This week was difficult to decide what to review. In the past three weeks Ive playedJurassic Park: The Game,Tribes: Ascend,Blacklight:Retribution,ARMA 2 Free, TF2s stellar Mann Vs. Machine update,I Am Alive,Minecraft, and theBrothers in Armstrilogy. Jeez I feel lazy just saying that, even though Im at a 48 hour a week job, full-time college, and married. But these games I can save for later updates, because they were just appetizers getting me to the game I really wanted to play for eight years:Black Mesa.

If you dont knowBlack Mesa, thats okay. If you dont knowHalf-Life, the game thatBlack Mesais updating, then get off the computer and walk out of the room. In 2004Half-Life: Sourcewas released to disappointment from the community. Considering the amazing detail Valve put intoHalf-Life 2many people expected a totally new Source version of their old game, complete with smarter AI, physics engine, superior T&L, and gameplay tweaks. What they got was a straight port of an old game. A few modders decided to take the work into their own hands and -after gaining permission from Valve- began work on a game titledBlack Mesa: Sourcewhich promised to build HL from the ground up using the Source engine.

Then it disappeared. For eight years a handful of screenshots and a trailer were all fans had to go by, and even though it remained the most anticipated mod ever it soon became a parody of itself and of vaporware in general. After the release of the infamous vaporwareDuke Nukem Forevermany wished that BM would remain untouched.Well do not worry citizens, becauseBlack Mesafulfills and exceeds its purpose. But what is that purpose? The game cannot be called an update or port. It is extremely different yet retains the familiar. I would hold that it even becomes its own game. If anything, call it a modern interpretation of a classic game.

When I first booted it up, all I could do was marvel at the amount of detail inherent in the game. The developers didnt just revamp textures, but added and cut material as they see fit. Because of this sections of the game look extremely familiar, but so many sections just scream of a AAA title in the making. It is astonishing for unpaid workers to come up with this on their free time. My favorite part were the many signs dotting the game, just like in a real facility, each one speaking volumes. These developers understand how to tell a story and setting without dialogue and do it amazingly.The AI is improved, and the additions of physics and physics puzzles is a welcome addition. All the sound has been remade and dialogue re-recorded. It tends to be jarring when you hear the same voice for three or four different people, but then again its not incredibly distracting. A soundtrack was also recorded with original music, which follows a lot of the same stylings asHalf-Life 2(except for some piano bits which stand out as just weird to me). It is also good to see that G-Man, Barney, Dr. Kleiner, and Eli Vance all have been given small cameos as well in the game. And of course, the shadows and particle effects (which, by the way, are better than Valves own effects) are much better and set a much more ominous tone than they did back in 1998.

There is, however, a fatal flaw that the poor developers just couldnt get around. Id say it is almost impossible to get around for a remake of an old game. By placing the game in a modern interpretation one begins to see the flaws of the past stand out that much more. The story, while good on paper, just doesnt translate well in dialogue when held up against the masterpiece that isHalf-Life 2.The enemies of Xen and humans become almost hilarious to look at and arent really that scary or daunting at all when looking at many of the most recent games (exception: Headcrab zombies still make me $%!# my pants). That isnt to say they arent rendered or animated terribly (the very opposite), but a Bullsquid doesnt look intimidating next to this generations horror games. Level design for the first few levels is fantastic and build up tension, but even for all the bells and whistles added the later levels become nothing more than linear, narrow corridors and blocky movements. In 1998 that was the ritz but now as a gaming community people are used to an openness not unveiled here. There are many good moments in the level design that speak volumes to how games should be done nowadays, but with everything being so beautiful it becomes jarring. And OH GOSH lets not forget the platforming. No one liked it then, and no one likes it now. 1st person platforming ought to be outlawed, especially whenBlack Mesapunishes failure with death every time. So having at least an hours worth of platforming is evil. The game is much more challenging than most of todays standards, and while frustration occurs I found that okay considering I at least wasnt ducking under boxes and becoming Wolverine just to pop up again at full health.

These arent nitpicks in a game, either. These are flaws that have been fixed within the industry ages ago, which is why it becomes jarring to find them again in a game of 2012. I dont think Id argue either except thatBlack Mesaobviously takes a bit of liberation with its methods, adding and cutting to levels. To change some of these things would have been easy, but then again I dont know if it would be a good interpretation then of such a retro, classic game. I guess thats up to the gamer to decide. But for those flaws, it more than makes up with what it adds.Black Mesais a game that should be kept in your library next toHalf-Life 2,and the developers should be hired by Valve to stay on their team.

Notes: Did I mention its free? Just download Source SDK 2007 and you are good to go. Also, the Xen levels are MIA but they are to be added in an update later.

-JediLegacy (aka TheRaptorFence)