Gearbox Software

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Gearbox Software is an American video game development company based in Plano, Texas. The company contributed to the Half-Life franchise with three games: Half-Life: Opposing Force (1999), Half-Life: Blue Shift (2001) and Half-Life: Decay (2001). Gearbox is also developing the Brothers in Arms series.

Canonicity of the Half-Life expansions
Much debate has surrounded the question of whether the expansions developed by Gearbox Software are to be considered canon, added to the fact that no direct reference to any of the plot details of these expansions has been made in any of the subsequent games of the Half-Life series.

When asked on many occasions, the Half-Life series' writer Marc Laidlaw has said that during the development of Opposing Force, they [Valve] didn't insist that Gearbox developers abide by their rules and, likewise, Laidlaw generally did not factor in Gearbox's plot events when working on the story for Valve games. He had some input into the expansions writing, but it is unknown how much exactly, officially credited plot writers being only Gearbox employees, supervised by Randy Pitchford.

Gearbox took some liberty into writing their own things and experimenting designs (such as the mysterious Race X never seen or mentioned anywhere else than in Opposing Force or strange weapons such as the Barnacle Gun or the Displacer), not validated by default by Valve.

Therefore, the general consensus will consider the Gearbox expansions canon (even though still ambiguous) unless Valve chooses to specifically contradict some of all the events depicted, in which case Valve has the hypothetical 'right of way' (much like George Lucas and the Star Wars’ Expanded Universe), the story being still written as of today (June 2009) and retcons having been made since the first game's release.

References in subsequent games

 * While it is generally implied that the Barney from Blue Shift and Half-Life 2 are the same person, the Half-Life 2 Barney never makes any direct references to the Blue Shift events.


 * Although Rosenberg, Keller, Green and Cross, all Gearbox creations, were important Black Mesa scientists, they cannot be seen in Kleiner's Lab picture.


 * Marc Laidlaw has confirmed that the destruction of the Black Mesa Research Facility at the end of Opposing Force is canon.


 * Gabe Newell stated that Adrian Shephard might be reused in the future, further blurring the lines between the games' canonicity. When asked about this return, Doug Lombardi did not dismiss it but stated that there were no plans of bringing him back at the moment or anytime in the future.