Low Earth Orbit

"Low Earth Orbit" is a level in the award-winning video game The Operative: No One Lives Forever. It is the 11th mission of the game and follows Cate Archer traveling into outer space in order to retrieve an antidote sample from H.A.R.M.'s secret space station. The level is an immediate continuation from the previous mission and is followed by the last briefing and training level of the game: Good Luck and God Speed.

Briefing
''Once aboard the H.A.R.M. space station, you must ascertain where the antidote is stored. Your space suit should mask your identity to some degree, but don't expect guards to be fooled. If you see anyone carrying a weapon, either avoid him or dispatch him.''

When you've retrieved the antidote, you can start thinking about how to get back to Earth.

First things first.

Scene 1

 * Secret H.A.R.M. Space Station

Upon knocking out an investigating guard, Archer enters the space station's mezzanine. The station consists of five levels, the lowest of which contains the "Top Secret Labs". The entrance to this area is blocked by a large laser barrier which must be shut off in the main control room on the top level.

She finds a Security Pass lying on the counter of the mezzanine's "Pink Space Lounge", which is required to gain clearance to it.

On her way to the security sector, Archer finds a Code Breaker and the Super Atomic Laser Weapon, which vaporizes its victims. While hacking into the security systems (which are spread over two rooms), various conversations between Scientists can be heard suggesting that there is a meteor shower headed for the station. Archer must now proceed to the bottom area and run to the labs before the meteors destroy the access tunnel.

Scene 2
Making it to the Top Secret Labs, Archer searches quickly as meteors continue to damage the space station. She finds an antidote sample in a lab room accessed via a turbo-lift, then flees in an Escape Pod moments before the station explodes.

Memorable quotes
"Thank God that rocket is finally here. I can't wait to get back to earth."

"Really? I kind of like it up here."

"You're crazy. This place is a drag."

"Ah, come on, it's not bad once you get used to it."

"Well, maybe I just haven't gotten use to it, cause I'd rather be locked up in an outhouse for a week than spend another day on this floating deathtrap."

"Deathtrap? We've only had six fatalities this month!"

"See what I mean? You've been up here way too long. It's not normal for healthy adults to die off at that rate."

"Sure it is."

"No, it's not."

"You're wrong."

"No, you're wrong."

"Ah, who cares? Go back to earth if you're scared."

"I plan to."

"Good."
 * H.A.R.M. Thugs

John Jonson "Oh, you're so beautiful. You drive me mad with lust!"

Marsha Derikson "I'm like jelly in your arms."

John Jonson "How can I resist you? I want you now!"

Marsha Derikson "Yes! Please, ravage me!"

(make out sounds) (Archer walks in)

John Jonson "Oh, hello, we're just, uh, doing inventory of the medical supplies."

Marsha Derikson "Yes, I've counted six boxes so far. How about you?"

John Jonson "I've also counted six."

Marsha Derikson "Well, let's keep counting."

Trivia

 * Due to its setting in outer space, the mission may have been inspired by films such as the 1968 motion picture 2001: A Space Odyssey, the 1979 James Bond film Moonraker and the Star Trek and Star Wars franchises.
 * This mission demonstrates H.A.R.M.'s incredibly advanced and futuristic framework, boasting a highly developed space program even two years before the Moon Landing.
 * Owing to standard procedures before lift-off, you cannot select your weapons before the start of the mission, let alone bring any at all. It's still possible to select a gear equipment, but the only one that actually affect gameplay is the Fuzzy Slipper.
 * There appear to be several civilians aboard the space station especially in the Pink Space Lounge. The only plausible explanation for this is that they also work for H.A.R.M. employed in different capacities to the guards and scientists.
 * The barman in the Space Lounge can be killed without failing the mission.
 * The player can overhear two scientists exchanging pleasantries and kissing intimately. If they choose to enter the room, the scientists will pretend to perform work as per normal. If the player leaves the room, the two lovers will go back to making out, although they will hear no noise on subsequent visits.
 * An intelligence item can found that shows another employee complaining about their licentious behavior.
 * When activating the 3rd person view cheat (cheat code - mpasscam), you can see that Archer is not wearing a space helmet even though she had one on when she boarded the rocket. This could be the reason why the guards recognize her immediately. While in first-person view, the player can see the front of the space helmet in front of them.
 * In Scene 2, there are two ways to get out of the shaft once the turbo-lift comes crashing down: Either jump across the beams along the shaft walls, (some of which collapse under your weight), or simply shoot at the red light on the "Emergency Ladder" sign at the top of the shaft for a faster escape.
 * In a conversation between two scientists, it is mentioned that there are only enough escape pods for twenty people. As there are only eight of these to be seen in Scene 2, the remaining twelve must be scattered around the rest of the station.
 * The scenario of having less escape pods than passengers is not unlike that of the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912, causing the deaths of some 1,500 people mainly due to a significant lack of lifeboats.
 * It does not matter which escape pod you take; entering any one of them after having retrieved the antidote, will complete the level. This means that the intelligence item you find in one of the pods can only be collected before the antidote is retrieved.
 * It is unclear how Archer got back to UNITY HQ after taking the escape pod. She could have landed anywhere on Earth, and UNITY would have had to expend manpower, not to mention resources, to get her back.
 * The H.A.R.M. Space Station appears again in the Contract J.A.C.K. mission Lunar Psycho. The crashed remains of the space station on the Moon would be explored with Dr. Harij as the only survivor.