As part of Valve’s celebration of Half-Life 2’s 20th anniversary, the studio has released 17 minutes of early development footage for the game that was long thought lost. The demo shows a version of Half-Life 2 partway between HL1 and the final release—it’s familiar, yet also surreally, intriguingly different.
The “Get Your Free TVs” demo, so named for a City 17 citizen snagging a boob tube gratis early in the footage, was first shown at the SIGGRAPH graphics conference in 2000. That places this build two years out from Half-Life 1’s release, and two to three before the infamous Half-Life 2 beta that leaked in 2003. It’s a distinct point in the game’s evolution, with graphical elements reminiscent of both Half-Life 1’s GoldSrc and the final Source engine, as well as a more grim, dark, and industrial art direction.
As outlined in the Half-Life: Raising the Bar art book, the Combine’s destruction of Earth’s biosphere was initially meant to be much more overt and oppressive in the game, with a greenish sky and City 17 citizens wearing HAZMAT gear instead of their snazzy denim jumpsuits. Breen and the Combine’s architecture were more sinister and overbearing as well.
The demo shows off early versions of major NPCs like Barney and Alyx, as well as an almost-unrecognizable Dr. Kleiner. One of the biggest surprises is a snowfield area with an early version of the Borealis, the mysterious ice breaker unstuck in time that was to be the centerpiece of Episode 3. The ship also appears in the Half-Life 2 beta, so it’s clear that Valve has been trying to make the concept work for a long time.
Valve has put out a veritable smorgasbord of behind-the-scenes, rare, or never-before-seen content for Half-Life 2’s 20th birthday. A new, two-hour documentary includes Gabe Newell’s thoughts on Episode 3 and Half-Life’s future, as well as gameplay footage of the legendary canceled expansion.
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