system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
[Half-life] Why are all Combine signs and notices written in English? Wouldn't it be in their own language, and if not, than in Russian, since City 17 is in what used to be a Russian-speaking area? This seems to be the case even for things that appear to be only read by Combine soldiers as well.
gpt
This seems to be a decision made by Breen. He's the leader of humanity, so he made English the official language of humanity. Most of the world had learned it anyway, right?

We don't know whether other cities use languages appropriate for their locations and populations. It's quite possible, but information is very tightly controlled. If this is the case, City 17 being in the Soviet Bloc still makes sense because North America is a big red X on the map, a lot of Americans were relocated there, and it's where the Combine built the Citadel and all their infrastructure. Maybe also the tropics are infested with alien flora and fauna.