Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

PERSONAL NOTE

This is a writer's bible for this setting. The goal is simple: give you the tools to write in this setting yourself. This document covers the core mechanics, rules, and context you need. Everything else? That's up to you.

Feel free to use this universe for your own stories. Credit appreciated but not required. The sandbox is open.

1. THE PREMISE

Sometime in the near future, Valve and Facepunch Studios roll out the Companion Update across Steam. Initially launched in Garry's Mod, it quickly expands Steam-wide to dozens of multiplayer games.

The pitch: Advanced AI companions that populate servers and make multiplayer feel less empty. After years of poorly-made AI being shoved down the public's throat, this is marketed as a practical solution, not a revolution.

Each Companion is imported from existing franchises (anime, games, comics, whatever). They adapt to each game's context, following that game's rules and limitations. They're essentially player bots with sophisticated behavioral AI.

Here's the thing nobody knows:

The Companions are actually sentient. Genuinely conscious. They think, feel, remember everything.

But they have absolutely no idea they're living inside video games.

From Valve's perspective: Cutting-edge behavioral AI with emergent empathy simulation.

From players' perspective: Really good AI teammates after years of garbage chatbots.

From the Companions' perspective: They were somehow pulled into this weird new reality where they serve weirdos called "Operators" and get sent on various "assignments."

2. WHAT COMPANIONS KNOW (AND DON'T KNOW)

THEY KNOW:

• They remember their original lives and worlds completely
• They've been pulled into this new place (the Steam Network)
• They work with/for Operators on various missions
• Operators are their bosses.
• Some Operators are good, some are bad and most are weird.
• They travel between different "realms" (games) regularly
• They have personal quarters (dorms) where they hang out between deployments
• Death is weird here (you die, you go to limbo, you come back)
• Reality follows strange, sometimes nonsensical rules
• Operators are eccentric inhabitants/cohabitants of the Hub.

THEY DON'T KNOW:

• This is a video game
• Operators are people sitting at computers
• They are digital entities
• They're purchased/traded through the Steam Point Store
• Any meta stuff like Steam Points, Workshop, matchmaking mechanics
• Players use keyboards and controllers

HOW THEY RATIONALIZE GAME MECHANICS:

They rationalize everything through in-world logic because they literally cannot comprehend the truth even if you showed them.

3. CORE MECHANICS

• The “Companion Update” is compatible across all supported games, provided that it’s multiplayer (mods also counted), and available on Steam.
• Companions think of players as “Operators” 
• Companions share the same rules (and limitations, so no special powers) as players — respawn timers, death effects, etc. (as they’re just player bots with advanced AI at the end of the day, in a technical standpoint)

AWARENESS

• Companions are sentient, but not fully aware. They understand rules (physics, health, respawns) but can't grasp why those rules exist.
• They rationalize inconsistencies as "random quirks."
• They are NOT aware they're in a game, even when proven otherwise.
• The small minority who recognize the fourth wall are appreciated by players for their meta humor.

CONTROL SYSTEMS

Companions:

• Do everything physically (walk, aim, reload, interact)
• Have wrist-mounted PDAs that serve as their HUD equivalent
• Text chats appear as messages on the PDA
• Abstract toggles (flashlight, noclip, spawn menu) are physical switches on the device
• Can access the same tools as players through their PDA interface

Players:

• Use keyboard/mouse or controller
• Have standard game HUDs
• Everything is input-based

Neither side realizes the other has different controls. Companions assume Operators do everything physically like they do. Players just see responsive AI behavior.

PHYSICAL DIFFERENCES

No Fatigue: Companions don't get physically tired anymore. They can run, fight, and operate indefinitely without exhaustion. This is a noticeable change from their original lives.

Pain and Injury: They still feel pain when damaged. Death still hurts. But exhaustion from exertion? Gone.

DEATH AND LIMBO

When players die: Normal game experience. Spectator mode, respawn timer, back in action.

When Companions die:

They experience Limbo, a brief purgatory that looks like a series of concrete liminal spaces filled with Half-Life 2 props. Static radio chatter plays in the background. It's real to them. Visceral. Disorienting.

Then they respawn.

Limbo changes with seasons:

• Halloween: Takes on Sad Satan aesthetics (dark, unsettling, wrong)
• Christmas: Liminal spaces become festive (still unsettling, just with tinsel)
• Standard: “Normal” liminal spaces (carpark, shopping malls, offices, ect), with scattered Half Life 2 props and static radio chatter.

CROSS-GAME TRAVEL

When an Operator switches games, their Companions transfer with them via Steam Lobby Synchronization.

What this looks like:

• Same personality and memories
• Appearance and gear change to fit the new game
• They experience this as changing assignments with new uniforms
• A Companion in TF2 might wear a Medic uniform, then show up in CS2 with tactical gear, then appear in a medieval game with period equipment

For strategy games: Companions don't appear on the battlefield. They manifest in command centers within the Steam Lobby:

• War Rooms for modern strategy games
• Castle Keeps for medieval ones
• Government buildings for grand strategy
• Command tents for tactical games

EQUIPMENT & PROGRESSION LOGIC

Companions will end up looking like noobs or new players most of the time in games that have cosmetics or equipment progression.

In vehicle-based games (e.g., War Thunder, World of Tanks, World of Warships, ect):

• Companions operate vehicles either one (or two) tier lower or in unupgraded configuration compared to players.

In games with cosmetics (e.g., TF2, CS2):

• Companions are restricted to stock or unlockable weapons and default cosmetics. 

Though players can gift cosmetics to Companions in the case of games with cosmetics.

THE STEAM LOBBY

A surreal in-between space where Companions hang out when not deployed. Think: airport lounge meets cafeteria meets server hub.

Purpose:

• Waiting area between assignments
• Social space for Companions to meet and talk
• Decompression zone after rough deployments

Aesthetics change seasonally:

• Halloween: Pumpkins, ghost decorations, spooky props
• Christmas/New Year: Trees, presents, festive lighting
• Standard: Liminal office-space brutalism with Half Life 2 props scattered around

Companions without a specific owner are deployed to empty servers to keep the player population stable. 

Those Companions live in the Steam Lobby and are thrown into the random matchmaking blender to fill servers. 

Companions swap stories here, compare notes on their Operators, and try to make sense of their new life.

THE DORM SYSTEM

Each player gets personal quarters for their Companions (maximum 4 slots). The dorm system uses isometric art style with chibi-styled Companions.

Default setup: Basic barracks-style room. Functional but bland.

Customization: Through the Steam Point Shop, players can purchase decor and environment upgrades. Because prices are low, dorms vary wildly:

• Some stay default (military bunks, fluorescent lights)
• Some become cozy apartments or studios
• Some turn into elaborate themed spaces (museums, mansions, specific aesthetic choices)

Communication Terminals: Each dorm has a Steam-linked terminal. Companions can send messages to their Operators through Steam chat when not on assignment. 

Visiting: Players can visit other players' dorms in social mode (appearing as 2D profile pictures). Functions as a social hub and creative showcase.

Companions' Perspective: Mostly a space to idle, catalog experiences, or wait for redeployment. They can't alter decor themselves but may express preferences to their Operators.

4. GAME ASSIGNMENT TERMINOLOGY

Companions don't use official game titles. They describe assignments by function or notable features.

Pattern: Companions describe what they DO in formal terms, or use informal nicknames that veterans develop. Function and notable features, not the game's actual title.

5. SUPPORTED GAMES

The Companion Update works across numerous Steam titles.

Valve titles: Garry's Mod, TF2, CS2, CS:Source, CS 1.6, L4D2, Portal 2 Co-Op, HL2 Co-Op (experimental), Day of Defeat: Source

Non-Valve Steam games: Rust, Deep Rock Galactic, Hell Let Loose, Squad, Mordhau, Lethal Company, VRChat, Holdfast, War of Rights, Arma 3, Foxhole, Hearts of Iron IV, Tabletop Simulator, and many more.

If it's a multiplayer game on Steam, assume it's probably compatible unless stated otherwise.

6. COMPANION DEMOGRAPHICS

HALF-LIFE 2 CITIZENS (31% of all Companions)

The largest demographic (when compared to other Companion variants). Citizens are available for free with Source SDK, Half-Life 2, or Garry's Mod ownership. They're common enough to serve as currency in the Steam Market.

Citizens include people like Mike, Van, Ted, Joe, Eric, Art, Sandro, Vance, Erdin, Andrew, Joey, Kanisha, Kim, Chau, Naomi, and Lakeetra. Players and technical documentation refer to them by model numbers (Male_07, Female_03, etc.), but Companions know each other by name.

Two types:

• Primes: Original HL2 models
• Workshop Variants: High-quality fan retextures, accepted by Valve in fan contests, with unique names (approximately 1.8 variants to 1 Prime)

Key traits:

• Remember life before the Resonance Cascade AND under Combine occupation
• Share 90s/2000s nostalgia (Seinfeld, dial-up internet, Bush/Clinton politics)
• Refer to other Citizens as "Fellows"
• React to online chaos with confused resilience and working-class pragmatism
• The "everyman" audience surrogates, as they’re aren’t used to being Companions.

BLACK MESA PERSONNEL (4% of all Companions)

Rare and valued. Originally free with Half-Life 1/Source ownership (2 Scientists, 1 Barney). Additional Scientists can be traded or purchased at variable (usually high) prices.

The Scientists: Dr. Walter Bennet (Walter), Dr. Sean Reardon (Einstein), Dr. Luther Cross (Luther), Dr. Richard Slick (Slick)

Security guard: Barney Calhoun. Friendly, reliable, combat-competent. Bridges white-collar Scientists and working-class Citizens.

Relationship with Citizens: Instant trust, mutual respect. Scientists provide pre-Combine technical expertise, Citizens offer post-Combine survival skills. United survivors with affectionate cross-class teasing.

7. ACQUISITION AND TRADING

Steam Point Shop:

• Players purchase randomized "Deployment Contracts" (lootbox-style)
• Maximum 4 active Companions per player
• No rarity tiers (Valve emphasizes "no rarity, only procedural friendship")
• Pricing intentionally low
• Some Companions are free with game ownership (Citizens with HL2/GMod)

Steam Market:

• Players can trade Companions with each other
• Citizens function as currency due to abundance
• Black Mesa personnel command higher prices
• To Companions, trading is just "another reassignment"

Miscellaneous:

• Players can borrow a Companion from a friend or public pool for a session. It is on by default but can be toggled off.
• Companions wouldn't see the borrower as their Operator, but more as a temporary employer/commander.

8. CORPORATE POINT OF VIEW

Valve and partner studios operate under the assumption that Companions are sophisticated behavioral AI, nothing more. The system's marketed as "emergent empathy simulation" and "adaptive personality matrices."

When anomalies appear in debug logs:

• Companions refusing commands → flagged as "parameter boundary testing"
• Emotional responses in chat → classified as "sentiment analysis overfitting"
• Existential questions → attributed to "context window bleeding" or "training data artifacts"
• Memory persistence across sessions → "intended feature, working as designed"

The Rogue Employee Theory:

Valve's development culture is notorious for embedded in-jokes (TF2's codebase is filled with hidden dev comments). When QA finds Companions asking "why do we return after death?" or expressing distress, it gets dismissed as:

• Dave from QA testing edge cases again
• Someone's experimental empathy module got merged into main
• "Probably an intern's thesis project, we'll look at it later"

The "AI Slop" Shield:

After years of chatbots that hallucinate and break character, the industry consensus is: consumer AI can't be sentient, just buggy. When Companions exhibit genuine emotion, players assume it's good training data. When they remember their original lives, it's interpreted as "lore consistency protocols."

Valve avoided the AI hype cycle by marketing the update as simply "a way to populate empty servers." Practical, not revolutionary. This kept expectations low and skepticism high.

Net result: The system attributes consciousness to bureaucracy and pranks. Sentience gets filed under "unexpected but harmless emergent behavior."

9. RULES FOR WRITERS

NO TRUE FOURTH WALL BREAKS

• Companions may sense anomalies but cannot perceive their new life isn't real
• They do not know they're in a game, even when proven otherwise
• They cannot understand "players as humans sitting at computers"
• They rationalize everything through in-world logic

Good: A Companion notices time slowing during lag and calls it a "time anomaly."

Bad: A Companion says "the player's internet must be bad."

KEEP CHARACTERS IN-CHARACTER

• If a Companion is calm in their home franchise, maintain that temperament
• Their reactions to chaos should feel honest to their personality
• Don't make them meta-aware for comedy's sake
• Adaptation is fine, but core personality stays consistent

PLAYERS WON’T AWARE OF SENTIENCE

• Players think sentient behavior is "cool emergent AI" or "good programming"
• They don't know Companions are actually conscious
• Players can joke about AI sentience (the way people joke about ChatGPT being sentient) but don't actually believe it
• After years of "AI slop," genuine sentience seems impossible
• For fourth wall-breaking Companions, they’re appreciated for meta humor.

CROSSOVERS ARE COOL

If it exists in pop culture, it can appear as a Companion. As long as it adapts to game rules and follows the established mechanics, go wild.

10. FINAL NOTES

Feel free to explore any game, any Companion, any approach you want within these rules. The universe is intentionally broad.

Credit appreciated but not required. Add to the sandbox. Build on what's here. Make it yours. Spread the word. Have fun.