Entropy : Zero 2
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| Entropy : Zero 2 | |
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| Developer(s) |
Breadmen |
| Release date(s) |
August 20, 2022 (mod and Steam release) |
| Genre(s) | |
| Mode(s) | |
| Platform(s) | |
| Distribution | |
| System req |
1.7 GHz processor, 4 GB RAM, DirectX 8.1 compatible video card with support for SSE, Half-Life 2 in user's Steam library |
| Input | |
| Engine | |
| Previous game | |
Entropy : Zero 2 is a free single-player modification for Half-Life 2 and the sequel to the project Entropy : Zero.
Overview[edit]
Entropy : Zero 2 takes place following the destruction of the Citadel, resuming the perspective of the Combine unit 3650 after he is re-incarnated as a Combine Elite tasked with capturing Dr. Judith Mossman following her betrayal of the Combine in Half-Life 2. Depending on the player's choices, the story has multiple endings.
The mod features new environments such as the Arbeit laboratories and arctic Resistance hideouts, new mechanics such as kicking and detonating doors, enemies returning from previous Half-Life entries like the Bullsquid and even the Pit Drone, Aperture Science creations and environments that take inspiration from those of past Portal entries, and a new weapon known as the Gauss Pistol, along with the original cut SMG1 returning from the Half-Life 2 leak.
Storyline[edit]
The beginning of the campaign starts with a flashback establishing 3650's past, revealing that he used to be named Aiden Walker. Before the Seven Hour War he was falsely convicted of murdering his daughter after she had gone missing. When the Combine freed him from jail, he grew loyal to the empire in belief that it would aid the search for his daughter. Despite this his co-workers sabotage his investigation, leading to a violent outburst that results in him killing a few of them. Despite this, he gets let off with a warning due to his skills and contributions to the empire.
In the present day Aiden is sent off on a mission to capture Judith Mossman. While things seem to go smoothly at first, he quickly learns that his previous incarnation is still alive. It has gone rogue and is attempting to sabotage the mission. The previous model haults Aiden's progress severely, causing him to get in trouble with an Advisor.
Walker eventually ends up in an underground Aperture Science facility, where he meets Wilson, a defective turret. The both of them befriend each other and the player is given the option to carry Wilson through the rest of the game after leaving the facility. The player then makes it to the Arbeit Arctic Facility, where they capture Judith Mossman after a lengthy stand off. When they talk to the Advisor again, he instructs them to kill the previous incarnation of 3650.
If the player has carried Wilson with them up until this point, he will begin to break down. Aiden gets worried about losing him, and installs him onto the Combine's system to keep him alive. He then follows his clone all the way next to the Borealis, where they have a final discussion before the clone's death. The clone explains that the Combine has been using Aiden, and that they won't help him find his daughter in any way. The clone proceeds to die, either by getting shot by the player or getting killed by the Advisor, who arrives at the scene. He tells Aiden that he is getting promoted to the new master template, which future Combine soilder models will be based on. However, the "enhancement" is mandatory and requires Aiden to lose all of his "painful" memories.
If the player doesn't resist the offer, they will see an ending cutscene where Aiden gets turned into an obedient soilder with no desire of finding his daugther. If they do however, they will be met with a boss fight against the Advisor. After the fight, Aiden realizes that the Combine is now after him, so he escapes to the Borealis. There he finds the G-man who offers to do one favor for Aiden as a reward for stopping the rebels in the Arctic. Aiden first considers bringing his daughter back, which the G-man explains that he can't do. Then he considers finding out what happened to her, but he decides that the knowledge that he didn't personally kill her like he has been accused for is enough for him. Ultimately, he wishes for the Combine's data on his slate to be destroyed, making it impossible for it to produce any more clones of him. The G-man suffices, before putting Aiden back in his old jail cell. He ends up getting captured by the Combine again, which leads to the credits.
Depending on if the player installed Willson and if they accepted the Advisor's offer 3 ending cutscenes can play out:
- If the player has accepted the Advisor's offer, the post ending cutscene will show them patroling the Borealis, before getting ambushed by the Resistance, and ultimately killed by Dog.
- If the player refused the offer and didn't bring Wilson with them, they will see a scene of an Advisor examining Aiden's body before killing him.
- If the player refused the offer and brought Wilson with them, an identical scene will start, but right before the Advisor gets to kill Aiden, he himself gets killed by Wilson, who is now controlling the Combine's systems. Aiden and him will decide to escape, and Wilson will give Aiden a gun, before the screen cuts to black.
Reception[edit]
As of December 2022, Entropy : Zero 2's rating on Steam is a 98% "Overwhelmingly Positive" from over 12,200 reviews. PC Gamer wrote that it is "so memorable, expansive, and smartly designed that it reinvigorates what you’d think possible within Half-Life 2."[1]
Continuations[edit]
On August 21st, 2024 Breadman announced 2 episodic expansions for Entropy Zero 2: Axon Pariah, a continuation of the story following the third ending where Wilson and Aiden rebel against the Combine, and Progenitors, a prequel showing how the Combine freed Aiden from jail. On August 21st, 2025, Breadman also announced that he would be making a remake of the first game that supported VR play[2].
