Black Mesa Complete Beta

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FlyingPenguin
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Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

The whole Half-Life one game is now available in Black Mesa by selecting to opt in to the Beta in Steam. Instructions here:
https://steamcommunity.com/games/362890 ... 8625804044

I must say, I wasn't looking forward to that LONG BORING tram ride at the start of the game yet again, but the graphics are so stunning in Black Mesa, I really enjoyed the tour.
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Err
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by Err »

It looks amazing. I've been watching Vinny play through it. They've also improved on parts of the game such as cutting the duct work maze and shorting the tram section. You can also restore those sections to the original length if you desire. This team has done an amazing job.

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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

Played nearly half way through tonight. The visual improvements are stunning, and the mechanics improvements are great. Fun to rediscover an old friend.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by Executioner »

Question: is this going to be released as a new game after the beta? I haven't played the original since it came out in the late 90's. I've already replayed half life 2 and episodes 1 and 2 which were a blast on modern hardware.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

You can buy it now for $20, although it's still considered Early Access. The Beta is for those of us who bought the game. Up until now the game was half finished and was missing the second half that takes place on Xen. This Beta is the whole game.

The Beta is feature complete, they're just warning that the difficulty balance may need tweaking, and there could be a few bugs. So far I have noticed one gap between polygons in the train tunnels, only visible from one angle. Occasionally I've had the wreckage from a ventilation grate I smashed get in the way and had to shoot it to clear the path. Honestly that's all I've seen. The game seems completely ready for prime time. I've seen more bugs in final releases of other games.

I've gotta say, there hasn't been any game since Half Life 1 that made using a grenade launcher or a trip mine anywhere near as much fun. I find myself going back to a save point before a shootout, and testing more efficient and creative ways to take out enemies. :)

https://store.steampowered.com/app/362890/Black_Mesa/
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by normalicy »

Wow, I almost gave up on them ever releasing the rest. I played the first half so long ago. May have to check it out again.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

Almost up to the Zen section and I must say, it's been fantastic playing it. It's like playing a new game. The textures are so well done. I love the details to the control panels, and I love the Win95/NT screens and BSODs.

So much fun.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by Executioner »

I'm stuck in the facility where the single sentry gun is with a fork lift. There is a switch on the wall which will move the lift up to reach the health etc. but I get nailed from the sentry gun.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

I can't specifically remember that one, but sentry guns I generally deal with using grenades. Once you knock it over, it's dead. I've even shot them but you'll take damage.

In the early parts, before you get grenades, the sentry guns will sometimes have an explosive crate or barrel nearby that you can set off to disable it.

If you Google Black Mesa walkthru you'll find plenty of help. I've had to look up a few.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by Executioner »

The sentry gun is ceiling mounted.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

Damn Ninja bitches. I forgot how nasty they were. :)
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

Ok, got sidetracked for a while and after the annoying teleport puzzles in the reactor core (I remember hating them the first time too) I'm finally in Zen.

I don't have clear memories of Zen in the original game, but I remember (like a lot of people) not really liking it, and everything looking way too weird and drab, and the low poly count preventing things from really looking organic, due to the limitations of the engine.

Now I know why the Black Mesa guys took so long with Zen because it's STUNNING and really nothing much like the original game. It's more of a re-imagining.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

Some video I took of Zen in the floating rock jumping area:

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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by FlyingPenguin »

Exec you figure out the sentry gun? I just shoot them if I can. Might be something you can explode nearby.
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Re: Black Mesa Complete Beta

Post by Executioner »

Yeah I'm past that already. I'm actually playing it twice: I have it on Steam, and I found a copy that does not require steam. I have it loaded on my shares.
I grabbed it from here:

Code: Select all

https://igg-games.com/black-602218458-mesa-free-download.html
I'm playing that on my crappy Dell 6540 laptop that has the onboard Intel graphics card with a AMD card that is nothing more that a co-processor for the Intel card. It works okay, but after about 20 minutes or so, the guts of the laptop begins to get too warm as the frame rate slows down. So I save my spot and wait another 10 minutes or so.
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