User talk:Breakin' Benny

Sound files

Hello! Please don't upload sound files that are only to be included in a quote page to the wiki. We have a separate domain for that. It's not fully functional yet and only I can access it for now, but it's going to be utilized wiki-wide soon. 18 () 15:56, 22 January 2018 (MSK)

So you've downloaded the files then, or perhaps planning to re-convert later? Alright then, at least I don't have this issue at The Cutting Room Floor, where I also uploaded the sound files. --Breakin' Benny (talk) 17:19, 22 January 2018 (MSK)

I've downloaded the original files and I'll convert them to ogg using the same software we used to convert other audio files. 18 () 17:44, 22 January 2018 (MSK)

Singular they

Please, try not to engage in edit wars. You can discuss wiki matters on our discord. By the way, "he" can be used as a gender-neutral pronoun. In my opinion, it's still androcentric, and using singular they would be preferred, but so far no consensus among the administration team has been reached. 18 () 23:05, 24 June 2018 (MSK)

Revert warning

This message pertains to your recent edits to the Aperture Robot Repair article. You have now twice reverted my edits.

There is nothing incorrect about addressing the unknown player as a "he". This does not assume anything about the protagonist's or the actual person-behind-the-controller's identity. This is a universally accepted and grammatically appropriate choice of wording. Your argument in this regard holds no bearing.

As a point of reference as for the choice of wording the wiki would be inclined to use, ideally from a source relevant and definitive to this wiki's subject matter, I've checked Episode Two's commentary to see how Valve addresses the "player" in their own words:

• [Jeremy Bennett] The view of the ruined yet still dangerous City 17 is a good example of a classic Half-Life vista. Vistas are sweeping scenes where many elements of design come together. This one reminds the player of what he accomplished in Episode 1, while setting up the threat that will hang over the rest of Episode 2.

• [Jay Stelly] Wherever possible, we try to mine our robust physics engine as a source of novel puzzles; it is especially valuable for giving realistic feedback to the player solving the puzzle. In this scenario, we designed the elevator to sink slightly whenever the player steps on it, giving instant intuitive feedback that it reacts to weight. This made it far more likely the player would understand that he was dealing with a counterweight puzzle.

• [Jason Deakins] A glimpse of the antlion guardian in this level sets up anticipation for the more extended confrontation in upcoming areas. The player needs to know what he's getting into, so that the vortigaunt's warnings will all make sense.

• [Alex Vlachos] In early versions of this map, the tunnels here were more maze-like, with branches, loopbacks and dead-ends. After watching numerous playtesters get lost, it became obvious that they were not having fun. We simplified the paths and added a number of one-way chokepoints. The curving tunnels still keep the player in suspense, but as long as he keeps moving he'll continue to progress, with very little time wasted in retracing steps.

• [Scott Lynch] In Half-Life 2, the Antlion Guard was originally meant to be a sort of super-bug bloodhound that pursued the player through caverns and harassed him while he slipped into small spaces to hide.

• [Jess Cliffe] This area was designed to train the player in the art of Hunter combat, and during the development process it changed continually to suit the Hunter's behavior. The first Hunter prototypes could be killed only by the blunt impact of physics objects. Therefore, to make sure the player learned this technique, we trapped him in this area with one Hunter and kept him locked in until he had defeated it.

• [Nick Maggiore] The barn scene was critical both to this episode and to the development of Advisors as characters in the series. They represent another intersection of story and gameplay concerns. This is the first time the player actually interacts with an Advisor, and determining the right level of interactivity was tricky, especially given the player's reasonable expectation that he'll get to fight them directly at some point.

• [Matt T. Wood] One of our main goals for hunters was to make the player feel he was vulnerable wherever he might hide.

• [Matt Scott] One of our toughest jobs is tuning for difficulty. There are all kinds of ways that sloppy game design can make players miserable when they are supposed to be enjoying themselves. If the player is laughing as he dies, it's a good sign--it means the death is perceived as part of the entertainment experience, that the player died fairly and not as the result of poor design. But if the playtester beats his head on the keyboard, we usually take this is a sign that there is still work to be done.

• [Scott Dalton] The ball tubes are an example of us working within our available toolkit to create a puzzle around a recognized concept. As a physical navigation puzzle, it's different from what the player has experienced before, and it's challenging while not being a binary succeed or fail situation. There are a number of ways to approach this puzzle. In addition to simply dodging, jumping and ducking the balls, the player can grab or deflect them with his gravity gun, or pick up the hatch and use it as a shield to block the incoming barrage.

When addressing the "player", Valve chooses and prefers by near-unanimous (although I couldn't find a single instance to the contrary) majority to use the singular "he/him/his". The wiki has also by and large followed this rule for nearing a decade now, and this is how the vast, vast majority of the articles are currently written. I must stress that this wording is absolutely accepted and correct in every sense possible. There is nothing wrong here and ergo nothing to "fix". Your edits, and indeed your continual reversions, with no other purpose than to satisfy a personal preference is not constructive. In fact, intentionally doing so is deliberately introducing an inconsistency that goes against the editors' norm and against Valve's own diction.

Going back to the original matter, repeatedly reverting an administrator's reasoned and supported edit with a patently false argument and without an attempt at discussion does not show good faith and is not appreciated. This a formal warning against such continued behavior. Marphy (talk) 08:41, 25 June 2018 (MSK)