Half-Life Alyx: 13 Biggest Questions Answered For New Fans
12. What Happened At Black Mesa?
The original Half-Life was set in the Black Mesa Research Facility. It followed theoretical physicist, Gordon Freeman, as he began testing with the anti-mass spectrometer.
In short, Gordon put a crystal-thingy from another planet into a loud science-doo-dad, and the worst outcome occurred. That outcome was portals and rifts to another planet, Xen, opening up.
We’ll come to Xen later, but the bottom line is that the 'Black Mesa Incident', or the Resonance Cascade, is the entire reason why the Half-Life universe is the way it is.
Other than that, Gordon, a lone scientist, gathered his arsenal and went on a small-scale genocide. He killed hundreds of soldiers - in self-defence, of course -and maybe a few scientists along the way.
See, Gordon and the Black Mesa scientists were the victim of an attempt to cover up the incident. Freeman made it through the facility, meeting up with survivors who were able to send him to Xen, also known as the Border World, an alien planet where the portals led.
Gordon then meets and kills the 'Nihilanth', who was holding the portal to Earth open. As a result, the G-Man is so impressed that he hires Gordon, permanently.
In regards to Alyx, a cut-scene in Half-Life Episode 2 refers to the G-Man plucking her from Black Mesa amid the incident. Watch this space.
As for the G-Man though?