10 Amazing Video Game Missions That Got Cut

Borealis is a massive icebreaker ship that's mentioned in Half-Life 2 and appears as an easter egg in Portal 2. Built by Aperture Science, it supposedly contains a secret project that is capable of turning the tide of the war against the Combine once and for all.

Though the player can see the ship via an intercepted transmission in Half-Life 2, it never appears in the game as an accessible location. This being said, it was originally planned to be a much more prominent part of Half-Life 2.

In Mark Laidlaw's, a former Valve game designer's, first script for Half-Life 2, Borealis was the starting location of Freeman's story. Freeman was supposed to board the ship and then travel through the Arctic towards City 17. On his way, he would encounter the Combine's soldiers, setting off the rest of the story.

The idea underwent several changes, including adding two more levels before and after boarding the Borealis, but ultimately all of it was scrapped and the icebreaker was reduced to a couple of in-game references.

Still, you have to admit, an intro on a mysterious vessel crusing through ice and mounds of snow sounds like a pretty badass way to start a game.