[Loke]

Since you fags never bothered to create a corner for the greatest video game series ever made I decided to do it myself. You can discuss anything related to the Half-Life franchise here including modifications and such.

Some upcoming Half-Life 1 singleplayer mods below:

The Core





ModDB: http://www.moddb.com/mods/the-core

Half-Life: Echoes





ModDB: http://www.moddb.com...alf-life-echoes

Hard Duty





ModDB: http://www.moddb.com/mods/hard-duty

[Jblade]

Haven't seen Hard Duty, hopefully these 3 see a release.

Anyways, Opposing Force is not actually that good (new content IS great, level design leaves a lot to be desired) Blue Shift is slightly better but shits the bed with the entirely mundane Xen secion.

[Lunick]

I suppose this should be pasted here:


The PS2 version has exclusive multiplayer maps that have never made it outside the console sadly.

My friend is also making a multiplayer map:

[MetHy]

The thing I love the most about HL1 is the entire first part of the game up until the surface. I know most people praised HL for the soldier enemies and their AI, but for me the best part is everything that takes place before.

The first half of the game is very, very, much like a survival horror. You start in a "normal" every day life situation when everything goes to shit, which is a classic horror trope. Your environment becomes a threat and your goal is to survive, find an exit and make it out alive, while solving puzzles along the way. The way you start weaponless, then with just a crowbar. The way you see your coworkers either dead, dying, or as a zombie. The enemies themselves, zombies and unknown monsters; and the way most of the times you can hear them before you see them, etc there is so much survival horror in this entire part it baffles me I've never seen anyone make the connection.


Loke that dam in Hard Duty looks great.

Lunick Somebody ported the PS2 exclusive content to PC but I don't know how faithful it is, I don't know if they ripped the content or if it's a recreation. Anyway, people told me it should be possible to play it alone even though it's made for co-op, so I tried that, but got stuck in one of the very first rooms by finding doors that wouldn't open.

James I agree that Blue Shift is better than Ops Force. I think Blue Shift is the perfect summary of the game, with excellent level design. It nails what makes Half Life good perfectly and gameplay is spot on. I've heard people complain about its Xen section but I honestly don't remember anything wrong with it, although the complaints I've heard seemed to hold.

Opposing Forces I haven't played in a long time, but for me it's one of those "quantity over quality" games. Gameplay and level design felt random, all over the place; and those goddamn co-op AI allies would ALWAYS glitch on me, they were a burden that always forced me to load a previous save.

Is Half-Life source any good? Is it worth it if you've already played the original game a lot? What about that Black Mesa recreation mod, in its current state ?

Also, how's Prospekt for HL2?

[----]

MetHy, on 18 July 2016 - 05:31 AM, said:

What about that Black Mesa recreation mod, in its current state ?

I like Black Mesa very much. In it's current state it is really fun to play. The only part that is missing, is Xen. AI has been tweaked in the latest releases.
The devs shortened a few parts for "better playability" (like On a Rail), but you can download them as mods via Workshop.

I recommend it.

HL Source is basically HL with water-textures from 2004.

[Jblade]

Quote

James I agree that Blue Shift is better than Ops Force. I think Blue Shift is the perfect summary of the game, with excellent level design. It nails what makes Half Life good perfectly and gameplay is spot on. I've heard people complain about its Xen section but I honestly don't remember anything wrong with it, although the complaints I've heard seemed to hold.

I wrote a bit about this a while back, I'll quote myself to put my problems with it across:

Quote

A scientist has an idea to escape Black Mesa - use an old teleporter in an dis-used part of the base. Cool, sounds like a great concept! Except the elevator to this place is hidden behind a single sheet of plaster in a corridor about a minute away from the surface. There's a single door between you and this old teleport device, and then you get in and the apparently dis-used place still has power and there's people around. The Teleporter device is not even a quarter of the size of the Lambda lab's machine - there's no staging depots, no HEV suits, no weapons or ammunition apart from a shotgun in a security office, nothing to suggest that this room is where people leap across fucking dimensions. It takes a fraction of the time to charge up and send you to Xen, and it's powered by a battery a tad larger than a car battery. And this is supposed to be the old teleport system? and of course, your character has zero problems moving around Xen despite not wearing a HEV suit and being clad in a security vest, a blue shirt and a black tie. Why is this important? Because they didn't put effort into selling the idea to you, the trip to Xen was treated as mundanely as a trip to the shop to grab toilet roll. There was no investment in the trip, so it's hard to feel engaged in your activities as you run around fighting aliens in another level set. Opposing Force was guilty of the same - you climb onto a short tram ride that's right near the surface, crawl through a ceiling vent and then arrive in the bowels of the Lambda facility, near the huge teleport system itself just as Freeman jumps through. It's convoluted and damages the impact of the original moment. This is why it's important to build things up, and try and sell the themes you're portraying.

These are just story complaints really but it did show a lack of understanding on Gearbox's part. Other than that, Blue Shift does indeed have much better level design in general than Opposing Force.

Quote

Is Half-Life source any good? Is it worth it if you've already played the original game a lot? What about that Black Mesa recreation mod, in its current state ?

HL source is incredibly buggy and not worth playing in my opinion - the few things they change like water, more fluid ally AI, and better skyboxes don't really fix all the bugs and the screwed up visuals (all the lights are much brighter, the whole game looks very washed out)

I did enjoy BMS but if you disliked the grunts in HL you'll hate it since they're amped up to much harder. I'm not sure if the retail release is any different since I haven't played it yet but in the original release they would always defeat the aliens in every encounter. It's really worth going through at least once though, for the game to come together this well when you look at the development it had is pretty amazing.

Quote

Also, how's Prospekt for HL2?

I've heard it's awful, steam reviews sits at mixed. Even just looking at the screenshots it does not look very good.

[----]

Jblade, on 18 July 2016 - 05:45 AM, said:

I did enjoy BMS but if you disliked the grunts in HL you'll hate it since they're amped up to much harder. I'm not sure if the retail release is any different since I haven't played it yet but in the original release they would always defeat the aliens in every encounter. It's really worth going through at least once though, for the game to come together this well when you look at the development it had is pretty amazing.

In the retail version the grunts are much better balanced. For firefights with you and for the encounters with the aliens. They tweaked it with every patch (I haven't played the very last patch, though). Waiting for On A Rail-Uncut to be compatible with the latest release.

[Player Lin]

I feel we will have a lot of "specific game corner" threads in foreseeable future.

Jblade, on 18 July 2016 - 05:45 AM, said:

HL source is incredibly buggy and not worth playing in my opinion - the few things they change like water, more fluid ally AI, and better skyboxes don't really fix all the bugs and the screwed up visuals (all the lights are much brighter, the whole game looks very washed out)

Since it just Valve tried to demonstrate how to port GoldSrc engine to the early Source engine, so they just throw it and converted all HL1 shits in to the engine, without much of changes on the game itself, buggy as hell for sure. For me, it just a super lazy port of HL1 on Source engine, what a pointless if you ask me.
(But that's why we have BMS...since Valve can't get it right but fans can. )

Jblade, on 18 July 2016 - 05:45 AM, said:

I did enjoy BMS but if you disliked the grunts in HL you'll hate it since they're amped up to much harder. I'm not sure if the retail release is any different since I haven't played it yet but in the original release they would always defeat the aliens in every encounter. It's really worth going through at least once though, for the game to come together this well when you look at the development it had is pretty amazing.

The Early Access(retail) version is better than the mod version I'm sure, since Crowbar Collective has been overhauled the AI in EA version of BMS, but also become more challenges. But that's my opinion, not sure if everyone who played the retail version would be agree too.

[MusicallyInspired]

I've played the mod (though, along time ago now) and the retail version (recently). I don't remember much about the mod but I know I really enjoyed the retail version. Especially Surface Tension uncut. I was incredibly disappointed wto discover they cut it down in the mod. Glad they wised up. Also waiting for the workshop On A Rail addon to be compatible.

I definitely enjoyed OF more than BS. Maybe it was the extra content or the fact that it's much longer. I remember not liking BS all that much. And the final portion with the teleport was annoying.

[Player Lin]

MusicallyInspired, on 18 July 2016 - 08:27 AM, said:

Especially Surface Tension uncut. I was incredibly disappointed wto discover they cut it down in the mod.

The cut was due to the author who should made the missing level in Surface Tension chapter just went MIA without finish and they had to cut it out and modified related levels of the chapter for the mod version's release. With the team has more skilled mappers(like the original STU mod's author) now, so the new STU in BMS EA made the whole ST chapter much better and more completes, compare to the mod version if you ask me.

Too bad we still have to use OaR uncut mod(when it updates) since the CC team didn't interests on make OaR uncut into the game or try to mess-changes any of levels in OaR chapter.

[Marphy Black]

MetHy, on 18 July 2016 - 05:31 AM, said:

Lunick Somebody ported the PS2 exclusive content to PC but I don't know how faithful it is, I don't know if they ripped the content or if it's a recreation.

Of the PS2-exclusive levels, only the co-op Decay campaign has been fully ported over to the PC. The unique deathmatch maps and modified singleplayer levels have not had such a formal treatment.

The Decay PC port mod is largely faithful to its PS2 origins, but it's not perfect as the mappers had to reconstruct much of the brush geometry from scratch based on decompiled maps, the decompiling itself being no simple feat as the PS2 port used a modified bs2 format. We did get into contact with the original level designers after the fact and learned that the source files including those for the cut missions are probably still in existence but likely buried deep in Gearbox's archives on some ancient method of data storage. Nonetheless, the PC port's gameplay and map scripting is wholly accurate as the entity data could be fully extracted and converted with no loss, and the enhanced PS2 models have long been perfectly ported over.

[leilei]

My favorite part of the console ports is the lack of the buggy main menu system and the slightly more polished feel to them

Half-Life source is buggy. It's like an engoo-treatment, sort of (weapon bobbing in an 8 motion, reflective water, all light entities turned into point lighting) and really buggy. The deathmatch port is even worse somehow, with duplicated entities.

[Hendricks266]

Recently Half-Life Deathmatch: Source appeared in my library and I don't know why. I don't own Half-Life: Source but I do own the pack that comes from entering an original CD key (thanks TX!) and some other Source games.

[MusicallyInspired]

I noticed that popped in my list as well at some point. I did buy HL:Source but it didn't come with it. Must be a free addition i you own a certain game...

[gemeaux333]

For Black Mesa Source, they are still working of the Xen art, based on the fact that most consider the storyline ending since you abord Xen, they rebuilt it from scratch in order to allow the storyline to continue (including the Vortigaunts uprising for example) !

[MusicallyInspired]

I remember the team saying long ago when they first started that they wouldn't be adding the Vortigaunts language from HL2 or Ep2 but would just use a variant of the original sounds they made. Guess they changed their minds. They also said there'd be a console command to change the weapon models between the Glock/MP5 and Beretta/M4A1 or whatever. Is that still in there? I also remember they were going to add a note to your locker from Barney saying he owed you a beer. They changed that to something that first guard said when you first get off the rail car in the beginning.

Oh, and they were going to add a sequenced scene in a lab where scientists were working on a gravity gun prototype that doesn't work right or something.

[Rellik]

Player Lin, on 18 July 2016 - 10:00 AM, said:

The cut was due to the author who should made the missing level in Surface Tension chapter just went MIA without finish and they had to cut it out and modified related levels of the chapter for the mod version's release. With the team has more skilled mappers(like the original STU mod's author) now, so the new STU in BMS EA made the whole ST chapter much better and more completes, compare to the mod version if you ask me.

Too bad we still have to use OaR uncut mod(when it updates) since the CC team didn't interests on make OaR uncut into the game or try to mess-changes any of levels in OaR chapter.

Huh, TextFAMGUY1 (Chon Kemp) who made Surface Tension Uncut never went MIA, he joined Crowbar Collectiven as a level designer and community manager. IIRC, the reason ST:U was put on the back burner, asides from his new official role and duties taking his time, was the engine updates made ST:U feel out of of date and glitchy.

But there is good news, Back in May Chon announced that ST:U will be included in the main game with visual updates like Cascade Shadow Maps, and in fact there is a public beta version available.

Video walkthrough by a BM forum member, skip to about 0:50 for the new stuff

[MusicallyInspired]

Dude, ST: Uncut is already in the game. Is Chon Kemp the guy who originally was making the ST levels? I know there was an unnofficial ST:Uncut addon for the mod, is this by the same guy? Perhaps they are two different people? I also remember hearing that the guy who was working on the original ST levels went MIA.

[Rellik]

Crap, I think I misunderstood the discussion, I tend to do that.

Chon is the original ST:U mod author, now on the CC team.

So someone else was expanding ST:U, is that right?

[MusicallyInspired]

As I understand it, the guy who was originally working on ST before BM was ever released in any form went MIA. After BM was released, Chon created ST:U as an addon for the mod, then he joined the team and updated it as an official patch for the retail release.

This is as I understand it, I have no proof. I'm going by what I've heard and putting two twos together.

EDIT: Found an old thread on the BM forums by Chom saying that he "found the final section of Surface Tension in Black Mesa lacking in some respects." This translates to me to mean the obvious: he was not the original author of Surface Tension. He made the addon and then was brought on the team to put it officially in the retail release. It's actually a bit funny because last year he was insisting constantly on the Steam forum discussion that it would never be a part of the game and that you'd have to get it from the Workshop only.

http://forums.blackm...-Tension-Uncut/

Quote

Q: Why was Surface Tension cut so badly?
A: The mapper left halfway through the project, and there are probably other reasons too. Either way, I don't blame the team. The rest of Surface Tension was actually brilliant, the biggest problem was it didn't have a fitting end like it did in Half-Life 1.

[Rellik]

Huh, I didn't hear about ST being considered incomplete by the Devs on the first release, interesting.

I do know that Chom thought that the initial ST release felt incomplete and lacked those moments where the military mission goes FUBAR.

[MusicallyInspired]

It was completely missing half the levels! I'd say it was incomplete! That's why the addon (now official patch) is called "uncut."

[Player Lin]

In BMS mod version doesn't have the "I" level of C2A5x like in original HL1, and ST chapter in BMS mod stopped at C2A5G level.
STU mod does added the whole C2A5I level, and changed G and C3A1A(Forgot Freeman chapter's first map) to taken care and linking the new level.


If you're hardcore HL1 fans, when you played the original BMS mod, you'll found a level just went missing since you won't forgot the part of "Enemy throw C4 into the small tunnel when you're tried to sneak in via the tunnel"...and BMS mod didn't had that part. :\

[----]

gemeaux333, on 19 July 2016 - 04:48 AM, said:

For Black Mesa Source, they are still working of the Xen art, based on the fact that most consider the storyline ending since you abord Xen, they rebuilt it from scratch in order to allow the storyline to continue (including the Vortigaunts uprising for example) !

The Crowbar Collective said that they won't be adding any new story parts nor expand existing parts. and they won't change essential facts.

Do you have a source where any member of the team said, that they will expanding the Xen story?

[gemeaux333]

No clue on when the Xen part will be released...

[----]

gemeaux333, on 20 July 2016 - 04:25 AM, said:

No clue on when the Xen part will be released...

I asked for a source where they say that they are expanding the background story, not when it is released.

[MusicallyInspired]

In particular, the part about the Vortigaunt uprising...?

[PikaCommando]

[MusicallyInspired]

Neat.

[Micky C]

So what, it's basically regular half-life with bullet time?