Half-Life chapter order: Black Mesa, Lambda Core and Xen
A campaign route reference showing the main progression blocks and the skills each area demands.
Edition covered
The original GoldSrc Half-Life campaign on PC, first released in 1998. Valve Steam screenshots show original game assets. Half-Life: Source, Black Mesa and the expansion campaigns are separate games.
Follow the Black Mesa escape route
Half-Life moves through connected chapters rather than a mission-select hub. The opening starts on the tram, leads through the experiment and becomes a facility escape. Chapter names help identify a walkthrough location even when individual loading areas have no obvious labels.
| Chapter group | Main setting | Route emphasis |
|---|---|---|
| Black Mesa Inbound / Anomalous Materials | Tram and laboratories | Reach the test chamber |
| Unforeseen Consequences / Office Complex | Damaged facility | Find an escape route |
| We’ve Got Hostiles / Blast Pit | Military arrival and test silo | Fight soldiers and restore silo systems |
| Power Up / On A Rail | Power plant and rail network | Restore machinery and follow the railway |
Prepare for the late facility chapters
After the rail and processing sections, the campaign opens into research buildings and the surface. Soldiers, vehicles and longer sight lines make ammunition planning more important. Lambda Core is the final major Black Mesa stage before the transition to Xen.
| Chapter group | Main setting | Route emphasis |
|---|---|---|
| Apprehension / Residue Processing | Capture and industrial waste | Recover a route through machinery |
| Questionable Ethics / Surface Tension | Research labs and outdoors | Reach the next facility section |
| Forget About Freeman / Lambda Core | Late Black Mesa complex | Reach the Lambda team and portal |
| Xen / Gonarch’s Lair | Alien terrain | Long jumps and the Gonarch encounter |
| Interloper / Nihilanth | Alien production areas and final arena | Reach and defeat the final boss |
Take the long-jump training seriously
The long-jump module becomes important before Xen. Listen to the scientist and practise its crouch-and-jump movement on safe ground. Alien terrain uses wider gaps, and normal jumping is not a dependable substitute for the module.
Treat the table as orientation
The route tables group consecutive chapters and name the major objective type. They do not imply that every chapter is a single map. Save before big drops, elevators and portal transitions so a failed platforming attempt does not erase the previous combat section.
The route tables group consecutive chapters and name the major objective type.
References
| Reference | Website |
|---|---|
| Half-Life — publisher listing | store.steampowered.com |
| StrategyWiki: campaign chapters | strategywiki.org |
| StrategyWiki: weapons | strategywiki.org |
| StrategyWiki: final boss | strategywiki.org |
| Half-Life manual | www.sierrachest.com |