Fan Casting Half-Life: Thinking With Portals

Days after the events of Half-Life: Alyx, the Resistance is on the brink of collapse. The Combine, more relentless than ever, tightens its grip on Earth, hunting down the last remnants of defiance. But in the shadows, forces long kept apart are about to collide. Gordon Freeman—The One Free Man—awakens at White Forest, haunted by visions of a war yet to come. Before he can make sense of them, The G-Man intervenes. But this time, he isn't alone. Chell, a survivor of Aperture Science’s buried nightmares, stands beside him—another pawn in a game she never agreed to play. Without explanation, they are sent to the ruins of New Mexico, where an old enemy hides an even older secret. As the Resistance regroups, familiar faces resurface. Barney Calhoun, still fighting, still standing. Corporal Adrian Shephard, a soldier abandoned by time itself. Their reunion is short-lived. The Borealis—Aperture’s lost vessel, a weapon capable of rewriting history—has been found. And the Combine will stop at nothing to claim it. With time running out, Gordon, Chell, and their allies must infiltrate the heart of Aperture Science, navigating the crumbling remains of its horrors while waging war against an enemy that sees all, controls all. But the deeper they go, the clearer it becomes—this isn't just about survival. This is about ending the cycle. For good. And when the dust settles, only one question remains: What are you willing to give up for freedom?