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Black Mesa |OT| They're Waiting for You Gordon...
- Thread starter Dancrane212
- Start date
Played five hours of it, and it's great. The only problem is that I am playing it on the original Surface Laptop and it runs really bad, it really struggles when there are more than three enemies. If anyone know any tips to make it run better, let me know. I think I have all the settings on low.
Great summary of where we stand in the plot at present. One minor point though - Breen's status is a bit more ambiguous than you're implying here after vanilla HL2 ends - as clarified by the (now dubiously canon) 'Breengrub' account Mark Laidlaw created on Twitter while he worked at Valve: https://twitter.com/breengrub
It gives a bit of extra insight into the Combine 'Advisor' society and biology, alongside the status of Breen's consciousness after HL2 ends - essentially he's being copied into horrifyingly alien host bodies over and over again while losing bits of himself every time in a torturous existence. Spoilers - it doesn't end well for him.
Is there a known issue with the game's brightness settings not going dark enough? Update, specifically.
This is how it looks with the gamma set at its darkest (2.6)
Yes, but the whole area is drastically different. In the original game Xen only takes around an hour and it is generally considered to be the weakest section of the game. Black Mesa Xen chapters by comparison are indeed pretty incredible.
They really are. I totally didn't expect the new Zen to be at that high a production level. So well done, my goodness.
I played through the remainder of Black Mesa back in December and enjoyed it a lot.
Is the final release much different?
Is the final release much different?
Then the modders did an insanely good job. I'd showcase the game on the front page if i were Valve.
Yes, there are a couple of platform rearrangement and enemy balance tweaks, not to mention earlier earthbound segments were also given another balance playthrough pass.
*nods* Yeah, I mentioned the BreenGrub in my follow up post. As I understood it the Breen we meet in HL2 died at the end but the BreenGrub is a personality backup of Breen decanted into a Shu'ulathoi.
Even though Laidlaw stressed that it's just his "Half-Life fan fiction" I consider it canon.
Some thoughts on the Xen 'Interloper' chapter...
- This one chapter is really long. I think I must be nearing 2 hours on it alone. I thought I was going to finish the game tonight but just hit another loading area and have had to call it for now.
- Someone on the Black Mesa team fucking loves conveyor belts.
- The lift battles and combat in general in this chapter have been awesome.
Cool, I'm about to start that chapter tonight. Was hoping to finish the game, actually.
Yeah that's where I am right now and honestly I thought I was done when I reached the peak of that big floating thing with that huge empty area where you encounter Genorch the first time but nope there is still 2/3 left go :/
The game/remake is great but the Xen part should have been shorter.
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And finished! Loved the game. Certainly my favourite single player FPS since DOOM 2016.
I was actually right at the end of the Interloper chapter last night without realising. The last Boss Fight was good but didn't hit the highs of the Gonarch fight for me.
Also, I will retract something I said earlier about performance being consistent as during the last two chapters my frame-rates utterly tanked at times, you can really tell they have pushed the original Source engine to its absolute limits.
Also, top tip that I read earlier...make sure you crouch when double / boost jumping in Xen, if you are crouched on landing you get an awesome slide that keeps your speed up.
I was actually right at the end of the Interloper chapter last night without realising. The last Boss Fight was good but didn't hit the highs of the Gonarch fight for me.
Also, I will retract something I said earlier about performance being consistent as during the last two chapters my frame-rates utterly tanked at times, you can really tell they have pushed the original Source engine to its absolute limits.
Also, top tip that I read earlier...make sure you crouch when double / boost jumping in Xen, if you are crouched on landing you get an awesome slide that keeps your speed up.
Oh man, I'm excited to get back to Xen again. The notes were not there in the beta, but the care packages were.I love that the science team sends supplies to you in Xen, such a great touch. The capsules come with notes of encouragement.
Xen was so incredibly well done in this game, I'm excited to see the 1.0 version of it. The beta version was still incredible.
Seeing stuff like going through the abandoned survey team facilities and HEV suit headcrab zombies was a really cool idea. I am surprised the series didn't explore that idea in HL1, since you see dead survey team members everywhere in the original.
Finished this last night. Overall it was great, but I do feel like the Interloper chapter was too long for its own good.
I kind of agree, but I still found it incredibly enjoyable in the beta with all the new mechanics added.
Going through the lasers in the factory was really neat.
Also that fucking Gargantua chase was one of my favorite moments in the game. I'm curious to see if that is changed at all in the final version, but that was a really cool "holy shit" moment especially with the music.
Also that fucking Gargantua chase was one of my favorite moments in the game. I'm curious to see if that is changed at all in the final version, but that was a really cool "holy shit" moment especially with the music.
I stopped last night in Interloper, and yeah that chapter is long as hell. I'm really enjoying the puzzles and exploration though. There's just so many incredible moments in this game elevated by Joel Nielsen's soundtrack
Granted most of these aren't new because it's a remake, but still!!
navigating the processing factory
the lobby fight
the cliffside skirmish
avoiding the lasers in surface tension
arrival in xen
gonarch's pursuit
gargantuas chasing you
the lobby fight
the cliffside skirmish
avoiding the lasers in surface tension
arrival in xen
gonarch's pursuit
gargantuas chasing you
Pretty much all the Xen stuff is either new or completely redone from the original. The Gonarch battle/pursuit is completely different, and there was a section in the original game where a couple of Gargantuas spawn and chase you, but it's nothing like this game where there's like 5-6 and you just have to keep going and going downhill like that. I thought running from all those Gargantuas, only seeing more as you keep going, was such a badass moment. Making that final long jump to get away from them all was really satisfying.
Also I LOVE the way they reworked the long jump. I did like the idea of the crouching first to do it before, but having it be a double tap of space makes more sense just because they want you to use it in combat, and you absolutely need it against Gonarch and others.
This actually was my exact complaint playing it months ago, the soldier combat is just way, way, way more distant/squinty than anything in the original I remember.
Funnily enough, the release of this and so many people talking about the combat differences made me restart the original last night!
I know in the beta this was an issue, but did they fix the crosshairs in the 1.0 version? They often blended in with the light reflecting off the sand and cliffs, making it very hard to see.
The part where you approach the dam, I know gave me trouble in the beta, even before the helicopter shows up. The soldiers were extremely accurate.
I realized I'm still on the Public Beta branch. I'm just going to assume that's been updated to 1.0 at this point?
This is the exact part that was rocking me, and made me question what was up. This and the barracks shortly after.
I don't mind of course, but I was so comfy with my controller, I didn't want to KB&M again. >.<
I don't remember the old Xen well but there's no question BM's version is superior. Making the long jump viable in combat is a great change.
That said, it can't save you from everything lol
Been a while tbh. I'm making my way through the Half-Life series and just beat HL1 and Opposing Force. Back to the topic maybe going into the documents folder can let you adjust the gamma manually?Is there a known issue with the game's brightness settings not going dark enough? Update, specifically.
This is how it looks with the gamma set at its darkest (2.6)
Finished. Incredible game. Amazing soundtrack. Ugh this was so GOOD. Half-Life is one of my favorite games and I think Black Mesa may be my new #1. Well done, Crowbar Collective. Can't wait to see what they do next.
I was iffy on the soundtrack when compared to the original for a while. Then I played Xen. There's some lovely stuff in there.
Having never finished HL1 despite purchasing it the day it came it, I wanted to do a playthrough of all the HL games before I play Alyx. I just finished Black Mesa an hour ago, and the entire game is so fucking good. Every time I thought it was running out of steam, it had something new to show me. I know they stretched Xen out quite a bit, but it all felt very well paced to me. Level design and how you use the world is incredibly clever. Since I hadn't played it, I never knew just how much the level design in Portal owed to HL. Apparently I got a really difficult achievement? I wasn't actively trying to, either.
The one schaare you don't kill any Vortigaunts on the border world
Just finished On A Rail, and it's come quite a long ways from its days as a free mod. The music is different, but quite accomplished, and many of my fave chapters are still standouts with even more polish: Office Complex, "We've Got Hostiles", Blast Pit, Power Up, On A Rail.
I can't wait for Apprehension, Questionable Ethics, Surface Tension, "Forget About Freeman!" and to see what they've done with Xen.
I can't wait for Apprehension, Questionable Ethics, Surface Tension, "Forget About Freeman!" and to see what they've done with Xen.
Interloper chapter was great & every last level should be a grind & test all your skills, it also made the journey to the nihilanth even more rewarding.
I always felt after i played HL2 years ago, that the citadel chapter was too short & i felt like "that's it?" they hype that level up so much, it's almost always in the background & it ends as soon as it beings.
The bonus of not having focus testing & share holders to please is the black mesa team can really make a proper final level & not care too much about people just wanting to be teleported to the final boss.
I always felt after i played HL2 years ago, that the citadel chapter was too short & i felt like "that's it?" they hype that level up so much, it's almost always in the background & it ends as soon as it beings.
The bonus of not having focus testing & share holders to please is the black mesa team can really make a proper final level & not care too much about people just wanting to be teleported to the final boss.
Favorite part of Xen for me is
the abandoned science outpost. Damn that shit was creepy and kinda reminded me of an Alien movie.
Nah, Interloper is way too long for its own good. There isn't enough variety in the level once you get to the factory to justify its lenght.
Finished the game and this is truly the remake Half-Life deserved. Pretty much love everything about it. New Xen is stellar but dragged on for a bit too long - especially in Interloper. But the later sections with unlimited Tau canon ammunition really make up for it. I really enjoyed blasting everything to pieces with that imbalanced weapon! Fantastic work overall and even the boss fight was epic and visually pleasing. I also love the new soundtrack - the old one is great as well but I think the new soundtrack is even better. Can't wait for Alyx.
Caved and bought the game the other day (thanks Coronavirus, hitting my wallet more than my lungs). I had finished HL1 back when it was released and i still remembered a lot of stuff. Just Xen felt different, was it remade/improved or is my memory iffy?
Also the sountrack is a banger. So happy with the game, played it with a big smile on my face all the way through.
Also the sountrack is a banger. So happy with the game, played it with a big smile on my face all the way through.
Finished, amazing experience. It felt pretty much like what I remember from the first time I played HL back in the day, with the added bonus of Xen not being underwhelming but a really great part. Although I agree on Interloper going for a bit too long for its own good.
More remakes like this, please.
More remakes like this, please.
Xen was basically remade from the ground up, as I understand it.
It'll give you a special ending.
Black Mesa All Easter Eggs And Secrets #1
Watch Part 2 ► https://youtu.be/4yDxADvXMfwAll Easter Eggs, Secrets and best references found in Black Mesa: Xen Edition (Official Steam Version 1.0). This i...
www.youtube.com
they completely redesigned xen from the ground up, which was why the last bit of content dev took years when the base pre-xen game was already complete.
Sat down Saturday to play the game somewhere around chapter 12. Thought I was close to the end when I got to Xen. Nearly 4 hours later and I finally finished the game.
I've seen Interloper frequently called the weak point of Black Mesa and I'll fully admit it does drag on a bit towards the end, but I felt it was slightly necessary. It really drives home the point that you are going deeper and deeper into the enemies war machine. Definitely loved Xen and Nihilanth, but also found Interloper to be really well done despite the drawn out nature.
The Gargantua chase and the final elevator ride were definitely my favorite bits.
As someone that has never played HL, Black Mesa was a fantastic experience and I'm super excited for Alyx.
In my replay for the first time since it hit 1.0, I just got past Questionable Ethics and on Surface Tension.
That fight getting to the dam (before the helicopter shows up) was a lot easier than it was in the beta, or maybe I just got better. I made it in my first try though. I know in the beta it definitely was not there where they shut the fence gate and you had to get over it by jumping on the truck.
The helicopter killed me and I stopped there since it was the end of my lunch break, but I was also running out in the open like a dumbass so I am not surprised I died there.
That fight getting to the dam (before the helicopter shows up) was a lot easier than it was in the beta, or maybe I just got better. I made it in my first try though. I know in the beta it definitely was not there where they shut the fence gate and you had to get over it by jumping on the truck.
The helicopter killed me and I stopped there since it was the end of my lunch break, but I was also running out in the open like a dumbass so I am not surprised I died there.
I'm curious to see how Interloper goes in the 1.0 version. I know in the beta it did go on quite long but I honestly didn't mind it. I think it helped that for all the Alien Controllers they face you up against, they give you something that significantly helps with that:
The infinite Gluon Gun ammo.
The framerate in most of Xen in the beta was pretty bad...how is it in the final version?