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fastbilly1 wrote: I see this more of a new version of HLDM than a new version of HL...

that's fair enough. Yeah.

noiseredux wrote:I saw that yesterday and was bummed. I've been waiting until it's finished to actually play it. And I'll gladly pay for it - once Xen is included.

I totally didn't care that Xen wasn't included because Xen was all kinds of terrible. So I played through the mod and had a lot of fun (though a few parts felt poorly balanced). I'm not sure how I feel about this. The nearest comparison I can think of is Counter Strike, but when CS went retail they still kept the mod version in sync. It wasn't until the remake of CS:S that it was retail only. This is "remember that mod? we're charging now if you want the last bit".

MrPopo wrote:I totally didn't care that Xen wasn't included because Xen was all kinds of terrible. So I played through the mod and had a lot of fun

but without Xen, there's no proper ending to the mod. Right? Like, it just ends?

noiseredux wrote:

MrPopo wrote:I totally didn't care that Xen wasn't included because Xen was all kinds of terrible. So I played through the mod and had a lot of fun

but without Xen, there's no proper ending to the mod. Right? Like, it just ends?

Yup. Still better than the original ending.

The Black Mesa mod ends right at the transition point, so it does make for a decent stopping point.

I liked the mod when I played through it, but I'm unwilling to pay $20 for the additions they have made to it so far. Further down the line...maybe. We'll have to see how development goes. For now I'm curious but cautious.

I havent played HL1 or 2, just CS, so I have been following this as an interest in playing to experience the series.

So one thing to note is that Black Mesa is not just a port to high textures and the Source engine; it's a full HD remake of the original game. So all the major points are hit but things like level layouts are different. I'd recommend you play the original Half Life first to see what the hoopla is.

Definitely worth it over the free mod version IF they finish the rest of the content. It they still leave everyone hanging for a couple years, it'll be spending money on not much. It's hard to release something free and then try to sell it in this manner. Better if they had foreshadowed this up front.

I shall now edit myself. If what is in THIS is true, this is only a good thing and I wish them luck.