“I was a young teenager when Half-Life was first released,” James Coburn told me, “It left such an impression on me that I had to have more of it.”
That’s how most of us felt when Half-Life 2: Episode 2’s sequels seemingly got shelved as the series’ cliffhanger was left without resolution, going stagnant for over ten years. The game that we knew and love was seemingly at an end, but the community refused to let it die. Mods sprouted up, the original Half-Life received a fan remake called Black Mesa, and those clinging onto hope for a new Half-Life were left hanging. 2016’s HLVR leak turning out to be the eventual Half-Life: Alyx, but for the longest time, it was up to the modding community, with people like Coburn, to keep the momentum going.
“As I approached 30, I was losing all hope at ever seeing Half-Life 2: Episode 3, or even a continuation of the series I loved so much,” Coburn opens, “I knew I would have to make peace with the idea that it was over, but there was still so much to celebrate about it. Instead of just moving on, I wanted to remind myself why it meant so much to me.”
Echoes was a wonderful couple of hours that felt akin to Blue Shift in scope, but it wasn’t an official expansion, just a fan making more of what they loved. What’s so brilliant about the community is how much talent there is within. Yet, what stood out about Echoes over many other large-scale expansion-type mods is that it felt like it could be slotted right alongside Opposing Force, Blue Shift, and Decay. It kept the essence of Half-Life in-tact. Mods that branch out are wonderful in their own right, but there was an unbelievable feeling of nostalgia that came with Echoes. It felt like experiencing more of the series for the first time in over a decade, but it nearly wasn’t released.
“I liked to do mapping on my commute to work by train,” Coburn said, “One day, a stranger commented as they passed by that they had seen me work on occasion and they were impressed by what I was doing. This was a massive boost to my confidence. I decided to post my work ‘in-progress’ to ModDB the same day and the incredible feedback convinced me that I was onto something. I am so thankful to everyone that commented and championed my work and to the people who felt like I delivered something they enjoyed.”
Echoes had humble beginnings, a quaint story of how it debuted to the community, but the journey of its development up to its finish saw a lot of changes in Coburn’s life, chief among them, his becoming a father and husband. I asked Coburn if this impacted the story at all, given that Echoes elaborates on the plotline revealed in Half-Life 2 where Eli and Alyx escaped from the Black Mesa Incident because of a deal struck between Eli and the elusive G-Man.
“Over time, entire plotlines and maps were cut, merged, or reassembled,” Coburn said, “Once it was apparent I was to become a father, I realized quickly that I had to get this together as soon as possible or I would risk not finishing it for a long time. At that point, I had only created the first half of the mod - up to a point where you meet G-Man. The nature of what they wanted was not set in stone at that point. I did have a sort of eureka moment not long after my wife became pregnant about how I wanted to conclude the story and I found a main motivation for the plot. The release of Epistle 3’s synopsis (the original two games’ lead writer’s rendition of the never-released Episode 3 story) just cemented this idea as it revealed that Alyx - a child during the time of the first game - was pivotal to the whole series.”
While becoming a father, commuting to work, and growing up with the series, Coburn remained a hobbyist working on a passion project. In fact, Coburn isn’t even a professional game designer. “I work in IT,” Coburn revealed, “This is purely a hobby and something that consumed far too much of my free time. Now that I’m a parent, it will be a while before I can try my hand at something new, but I can’t wait to get back to it.” Perhaps, someday, we’ll get another Half-Life romp from the creator of Echoes, but until that day, the community is as strong as ever, bolstered by the release of Alyx. The original 90s classic is still being played with, and that’s a testament to how well it’s held up all these years.
