iteration, some players would move forward during the scripted sequence which resulted in them dying. I ended up fully blocking the player behind a barrier until the sequence ended. 

I also made some smaller adjustments across the level. The turret section 2nd floor was lowered to make it closer to players, as a playtester had a hard time seeing the Combine soldiers from far away. Another change was players not noticing the tower in certain areas where I wanted players to see it. I wanted the tower to be something that players notice as they work their way through the level, akin to the Citadel from Half-Life 2. An area was adjusted to make the tower easier to notice as they walked through.  

Scripting

Narrative Scripted Event

Narrative scripted encounters occur early on in the level as a way to introduce both the Combine and the Strider. The players first hand is seeing what happens to any civilians who encounter the Combine. Upon meeting Alyx, the player is caught up on what they've been doing before their arrival. The dialogue was all provided from the Half-Life 2 games and was mixed and matched to get the desired dialogue.  The introduction ends with the Combine ambushing our heroes.   

Combat Scripted Event

The combat-scripted sequences were a way to provide unique combat encounters with the Combine soldiers in each area. The soldiers would start off ambushing the player and Alyx, leading to a tight encounter with a Scanner and more soldiers. The bridge sequence was a way to reinforce the threat of the Strider, foreshadowing a possible fight with them later in the level.  The last section of the level has the player interacting with a turret and mowing down soldiers in waves. Soldiers would rappel from the ceiling as glass shatters, as they try and take down the player. 

Design Philosophy 

Vista 

During pre-prediction, I wanted to have some kind of landmark that the player would be making their way toward. I decided to make a tower similar to the Citadel from Half-Life 2.