As much a fan as I am for Half Life, I struggle to see how ANYONE would consider Gordon as a character, let alone a good one.
Gordon Freeman is about as much a character as Doom Marine.
Gordon is a product of a very early generation of shooters, which at best sought to contextualise the violent set pieces, not make riveting stories or characters. It's misguided to expect something more from the series and foolish to assume it's poor design choice. His "presence" in the more narrative focused sequel can be debated as being somewhat dated, but it's pretty evident it just works for a lot of people.
(I should note that my first real sense of dissonance between me, gordon and the HL story, was the end of Episode 2... an emotional climax that just seems to rely way too much on Alyxs reaction, rather then the impact of the scene itself).
Why does Gordon work but Corvo not work (2 games I love mind you, both for how their worlds feel and flow)? I can't say; perhaps the presence of choice makes the absence of character more glaring in corvos case, as choice generates agency but the more intertwined a choice is with the narrative the more important it is for a personality to exist to reflect that choice... otherwise said choices made holds no weight. The players personal reaction just won't cut it when it comes to structured narratives.
Regardless, Gordon IS Doom Marine, in that he is a vessel for the player to interact with and progress within the game. He ain't no character, at least in terms of narrative, of which isn't primarily character driven, so he doesn't conflict with the story/world anyway.
EDIT: Also, I voted yes, just to fuck with your poll... it was completely pointless and you know it OP.
