Why does Half-Life: Alyx's "Alyx Vance" model look like this?

[@CoreyLaddo]

Trying to make alyx emote at all is a herculean feat

[@Komegatze]

did you shorten the neck tho

[@CoreyLaddo]

@@Komegatze I actually did lmao, bro she's like a giraffe

[@BuckBewENOfficial]

@@CoreyLaddo Well pack up boys, that's our answer.

[@leonardo27630]

@@CoreyLaddo MORE GMAN WHEN

[@cihloun]

ah

[@lucifersam01]

5 minutes to say "Since she doesn't appear a lot in the game, developpers didn't take too much time on the quality of her model to focus on the others more visible characters" ? This was all an excuse to showcase this absolute nightmare of a turning head !

[@irreliventable]

and what a nightmare it was

[@ShadowEclipse777]

Jesus Christ though this model is legimately terrifying lol

[@wta1518]

And I thought the Portal 2 intro was terrifying.

[@Unstopapple]

cursed lore demands sacrifice. That sacrifice is attention and sanity.

[@drac6669]

I hope you sleept well and not dreamed about Source 2 Alyx hauting you with her "sexy" smile! xD

[@countersphere2924]

This explains a lot actually. Once you actually reminded me that we never actually see this model except for one scene from a specific angle and from far away it all made sense.

[@Famix]

I think the body was initially supposed to be part of the game, but was cut early on into development. Might explain why the body is so detailed

[@dkskcjfjswwwwwws413]

Shes basically a cheaple model

[@carlosnava1471]

@@dkskcjfjswwwwwws413 Oh the cheaple, that took me back

[@ohboi2119]

Clearly you've never seen Zillow the witch videos

[@GarethJason]

also the fact that this is supposed to be LATER in the story, like isnt hl2 ep2 taking place waay later than what alyx is? Im unsure.

[@SuperWiiBros08]

I wonder if anyone has already done a improved version of that model

[@darey8321]

Probably Like a Fixed Alyx Vance Model

[@HullsColby]

Pretty sure there's one out there in the internet, just like those "This will be TF2 in 2020" meme.

[@jockeyfield1954]

@@HullsColby "this will be TF2 in 2020!" *demoman becomes wilson from uptopia*

[@dweller331]

@@jockeyfield1954 based utopia fan

[@kyellebantog7720]

cinematic mod- actually no let's forget it exists

[@DerpityEllis]

You've set off a fear in me of the models in SFM suddenly becoming sentient

[@blinded6502]

Just dont place your PC near a graveyard and it'll be fine

[@KizaruB]

The Alyx model can see into your soul

[@JHenryEden]

i found a cursed cartidge that said SOURCE FILMMAKER written in blood and when i put it in, half-life:alyx, alyx vance from da vidya gaem looked at me and blood eyes and said in bitcrushed "haha cumbine" i screamed and threw my pc away and hid under the sink.

[@Nuniixo]

@@JHenryEden this is golden

[@JHenryEden]

@@Nuniixo don't sniff modelling glue, kids.

[@Palexite]

2:11 that shit was scarier then the guy who installed a valve to his head…

[@Butterscotch_96]

New Valve intro just dropped

[@HyruleWanderer]

I'm not sleeping tonight

[@Jalezen]

why did you make this video so horrifying, especially at the time alyx just turns at you in a pitch black void

[@physical_insanity]

Probably to punish all the people who keep asking about the model without looking it up themselves.

[@JohnBread69]

OBSOLETE

[@KizaruB]

It’ll all make sense in the course of…we’ll I’m really not at liberty to say

[@sgas]

@@KizaruB lolololol

[@SlimbTheSlime]

OBSOLETE

[@magmatri-studios]

5:14 No matter how accidental it was I really love this Gordon model. It looks so funny but good at the same time!

[@hoseinmz645]

Funny how we don't fully see him in alyx but they made him more bearable to look at.

[@ch1ppychipp]

@@hoseinmz645 You get a better look at him than you do Alyx.

[@NovaProspekt19]

Half life Alyx's gordon model looks so wrong. I think it's the eyes and cheeks.

[@ComicalRealm]

The Source 2 real time facial animations are incredible.

[@KizaruB]

All the animations are incredible. Just the animations for combine running alone are far ahead of everything else.

[@elliedamitz8876]

Source 2 is a joke compared to any modern engine. It still has loading screens every 10 fricking minutes

[@KizaruB]

@@elliedamitz8876 that’s done or performance reasons. While Source 2 likely supports data streaming, having level chunks load at once was probably easier to run in VR.

[@Gogglesofkrome]

@@KizaruB not to mention, it'd probably be a lot more feasible if it were a desktop game, since the momentary stutter of level geometry loading would not make you immediately motion sick. It's seemingly for this reason that very few VR games can just stream non-stop

[@lurkinhehe]

@@elliedamitz8876 thats because it isnt finished iirc

[@theldraspneumonoultramicro405]

game development 101: dont waste time on overly detailing something players wont see anyways or wont get a good look on, that time would be much better used on the things players actually see a lot off and can get a close look at.

[@Boomrainbownuke9608]

like the player model in third person games.

[@AbuHajarAlBugatti]

Bro they needed almost 2 decades to finish this game

[@backtoklondike]

@@AbuHajarAlBugatti You really think Valve spent 13 years making that game? Valve said that they have been making that game since 2016, which for a big game is a pretty short timeframe. Plus Valve is not Rockstar, they are not going to waste resources on details that's pointless for the player.

[@troywright359]

@Mason Howard game development 301: you do not have infinite time and resources to make every model, even those never seen unless datamined, super detailed

[@Ze_eT]

@@AbuHajarAlBugatti No, they needed 2 decades to find a game they considered good enough to release, considering how many games they have scrapped before that, _including Episode 3._

[@Japonezul75]

That explains why Alyx doesn't often appear in S2FM animations

[@Freemelon07]

All you see is Gordon and Gman, kinda boring. I love seeing Alyx :)

[@pawprint1]

@@Freemelon07 Same despite the face being way too unfinished its still nice to see a character other than gman for once.

[@imnolongerasking5933]

Alyx chasing Gordon down a long corridor as the voices of Eli telling Gordon to get busy echoes down the hallway

[@nillynush4899]

People want the better model for the pr0n. Tell me I'm lying.

[@ingusmant]

Yeah, specially the kind of animations made off female characters every time a new game its released You know what Im talking about, its 93% of all SFM content out there

[@JackMellor498]

2:06 Don’t think I’ve ever seen a more cursed Half Life video. And I’ve listened to the Beta ambience on its own!

[@EnricoPacu]

It's also in Portal

[@CB66941]

I still remember reading Raising The Bar and I can't help but find funny the fact that they put in so much work to make Gordon's face model but it doesn't even exists in the game, it was only made for promotional art

[@TheWinjin]

I can't even remember where are you supposed to see him in Alyx? Is it the outline that you see before it's clear it's Gman?

[@woopsyk]

@@TheWinjin he was behind gman when he talked to alyx

[@lartts7483]

@@TheWinjin Bruh, the crowbar part of Gman's speech is where he appears as a black silhouette

[@Myne1001]

Yeah at least Alyx has a somewhar functional model. Poor Gordon was a just a frozen Half Life 1 model with a concrete texture in Half Life 2.

[@SnrubSource]

I kinda hope they re-do the model for future half life games so Gordon looks more like he does in the promotional art for HL2

[@Der63]

2:10 is like that one scene from Emesis Blue when medic sees himself looking up and he's had his eyes gorged out and all

[@mrsprucenoose3181]

Gordon's expression after 5:09 damn near sent me to the Shephard realm

[@ilikepigeons6101]

😂😂😅

[@IHaveBeenDoingTaxFraud]

It's fucking hilarious

[@Ningumkkk]

Don't forget to turn the captions on, he says yikes

[@brightblackhole2442]

hey guys, i'm in city 17, just hanging out

[@youmu7917]

I just wanted to sleep by watching random late night videos but after 2:25, I am now too scared to even blink

[@physical_insanity]

It's the same thing with Gordon's model, you can clearly see in some areas that it's clearly not finished and looks pretty rough despite the fact it looks better than Alyx's model. You only see him shrouded in shadow, anyway, so there's no point to see completely spruce him up (but it's a damn fine model all the same). I still even remember the /v/ threads on this topic shortly after the game came out, it's been knowledge for a while. Although I'm surprised no one's tried to improve Alyx's model since the release, but I'm guessing it's down to the fact it's new tech and way beyond anyone's capabilities. *grumble grumble grumble*

[@peacemaster8117]

It was never a secret, but not everyone is a huge nerd who scours through Half-Life game files.

[@the_real_Kurt_Yarish]

It's probably less that it's new tech and more that Source 2 and all it's dev tools are reportedly hella unfinished and hard to work with.

[@physical_insanity]

@@the_real_Kurt_Yarish Like I said, I was guessing. Can't be right all the time, now, can we?

[@peacemaster8117]

@@the_real_Kurt_Yarish Models: unfinished Source 2 tools: unfinished Source 2 SDK: unpublished Hopefully when this pandemic is over we'll start to see more progress from Valve on the tools and SDK.

[@Agustin_Leal]

@@peacemaster8117 You talk about the pandemic like it's 2020

[@CEEXAGON]

2:08 add valve knob at her eye,add valve intro music,put the speed to 3x,and voila! ya got a new valve intro

[@mirdalan]

It's not that it's unfinished...it's finished to the standard it needed to be for the game. It's only SFM artists and Half-Life nerds that were gonna dig into the files to see the Alyx/Gordon models up close. Them being 'incomplete' is just good project management, and tbh I think it's a miracle that we got models this good considering the length of time they were on screen.

[@KizaruB]

This. A better word would be it’s not “polished”. It’s made for its limited use but not refined for large exposure.

[@mr.k4918]

the fact valve got off there ass is something to thank god for.

[@busygirlbeauty8437]

agree - and tbh i don’t think it’s too bad!!!!

[@bloodyhell8201]

@@mr.k4918 they were working.

[@williamsmith6921]

@@mr.k4918 they weren't sitting around doing nothing for the last decade, they were basically in a development hell of starting and cancelling projects, until HL:A clicked and was able to be developed until release, source 2 also had a lot to do with it

[@Laiten]

5:03 this is fucking terrifying

[@nsmnk3922]

2:24 Me when the blue helmets think my compound is surrounded by trees

[@energeticyellow1637]

I hate the anti-christ.

[@nsmnk3922]

@@energeticyellow1637 Me too.

[@stormanimations5422]

The 0:33 Alyx actually looks better than the one in HL2. She looks more natural. I wouldn't have a problem if they went with that.

[@s4ndr3x98]

4:42 "in future half life games" like that's ever gonna happen

[@Providence..]

Well, we were saying that until Alyx came out, so who knows, but we'll probably be waiting half a century again anyway so, eh.

[@ringer1324]

Valve is literally working on a new half life game called citadel right now lol

[@Glenn_Quagmire]

​@@ringer1324releasing in 2077

[@Shrekperson]

WHAT A LOAD OF-

[@sundown6806]

​@@Providence.. technically Alyx isn't a future Half Life game cause it's a prequel :)

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

As a gamer, it is my duty - my obligation, really - to bitch out of compulsion instead of trying to understand the complex reasons prompting the thing that perturbs me. By educating me thusly, you've robbed me of fulfilling this civic duty, sir.

[@r15835]

3:40 yeah, I'm making that face right now, looking at Alyx trying to emote.

[@Shiruvan]

I'm no SFM animator, but sculptor-wise, making sure the model/sculpt to look excellent from certain limited photography angle is almost unavoidable, and many times sculptors do exaggerated shapes to achieve that, which weirdness often gets hidden well to achieve that illustrative purpose that is more important, like some guy in other comment say, good project management on ValvE's behalf.

[@cokosbeanz]

I honestly thought that it looked unfinished, because we didn't see it that much in gameplay. they didn't think workshop tools that people would use them that much I guess, idk

[@s0nnyburnett]

Or game developers in general cut corners everywhere these days and there aren't many left who deliver a truly finished product.

[@KizaruB]

Considering the game’s final story was only really created in the last year or two of development, they probably didn’t even expect to have to make a model at all during development.

[@KizaruB]

@John Doe what does that have to do with my comment?

[@archsteel7]

@@s0nnyburnett Game Developers have always cut corners with animations and models, it's nothing new. Look up Zullie the Witch to see examples of this for Dark Souls, but most every game out there you can find all sorts of places where developers have found ways to cut down on time spent animating. There's nothing wrong with it, and it's not "unfinished" so long as it looks good in the game. Sure, if you no-clip around to see the models t-posing prior to you entering the room, it looks silly. But you were never meant to see that, and if you play the game normally you won't.

[@joeexotic3369]

@@s0nnyburnett This is literally one of the most common practices in the industry. You don't spend time and resources on making a model you're not meant to see in detail look good.

[@Pensi0nar]

2:06 Alyx: Doctor Freeman, I presume? I'm Alyx Vance. My father worked with you, back in Black Mesa. I'm sure you don't remember me though. Gordon Freeman: *cries in half-life* Alyx: Man of few words, aren't you?

[@Lecrogea]

5:10 had me dying lmao

[@drac6669]

It really makes sense, has someone that studys game design and 3D modeling for objects and characters i can confirm that! Making a detailed character model or object model on an area or scene that player don't see much or can't go into is mostly waste of time. While you could use this time to polish other models,scenes and gameplay itself! Great vídeo btw! :D

[@adcraziness1501]

Or like with what they did with Cyberpunk, the player character's movements are so exaggerated and unrealistic (to appear like natural movement when you see your character's limbs on screen or watch the shadows produced on the ground) they can't show the character in 3rd person because the movement would be so wild and unnerving.

[@FrappuccinoAlfredo]

5:12 the Source engine still blows me away, like look at how good a 2004 Barney model looks here compared to a modern unfinished, extra detailed cutscene Alyx Vance in 2020

[@jcdenton2187]

I still hold that the faces in Half-Life 2 and its episodes look several times better than those in Half-Life Alyx. I especially dislike G-Man's new model. But this video does explain why they look that way for some of them - you're not meant to see much of it at all.

[@dkskcjfjswwwwwws413]

@@jcdenton2187 its because hl2 uses real faces while hla is stylized

[@Vorteksio3]

@Andai Dude, stop making excuses for them. That game literaly came out like 2 years ago, and yet its models are so shit that they are blown away by models from a 17 year old game.

[@dr_birb]

@@jcdenton2187 nah

[@bigshobe]

@Andai the uncanny valley is not a problem anymore and is grossly over overexaggerated

[@DanteEsGrande]

Developers: 2:24 Does our work look like a Joke'r to you?

[@tumate45]

That last scene with Gordon was just priceless. So detailed. "What?! Good God no!!"

[@Agustin_Leal]

"Hey guys, I'm in City 17."

[@kliest0]

2:06 guys the new Valve intro looks sick

[@killer_bleach]

At 2:18, this shit had me fucking curled up laughing hard. Awesome discussion video either way

[@roby4504]

It’s fucking terrifying honestly

[@Muster_Muckee_II]

That's just how I see Rochelle from L4D2 tbh.

[@killer_bleach]

@@Muster_Muckee_II EXACTLY

[@killer_bleach]

@@roby4504 I see your point…. BUT IT IS HILARIOUS

[@TauGeneration]

THANK YOU ! I KNEW I WASN'T THE ONLY ONE

[@t850terminator]

Basically, if you wanna know what Alyx is supposed to look like, look at the posters and art by Valve, not a model that was never meant to be seen up close.

[@a_wormwood]

LMAO. That cut from Half Life 2's Lazlo to Half Life: Alyx's Lazlo was a hilarious touch! Thanks for the informative video, and for the clarification.

[@Kariduu]

The subtitles during the face flex bit are great

[@iamboringvideos6832]

i mean valve has done the "if you cant possibly see it without noclipping, we aint gonna fully finish it " type of thing in half life 2 though its a thing many companys do in video games and just make sense, cuz if you dont see it, then why fully finish that part? also keep in mind in half life 2, there is a model that you can see in black mesa eat, that is in low poly since the model is far away and only seen once

[@CastledCard]

I'm glad someone made this because everytime I bring it up everyone's like "It's a good model, it just wasn't meant to be viewed this closely."

[@NickJerrison]

I'm amazed how anyone who's played through the game or at least has seen the ending didn't realize this.

[@Agustin_Leal]

Speak for yourself. This is just too obvious.

[@metformin3154]

@@Agustin_Leal then aren't you agreeing with him?

[@Agustin_Leal]

@@metformin3154 Giving it a second read, yeah you are right. I thought he himself didn't realize it.

[@christiancinnabars1402]

Everyone who is peddling the idea more than likely hasn't even touched the game, and only saw the model through s2fm videos.

[@transitcombine9057]

​@@christiancinnabars1402You see The face of alyx in 1.5-1 seconds max

[@biigg22]

That bit you did was actually the scariest thing I’ve ever seen and I was legitimately expecting a jump scare.

[@Drongobee]

That ending joke is incredible

[@Raitzen97]

2:13 - Alyx realizes halfway through Ep1 that the suppression field is actually down

[@eve_squared]

Trying to do normal face poses with Alyx is like when you don't know how to use the face poser tool in Gmod.

[@thecartelfoundme]

When I saw that little animation of Alyx in the dark, I had to look behind me to check no one was there.

[@tearfullypink2575]

huh. i didn't even know people hated the model. the more you know! i hope valve updates her look :)

[@SpacenoidCentral]

A small video essay? What a pleasant surprise.

[@SpacenoidCentral]

@@hollyc5417 Or... people who just don't like to look at unfinished models that can't even make human facial expressions. But sure.

[@Komegatze]

@@hollyc5417 you can't be serious

[@TaRAAASHBAGS]

@UCRtdqCzBEmki7j6sSI_9d0Q Only landwhales think women have to be ugly to be strong

[@sarahbelle81]

@@Komegatze yeah god forbid people get fed up after seeing a bunch of fucking losers on twitter got upset that abby from tlou2 was too muscular and unattractive, or aloy's cheeks being too big in genshin impact, or even ELLIE looking "ugly" despite being a child. yeah, a few people actually got upset about that.

[@vonnie0_0]

This model of alyx terrifies me beyond belief, and I always wondered why she looks so uncanny. So thanks for the explanation, makes a lot of sense, actually.

[@Marcado_.]

I like the transition of Laszlo to Russell XD he really is the finest mind of his generation.

[@insdel3227]

you've earned yourself a subscribe. this is a really good video, comedy wise and explanation wise.

[@whynotll83]

alyx's face texture is probably a untouched 3d scan store asset, I found one of sources for the citizens.

[@peacemaster8117]

Oh sick, that's cool. How'd you find 'em?

[@yeshrealthanksREAL]

Give

[@Yetoob8lWuxUQnpAahSqEpYkyZ]

can you give link for that citizen and which citizen

[@DaRealBruner]

don't just say you "found it" and not provide it! *SHOW US!!*

[@user-tzzglsstle585e38]

still no source

[@jockeyfield1954]

"gordon's model is unfinished too" thank god, i really didn't want that version to be known as the definitive version over the chad we see in poster art

[@alexwoody3995]

couldn't agree more

[@Myne1001]

I prefer the frozen arm out posing concrete man from HL2 ngl. Explains why he can tank so much damage.

[@gordonfreeman7257]

@@Myne1001 lool

[@Sizifus]

Yeah, that makes perfect sense. I mean if you look at HL2 the third view model of Gordon Freeman is, well, a frozen Grayman

[@imlegos2153]

It's the HL1 player model stuck in a 'holding weapon' animation with a broken texture. (Fun fact; the revolver's world model in HL2 is just a retexture of HL1's revolver!)

[@MartynDerg]

I hadn't ever seen anyone complain about alyx's model and when you showed the comments I actually screamed "you don't even see it up close in the game!" and later discovered people don't seem to realise that??

[@Azmina_the_warlock]

I should be surprised that ppl even care that much about it, but I'm not

[@gamesgo6724]

4:36 she beautiful

[@enniusdrusus867]

Whoever wrote the Closed Captions on the alyx demo deserves a pat in the ribcage for a job well done.

[@dankovskimark4540]

2:10 Well that turned from Zero to Nightmare Fuel pretty fast.

[@benzicol]

5:15 Barney when there is HL2 model of alyx: Serious Barney when there is HLA model of alyx: Sarcastic

[@commodore7331]

the reason her face is like that is likely because its left over from some kind of default human base model that a character artist sculpted ontop of to make the alyx model, and just never really touched the face because of the lighting and pose the model was used in.

[@TheEvilTacos]

source for this info?

[@commodore7331]

@@TheEvilTacos I said likely, i do not know this for a fact but this a relatively common character modelling workflow and a decent explanation

[@TheEvilTacos]

@@commodore7331 Why spread misinformation then?

[@commodore7331]

@@TheEvilTacos it's not misinformation, it's an educated guess/theory based on my own knowledge as a self taught 3d artist. I said that this is _likely_ what happened for he lack of any better information, I never claimed that it was objective truth

[@TheEvilTacos]

@@commodore7331 You're aware we can see the "edited" next to the date you posted your first comment right?

[@Latenivenatrix_Mcmasterae]

0:55 this made me laugh

[@cataclyptic7307]

Russel = Lazlo

[@meat_morale]

2:18 thank you for ruining my Adulthood:')

[@bobafettjr85]

"Gordon's model is also unfinished." Well yeah. There's no ponytail.

[@paytonrichardson7194]

2:24 when the Alyx is sus 😳

[@Herzition]

2:22 is literally whats been hiding in the dark in gmod contruct all this time. xD

[@ishibibidi257]

That explains why Gordon looks younger in HL:A than he did in HL2's promotional images.

[@KizaruB]

To be fair, he looks more like his actual age now, even if the model isn’t final.

[@inktheone5933]

Its like Gordon is getting younger every games promotional art In the half life 1 art he looks 35 in the half life 2 games art he looks 25 And in half life alyx he looks 20

[@FailedNorSeling]

Could be some G-Man magic considering everyone got older by 20 years during the 20 years of Gordon's Absence. Everyone in HL2 comment on this since you're supposed to be on your 50s but you still look like how you did from HL1.

[@gearhooves5996]

@@FailedNorSeling yea I think that this is pretty likely to be the case here, since after the events in Opposing Force, Gman sent Adrian away in stasis till he needed him, so it wouldn't be to far of a stretch to assume he did the exact same to Gorgon as well

[@whoisanarnb]

@@gearhooves5996 gorgon freefmann

[@dumkorph]

5:09 Amazing bit

[@nickdottcom]

the fucking horror montage LMAOOO that was utterly terrifying

[@SFCommanderSFM]

The Alyx model is good at giving me nightmares though, so I gotta give it that

[@notthemama7296]

It's almost like they did not want to put the most detail in the ONE thing you need to render 100% of the time for an already intensive VR game.

[@Mastersabre]

2:13 THIS is where the guys got the inspiration to make the SMILE movies bro, holy shit

[@stevusbrevus4362]

2:06 When the model is unfinished! 😳

[@romanthegambler6966]

holy shmuck that was a nightmare fuel :D great vid OP!

[@orrfrank2568]

"is this how Alyx will look in a future half life game?" i know this video isnt supposed to be that funny but it is

[@themindfulmoron3790]

Dude, there have been leaks of a new HL game in development since a few months after HL:A released. It seems like a multiplayer project, but it's still evidence that Valve is picking the franchise back up.

[@Freakinve]

@@themindfulmoron3790 where?

[@themindfulmoron3790]

@@Freakinve Its working title is Citadel.

[@Freakinve]

@@themindfulmoron3790 oh, can you find it like on KZbin?

[@themindfulmoron3790]

@@Freakinve Here's Tyler McVicker on the subject. kzbin.info/www/bejne/jZy9f2p9o9OoqM0

[@cyclonesama8147]

2:20 Well...looks like I'm gonna have to sleep with a gun tonight😱

[@SatongiFilms]

this model is actually the older Alyx, because the only time we see her model is in the "future" segment of the conversation with Gman. We never see her in the time the game is set.

[@Stribog1337]

Like he said in the video.

[@themindfulmoron3790]

Wow! You ALSO watched the video!

[@matchmakerchris7617]

Still doesn't explain why she has gray hair and looks like she's in her 50's when she was 30-ish in the HL2 games.

[@donaldbaird7849]

@@matchmakerchris7617 The video literally explains that

[@jiraffe9600]

@@matchmakerchris7617 bruh, she was 24 in half-life 2.

[@GrandmasterofWin]

2:06 is one of the most horrifying things I've seen in years. I'm not even saying that as a joke

[@Peremptor]

Great explanation... I mean sometimes it truly is that simple. Occam's razor did a good job here.

[@NefariousElasticity]

Gordon's model has similar issues from being unfinished (has no texturing around the arms), but his face seems to emote so much cleaner than Alyx's does. But that isn't because the face is "ugly", it's because they only needed the face to work for one scene where you can't even really see it, so the shape keys for the face are pretty primitive if I had to guess (I live in the modelling and rigging side of this world, not the animation side). It does make me wonder if it was originally intended that there would be content where Alyx interacts directly and closely with Gordon, or maybe if his model was repurposed from a cancelled or other in-development game. That might seem like an obvious statement since HL:A ended on a cliffhanger where you were in Gordon's POV, but... this is Valve, they always leave doors open even if they never intend to walk through them.

[@Dondlo46]

I legit get scared when looking at Alyx, she looks way better in HL 2

[@darkshat3077]

Because one is a polished and completely finished model while the other was not meant to be fully seen

[@locki_dos]

Another thing about the model is that It's like that for optimisation purposes. It's not being used for anything else other than the cutscene so they just made it as optimal as it could be just for the cutscene. Same Goes from the mystery Combine Lady.

[@morgonfr33m4n1337z]

I thought it should've been obvious the model was unfinished, considering it was only meant to be seen at certain angles in an ending cutscene They literally modeled HL2 Alyx after a real life person (Jamil Giovanni Mullen), I find it hard to believe they couldn't bring her back for a more modern scan. It should be noted too that Alyx actually was desexualized from her early designs in HL2 (her Beta model had skin tight suits for instance). The HL:A model of Alyx should NOT be seen as a case where a character was intentionally made unattractive (which is an all too recurring trend elsewhere) You can see clearly with other models (like metrocops and combine advisors) that Valve respected their original HL2 designs

[@AJZulu]

And one wouldn't say Jamil Mullen is "unattractive" per se.

[@royalblanket]

I've never seen this "trend" anywhere, do you have an example?

[@Boomrainbownuke9608]

@@royalblanket social justice warriors. they do it because they think its sexist and unrealistic to have an attractive character.

[@KasumiRINA]

@@royalblanket there was a conspiracy theory by neckbeards called "gamergate" where they decided that things like shitty facial animations in Mass Effect Andromeda is a "feminist conspiracy to make games unattractive". The proof was comparing model's photoshopped pictures with game's crappy lit default face (in a series where nobody used default female avatar anyway). Later, they actually sent death threats to model of Dina for The Last Of Us II for "not looking good enough", ignoring her being way out of their league... Last time they resurfaced was complaining about how Horizon sequel heroine face looks... I don't remember what was the complaint this time but the movement was at peak in 2015-16 and was supposed to die out by now.

[@DankyKang96]

@@KasumiRINA people who can’t see the irony of complaining about the attraction of a computer image, will always make me laugh

[@mariusj6004]

That bit with Barney killed me.

[@k9strike931]

Who was the dude who took a bite out of a lemon at 2:49?

[@Komegatze]

Its a stock image idk who it is

[@k9strike931]

@@Komegatze Heh, it looks like something from a TV show.

[@tinascott5340]

That model of her face just makes you feel glad you can't see her face in vr

[@10cheesburgers]

Do you know why the community hasn't made improvements to these and just used those instead? I know it's not an easy task, but I'm sure the talent is out there and willing, it honestly surprises me that it hasn't been done.

[@KizaruB]

I don’t even think the tools exist for that yet. There hasn’t been an official Source 2 SDK released yet, with the exception of Sandbox.

[@Masterwar15]

I lost it with Gordon's final reaction lmao

[@themanwiththeplan676]

"Future Half Life games" lol

[@bubblemage]

How is this not simple to so many people...? Why would they bother to make a perfect Alyx model if you're only going to see her model ONCE in the entire game? And you don't even see her from close enough... People really need to think more

[@Sepko]

You’ve done an excellent public service cuz there are ways to work around her limitations but yeah it’s super annoying to have to explain her model wasn’t meant to be seen up close lol

[@comrade137]

1:40 So that shocker is actually winchester 1887.

[@uhkingdom]

people who think that model makes her look like she's in her 50s are showing their age or lack of experience around other humans of different ages. she looks remarkable for a 50 year old if it were true. not everybody ages like carrie anne moss

[@aranyak1881]

bro most gamers have never seen a woman irl its expected

[@God_gundam36]

@@aranyak1881 just some advice, if gamers call your women ugly, 95% of the time it's because they look like actual people and not a anime doll

[@f3n70_]

Fr, some people haven’t seen a woman irl and it shows

[@nickporter4279]

True, but does she look younger than her HL2 likeness? Saying she looks 50 is ridiculous, but it's not a stretch to say she looks older than before, rather than younger. (Whereas Gman, who's been stuck in stasis for years and isn't human, does look younger...)

[@AndehX]

Not gonna lie, G-Man looks fuckin awesome in Half-Life: Alyx. He looks so menacing, and his eyes are pure evil

[@СкоринДанил]

game development is is simple at a glance, but actually pretty complex, there are many reasons why this model is of significantly low quality, either it is a lack of time, or lack of reason to make it good, since you dont see it about 99.99% of time

[@KizaruB]

Taking a programming class has made it clear to me just how much abstraction and effort goes into a program. I can’t begin to imagine how hard making a game can be. You have to be a legit genius.

[@scaarlet2379]

I always had that in mind, "you are not supposed to see it."

[@ChimeraGilbert]

While they modeled alyx and Gordon keeping in mind you wouldn’t interact with them close up in game, wouldn’t they anticipate people wanting to use their models for SFM2 and garrys mod? Valve clearly knows how popular that is

[@KizaruB]

They shouldn’t dedicate their valuable development time to stuff like accommodating SFM. The game comes first.

[@peacemaster8117]

Valve didn't have that much time. I know that's crazy to say about a game that came out 13 years after Episode 2, but it's true. At the last minute they decided to delay the game so they could overhaul the story, leaving them only about a year to get it done. That work would have included new models for everyone featured in the new ending, so Valve saying "good enough" and kicking the game out of the door makes a lot of sense.

[@carlosnava1471]

Couldn't be a Half-Life game without the customary mid-development story rewrite lol, you gotta love Valve risking it like that time after time.

[@Hunter-ib9ks]

damn gordon taking me off guard with that sexiness

[@DaRealBruner]

Some little things to add about Gordon's model is the suit it's self is textured really badly, and almost cartoonish looking. (now I'd like to specify that cartoonish artstyles aren't bad. Take a look at Team Fortress 2. But if an object in a game with a realistic artstyle looks cartoonish, that's bad.) More issues with the HEV suit model is the metal in the shoulders bend and contort along with Gordon's arms, which should not be possible. Another thing is the back of the HEV suit. There is absolutely nothing there. You could argue you don't see the back of the HEV suit because canonically there isn't anything there, (aside from merchandise, which I don't view as canon) I believe the only place we can see the back of the HEV suit is on the leak model. Finally, at least in my opinion, it looks like Gordon's face and head were based off of how he looks in Half-Life 2: Survivor. This I don't really mind. Afterall, the HL2 Survivor Gordon model is our only official Half-Life 2 Gordon Freeman model we have.

[@TRRDroid]

Gordon is even less visible in HLA than Alyx is at the end, so I guess most of that isn't an issue in that sequence

[@WinterGamesYT]

2:23 alyx after calling zombified combine soldiers zombine:

[@grassblockproduction6032]

what would you call them

[@Vespyr_]

They ruined her model and ruined her voice by replacing her actress too. Poor Alyx.

[@Thatsme1ogan]

Im a bit late but one thing id like to add is her hair also doesn't have the red strands aswell so yea another way you can tell it wasn't made for animations/ playing with