After five years in development, running on an engine as powerful as Source and being launched off the shoulders of the most played and popular first person shooters ever, there is no doubt that Half-Life 2 is an exceptional game. However it is sometimes the finer details in life (such as exploding microwaves in the original Half-Life) that allow games like Half-Life 2 to become classics. As such, this article is a (hopefully) detailed listing of the finer points of Half-Life 2.

For those of you who are picky and who do not want to know everything about the game, the following is a list of all the points covered in this article:

(http://www.hlfallout.net/articles.php/44/2/)Easter Eggs
General Easter Eggs and trivia on Half-Life 2. Amaze your friends, and scare the girls away with your intimate knowledge of Gordon's latest adventure.

(http://www.hlfallout.net/articles.php/44/3/)G-Man Sightings
A comprehensive listing of all the G-Man sightings within Half-Life 2.

(http://www.hlfallout.net/articles.php/44/4/)Lambda Locations and Unmarked Caches
A complete list of all the Lambda locations in the game as well as the unmarked caches of items and ammo.

(http://www.hlfallout.net/articles.php/44/5/)Cheats
For the weak at heart, or those who just want to play about, this is the core listing of cheats for you.

Easter Eggs
Easter eggs have long been a staple part of any game and Half-Life 2 is no exception. This is by no means a complete list of all the interesting things that Half-Life 2 has to offer, however it may contain a few interesting tidbits of information that you had not previously seen.

Do It Yourself Teleport technology
Keeping plans out in the open like this might not be so wise with oh-so-many combine around, but Dr. Kleiner does it anyway, think you can work with this?

Filling in the gaps
Untold parts of the story are filled in with posterboards full of newspaper clippings, find out what happened between the original Half-Life and now in 5 quick seconds.

The Black Mesa team
From Dr. Kleiner & Eli to Gordon and Grumpy the whole team is here, could that be the Administrator behind that scribbled out face?

Lamarr the loveable headcrab
Introduced to us in the first stages of the game, sit though the credits to find out wether or not Dr. Kleiner finds his beloved headcrab (on a side note, Lamarr eats watermelon (http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31392)).

Cause of teleport malfunction?
Found in the teleportation room of Dr. Kleiner's lab, there is what appears to be a crashed Windows NT machine — could this be the cause of the broken teleporter?

Dr. Eli's family
Seen in the game, this (http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31400) photo shows Eli with his wife and a rosy-faced Alyx from before things went all fubar on them.

Graffiti
The detail applied to the graffiti in Half-Life 2 is incredible. Propaganda and graffiti tags line the walls side by side thoughout the game.







Talkative Vortigaunt

After beating the helicopter (and sighting the G-Man for the seventh time (http://www.hlfallout.net/articles.php/44/3/)), open the gate that lets you into the inlet behind the barn. Moving on past the barn, you will spot two pipes opening from the concrete wall. You can climb into one of them, however make sure you have a lot of health and have your finger ready on the sprint key because the water here is radioactive and there is no way to avoid it. Reaching the end of the cave, you will discover a small refuge created by a vortigaunt. This is of particular note, because if you continually speak to the vortigaunt by pressing your 'use' key, he will reveal some intresting tidbits about the back story to Half-Life 2.

Easy Listening in Seattle
In Dr. Kleiner's lab underneath the screen you might notice a cd player. What's on? "Blue Scholars (http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31514)", a band from Seattle where VALVe is based.

Original HEV Suit Recharger
An old friend (http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31513) from the original Half-Life can be found in the Junkyard level where you first practice with the gravity gun. You can't beat those original HEV recharge panels.

Reading is fun
A little selection (http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31512) from the guys at VALVe, this small libary includes books from Mark Laidlaw (the man behind the Half-Life story) and Dr. Kleiner himself.

Evolution 101
As mentioned before, some of the graffiti found all around City 17 is very detailed, this particular piece (http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31527) shows the evolution of the combine — describing them as part man part machine while contrasting them with a normal human and our ape predecessors.

Attention to Detail
As you can see from this screenshot (http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31528), realistic details are an important and common part of the Half-Life 2 environment — after all, you are playing in the most environmentally realistic first person shooter yet.

David Blaine Sighting?
In Black Mesa East, just after following Judith through the locked door, there is a chain link fence. Just as you get there, a citizen begins walking away from you on the other side. Noclip through the fence and follow him. At the end of the tunnel he just starts walking back and forth, stopping when he turns around to... levitate? Cool, eh? Probably just a bug? Take a closer look. The citizen bears a more than striking resemblance (http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31730) to David Blaine. Blaine's fans would know of his most infamous "street magic" illusions involving levitating a few inches off the ground.

G-Man Sightings

The mysterious figure that seems to be the puppetmaster behind Gordon in both Half-Life games, the G-man is notorious for popping up around the game to check on Gordon's progress. We have compiled a list of locations that the G-Man has been spotted for your reading pleasure.

Chapter I: Point Insertion
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31401)Sighting Number 1. You see the G-Man in a hallucination on the train explaining very little, and introducing you to the game.

Chapter II: A Red Letter Day
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31405)Sighting Number 2. In Dr. Kleiners lab, you can flick though the various cameras on the main monitor by pressing your use key until you see the containment area where you are initially detained. The G-Man waits here for a moment, then leaves.

Chapter III: Route Kanal
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31403)Sighting Number 3. As soon as you drop into the shipping container with the Vortigaunt and the human resistance member, take a close look at the television the Vortigaunt is watching. The G-Man appears for a few brief moments before the screen transitions to static.

Chapter IV: Water Hazard
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31402)Sighting Number 4. After busting through a channel marker and taking a sharp left, you will come across a barn on the right side of the water's edge. Take a moment here to use your zoom function and catch a glimpse of the G-Man before he enters the building and disappears from your reach once again.
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31407)Sighting Number 5. After the dropships have flown by and you get back on the boat, take a look at the giant viewscreen broadcasting near the tenements. Once again the G-Man can be seen in one of the images that flicks across the screen for a brief moment of time.
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31406)Sighting Number 6. After you have recieved the machine gun from the Vortigaunt and have opened the combine gate to go through the tunnel, you may catch a glimpse of the G-Man standing on a gantry here.
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31511)Sighting Number 7. Just before entering Black Mesa East, you may spot the G-Man watching you on the dam wall after your fight with the helicopter.

Chapter V: Black Mesa East
There are no known G-Man encounters in this chapter.

Chapter VI: We Don't go to Ravenholm
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31411)Sighting Number 8. After you have escaped the mines and made it past the snipers, you may get the opportunity to jump up onto a rail car and look towards the rail cars that are blocking your way, you may catch a glimpse of the G-Man as he disappears into a tunnel.

Chapter VII: Highway 17
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31412)Sighting Number 9. In one of the houses you come across a camera is set up on a tripod at one of the windows, if you use the camera you may be lucky enough to catch a glimpse of the G-Man talking to somebody on the balcony of one of the buildings. Conspiracy?

Chapter VIII: SandTraps
There are no known G-Man encounters in this chapter.

Chapter IX: Nova Prospekt
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31414)Sighting Number 10. Near the beginning of the level, have a closer look at the first monitor you see, you may be able to catch a quick glimpse of the G-Man as he adjusts his tie and once again disappears from view.

Chapter X: Entanglement
There are no known G-Man encounters in this chapter.

Chapter XI: AntiCitizen One
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31410)Sighting Number 11. After dog leaves you, take a look at the television in the tenements foyer. Once again the G-Man is breifly hijacking the airwaves to check in on your progress.
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31450)Shighting Number 12. After Dog gets taken away on the dropship and you enter the trainstation main square you will see some rebel fighters with ropes, pulling down a large screen with Dr. Breen on it who is once again spewing propaganda. For a second, a picture of the G-Man may be seen flickering on the screen.

Chapter XII: Follow Freeman
There are no known G-Man encounters in this chapter.

Chapter XIII: Our Benefactors
There are no known G-Man encounters in this chapter.

Chapter XIV: Dark Energy
(http://www.hlfallout.net/image.php?id=31409)Sighting Number 13. After you stop Dr. Breen from going though the portal, the G-Man comes to collect you once again for your next adventure (hopefully not in another six years time though).

Lambda Locations

While playing the game, you may notice that there are Lambda symbols sprayed all thoughout the maps. Each of these symbols signifies that there is a cache of items and ammunition for you to raid. Because we really have nothing better to do, we have searched high and low through the game to bring you a complete listing of these symbols and their locations. Enjoy.

Chapter I: Point Insertion
None.

Chapter II: A Red Letter Day
Location 1: After Alyx stops in front of a vending machine and offers to buy you a drink, you will notice a Lambda symbol here. This signifies the entrance to Dr. Kleiner's lab.

Chapter III: Route Kanal
Location 1: After crossing the train tracks near the beginning of the level, look around for a small run-down house near the gate. Go inside and you will see a Lambda symbol with some ammunition and health.
Location 2: This symbol is placed above a duct opening that you need to pass though to advance. Inside you will find a supply crate waiting patiently for you.
Location 4: After your first encounter with a helicopter you will notice a Lambda symbol beneath the metal walkway you are standing on, ahead and to your right is a ladder for you to climb down and access the goodies laying in wait for you.
Location 5: Once you have acquired the SMG and dealt with the Manhacks that you encounter soon after, have a look under the piping and you will see a spray painted Lambda logo with a supply crate just waiting to be busted open.
Location 6: Further advancing though the level, you may encounter a small curved walkway with a catwalk of planks above. Looking up you may notice the Lambda symbol spray painted on the wall indicating that a resistance cache is nearby. Climb up the nearby ladder and stock up on the items that have been left here for you.
Location 7: In the same area as location 6, follow the catwalk along and you will come to another Lambda cache. You may need your flashlight for this.


Chapter IV: Water Hazard
Location 1: Very close to the beginning of this level there is a Lambda spray. You will need to exit the airboat, climb a nearby ladder and jump the gap to get to the ammunition that is stowed here.
Location 2: In the same barn as you see the G-Man you may notice a Lambda logo spray painted on the box dangling from the crane. You will need to get up into the barn, kill any hostile creatures that you may encounter and dislodge the barrel that is holding the small cache of supply crates up, and then jump back down into the water to claim your prize.
Location 3: You will notice a jump just after a fellow resistance member drops you some supplies. Jump out of your vehicle and shine your flashlight into the tunnel on your left, there is a resistance symbol here to signify the clue to raise the jump.
Location 4: Near where the first Combine dropship lets off Metro Cops, there are three large sewer holes. One of them has the grate broken and a lambda symbol next to it. Travel through it and under a brief stretch of water to find your supplies and a hidden zombie at the end.
Location 5: After entering the APC warehouse and opening the gate, make your way deeper into the canals. Passing the first attacking combine vehicle, you will be able to see the familiar Lambda spray on the wall near the second vehicle. There is a small hole near the adjacent bars, climb though here to get to the two supply crates place here.
Location 6: After emerging from a tunnel with fallen debris blocking the way forward, turn right to advance further and you will notice the familiar spray on a pillar here. Some supplies are suspended in a basket out of your reach, look for the basket that is attached to the other end of the pulley system and throw the bricks placed in here out of the basket with your "use" key to lower the supplies. You may notice some ammunition you have no weapon for yet, a sign of things to come?
Location 7: After opening the second gate a helicopter will start chasing you. Quickly, before things get too serious, take a peek under the railway bridge and look left, you'll spot a Lambda symbol indicating a couple of supply crates for you to bash open with your crowbar.
Location 9: Right after location 8, you'll exit the sluice channel; a concrete overflow structure appears on your left. Inspect the reeds in the right corner for Magnum rounds, then move into the logo-adorned concrete structure to secure more items.
Location 10: After spotting the G-Man you will notice a Lambda spray just before a split in the tunnels, take the right turn and dispatch any resistance you encounter. Pushing forward you will notice a hut filled with dead resistance members. The top floor contains some supply crates for you to raid, but be careful of headcrabs!

Chapter V: Black Mesa East
Location 1: Near the beginning of this chapter you will spot the Lambda logo near a wooden jetty, this signifies the place to climb up onto the wharf. There are no goodies here.

Chapter VI: We Don't Go to Ravenholm
Location 1: After entering the house with the generators, zombies and headcrabs, head up the stairs and toward the balcony looking over the generators. From this balcony jump across to the far right generator, hop across to the left generator and the Lambda spray, bash in the grating here and crawl though the newly exposed duct to the hidden alley. Collect your winnings in the supply crates stashed here (you'll notice a second lambda near the supplies) and you are ready to head off again.
Location 2: Your next lambda is easy to spot in the "dropping car" area, you may spot it on the wooden fence nearby.
Location 3: After you see Father Grigori take out more zombies from the other building, jump out, dispose of the rest. Then climb the ladder in the corner and jump onto the beams. Continue until you're at the T junction. Turn left, your flashlight might be handy, and look into the attic opening on your left to spot a crude logo on the wall.
Location 4: With a final exit from the mines, have a look towards your back and check the tunnel entrance. The Lambda symbol hugs the arch and a stack of supplies support it.

Chapter VII: Highway 17
None.

Chapter VIII: Sandtraps
None.

Chapter IX: Nova Prospekt
None.

Chapter X: Entanglement
None.

Chapter XI: Anticitizen One
Location 1: Head outside the building to find a huge Combine Wall. Look at the opposite side of the street. Your fans haven't forgotten your heroism, and have begun to place stacks of items for you around the city. These are behind a sturdy fence, and you can grab them only by sucking and smashing the boxes with your Gravity Gun.
Location 2: Once you come to a tunnel full of manhacks, check a rickety barricade towards the end of the tunnel, noticeable by its badly collapsed state. You will find some needed supplies.
Location 3: Walk out into the final courtyard in this area, you will notice you are now on the opposite side of the barred fence. Enter the green building, at the top of this half-demolished building, you will spot some friendly faces, guarding your prize.
Location 4: After falling through a few holes in the floor and fighting off some zombies you will come to a T-junction. Right there is a large resistance logo in complete darkness. Before you exit this area move up to the grating, and switch on your Flashlight to peer into the darkness. Bring out the Gravity Gun and suck the crates to collect the goods.

Chapter XII: Follow Freeman
Location 1: Descending the winding stairs towards the beginning of this chapter you may spot a secret stash of supply crates below the balcony. Look for a rusting pipe with a ladder on it, towards your left. This is where you will spot an alcove with your goods in it. Then jump down ladder and smash the crates.
Location 2: Further on, you will come to a small sewer water channel, not far from the first Lambda location. Defeat the Zombies and enter the square tunnel. Once you reach another oily patch you will see a narrow double passage. Enter the right side of the double passage and immediately check the right wall for a Lambda logo. Hidden at the back of a tiny alcove is some ammunition. Use the Gravity Gun to suck it towards yourself.
Location 3: Cross the pipes immediately after location 2 and break open your prize. There's another crate to your left, too. After restocking, return to the other end of the tunnel.
Location 4: After a visit from the final strider in the tunnels, go through the building and make your way through to the top, killing all the Combine Soldiers standing in your path. Upon arrival , look down the hole leading to a stairwell below. The connecting passage between the parking structure and the final assault area holds a Lambda location that's easy to spot on your way. Stop for a moment to reload from the Supply Crates here.
Location 5: After you clear out the enemies from the first underground parking lot, go to the white van which has some batteries, and even has a hidden Lambda logo beneath the right brake light. Then move to the side and find a small dead-end area with more items to gather.

Chapter XIII: Our Benefactors
None.

Chapter XIV: Dark Energy
None.

Unmarked Caches
Listed below are caches of items and ammo spread throughout Half-Life 2 which are not marked with the tell-tale Lambda symbol.

Chapter III: Route Kanal
Location 1: Near a pool of radioactive waste, climb up onto the pipe and follow it until you get to the end, and the final resistance cache in this chapter.

Chapter IV: Water Hazard
Location 1: Once you have finally evaded the chopper you may notice a Lambda symbol on the wall near some supports, ram these with your airboat to bring the supply crates that are hiding up there down to your level.
Location 2: After the helicopter chase has resumed keep powering on until you reach another steeply sloping channel, ignoring the chopper as best you can and head up the left bank on a diagonal. Once you have reached the top, hop out of the airboat and run to the stash of supply crates indicated by the Lambda symbol you saw.

Cheats
All cheats in the game require the console to be enabled, and sv_cheats 1 to be set. To do this, open the options menu, select the "Keyboard" tab and press the button labeled "Advanced...". Make sure that the "Enable developer console (~)" check box is ticked and press OK. Close the options window and load up your game of Half-Life 2. Once you have begun playing your game, press the tilde (~) key to bring up the developer console (press it again to make it go away), it's usually located to the left of the number 1, and above the Tab key on the left hand side of your keyboard. To enable cheats, type in "sv_cheats 1" without the quotes and press enter, once you've done this you are now ready to mix and match from the following cheats:

god
God mode. Toggles on and off. Use this to become invincible to pretty much everything.

noclip
Ghosting. Toggles on and off. Just like when you are dead in Counter-Strike, noclip will allow you to zoom about where ever you please on the map.

notarget
Invisibility to enemies. Toggles on and off. Enemies will ignore you while this cheat is enabled, feel free to bash them about with the crowbar and receive no nasty consequences!

impulse 101
All weapons. Per use. Gives you all weapons with full ammo, useful for those situations where you would rather not go 'eco'.

ai_disable
Disables AI. Toggles on and off. Disables all AI, this means that all enemies will stop attacking you and each other.

impulse 82
Spawn the jeep. Per use. Spawns the jeep (or buggy, whatever you like to call it) so you can use it in situations that it obviously was not meant for.

impulse 83
Spawn the air boat. Per use. Spawns the air boat in a very similar fashion as the previous cheat.

sv_unlockedchapters x
Use values 1-15. Setting game variable. Unlocks the game up to the specified chapter number, handy after re-installs.

sv_infinite_aux_power x
Use values 1/0. Setting game variable. Setting this to 1 will enable infinite auxiliary suit power, return this to 0 to live a cheat-free life.

sv_gravity x
Use any complete numeric value, 600 is default. Setting game variable. This changes the gravity strength in the game, lower numbers will make everything lighter and higher numbers will make everything heavier. Remember that 600 is the default value.

map x
Use any valid map name. Loading map. This will change the current map to one that you specify, get the full list of maps available by entering maps * in the console.

give x
Use listed values. Per use. Use this to give yourself any one of these items. To spawn this item without picking it up, use in conjunction with noclip enabled. List of item names follows:
Weapons

• weapon_357 - the revolver
• weapon_pistol - the usp
• weapon_ar2 - the disruptor rifle
• weapon_bugbait - antlion pheromones
• weapon_crossbow - the new & improved crossbow
• weapon_crowbar - your trusty pal
• weapon_frag - frag grenade
• weapon_physcannon - the gravity gun
• weapon_rpg - rocket launcher
• weapon_shotgun - packs a powerful punch
• weapon_smg1 - renamed from 'the peashooter'

• item_box_srounds
• item_ammo_pistol
• item_large_box_srounds
• item_ammo_pistol_large
• item_box_mrounds
• item_ammo_smg1
• item_large_box_mrounds
• item_ammo_smg1_large
• item_box_lrounds
• item_ammo_ar2
• item_large_box_lrounds
• item_ammo_ar2_large
• item_ammo_357
• item_ammo_357_large
• item_ammo_crossbow
• item_ml_grenade
• item_rpg_round
• item_ammo_smg1_grenade
• item_box_sniper_rounds
• item_box_buckshot
• item_ammo_ar2_altfire
• item_ammo_crate
• item_battery
• item_dynamic_resupply
• item_healthkit
• item_healthvial
• item_suit

• npc_barney
• npc_gman
• npc_mossman
• npc_breen
• npc_alyx
• npc_eli
• npc_dog
• npc_crow
• npc_seagull
• npc_manhack
• npc_csscanner
• npc_vortigaunt
• npc_citizen
• npc_monk
• npc_zombie
• npc_fastzombie
• npc_poisonzombie
• npc_headcrab
• npc_headcrab_black
• npc_barnacle
• npc_antlion
• npc_strider
• npc_helicopter
• npc_metropolice
• npc_combine_s
• npc_combinegunship

bind m "npc_create npc_gman"

alias give_me_some_weapons "give weapon_357; give weapon_rpg; give weapon_shotgun"