How Valve Scriptwriters Came to the Unexpected Finale of Half-Life: Alyx – review

The studio, including Eric Woolpo, brought the scriptwriters to work already in the final third of Alix production, so the main storyline was invented before they arrived. They had to “build up meat.”

As a result, the writers decided to break out of the “prequel trap”, making the story far more important for the entire franchise. To do this, they undertook to rewrite the ending of the second episode, shifting the story Half-life 2 from a dead point.

According to Woolpo, the decision was partially made out of despair, because it was a prequel, where the plot revolves around the release from prison of either God or Satan.

And now he owes you. What will he do?

Eric Woolpo

At the same time, of course, when many in the studio first heard about the desire to rewrite the ending of the second episode, they strongly opposed, not wanting to resort to this.

Perhaps we even presented the finale with words like “We’ll talk about the finale now, and you will hate it, but just think about it for at least a couple of seconds.”

Eric Woolpo

However, over time, Valve came to understand that it could really work.

The ending “Alix” will have its “unforeseen consequences.” The Half-Life screenwriters, of course, have their own ideas for further stories, but they are not in a hurry to share them with the audience, because they want to read the discussions of the players, and not to impose their point of view.

We made a game around Alix. None of the screenwriters wanted her to end up where she was in the second episode. We wanted to send her in a different way, which should be very interesting.

Eric Woolpo

Judging by the reaction on the network, many fans met a new final point in the universe positively. Now Gordon Freeman and his allies have a clear villain in the person of G-Man, a new target and increased rates. We will find out where this will lead if Valve nevertheless continues the story.

Woolpo, by the way, recalls a comic ending that would surely blow fans up.

We had an idea where at the end Alix asks to remove the Alliance from Earth, and G-Man fulfills this desire. Everything. Half-Life 3. Final. They leave Earth and we end the series.

Eric Woolpo