Half-Life Hints

Cheat Codes

  • CREATING A CONSOLE SHORTCUT: Before running the game, add the -console parameter to the call to HL.EXE. To do that, right-click on the shortcut for Half-Life that you want to edit and choose "Properties." Then, in the "Target" field, leave what's there and add a space and "-console" (w/o the quote marks), then click on the Okay button. Now run the game using the shortcut you just edited. (Note that you can also add -dev to the parameter list to get more debug-style messages, but it's not really useful.)

    Or if you've installed Opposing Force also, you should have two Half-Life shortcuts to run the game with, one of which is called "Half-Life Console." Run it instead of the regular one if you want to use any of the cheats. Note that the shortcut on your desktop won't be a console shortcut. Either copy and paste the console shortcut from the Programs menu, or use the instructions in the prior paragraph to turn a regular Half-Life shortcut into a console shortcut.

    Either way, when the game comes up, you'll have a new option at the top of the main menu called "Console" that you can click on. You can also bring down the console while playing by pressing the ~ (tilde) key.

    To get the cheats to work, you need to bring down the console, type "sv_cheats 1" and then "map c0a0" (w/o quotes), then use the main menu to start a new game or load a saved game. Once you do all that, all of the following codes should work:

    * god - god mode toggle
    * noclip - no-clip mode toggle
    * notarget - invisibility toggle
    * impulse 76 - type this code and then load a save; now you can type it again and again to spawn new marines (note that they attack you unless you have "notarget" in effect)
    * impulse 101 - gives an HEV and all weapons
    * impulse 203 - deletes the NPC or monster you're aiming at

    * sv_gravity # - replace # with a number; 800 is regular, and 150 is moon-like
    * r_fullbright # - replace # with a 1 to eliminate shadows; a 0 restores to normal
    * thirdperson - switches to third-person view
    * firstperson - switches to first-person view
    * +cammousemove - mouse moves the camera in third-person mode
    * -cammousemove - returns camera control to normal
    * chase_active # - chase mode in third-person (1 activates, 0 deactivates)

    * give $ - gives the item you replace the $ with from the following list:

       item_healthkit            item_longjump            item_suit
       item_battery              item_antidote
       weapon_357                weapon_9mmhandgun        weapon_9mmAR
       weapon_crossbow           weapon_crowbar           weapon_egon
       weapon_gauss              weapon_handgrenade       weapon_hornetgun
       weapon_rpg                weapon_satchel           weapon_shotgun
       weapon_snark              weapon_tripmine          
       ammo_357                  ammo_9mmAR               ammo_mp5clip
       ammo_ARgrenades           ammo_buckshot            ammo_crossbow
       ammo_egonclip             ammo_gaussclip           ammo_rpgclip

    The "map" command can be used to instantly start a new game in a certain part of a certain chapter. You start without anything, including the HEV suit, so you'll want to use the "give" command or "impulse 101" to get that and some weapons and ammo. Below are the map codes that you can use. Note that not everything will work properly when you use some of these codes, and you could easily end up getting stuck (unless you use other cheats like "noclip" to progress).

    c0a0, c0a0a, c0a0b, c0a0c, c0a0d, c0a0e  -- Black Mesa Inbound (tram ride)
    c1a0, c1a0a, c1a0b, c1a0c, c1a0d, c1a0e  -- Anomalous Materials
    c1a1, c1a1a, c1a1b, c1a1c, c1a1d, c1a1f  -- Unforeseen Consequences
    c1a2, c1a2a, c1a2b, c1a2c, c1a2d         -- Office Complex
    c1a3, c1a3a, c1a3b, c1a3c, c1a3d         -- "We've Got Hostiles"
    c1a4, c1a4b, c1a4d, c1a4e, c1a4f, c1a4g,
       c1a4i, c1a4j, c1a4k                    -- Blast Pit
    c2a1, c2a1a, c2a1b                       -- Power Up
    c2a2, c2a2a, c2a2b1, c2a2b2, c2a2c,
       c2a2d, c2a2e, c2a2f, c2a2g, c2a2h      -- On a Rail
    c2a3, c2a3a, c2a3b, c2a3c, c2a3d, c2a3e  -- Apprehension
    c2a4, c2a4a, c2a4b, c2a4c, c2a4d, c2a4e,
       c2a4f, c2a4g                           -- Residue Processing
    c2a5, c2a5a, c2a5b, c2a5c, c2a5d, c2a5e,
       c2a5f, c2a5g, c2a5w, c2a5x             -- Surface Tension
    c3a1, c3a1a, c3a1b                       -- "Forget About Freeman!"
    c3a2, c3a2a, c3a2b, c3a2c, c3a2d, c3a2e,
       c3a2f                                  -- Lambda Core
    c4a1                                     -- Xen
    c4a2, c4a2a, c4a2b                       -- Gonarch's Lair
    c4a1a, c4a1b, c4a1c, c4a1d, c4a1e, c4a1f -- Interloper
    c4a3                                     -- Nihilanth
    c5a1                                     -- Endgame (Administrator)

    You can use the "bind" command to bind a cheat command to a key. For instance, to be able to press G to get some Mp5 grenades, type: bind g "give ammo_ARgrenades". (Note that quote marks are necessary there.)

    Another way to bind keys to codes is to edit the CONFIG.CFG file that's in the VALVE directory under your Half-Life directory. It's a plain text file, so if you load it up in Microsoft Word, be sure to load it as an MS-DOS format text file. Find the BIND command section right at the top and modify and/or add bind statements as desired. For instance, you could add a line that binds the "sv_cheats 1" command to the H key, "god" to the G key, "noclip" to the N key, etc.