The Best Characters In Half-Life, Ranked

Half-Life redefined storytelling in video games when it first came out, and each new entry brought new things to the table, even when it jumped to VR in 2020. With a silent protagonist, the rest of the cast has to do all the heavy lifting, and the franchise has introduced many characters throughout the years and expansions.

Whether you think about the scientists at Black Mesa, the Vance family, or even some villains, Half-Life is full of interesting characters that sometimes embody ideals and concepts that pair very well with the dystopian sci-fi setting. Expansions have a story to tell and feature characters that earned their place in the popular franchise.

12 Adrian Shephard

Adrian Shephard is the silent protagonist of Half-Life: Opposing Force, the Gearbox-developed expansion originally launched in 1999. He’s a US Marine Corporal sent to Black Mesa to cover up the incident from the first game. However, he runs into trouble and is separated from his team, so he’ll need to survive similarly to Gordon Freeman.

Shephard is mostly a copy of the beloved Gordon Freeman but made it to this list because he was highly praised by the G-Man for his capacity to adapt and survive.

11 Gary

The Vortigaunts are a prominent race in the Half-Life universe, first serving as mere enemies for Gordon Freeman to squash and then as allies once they were freed from the Combine’s control. They revere Gordon Freeman as their savior and call him the Free-Man. There’s probably some subtext there, but who knows?

You crossed paths with many Vortigaunts in the series, so Gary, from Half-Life: Alyx, made it to this list for being the most charismatic one of them all.

The name Gary isn’t actually in the game, as neither the Vortigaunt nor Alyx mention it during your adventure. However, fans of the game found game files referring to this specific Vortigaunt as Gary, immortalizing it in the franchise’s lore.

10 Wallace Breen

Stories need charismatic villains, and Wallace Breen has the perfect face for players returning to the Half-Life universe years after the first installment. He looks like the CEO of a multinational company because his appearance is actually based on one.

While he doesn’t appear in the first game, he’s retconned as the Administrator at Black Mesa during the events of the first game and the man responsible for delivering humanity to the Combine. What’s more, he seems to know about the G-Man, making him even more interesting than he looks.

9 Dog

One of the elements that make the Vance family so lovable is the fact that Eli built a pet robot for Alyx when she was little to keep her safe when he was not around. Dog is a key element in Half-Life 2 and Half-Life: Alyx and behaves exactly like you would expect from a pet robot named Dog.

However, he’s been improved over the years and you meet him in his final form, with many additions to his structure. He is a great and adorable companion overall, and you would definitely play catch again with him if you could.

8 Barney Calhoun

Barney went from being a generic Black Mesa security guard to staring in his own stand-alone expansion, Blue Shift, and then became a very important part of the Resistance in Half-Life 2. He’s the one who first sees Gordon Freeman in City 17’s train station and risks everything to take him out of there.

Later on, you see him in charge of an attack on the Citadel, aiding you through security checks you wouldn’t be able to clear on your own. A real everyday hero.

7 Gina Cross/Colette Green

What’s great about these characters, the main protagonists of the co-op expansion Half-Life: Decay, is that they were originally envisioned as very different characters in the Half-Life universe.

Luckily for them, they ended up having their own story and becoming part of a very select group of characters in the Half-Life franchise. Alongside Alyx, they’re the only playable characters who speak in the game. What’s more, Colette’s whereabouts are unknown after HL: Decay, so you might cross paths with her again some day.

Gina Cross was going to be Gordon Freeman’s wife and a second playable character in the first game, but that was scrapped during development.

6 Isaac Kleiner

Valve repurposed many different designs from the original Half-Life and turned them into fully fledged characters in the sequel, and Dr. Isaac Kleiner is one of them. He upgraded your suit and developed teleportation technology, which is key to the story and allows Gordon Freeman and the Resistance to get a few steps ahead.

Your adventure would be extremely different without Kleiner’s knowledge, although he seems to be one step away from creating a disaster in his lab. Oh! He also has a toothless Headcrab as a pet.

5 Eli Vance

Eli Vance is another one of those Half-Life characters that was retconned with HL2 and turned into a key piece for the plot. While you originally meet him in the first game, he doesn’t have a name and is one of the many generic scientists you come across.

From Half-Life 2 onward, Eli Vance is considered one of the founders of City 17’s Resistance and the creator of the Gravity Gun. He gives you quests and trusts you with his life, and you wouldn’t be half the hero you are without him.

4 Judith Mossman

In a franchise where all you do is take orders and defeat enemies in your way, characters with a bit more depth are always appreciated, and Judith Mossman might be the most interesting of them all. She’s part of the Resistance, but later in the game, it’s revealed that she’s also working for the Combine.

However, she’s considered a triple agent with other interests in mind toward the end of Episode 2. Currently, her whereabouts are unknown, but she might be a key element in the franchise’s conclusion.

According to the official lore, Judith Mossman applied for the same job as Gordon Freeman at Black Mesa. However, thanks to Dr. Kleiner’s recommendation, Freeman got the post instead of her.

3 Gordon Freeman

Although he’s a silent protagonist, Gordon Freeman keeps the Half-Life universe together. He’s a scientist who decided to face an alien invasion with nothing but a crowbar and succeeded in his mission, becoming humanity’s savior.

From a storytelling standpoint, you can start Half-Life 2 after a time jump and get to know City 17 and all the new characters organically. And while Half-Life doesn’t feature decision-based gameplay, Gordon Freeman acts as a vessel for all players to imprint their story and personality.

2 The G-Man

Very little is known about the mysterious G-Man, which makes him one of the most interesting characters in all of Half-Life. He serves powers beyond our understanding and seems to have a specific plan in play, although it’s still hard to decipher after all these years.

There are dozens of theories about this character, with many suggesting he’s none other than a future version of Gordon Freeman. Whatever the case, he’s one of the key plot points that keeps fans wanting more and more.

1 Alyx Vance

Considered by many as the female version of Gordon Freeman, Alyx Vance is much more than that. Thanks to her father, she knows science and can fight her way out of any situation, making her more prepared for war than the Freeman himself.

Additionally, her life story and her relationship with the Black Mesa incident make her a much more compelling character than the silent Gordon Freeman, with many emotional bits throughout the franchise and even a whole game with her as the main character.