Half life interloper walkthrough series#

There are also bizarre tree-like structures dotted around the landscape, which may be juvenile or even separate species of Tentacle. The much larger and extremely aggressive (but rarely encountered) Tentacles pose a major hazard to those who wander near their pits. Stationary bio-luminescent stalks appear in large numbers throughout Xen and will retract when approached. These tree-like organisms can be found throughout Xen.ДЄ few creatures that appear in Xen are difficult to categorize as either fauna or flora due to their unusual appearance. Although differing in many ways, the Controllers, Vortigaunts, Grunts, Gargantuas, and the Nihilanth share a common morphology that includes a vestigial third limb in the middle of the thorax, suggesting that they are all closely related. As the player progresses through Half-Life, it becomes clear that this civilization is controlled by a central intelligence, the Nihilanth. The intelligent species of Xen, such as the Alien Controllers and Vortigaunts, form part of an advanced alien civilization, with species like the Alien Grunts and Gargantua, composing their military. In the closing sequence of Half-Life, and in several areas of Blue Shift, Boids can be seen flying in flocks, emitting resonant calls. A large floating harmless amoeba-like organism which 'sings' like a bird may be seen all throughout Xen. It is uncertain whether these ray-like beings are living creatures or examples of war machines built around advanced biotechnology (such as those used by the Combine). Seen frequently in Xen (and occasionally in Black Mesa, where they transport Alien Grunts), Alien Aircraft glide seemingly without effort through the void. Various harmless animals also exist in Xen. However, even these creatures are dwarfed by the towering six meters high, four-legged invertebrate known as the Gonarch, being somehow connected with Headcrabs.Д«oids glide gracefully through the skies of Xen. Some species, such as Barnacles, Bullsquid, Headcrabs, and Houndeyes appear to occupy niches similar to various carnivorous terrestrial animals (albeit with unusual anatomical or physiological features). The Gonarch is one of the largest creatures to be found on Xen. Water tends to be reddish or green in color. Although resident in Xen at the time of the Black Mesa Incident, no living organisms are native to Xen, so all species present must have originated from somewhere else. The Xen asteroids are home to a wide variety of flora and fauna, forming a complex ecosystem.

While the G-Man says this, dead Marines, a destroyed tank, and a downed fighter jet can be seen, implying that American military forces have failed at their mission. The G-Man also stated at the end of Half-Life that he and his 'employers' are in control of Xen after the defeat of the Nihilanth. In Half-Life 2, resistance teleporters are dependent on Xen for intra-dimensional transportation, since the matter stream utilizes the Borderworld as a slingshot to teleport into local space. The exact fate of Xen after the death of the Nihilanth in Half-Life is unknown.

Looking at the different skybox textures, there are multiple sources for light in the border world, either through glowing clouds of gas or (in some cases) what seems to be a star or some other stellar body. Another feature is that gravity is always directed downwards, rather than towards the asteroids, so that one can actually fall off an asteroid into the void below. It is possible that, given that Xen resides in another dimension or universe, the entire void contains a breathable atmosphere. Xen is notable for having somewhat reduced gravity compared to Earth's however, given that Xen is composed of low mass asteroids, it is surprising that there is any appreciable gravitational pull at all, let alone a pull strong enough to retain the atmosphere breathable for humans encountered there.

Half life interloper walkthrough series#

Rather than being a planet or an artificial structure such as a space station, all of the locations of Xen visited by the player during the course of the Half-Life series are on the surfaces of (or within) asteroid-like 'islands' floating within a nebular void.ДЄn example of the organic-looking asteroid cavern-like areas explored on Xen.