Infinite Finality mod for Half-Life 2: Episode Two

Hello everyone! Welcome to update six of Infinite Finality. Before we get into the meat and potatoes of this article, we would like to take this opportunity to formally introduce ourselves, and give credit to all of the amazing people that are working on the project. Below is a list of the current team members, as well as their responsibilities.

wolfy411: Project Lead, Programmer, Writer, Concept Artist
env_wind: Lead Mapper and Project Manager
Bluu: Concept Artist and Graphic Designer
Chocofrolik: Mapper, Modeler, Texture Artist, Historian
LucaBuca2000: Modeler, Texture Artist, Concept Artist, Voice Actor, Composer
Alaa: Modeler, Mapper, Graphic Designer
KoolKat: Lead Writer, Project Manager, Composer, Video Editor, Public Relations, Level Design Artist
Nonamebadass: Modeler, Texture Artist
TSGPrestonEvans: Voice Actor
TubbyHill: Modeler, Texture Artist, Voice Actor, Concept Artist, Animator
Waffles: Mapper
1cetea: Concept Artist, Audio Designer
macdrown: Writer, Composer, Level Design Artist
Silas: Composer, Writer
Texas Steve: Weapon Animator
Collide: Writer
Rozkurwiacz_czaszek: Modeler
stefanebunik: Mapper

While the break between update articles has been long, we are proud to say we’ve been doing more than just sitting around. Our modeling and texture department have been hard at work making sure that we recapture the Xen from the original Half-Life and Half-Life: Alyx.

We want to make sure we get Xen right in our mod. While Black Mesa showed us what Xen could look like, we’ve decided to go in our own direction in order to ensure we stick closer to the source material. A major inspiration for our art team are the infestation zones from HL:A. Our mappers have been hard at work ensuring that these props are integrated into our more infested maps.

You might have noticed amongst the muck that there are some familiar flora contained within. Our programmer has ported over both the Xen Tree and the Light Stalk in order to add more ambience to the Xen sections. We even have plans to incorporate additional variants to spice up Xen, that much more.

Watch the Light Stalk and Xen Tree In Action

It wouldn’t be a Half-Life game without its amazing sound direction. Our audio wizards have cooked up some walking sounds for both ice and the disgusting biomass that is Xen.

Listen to Xen Footsteps

Listen to Ice Footsteps

The team has also been hard at work on other maps, and we are proud to say that we are inching closer to a release this year.

As for the writing side of things, wolfy411 and KoolKat have just recently completed a second draft of our plot outline. They have reworked many sections that needed more love, and have fleshed out the details of important events. After completing this second draft, we are more confident than ever that we will deliver a story that is engaging, satisfying, and full of emotion. Our writers have also completed a dialogue rewrite of our chapter one demo script, and we are all much happier with the new dialogue we've come up with.

The last thing we can show you is something the team have worked hard to reintroduce, and that is the Houndeye, or as we are calling it, the Houndice. The model and animations are not finalized, but this fluffy puppy is now working. We have a YouTube video about these guys in the works. If all things go according to plan, expect the video on 2/10/24! (Addendum: this was in fact, "a few days off").

That wraps up this update and we hope it was worth the wait, but we still have one more thing to announce. The team has been looking for another displacement mapper, so if you or anyone you know thinks they could help us out, please email:

teamhyperborea@gmail.com

Thank you so very much for all of your support. The community that we've garnered is truly incredible and we're grateful to have all of you along for the ride. Stay tuned for more…