By Anthony Biondi (The Cascade) – Email
Print Edition: October 17, 2012
“I’m seeing predictable Phasa rays,” says an anonymous scientist operating the test chamber from a safe room. Famous last words. It doesn’t take long for the discrepancies to arise, and for the experiment to go so horribly wrong. It is in those fateful moments at the beginning of Half-Life that the iconic hero Gordon Freeman is thrust into a whirling adventure of monsters, military and mayhem.
I grew up with these moments. I can still fondly recall Gordon Freeman’s quest through the Black Mesa research centre with stunning clarity. In 1998, when the game was first released, it was a sensation, winning multitudes of awards. It’s one of those shooters—like Goldeneye for the Nintendo 64—that becomes something everlasting in the minds of gamers everywhere.
In its wake, Half-Life 2 followed with an equally massive following. The sequel, still starring Dr. Freeman, took PC gaming to a whole new level. It introduced a solid engine built with detailed models and realistic physics. We have come a long way since the Source Engine was introduced, but it still, for the most part, stands the test of time.
Not long after the release of Half-Life 2, a team gathered to recreate the memorable experiences within the Black Mesa compound with the new and improved Source Engine. They saw many hiccups along the way, but finally after nearly a decade they have released a playable game that has all the charm and adventure that the original Half-Life started with. They call it, simply, Black Mesa Source.
It is a game that is nearly word-for-word the original. The environments are nearly identical, with some additional tweaks and details. However, the team took it upon themselves to improve the gameplay as well.
Half-Life may have broken boundaries back in 1998, but when it is looked back upon the science team is comprised of only four different models. On top of this, these characters never seem to interact with one another in any meaningful way. They simply put on a one dimensional show that passes for lab activity as you march past them to your next goal.
The team of Black Mesa Source recognized this issue and included a multitude of new elements. The science team now has in-depth dialogues and interactions with one another, as well new models surface, giving the illusion that each new person you meet is someone different. As well, to bridge the original and its sequel, the team added some characters from Half-Life 2 that had mentioned they had worked with Gordon during the Black Mesa Incident.
Overall, the game feels more alive than ever before. In turn, it allows the player to become more involved with the game, giving it a more personal spin as well as a breath of fresh air in a nearly identical remake.
The only trouble I had while playing this game was with a few of the mechanics. I was frequently glued to ladders, unable to free myself from their strange grasp. In truth, this release of Black Mesa Source is something of a Beta. The game is not yet complete – it is still missing the Xeno segment at the end of the game. This means that the occasional glitch will arise. At one point, I was loaded into the floor of a hallway while I was changing maps.
This being said, the gameplay overall is still extremely enjoyable. In the end I found myself faced with the same monsters as before but in new and creative ways. In the process of recreation, the team has also changed the layout of enemies, so players that have memorized the original game’s monster locations will be in for a surprise.
Black Mesa Source, I can confidently say, has been a fresh and exciting experience, while sticking very close with the original game it mimics. I have never enjoyed a fan-made game as much as this. I have to admit it feels like it was professionally done. So, for those who are looking to relive the moments of the Black Mesa Incident or perhaps for others who have not yet experienced the original game, this is definitely worth the download. All it requires is a copy of the source engine to play. There is no longer any excuse for a gamer to say that they haven’t walked in the shoes of Dr. Gordon Freeman.
