Xen Ear
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| Xen Ear | |
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| Faction |
Xen flora |
| Individual information | |
| Game information | |
| Entity |
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The Xen Ear,[1] also known as the Xen Hearing Flower[2] and the Xen Coral Ear,[3] is a Xen flower found in the Golden Lion Distillery within City 17's Quarantine Zone.
Overview[edit]
Sharing its appearance with a coral and a mammal ear, it comes in three variants: an idle one, reminiscent of standard corals, and two ear-like variants: an asymmetrical one with three petals, and another symmetrical one with four petals. Xen Ears usually close their petals, but will animate in reaction to sounds, much similar to Jeff.
Behind the scenes[edit]
Early in the development of Half-Life: Alyx, the team would observe situations where playtesters would fail to notice Jeff becoming enraged by a sound. If the player died as a result, they felt frustrated and wronged. The team worked to make Jeff's animations and sounds communicate his level of aggression to the player as clearly as possible, but if players weren't looking at Jeff, they could still be caught unaware. Adding the Xen Ears to the environment was a way for the team to help players be more aware of Jeff's reactions to sound. The Xen Ears work as an extra layer of visual feedback for Jeff's behavioral state; one that lives in the environment instead of on Jeff himself.[1]
Gallery[edit]
Open Xen Ears.
Closed Xen Ears.
Model 01.
Model 03, closed.
Model 03, open.
Model 04, closed.
Model 04, open.
List of appearances[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Half-Life: Alyx commentary, "Xen Ears"
- ↑ Entity name
- ↑ Model name
