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Half-Life fans have been waiting years for a sequel and it looks like they’ll be waiting for many years more, but this new title will do for now.
While memes and tinfoil hat theories have died down, it feels like so many gamers are still holding out hope for Half-Life 3.
Those who are adamant Valve won’t produce the title have tried to make it themselves, but the project we’re talking about today takes us back to where it all began.
The original Half-Life game was fantastic and so it was a sequel, despite that cliffhanger ending that’s haunted us for years.
Years ago Black Mesa was released on Steam, a fan-made remake put together by Crowbar Collective which reimagined the first game with prettier visuals and modernised gameplay.
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It was great fun but it’s getting demade through a new project called Black Mesa Classic.
For those unaware, a demake is an often fan-led project that takes a modern game and reimagines it as a classic, usually for a last-gen console. A good example is the Bloodborne demake which shows us what the game could have been like if it was developed for the original PlayStation rather than the PlayStation 4.
Black Mesa Classic does exactly that but the remake of Half-Life, Black Mesa. Basically we started from the original, modernised and are now reverting it to what it once was…
However, it’s not a simple re-release of Half-Life under the guise of a demake. Black Mesa stayed faithful to Half-Life but expanded it with more story and changes to the levels, so Black Mesa Classic takes those changes and presents them in the style of GoldSrc engine, the engine used for classic Half-Life.
It sounds very convoluted but it’s more straightforward than you’d think. Basically, Black Mesa Classic is being made for those who want to experience Black Mesa as if it was the original release of Half-Life.
The team behind the demake, known simply as the Black Mesa Classic Team, recently shared an updated look at the project to give fans an idea of how it’s progressing.
Alongside screenshots of the mod in action came detailed recollections of the work that’s going into the project so far, as well as some new developments discovered while the team worked on it. For instance, the AI needed some tweaks as it apparently felt outdated.
On level design specifically the team said: “We're continuously adapting the level design for our project and are working on implementing new map improvements … Over time, we'll add any missing features, improve the map quality, and more.”
There’s currently no word on when the mod will be released but it looks like it’ll be worth the wait. Half-Life fans should be more than used to waiting but now as they’ve been waiting for Half-Life 3 since 2004.
READ MORE: Half-Life 3 Alternative Drops Just In Time For Steam Hardware Launch
