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Half Life 2 Keep Off The Sand

http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/YMMV/HalfLife2

  1. Half Life 2 Keep Off The Sand Achievement Walkthrough
  2. Half-life 2 Keep Off The Sand Achievement
  3. Half Life 2 Keep Off The Sand Not Working

Half-Life 2 at IGN: walkthroughs, items, maps, video tips, and strategies. Keep them coming, the ship will be thrown off its strafing and firing routine. The next section of sand has very.

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  • Alternative Character Interpretation: It's not hard to interpret Breen's actions in different manners. Is he reallydoing all of this for humanity's sake? Or is he using the Combine for power (given his little slip of the tongue in 'Dark Energy', where he uses the term 'The Combine' rather than 'Our Benefactors', which he stresses the citizens to use because 'The Combine' is like a derogatory term.)?
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  • Anti-Climax Boss: The last challenge of the game is to stop Breen escaping. Make your way to the top of the tower, and shoot the panels off the rotating thing against a hidden timer, while under enemy fire. The hardest part is working out what you have to do.
  • Awesome Music:
    • Triage At Dawn, an unexpectedly beautiful yet solemn piece that makes your escape from Ravenholm feel all the more rewarding. There's also the extended remix by DJ Dain titled That Long Train Ride, sometimes known as 'Path of the Borealis'.
    • To Metalheads and fans of Industrial alike, it's 'What Kind of Hospital is This'. Needless to say, the soundtrack as a whole is very fitting and awesome.
  • Best Level Ever:
    • The airboat chase in 'Water Hazard' is remarkably fun.
    • Highway 17 has the bridge, the most wonderfully atmospheric part of the game. It's beautiful and gives a very intense sensation of being there. Being above the ocean while the wind rushes in your ears, as you barely climb your way over the broken up sections of metal under the bridge, while very quiet atmospheric music plays...Then, once the fighting starts, it becomes straight badass, especially when a gunship is added into the mix. The surrounding overcast when you're driving alongside the ocean is quite awesome too.
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    • Nova Prospekt, including the exterior that leads up to the chapter of the same name. Gordon has an army of antlions at his command for Storming the Beaches. The Combine garrison falls bunker by bunker and you can hear overhear the radio chatter talking about their defenses failing. Gordon then infiltrates the prison yard and the tower defenses fall to the antlion hordes. Twin gunships are called in to defend the yard, but Gordon is able to take them down. After killing the gunships, Gordon enters the prison. Inside the prison, Gordon continues his assault with the antlion army and the Combine desperately try to slow him down. There's an increase in SMG grenades and energy balls that are helpful for crowds so feel free to give the Combine hell.
    • Anticitizen One and Follow Freeman has Gordon going through City 17 in the midst of the uprising, fighting alongside rebels and crushing the Combine along the way through intense fighting. Video Game Caring Potential kicks in when trying to protect your squad of rebels.
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    • In the Citadel, once your gravity gun gets upgraded. At first it serves as an Oh, Crap! moment as almost all your weapons get taken away. The gravity gun, which up until now has been unable to directly damage anything larger than a headcrab, is now your only weapon. Then you find out that it's been powered up, and can now kill human-sized enemies in a single hit. You can rip computer consoles off the wall, and the environment provides you with an unlimited supply of energy balls. You know, the same energy balls that the Pulse Rifle fires as its secondary fire, deal ridiculous collateral damage, and are only given in small handfuls? Then you find out that the wall chargers, which at best would fill your suit power to 75%, now not only fill you all the way, but boost your suit power to 200% and heal you as well. You are now an unstoppable force, able to take out enemy soldiers effortlessly, and deal with former boss enemies with almost no trouble at all.
  • Big-Lipped Alligator Moment: A rare example of a Big-Lipped Alligator Enemy: the Floor Turrets from Nexus. An oddly specific enemy (serving a disputable purpose due to the Combine already having a number of more efficient turret variants), with a Weaksauce Weakness (as long as you're not standing where they're firing, you have plenty of time to roll in a grenade) that still somehow manage to be irritating and frustrating to fight in the eyes of most players. They are only ever seen in the Combine Nexus: never before, and never again, and don't really gel with usual Combine tactics (which seem to favor technology that can be quickly moved and redeployed, rather than inexplicably installing shit IN THE FLOOR.)
  • Broken Base:
    • The We Don't Go To Ravenholm.. level. It's either considered the Best Level Ever or That One Level for players, because it goes away from the traditional first person shooting throughout this level; having to rely mostly on the world traps and idle objects thrown by the gravity gun due to lack of gun ammunition. There's other debates regarding the level being if it's out of place for getting in the way of the war against the Combine or not and if the mission is too scary for some players having to fight through a town infested by zombies at night. On the other hand for those who love it, this level is often considered a major highlight of the game for its scary atmosphere. Not mention, it's here where many players get to test out the gravity gun's capabilities with the said idle objects. It also has Father Grigori, a very popular character.
    • Whether it was a Nerf or not that Combine Shotgun Soldiers getting updated with their own unique character skin by Episode Two. Some will say that it allows for better differentiation between the soldiers to kill off the more lethal enemies (the shotgunners) first. Others don't feel much of a difference.
  • Contested Sequel: People are very divided over the quality of the games. While none of them are bad per se, which of the games is the best is very controversial.
    • The Episodes are considered by many to be better than the main game, due to their better level design, varied environments and new gameplay additions.
  • Demonic Spiders:
    • Combine Shotgunners are one of the nastiest enemies in the games, frequent enough once the Combine Soldiers start appearing to tangle up your fights yet delicate enough to be a Glass Cannon. Statistically they're like any other soldier, except they charge straight in for you and begin blasting away with the shotgun as their name inclines, and do it surprisingly rapidly. On the Hard difficulty, one Shotgunner can kill you in seconds by destroying your suit energy and shredding through your health like a hot knife through butter - so naturally, the game starts liberally throwing them into almost every other soldier encounter. Noteably, Episode 2 and the 'New Engine' update acknowledges their status by giving shotgun-wielding Combine a distinct skin with red eyes, making them easier to spot in a group.
    • Poison Headcrabs have particularly distinct sounds, which are essentially your main and only warning that they're about to put your HP to 1. Doesn't matter how much suit energy you have or if you're at max health, one bite saps nearly every ounce of health so that other enemies can finish you off. They're not too frequent and are only marginally tougher than normal headcrabs, but the moment the little bastard's presence is apparent, Valve themselves admitted that playtesters flew into a panic, wasted excess ammo and precious explosives, and ignored every other threat in the area just to make sure these things were dead. This is essentially the only reason the Poison Headcrab Zombies are even a threat, as they accurately pitch up to three Poison Headcrabs in active attack states right at your face, and one of them dying means potentially multiple of the damn things are now active from dropping off the corpse if there were any left.
  • Even Better Sequel: Half-Life was seen as one of the best games of all time, for its strides in storytelling and World Building, along with having fast, challenging gameplay. Half-Life 2 is seen as even more of a step forward in game design, art direction, facial animation, and general presentation.
  • Game-Breaker: Machine gun turrets, while under control of the player, can be picked up with the gravity gun and use as an infinite machine gun, no real aiming required. They're only available in 'Entanglement', but use them well and the enemies get mowed down by the dozens.
  • Genius Bonus:
    • The cat that Kleiner apparently tested the teleporter on is a reference to The Fly (1958), which also featured an ill-fated cat being used to test a teleporter. Barney even claims that the 'damn thing' haunts him.
    • If you know your Greek Mythology, it's fairly obvious that the Vortigaunts' portrayal in this game is based on the classic portrayal of the Cyclops. Outside The Odyssey, most classical Greek writers like Hesiod described Cyclops as wise master craftsmen with control over electricity (they were said to be the crafters of Zeus's thunderbolts), in addition to being one-eyed giants.
    • One Breencast after the escape from Nova Prospekt warns that, without collaboration with the Combine, humanity's history will be reduced to something like the Burgess Shale, an extremely important fossil bed in British Columbia.
  • Good Bad Bugs: When Valve released the Orange Box, that version of the Source Engine came with a fix to bunny hopping, which had long been a mainstay of speed runs. The fix was fairly simple: if the engine detected you were moving forward too fast, it would apply a negative force to slow you down the next time you tried to bunny hop. However, it was possible to trick the engine into applying the force in the wrong direction by turning around in mid-air. This lead to the creation of Accelerated Back Hopping, a technique that dwarfs what you can accomplish with standard bunny hopping. Nice job fixing that, Valve.
  • Germans Love David Hasselhoff: While the game is popular worldwide, a notable amount of fanprojects, such as mods and the efforts to preserve the beta seem to come from Russia. This probably has something to do with the game seeming to take place in an Eastern European country that was modeled on Soviet totalitarian atmosphere and its aesthetic.
  • Hilarious in Hindsight: Marc Laidlaw's late August release of Epistle 3 (his thinly disguised outline of the plotline of what was intended to be Half-Life 2: Episode Three) led to the online community to create an 'Epistle 3 jam' a series of mods hoping to adapt the mod in some fashion. The joke is that the central gimmick of Epistle 3, the Time Crash nature of the Borealis with Gordon and Alyx fighting across the ship while it flashes across the past and the future, became a level in Titanfall 2, which was already hailed by many as one of the best single-player shooting campaigns since Half-Life as well as Dishonored 2, which was also heavily inspired by the Half-Life games, and whose first game had art design by Viktor Antonov himself.
  • Homegrown Hero: Taken to a new extreme here, as even though it takes place in post-apocalyptic Bulgaria where any semblance of nationstates has been destroyed, 99% of the surviving humans still seem to be American (including Gordon Freeman himself, naturally). On the other hand, it's been stated that Citizens are constantly transferred around, and as such it would make sense for the Combine to put Americans in Bulgaria. That still doesn't explain why everyone can understand each other though; realistically there would be practically no way of understanding each other without knowing a variety of languages (which is precisely what the Combine want to stop rebellion from occuring).
  • Iron Woobie: Alyx Vance. For the first years of her life, she lives in the dormitories of Black Mesa, a dangerous and accident-prone research facility. Then, her mother is killed during the Resonance Cascade incident. She only survives because the G-Man saves her life, putting her in a debt that she repays in Episode Two. Fast forward to when she meets Gordon Freeman. She is then separated from him by a malfunctioning teleporter, forcing Gordon to get to Eli's compound himself, fighting Combine along the way. Her father is then captured and the rest of the game is mostly spent trying to rescue him.
    In the end, when the dark matter reactor explodes, killing Breen, she only survives because the Vortigaunts teleport her out of the wreckage. In Episode One, the evacuatory train Gordon, Alyx and the gang have worked so hard to get running crashes in a wooded area because of a portal storm. In the beginning of Episode Two, she is stabbed twice by the long blades of a Hunter and survives, once again, because of the Vortigaunts. Finally, after Eli, Magnusson, and Kleiner launch the rocket and Gordon and Alyx are about to get into a helicopter to save their friend Mossman, a pair of Advisors smash through the building and kill Eli (her father) right in front of her. This is also a Break the Cutie.
  • Memetic Mutation:
    • The headcrab zombies' painful cries are actually reversed audio of a man screaming things to the effect of 'Dear God, help! HELP ME!!,' but it's also easy to interpret them as a straightforward Mondegreen: 'YABBA! My icing!' (Or 'My eyes sting!')
      • Russian gamers found it even more amusing because of mondegreen combined with Bilingual Bonus and.. Precision F-Strike: their cries sound very much like 'Ебать! Больно очень!' ('Yebat'! Bol'no ochen'!'), which, astoundingly, means 'Oh fuck, it hurts so much!'.
    • The protracted development state of Episode Three that has spanned at least 10 years has led to it being unfavorably called the successor to Duke Nukem Forever.
    • 'Pick up that can.' (Early in Half-Life 2, a Civil Protection officer knocks over a can and tells you to pick it up because he can).
    • Bla bla bla Mr. FreemanExplanation
  • Most Wonderful Sound:
    • The high, two-tone note that a Metrocop's radio will emit after they die. When a bunch of them play together after a particularly bloody fight, it's like the music of the angels.
    • Firing the .357 revolver generates a satisfying boom letting you know your target just got hit very hard.
  • Narm: The high pitched screams of the headcrab zombies fall into this, particularly if you're familiar with some of the more popularmondegreens.
  • Paranoia Fuel: When the G-Man is no longer subdued.
    G-Man: Doooooctor Freemaaaaaaaaan..
  • Porting Disaster:
    • It's no one's fault, really (the Xbox, while being the most powerful console of its generation, wasn't fit to run something as meaty as the Source engine), but the quality of the Xbox version is simply too far away from the PC original to make it worth playing.
    • The PlayStation 3 version of The Orange Box was pretty shabby, with Valve (at the time) not having that much faith in the PS3 and it being outsourced to another company entirely.
  • Scrappy Weapon: Unlike the pistol in the first game, pistol ammo in this game isn't shared with the submachine gun, making pistol rounds extremely pointless beyond the Ravenholm chapter. It's also not very accurate, and it's still just as weak, if not weaker than the submachine gun.
  • 'Seinfeld' Is Unfunny: It is incredibly difficult for anyone who first got into videogames (especially PC gaming) in, say, 2008 or beyond to appreciate the sheer scope of what Half-Life 2 brought to the industry. Objects with physics that interact with the world in a believable, intuitive manner? Complex facial animation and on-the-fly lip sync for speech? Sophisticated enemy AI that behaves in ways that make them seem like thinking, rational beings? HL2 brought all of these things to new heights, and everyone proceeded to work their butts off to match what it did.
  • That One Achievement:
    • Lambda Locator. It's the lowest-average achievement on Steam and, unlike the other achievements, is probably one of the most difficult to perform. The player is required to find 45 Lambda caches spread throughout the entire game, and because many of them are well-hidden many players will end up consulting a guide at one point or another. It really says something when 'Zombie Chopper' (go through Ravenholm using only the gravity gun) and 'Keep Off The Sand!' (a game of 'the floor is lava,' spread throughout an entire level) have higher percentages of players getting them. TrueAchievements.com states that only a meager 8% of players have it as of 13 August, 2017.
    • Episode 1 has 'One Free Bullet' which refers to the one free bullet you're given to pop a lock off a gate. Afterwards you have to learn to get by using only grenade, crowbar, rocket, and Gravity Gun kills. That means no guns nor crossbow. Explosives are scant and you don't get the crowbar until late in the game. To make it even harder you can do it while you try to get 'Citizen Escort' and keep four trips of defenseless citizens alive all without firing a shot. TrueAchievements.com states that only 17% of players have it as of 13 August, 2017.
    • Episode 2 somehow manages to have something even worse with 'Get some Grub'. You have to squish, shoot, and stomp 333 grubs through a maze that spans 3 levels (To the White Forest, This Vortal Coil and Freeman Pontifex). The main source of difficulty is that 333 grubs means all of them, and with the many one-way ledges and grubs hidden in the ceiling, it's very easy to miss a grub or two and lock yourself out of the achievement, none the wiser until you get out of the mines. Guinness World Records 2015 Gamer's Edition even stated that 'only 2.3% of the game's owners had managed it as of 5 August 2014' and TrueAchievements.com states that only 7% of players 'get some grub' as of 13 August, 2017. 'Pinata Party' has twice as much solely by the fact that it's slightly less difficult to get.
    • Episode 2 also has 'Little Rocket Man': carry a garden gnome thought the entire game and pop it into the rocket. The main source of agony is the car sections which comprise practically half the game: Gordon can't carry the gnome while he's driving, so it becomes a tedious game of 'pick up the gnome, punt it, drive up to the gnome, repeat' unless you find out the rather unintuitive trick of driving with the gnomenote and even that doesn't work 100% of the time, especially when you're driving into obstacles or when the chopper starts gunning you down, both of which can knock the gnome out of the car. The chopper makes it especially difficult: in addition to shooting out the gnome from the car, it can shoot the gnome away when you're trying to put it back, and it shreds your health as you attempt to reposition the gnome in the car correctly. And, after all that, you won't get the achievement if you forget to close the rocket door or accidentally drop it down the silo (though this can still be rectified with an earlier save). According to Steam global achievement stats, only 5% of all players have this achievement (as of 16 April 2018)
  • Ugly Cute: The Antlions after you get the Bugbait, who follow you like eager puppies and attack anyone you tell them to. Before then, of course, they were pure Nightmare Fuel.
  • Unnecessary Makeover: A mod example: FakeFactory's Cinematic Mod gave the old Source engine a serious kick in the pants, allowing for far more beautiful environments. While these were applauded, fans everywhere raged at the author's version of Alyx Vance. The mod replaces Alyx's down-to-earth, realistic appearance with a new model based on real-life supermodel Adriana Lima (as seen here), wearing a midriff-baring shirt and exposing her cleavage. Later versions removed her bra, showing Alyx's nipples through her shirt. Many Half-Life 2 fans revolted at the changes, stating that one reason for her popularity was because, unlike many video game heroines, she wasn't hypersexualized as originally designed. Other complaints were ripping off character models from Poser and other similar programs that vaguely look like the character in question (Dr. Breen is just one example). It should be noted though, that the installation of these character models is entirely optional.
Strategy Guide/Walkthrough/FAQ
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All chapters

Note: This procedure involves editing a game file; create a backup copy of the file before proceeding. Use a text editor to edit the 'config.cfg' file in the 'hl2cfg' directory. Locate the 'sv_unlockedchapters' line and change its value to '15'.

Get super gravity gun in any level

Enable the 'map d3_citadel_03.bsp' code. Once you get the super gravity gun, enable the 'changelevel [map name]' code to go to the desired level. Then, enable the 'give weapon_physcannon' code.

Defend yourself by using the Zero-Point Energy gun

Take something like a barrel, chair, or another object with the Zero-Point Energy gun. Enemies cannot hurt you when they are shooting you. For better results, crouch when you are defending yourself.

Avoid losing health in Sand Trap

When you start the Sands Trap map, you will find some rocks. Someone will tell you not to step on the sand because a creature will attack. You will have to jump on the rocks. When the rock ends and only sand remains, use your gravity gun. Use it to place a door or wooden piece in the sand and stand on it. Then, place another object in front of it. Jump on it, remove the first object, and place it in front. Continue to do this until you reach rock again and the creature will not appear.

Easy kills

To kill an enemy quickly and easily, take the shotgun and hit an enemy like headcrap, zombies, and City 17 guards. Aim and hit it in the head to kill it. Additionally, you can use Dog's ball to kill; or distract and attract enemies to the ball for easy kills. When you first get the anti-gravity gun while you play fetch with 'Dog', make sure to keep the ball. The ball is actually a 'rollermine'. You can keep the ball up until you go over to Dr. Kliener's fortified graveyard. The rollermine (ball) will follow you almost everywhere and is harmless to you, but it actually kills both types of Head Crabs. Other enemies such as zombies will ignore you and swing violently at the ball, giving you plenty of time to kill them, even with the crowbar. This will save you lots of ammunition throughout the zombie levels. You must be careful not to explode the ball, or it will be gone. If this happens, just re-load from where you had it last. The ball will follow you up most stairs, but you must carry it with the gravity gun up ladders.

Private torture

On the first level when the combine guard (who turns out to be Barney in disguise) tells you to follow him, do as he says. While you are walking down the corridor, look through the small gap in the first door you come across. You will see a man sitting in a chair, that has blood splattered on the floor underneath it that says, 'There has to be some sort of mistake. I got a standard relocation coupon juts like everybody else.' A combine guard who is in there with him will then walk up to the door and close the shutter.

Crazy lab

The 'all-knowing-Vortiguant' can be found in another location. Enable the map 'd1_eli_01' code. After the map loads, find your way inside the airlock. After the scanning sequence finishes, you should see the right doors opening. Directly in front of you will be a fence, and beyond it a blue pick-up. Ignore Dr. Mossman, who is talking to you, and enable the 'noclip' code. Go through the truck and you will see a man in a blue shirt with no eyes. Ignore him and go down the ramp down. On the left side of the large space will be a Vortigaunt. Disable the 'noclip' code and talk to him as many times as you can to see that he is crazy.

Bonus sequence

After the credits, wait to see the headcrab, Lamar, being pursued by the scientist. Then, watch him pounce on your head. Additionally, after you complete the game, watch the credits. Note: They cannot be skipped. When you reach the end of the credits, you will see Lamar jump onscreen. You will then hear Dr. Kliener say, 'Lamar? Blast that little… Where did she get to?' This is the same thing that he says when you first see him looking for her. Lamar will then lash out at you and supposedly 'couple with your head'.

Defeating Barnicals

To kill the Barnicals, let them pull you up, than hit them with a crowbar from a short distance.

Defeating Striders

If you find it difficult to hit the Striders (or any other enemy) with the RPG from far away, fire a rocket and immediately press [Zoom] (default is Z). You will automatically zoom in like normal, but will still have control of the rocket. This helps in the later levels when you do not want to get too close to the Striders, or other enemies like the Combines.

Blazing Saddles reference

When you teleport to Dr. Kliener's lab from Nova Prospekt, you will meet up with Dog and go out and find Barney. Do not follow Dog out of the lab yet; wait until Dr. Kliener and Alyx start talking about getting another headcrab to replace Lamar (Dr. Kliener's pet headcrab). After Alyx suggests that he gets another headcrab, he replies, 'There is only one heady.' In the movie Blazing Saddles, the villain's name is Headly Lamar (whom is called Heady Lamar by some of the characters).

LifeHalf-Life logo reference

Occasionally you will see the Half-Life Logo spray painted on a wall. One example is on the wall next the entrance to Dr. Kliener's lab.

Lamar passes through crates

Half Life 2 Keep Off The Sand Achievement Walkthrough

When Barney turns on the lights to the room that your Hazard Suit is in at Dr. Kliener's lab, he finds Lamar (Dr. Kliener's pet Head Crab). She (Lamar) attacks Barney. Barney then throws her onto the floor and she slams into some crates. Notice that she passes through them.

Invisible Lamar

When you first meet Lamar (Dr. Kliener's pet Head Crab), enable the impulse 101 code and shoot her with any gun. Lamar will instantly disappear. You will see some blood on the floor after she disappears if you shoot her with your pistol. Alyx, Barney, and Dr. Kliener will all act as if she is still there. Only Barney and Dr. Kliener do not look on top of the cabinet where she is supposed to be. They will look in completely different directions. Lamar will later return in the Teleporter room. You can shoot her again and the same thing will happen.

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Lamar passes through Dr. Kliener's leg

When you and Alyx go to Dr. Kliener's lab via the Teleporter, Alyx bangs on the door and asks Dr. Kliener to let you out. Dr. Kliener then opens the door holding a shotgun. You will then see Lamar appear at Dr. Kliener's feet. However, she passes through Dr. Kliener's right leg in the process.

Jumpy Dr. Kliener and shotgun; invincible and vanishing Lamar

When you and Alyx go to Dr. Kliener's lab via the Teleporter, enable the noclip code and go through the door into Dr. Kliener's lab. You will see Dr. Kliener and Lamar behind the door; both of them not moving and a shotgun lying of the floor next to Dr. Kliener. When the moment arrives for Dr. Kliener to open the door, he suddenly jumps towards the door to open it, and the shotgun suddenly jumps into his hands. If you try to shoot Lamar, she will not die. After Lamar runs out of Alyx's view, she just disappears around the corner (and is not actually hiding at all).

Frozen Hawaiian hula doll

When you first enter Dr. Kliener's lab, you will find a Hawaiian hula doll on a desk with some monitors on it. If you bash into the desk, you will make it dance. However, when you and Alyx enter Dr. Kliener's lab again via the Teleporter and try to make it dance again, it will not. It is completely frozen on the spot.

Dog spawns from nowhere

When you and Alyx go back to Dr. Kliener's lab via the teleporter, Dr. Kliener shows Alyx that Dog has arrived. If you stand at the very back of the room (in front of the green door) and crouch, you can see underneath the door to the room where Dog is. However, he is not there. Just as Dr. Kliener opens the door, Dog suddenly spawns out of nowhere in the room, just in time for him to run out.

Pass through Dog's arms

After you and Dog leave Dr. Kliener's lab (after the Blazing Saddles reference), Dog waits for you to jump down a level. While Dog waits for you, he is completely still. He will not walk away from you when you get close to him. If you approach his arms, you can pass through them.

Dog's wires pass through Alyx

When Dr. Kliener tells Alyx that Dog arrived at his lab several days ago and lets him out, Dog rushes out and hugs Alyx. However, you can see that one of Dog's wires attached to his arms will pass through Alyx.

Door to nothingness

After you and Dog leave Dr. Kliener's lab (after the Blazing Saddles reference), enable the noclip code and go through the drink machines blocking you from going back to the beginning of the game. Go up to the door ahead of you. Disable the noclip code and open the door. You will see that there is nothing behind it, and you can just walk into nothingness.

Backless clock

When you and your squad are inside that big building and trying to disable the 'generators', you will eventually encounter a clock that is hanging on a wall above an archway. To find it, enter the building and go up the stairs to the right. Go underneath the archway ahead of you, turn around, then look up to find it. Equip your Gravity Gun and shoot it using Mouse 1. Keep shooting it until it is on the floor, with its face and hands facing the floor (so you cannot see them). Notice that it has no back. You will be able to see through it. You may lose it -- to find it, crouch on the floor and look for a semi-circular shape and shoot it with your Gravity Gun until you can see its face and hands again.

Cheat Codes

Open Steam, go to your 'Play Games' menu, and select Half-Life 2. Right click on it and select 'Properties'. Click the Launch Options button, then type '-console'. Click 'Ok', then close. Double click Half-Life 2 to start the game. Once it is loaded and you are playing, press the ~ key to bring up the console. Then, enter 'sv_cheats 1' and press [Enter]. You can now enter the following codes at the console window. Also, any code can be used as a command line parameter by prefixing it with the '-' character. Note: For games that were downloaded from Steam, to use cheats in single player mode, start the game with the '-applaunch -dev -tconsole' command line parameter.

Result Cheat Code
God mode (server only)god
Walk through objects (server only)noclip
See through wallsmat_depthbias_normal 1
All weaponsimpulse 101
Spawn a jeepimpulse 82
Spawn an air boatimpulse 83
Ignored by NPCsnotarget
Load indicated mapmap [map name]
Spawn indicated itemgive [item name]
Reduce your healthbuddha
Damage playerhurtme [amount]
List mapsmaps
Disable dead bodies going through each othercl_ragdoll_collide 1
Toggle developer mode; 2 is verbosedeveloper [0-2]
Toggle picker modepicker
Toggle HUD displaycl_drawhud [0 or 1]
Toggle HUD displaycl_enablehud [0 or 1]
Toggle frame rate displaycl_showfps [0 or 1]
Enable mouse look+mlook
Show crosshairshud_quickhelp/text? 1
Sets the size of carried weapon; 54 is defaultviewmodel_fov [number]
Execute script fileexec [filename]
Creates an NPC; only where NPC are allowednpc_create [name]
Create an NPC aiming away from playernpc_create_aimed
Move player to indicated location; requires sv_cheats 1setpos [coordinates]
Set view to indicated pitch yaw; requires sv_cheats 1Setang [value]
Set gravity valuesv_gravity [number]
Set minimum stopping speed when on groundsv_stopspeed [number]
Set world frictionsv_friction [number]
Set bounce multiplier for physically simulated
objects collision
sv_bounce [number]
Set maximum velocity of any moving objectsv_maxvelocity [number]
Set vertical view fixup when eyes are near water
plane
sv_waterdist [number]
Slow time; 1 is defaultcl_phys_timescale [0.00-1.00]
Change air densityair_density [number]
Set length of explosion confusiondsp_explosion_effect_duration [number]
Toggle bounding-boxes debug mode; red: ignore
damage, white: respond to damage, green: health
prop_debug
Toggle reporting missing .WAV filessv_soundemitter_filecheck
Limits the number of texture units; 0 lets the game
decide
mat_numtextureunits [number]
Move player to indicated locationsetpos [coordinates]
Set view to indicated pitch yawSetang [value]
Wire frame modelsmat_wireframe1
Only wireframe objects effected by physicsvcollide_wireframe 1
Toggle bump mappingmat_fastnobump [0 or 1]
No weapon model onscreenimpulse 200
Deleted targeted object or personimpulse 203
Show game triggersshowtriggers_toggle
Show normal mapsmat_normalmaps 1
Show surface materialsmat_normals 1
Black and white screenmat_yuv 1
Color screenmat_yuv 0
Find the half lifeMap names

Use one of the following values with the 'map [map name]' code:

    d1_canals_01
    d1_canals_01a
    d1_canals_02
    d1_canals_03
    d1_canals_05
    d1_canals_06
    d1_canals_07
    d1_canals_08
    d1_canals_09
    d1_canals_10
    d1_canals_11
    d1_canals_12
    d1_canals_13
    d1_eli_01
    d1_eli_02
    d1_town_01
    d1_town_01a
    d1_town_02
    d1_town_02a
    d1_town_03
    d1_town_04
    d1_town_05
    d1_trainstation_01
    d1_trainstation_02
    d1_trainstation_03
    d1_trainstation_04
    d1_trainstation_05
    d1_trainstation_06
    d2_coast_01
    d2_coast_03
    d2_coast_04
    d2_coast_05
    d2_coast_07
    d2_coast_08
    d2_coast_09
    d2_coast_10
    d2_coast_11
    d2_coast_12
    d2_prison_01
    d2_prison_02
    d2_prison_03
    d2_prison_04
    d2_prison_05
    d2_prison_06
    d2_prison_07
    d2_prison_08
    d3_breen_01
    d3_c17_01
    d3_c17_02
    d3_c17_03
    d3_c17_04
    d3_c17_05
    d3_c17_06a
    d3_c17_06b
    d3_c17_07
    d3_c17_08
    d3_c17_09
    d3_c17_10a
    d3_c17_10b
    d3_c17_11
    d3_c17_12
    d3_c17_12b
    d3_c17_13
    d3_citadel_01
    d3_citadel_02
    d3_citadel_03
    d3_citadel_04
    d3_citadel_05
Weapon names

Use one of the following values with the 'give [item name]' code:

    weapon_357 (.357 Magnum)
    weapon_alyxgun (may not work at certain times, and may cause undesired effects)
    weapon_ar2 (pulse gun)
    weapon_bugbait (Pheropod)
    weapon_cguard (may not work at certain times, and may cause undesired effects)
    weapon_crowbar (crowbar)
    weapon_crossbow (crossbow)
    weapon_frag (grenade)
    weapon_physcannon (Gravity gun; may not work at certain times, and may cause undesired effects)
    weapon_pistol (9mm pistol)
    weapon_rpg (RPG)
    weapon_shotgun (shotgun)
    weapon_smg1 (submachine gun)
    weapon_cubemap (may not work at certain times, and may cause undesired effects)
    weapon_annabelle (Father Annabelle Grigori's shotgun, uses 357 magnum ammo)
Item names

Use one of the following values with the 'give [item name]' code:

    item_ar2_grenade (submachine gun grenades)
    item_ammo_smg1_grenade (submachine gun grenades)
    item_box_buckshot (shotgun ammo)
    item_box_lrounds (pulse gun ammo)
    item_ammo_ar2 (pulse gun ammo)
    item_ammo_ar2_large (pulse gun ammo large)
    item_large_box_lrounds (pulse gun ammo large)
    item_ammo_ar2_altfire (pulse gun grenades)
    item_box_mrounds (submachine gun ammo)
    item_ammo_smg1_large (submachine gun ammo large)
    item_large_box_mrounds (submachine gun ammo large)
    item_ammo_smg1 (submachine gun ammo)
    item_box_srounds (9mm pistol ammo)
    item_ammo_pistol (9mm pistol ammo)
    item_ammo_pistol_large (9mm pistol ammo large)
    item_large_box_srounds (9mm pistol ammo large)
    item_healthkit (large health kit; 25 HP)
    item_battery (HEV suit battery; 15 AP)
    item_ml_grenade (RPG ammo)
    item_rpg_round (RPG ammo)
    item_suit (HEV suit)
    item_healthvial (small health kit; 10 HP)
    item_ammo_357 (.357 Magnum ammo)
    item_ammo_357_large (.357 Magnum ammo large )
    item_ammo_crossbow (crossbow ammo)
NPC names

Use one of the following values with the 'npc_create [name]' code:

Off
    npc_alyx
    npc_antlion
    npc_antlionguard
    npc_barnacle
    npc_barney
    npc_breen
    npc_citizen
    npc_combine_s
    npc_combinedropship
    npc_combinegunship
    npc_crow
    npc_cscanner
    npc_dog
    npc_eli
    npc_fastzombie
    npc_gman
    npc_headcrab
    npc_headcrab_black
    npc_headcrab_fast
    npc_headcrab_poison
    npc_helicopter
    npc_ichthyosaur
    npc_kleiner
    npc_launcher
    npc_manhack
    npc_metropolice
    npc_monk
    npc_mossman
    npc_pigeon
    npc_poisonzombie
    npc_rollermine
    npc_seagull
    npc_stalker
    npc_strider
    npc_turret_ceiling (ceiling turret) npc_turret_floor (combine turret) npc_vortigaunt
    npc_zombie
    npc_zombie_torso
Additional command-line parameters

Start the game with one of the following command line parameters to activate the corresponding feature:

Half-life 2 Keep Off The Sand Achievement

ResultCommand Line Parameter
Full screen mode-fullscreen
Set heap size-heapsize 80000
Set window size-width 1024 -height 768
Graph connection throughput in multi-player; 0 is off, 3 is most detailed-netgraph [0-3]
Force DirectX <version> compatibility; less than 8 not advised-dxlevel [number]0
Load all level data at start of level-preload
Use indicated filename for shader library-shaderdll [filename]
Look around by using mouse-mouselook
Add debug messages to ingame console-condebug
Software mode for rendering-sw
Toggle anamorphic widescreen mode-r_anamorphic [0 or 1]
Run in window-startwindowed
Run in window-window
Run in window-windowed
Unknown-mat_preloadshaders
Hidden G-Man

After you finally get out of Ravenholm, you will go through a tunnel-type area with tons of Headcrabs, past the mine cart with the big spinning deathtrap, and finally see a light at the end of the tunnel. You will exit into a train station. Normally, you would go all the way down until some crashed trains block you from going further, forcing you to go left into a fenced area full of combine. Enable the 'noclip' code and walk through all the crashed trains. You come out in an open area with tracks. In the middle of the tracks is G-Man with his briefcase. Regrettably, you cannot talk to him or do anything else in this area.

G-Man sightings

G-Man keeps an omnipresent watch over your movements throughout your adventure in and around City 17. His locations are as follows:

    1. Chapter 1: At the beginning.

    2. Chapter 2: On a monitor screen in Dr. Kleiner's lab after Barney finishes at the terminal.

    3. Chapter 3: On the TV that the Vortigaunt is watching inside the red train carriage.

    4. Chapter 4: Standing on the pier in front of Station 7 at the beginning of the chapter.

    5. Chapter 4: Flickering on a giant monitor attached to the high-rise building. It is very quick, but if you look carefully you can see the skeletal form of G-Man on the screen. Paint the town red download.

    6. Chapter 6: On a small gantry near the second covered bridge.

    7. Chapter 6: In the last part of the chapter you will come across a pier next to a dam. Get onto the pier by driving up the ramp in your speedboat and turn left by the big red warehouse. You can see G-Man staring to the right at the bottom of the rest of the pier.

    8. Walking into a train tunnel beyond the railcar blocking the railroad. See the 'Hidden G-Man' hint for a detailed description. Note: This sighting is not in the official strategy guide.

    9. Chapter 9: Looking through a window near a pair of double doors on a monitor screen at the beginning.

    10. Chapter 11: On a TV at the ruined foyer at the tenement block after you and Dog get separated.

    11. Chapter 14: At the end.

Being disruptive

When you enter Dr. Kliener's lab, there is a large amount of items that you can just pick up and toss around: books, boxes, computer monitors, a mini cactus, and Dr. Kliener's clip board with the information for your Hazard Suit on it. If you toss things around the lab for long enough, Dr. Kliener, Barney or Alyx will say something to you:

    Dr. Kliener: 'Oh, do be careful.'; 'Careful.'; and 'Oh dear.'

    Barney: 'Whoa, careful.' and 'You're pushing it, Gordon.'

    Alyx: 'Careful.' and 'Take it easy, Gordon. '

Note: It will take a lot of attempts to make Alyx, Barney or Dr. Kliener say something -- be patient.

Half Life 2 Keep Off The Sand Not Working

Strange squad comments

When you are in City 17 during your second visit, try talking to some of your squad members. They will say something like, 'I can't believe this day has finally come', or 'If I ever get my hands on Dr. Breen..'. However, sometimes they will say strange and sometimes funny things like, 'When this is all over, I'm gonna mate.', 'Have I ever told you that I sometimes dream of cheese?', and more. Some of your squad members reply to what they have said. If you talk to a squad member that is standing near or next to another squad member, they will interact with each other. For example, If one of them says, 'If I ever get my hands on Dr. Breen..', the other will reply, 'That's more information that I require.' The following is a list of all the things they say and all the replies. Note: The replies are not always the same, but they are most of the time.

    I don't feel anything anymore.
    You talking to me?
    I can't remember the last time I had a shower.
    Don't be so sure of that.
    I don't think this war's ever going to end.
    You're talking to yourself again.
    To think, I all I wanted to do was to sell insurance.
    I'm with you.
    I'm not a betting man, but the odds are not good.
    Can we talk about this later?
    Someday, this'll all be a bad memory.
    I'm not even gonna tell you to shut up.
    When this is all over, I'm gonna mate.
    Wouldn't be the first time.
    Whoa…. Déjà vu!
    Doesn't bear thinking about it.
    They're never going to make a Stalker out of me.
    There's always a first time. Or, Ill put it on your Tomb Stone.
    God I'm hungry.
    Lets concentrate on the task at hand.
    If I ever get my hands on Dr. Breen….
    That's more information than I require.
    I think I ate something bad.
    Yeah, you and me both.
    Sometimes, I dream about cheese.
    You should nip that kind of talk in the bud.
    Finally, change is in the air!
    Keep your mind on your work.
    You feel it? I feel it!
    I wish I had a dime every time somebody said that.
    I can't remember I the last time I had, well, anything.
    I won't hold it against you.
    When this is all over, I'm…. aw, who am I kidding?
    Try not to let it bother you.
    I'm pretty sure this isn't part of the plan.
    Same here.
    Doesn't anyone care what I think?
    Hey, that's enough out of you.
    I just knew it was gonna be one of those days.
    I wouldn't say that too loud.
    Looks to me like things are getting worse, not better.
    What am I supposed to do about it?
    This is bullshit!
    Try not to dwell on it.
    I don't dream anymore.
    That's you all over.
    I'm glad there are no kids around to see this.
    I'm not even gonna tell you to shut up.
    If I could live my life over again.
    Figures.
    I'm not even gonna tell you what that reminds me of.
    Your mind is in the gutter.
    I can't get this tune out of my head….Woo, woo woo, woo woo woo-woo woo.
    Wanna bet?
    I can't believe this day has finally come!
    No argument there.
    I could eat a horse, hooves and all!
    Have you ever had an original thought?
    You smell that? It's freedom.
    Why are you telling me?