One of Half-Life 2’s biggest secrets remained hidden for 20 years. Player discovered real reason behind „elusive” river in City 17

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Fans of Half-Life 2 will undoubtedly recognize the river running through City 17. Throughout the game, we have opportunities to “catch a glimpse” of it, yet we never actually venture onto it directly. Interestingly, the developers’ original blueprints suggested a more substantial part for this waterway, as indicated by the beta version of the game from 2003. A YouTube user known as CMDR RileySV delved into earlier level designs and expressed his insights regarding this topic online.

In the concluding part of Half-Life 2, during the chapter Anticitizen One, we battle our way alongside Alyx towards Barney. Upon reaching the ruined bridge, we plunge into the canals before exploring a factory and eventually exiting onto the street. The 2003 beta version substantially enlarged this segment, focusing more on combat within the tunnels. While underground, we encountered various foes such as the barnacle (an alien hanging from the ceiling in the game’s original design), the hydra (an adversary with blue tentacles that didn’t make it into the final release), and Combine soldiers.

Following our exit from the underground, we’d come to a bridge spanning over the river. This is when the gameplay from the beta would match up with our departure from the factory. Instead of encountering Barney and entering the Citadel, the developers intended to insert a fight against the Striders, a battle reminiscent of the one shown in the E3 demo back in 2003. Afterward, based on CMDR RileySV’s discussions about maps without textures, it seems we would then enter a channel, which we might traverse using a rover (or another vehicle if the riverbed was flooded), likely to confront adversaries during this journey.

From the channel, we could marvel at the grandeur of the Citadel in real time, and while it would have been a captivating view, as CMDR RileySV notes, it was smart to adjust the route to the Combine’s megastructure. This change helped keep the game flowing smoothly, according to the developers.

One viewer of the video, identified as flintexp, pointed out a similarity between the initial layout of City 17 and New York. By using the coordinates he shared, you can make your own comparisons. In this setup, the Citadel would be situated within Prospect Park, Brooklyn.

Starting from March 18th of the current year, owners of Steam’s Half-Life 2 have been given an opportunity to explore a fan-made mod at no cost, which was developed using Nvidia RTX Remix, a toolset enabling creators to modernize old games.

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2025-04-14 12:33