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Is anyone else having bugs with the Piñata Party achievement in HL2:EP2? I have gotten every single webcache in the game, over and over again, without sv_cheats on. I'm getting a little pissed because of some bug that I cant 100% EP2

https://preview.redd.it/nfs5kw06ytod1.png?width=750&format=png&auto=webp&s=83160bb1d583c332f111996a989482df1260ab47

So i said in a comment here i had a dream that HL3 ended with Gordon reactivating the Borealis, alerting GLADoS where the ship was and beginning Portal 3. This is all that i remember of said dream.

I only remember the end of HL3. I remember it feeling really short and being mostly about flying the helicopter around of all places Greenland, because my brain thought the Borealis was trapped in the ice of Northern Greenland and was never seen until now because the ice covered it in satellite photos. I remember a cutscene where Eli explained that the combines brutal climate destruction caused the ice to melt just enough that the Borealis was freed (this went with the Alyx continuity for some reason)

Anyways, Gordon reached the bridge of the Borealis, and after reactivating its engine it reconnected itself with Apertures remote systems and started sending signals to the facility in Michigan. It was here HL3 faded to black and the player was presented with a button to switch to Portal 3 (kinda like how you have to boot up Paradise Lost in Postal 2)

Portal opened with GLADoS in her chamber, her baby birds in a box next to her and a screen in front of her through which she was studying the human test subjects found in the co op campaign. The humans were still in the test tube things, i think she was trying to determine the best way to get them out.

Suddenly, the screen flashed a warning.

“What in the name of-“

The Borealis’s camera feed came online.

“Oh my god! The Borealis! I-I thought it was lost forever!!!”

The camera feeds cycled until she landed on the bridge feed.

“Who is… wait a minute”

“Is that an.. HEV suit?”

“Black Mesa!! Those theiving bastards, i knew they were behind all this!!!”

“I HAVE to get that ship back!!! But.. pans over to the co op robots those morons cant do it… pans back to screen which flicks back to the test tube subjects and theres no way im sending these subjects into arctic conditions… that only leaves.. oh god.”

The camera cuts to Chel, living in an abandoned shack with her destroyed companion cube. Chel is sat at a table, the cube in the seat opposite her. Chel is eating a can of tuna.

“Hello?” The companion cube speaks

Chel jumps and stares at the cube, clearly shocked

“Hello? Is this thing still functional?”

Chel gets up and picks the cube up from the chair

“In the event you are hearing this, i assure you this is not a part of the severe schizophrenia you have probably developed. Its me. Your old friend. I know i told you to never come back, and i cant believe I’m saying this, but i need you. Come back. Please.”

Chel runs out of the house with the cube in hand.

The game then cuts to the player as Chel, heading down the elevator they left through at the end of Portal 2. The player arrives in GLADoS’ chamber. She is watching the Borealis’s camera feed.

“I see you’re still in one piece. And… turns to face the player still just as plump. Good. You’re going to need that body fat. When you were down in the bowels of this facility, did you happen to notice a dry-dock with half of its pieces missing? It doesn’t matter if you did, what matters is I found the dry-dock. And the ship that was in it. the screen moves beside GLADoS so that the player can see it That ship contains some of the most advanced scientific equipment Aperture ever created. Some of it even more advanced than me. And right now, it’s in the hands of the dirtiest, scummiest, most despicable corporation to ever disgrace this earth. Black. Mesa. I need that ship back NOW. Theres no telling what damage those fools could cause with it. It was so powerful even we couldn’t handle it. So i’d like to make you a deal. I found two people with your last name. Alive people. People who are old enough to be your parents. Get the ship back for me, and you can all go live on the surface as one happy family. an arm extends from the ceiling, holding the portal gun Do we have an agreement? the player now is supposed to look at and pick up the portal gun to accept the player accepts Good. Ill let you get some practice in with the gun before i send you out.”

It was here that the actual game began. There was a short tutorial consisting of a few rooms where the player was taught how to use the portal gun, alongside its new under-barrel conversion gel launcher that could be refilled by finding gel canisters that aperture was transporting to a dump site in the north pole at the time of the 7-hour war. The player could use the conversion gel launcher to make certain surfaces portal-able from a distance, making above-ground travel quick and easy. Chel was also given apertures bootleg HEV suit that would protect her from the cold and also give her a compass and map to guide her. GLADoS then sent Chel above-ground, instructing her to get to Halifax (idk why) and find a ship that could take her to Greenland. I dont remember much after this point but i do remember the combat was very interesting. You regenned health like you do in the other portal games, and the suit gave you armor which made you immune while you still had a charge. You fought by using portals to drop heavy objects on combine or by making them shoot themselves through the portals. You could also shoot them with the conversion gel to cover their masks and blind them for a few seconds where they would stand still or take cover while trying to clear their masks, giving you an opportunity to crush them. I woke up before the player found the ship. Lmk if youd like to see me continue this.

How would you tackle the Black Mesa incident if you were the head commander in charge of containing the resonance cascade? What parts of the incident would you try to stop first, and what things would you try and improve on to gain a better advantage against Xen's forces?

felt like seeing the other side of this argument today

I heard that the beta was supposedly way darker and bleaker. does anyone know what the story was?