Dr. Wallace Bryn

"Tell me, Dr. Freeman, if you can. You have destroyed so much. What is it, exactly, that you have created? Can you name even one thing? I thought not."

-Wallace Breen

Name: Wallace

Surname: Breen

Position: Administrator of the Black Mesa Research Facility.

Designers:

Dhabih Eng


Ted Backman


Bill Van Buren

Prototype:

Voice Acting:

History: The character became one of the few survivors of Black Mesa's events. In Half-Life 1, his name was never mentioned; he was simply referred to as the administrator. There is a belief that G-Man is not the instigator of the cascading resonance, and that Breen was the one who brought the strange crystal, although it is quite possible that Breen was not even present in the facility on the day of the incident (which explains why he survived).

Breen became the Earth’s administrator while Gordon was in stasis. He simply "handed over" Earth after the seven-hour war with the Combine. He assists the Combine and believes that he will be rewarded with immortality. Propaganda of the Combine is visible everywhere; he constantly reads various speeches in defense of the invaders, trying to inspire people with promises of immortality.

At the moment when the hero meets Breen in the Citadel - Wallace is preparing to become immortal. Perhaps he survived the explosion but was physically affected and gained immortality by becoming an Advisor, whom we later encountered... though it is entirely possible that externally he has not changed... or he perished.

It is likely that Wallace himself believes that the Combine can bring benefits; immortality is very tempting for a planet's manager.

Quote:

I have recently come to learn that I am being called a collaborator, as if collaboration were a disgrace. I ask you, what could be better than striving for cooperation? In our unprecedented situation, refusal to cooperate is a refusal to grow, tantamount to suicide.

Has the double-breathing fish ever refused air? No. It heroically crawled onto land, while its peers remained in the dark abyss of the ocean, gazing into the void, ignorant and doomed, despite eternal vigilance. Shall we repeat the path of the trilobites? Is it truly destined for all of humanity's achievements to become mere shards of plastic scattered on the petrified bed between the Burgess Shale and a thousand-year layer of dirt?

To remain true to ourselves and our fate, we must strive for more. We have outgrown our cradle. It makes no sense to demand maternal milk when true assistance awaits us among the stars. And only the universal alliance that simple-minded people call the 'Combine' will help us reach them.

Therefore, I declare - yes, I am a collaborator. We must all cooperate if we wish to reap the rewards of unity. And we will surely reap them.

Breen was not liked by many, both by the simple citizens of City 17 who had to see him regularly, and by our acquaintances - Alyx, Eli... In Kleiner's laboratory, there is even a photograph where the scientist angrily crossed out the new representative of authority:

A considerable amount of time was spent on developing Breen's appearance - he is, after all, the new Face of Earth. Below is information from HLRTB


From: Greg Coomer

Sent: Friday, August 22, 2003, 7:19 PM

To: Bill Van Buren; Mark Laidlaw; Dabi Eng; Bill Fletcher; Victor; Randy Landin

Subject: Re: Please help Dr. Breen

There are so many of them here! I can hardly choose the right ones because I know so little about Dr. Breen.

Here’s what I think about each frame:

b. I like this one the most. In these glasses, Breen looks more... masculine and slightly more evil. Plus, he appears changeable and slightly homosexual in them.

c. In this one, he looks somewhat evil, and as if he has a very high opinion of himself (maybe that’s how it should be?)

d. Not stylish at all; in them, he becomes uninteresting.

e. Perfectly matches his suit and makes Breen look older, more nervous, and less evil (maybe that’s how it should be?)

f. This is a very lightweight frame (at least visually), but Breen looks quite old and quiet in it.

g. "I’m an avant-garde architect, and I don’t want to talk to you now, or ever!"

h. A good compromise between complicated and simple shapes. This frame does not stand out on Breen’s face, which is quite attractive. It makes him more open than the others, but also somewhat weak. It’s a neutral frame; it will allow him to develop as an interesting and complex character.

-------Original message-------

From: Mark Laidlaw

Sent: Friday, August 22, 2003, 11:59 AM

To: Bill Van Buren; Dabi Eng; Bill Fletcher; Victor; Randy Landin, Greg Coomer

Subject: Re: Please help Dr. Breen

I like b or d... Although I’d prefer a stricter pair for reading (narrower and without the top bar)

-------Original message-------

From: Bill Van Buren

Sent: Friday, August 22, 2003, 11:56 AM

To: Mark Laidlaw; Dabi Eng; Bill Fletcher; Victor; Randy Landin, Greg Coomer

Subject: Please help Dr. Breen

Dr. Breen found it increasingly difficult to read his frequent announcements to the residents of City 17. He decided that a pair of glasses would be suitable for his position as ‘administrator’ of City 17, and besides, his eyes wouldn’t tire as much.

Can you help Dr. Breen choose the right pair of glasses?

a. Contact lenses

b. Stylish black ones

c. “Bookish”

d. A bit flashy

e. Standard aviators

As Earth’s administrator, Breen constantly conducted Breencasts and participated in the creation of propaganda posters:

• Dr. Breen welcomes the citizens of City 17:

Welcome. Welcome to City 17.

You chose him yourself, or he was chosen for you - this is the best city of the remaining ones. I think so highly of City 17 that I decided to place my government here, in the Citadel, so kindly provided by our Benefactors. I take pride in calling City 17 my home.

So, will you stay here, or do the unknown horizons await you? Welcome to City 17. It is safe here.

• Dr. Breen on instinct:

Allow me to read a letter I received. “Dear Dr. Breen. Why does the Combine suppress our reproductive cycle? Sincerely, a Concerned Citizen.”

Thank you for your letter, Citizen. Of course, your question touches on basic biological needs, hopes, and fears for the future of the species. I feel and sense a few unspoken questions. Do our Benefactors know what is best for us? What gives them the right to make such decisions for mankind? Will they ever turn off the suppression field and allow us to reproduce?

Let me address the doubts underlying your concerns rather than responding to each unspoken question. First, let’s consider the fact that for the first time in history, we stand on the verge of immortality. This fact carries far-reaching implications. It requires a complete re-evaluation of our genetic needs. It requires planning and thought, which runs counter to our psychological predispositions.

At such a time, it may be necessary to remind ourselves that our true enemy is instinct. Instinct raised us when we were merely becoming. Instinct cared for us and protected us in those hard years when we made our first tools, prepared meager food over the fire, and flinched at the shadows jumping on the cave walls. But instinct is inseparable from its twin – superstition. Instinct is inextricably linked with reckless impulses, and now we see its true nature. But instinct knows of its uselessness, and like a cornered beast, it will not surrender without a bloody fight. It can deal humanity a lethal blow. Instinct creates its tyrants and commands us to rise against them. It tells us the unknown is a threat, not an opportunity. Instinct slyly and imperceptibly leads us away from the path of change and progress. Therefore, instinct must be suppressed. We must fight it mercilessly, starting with the primary human need – the need for reproduction.

We must thank our Benefactors for their help in the fight against this all-consuming force. By flicking a switch, they banished our demons in one motion. They gave us the strength we could not find ourselves to combat this mania. They pointed us toward the stars.

I assure you, the suppression field will be lifted on the day we master ourselves, when we prove that we no longer need it. And that day of transformation, according to reliable sources, is not far off.

• Dr. Breen on Gordon Freeman:

Now, there is solid evidence that a traitor has emerged among us, who appears to some citizens as a messiah. He embodies the darkest instincts, ignorance, and destruction. The most horrifying moments of the incident at Black Mesa are associated with his name. And yet naive minds endow him with a romantic aura and assign him such dangerous poetic nicknames as “The Free Man” and “The Pathmaker.”

Let me remind you of the danger of following such myths. We have barely begun to climb out of the deep pit in the evolution of our species. Let us not slide back into the darkness of oblivion, having just come to know the light. If you see this person, notify us. Your merits before the Combine will be rewarded. However, complicity in his affairs will not go unpunished.

Think. Beware. Know.

The last scene - the