Aug 14, 2012
Half-Life 3 To Be Announced At Gamescom? Who Knows
Half-Life 2 - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (John Walker)

UPDATE: Guess what! Gamescom are now saying that Half-Life 3 and Dragon Age 3′s appearances on the list was “a mistake”, according to Eurogamer. Although they won’t say how that mistake happened. Also, Lamda Generation heard from Valve (a rare treat) saying they weren’t showing any games this year.

Another Half-Life 3 confirmation rumour? Why not. T3 have spotted, on the Gamescom pdf designed to show press what games are appearing, the Half-Life 3 is listed as Valve’s entry. You can see it for yourself right here.

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Aug 7, 2012
You Should Improbably Play This: Mission Improbable
Half-Life 2 - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (Jim Rossignol)

There are a few Half-Life 2 mods that basically constitute The Further Adventures of Gordon Freeman. Sometimes these isolated chapters make me want to dive headfirst back into the unfinished trilogy, and sometimes they’re just a reminder of what Source did well. Other times, though, they manage to articulate More Half-Life 2 while at the same time having a strong whiff of first-order originality, served with their own own flourishes of design brilliance. Minerva was one such outing, and Mission Improbable is another. (more…)

Aug 7, 2012
Black Mesa: Source video shows renovated On A Rail mission in action
Half-Life
Black Mesa Source


Some leaked footage claiming to belong to the elusive Black Mesa Source mod has appeared over on Valve Time, showing some classic weapons and environments renovated in Valve's Source engine. The video shows a bit of violence from the 'On A Rail' mission. But for the odd detail, like iron sights aiming for the Magnum, it all feels very familiar, albeit a fair bit prettier than the original. Take a look.

The footage follows the official release of some new Black Mesa Source screenshots back in June. The mod's been in development for many years and hardly anything's been shown, until now. What do you think?

Aug 7, 2012
Gordon Bennet: Black Mesa Source In Probable Action
Half-Life - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (Alec Meer)

I think I've been writing about this one game for more of my life than any other. That ain't right

Allegedly, at least. This footage of the aeons-in-the-making Half-Life 1 remake seems far too elaborate to be a hoax, so the real question mark hangs over whether it’s out there by accident or not. ValveTime.Net say they received it from an anonymous reader, and have no clue as to whether the footage represents a recent build of the Source Engine-based mod or not. (more…)

Aug 6, 2012
“Next-gen Source 2″ references spotted in Source Filmmaker files
Half-Life
Half-Life 2 Episode 2


It looks as though Valve are working on a proper follow up to the Source Engine they've been gradually improving over the course of the last decade. Valve Time have pulled numerous references to a "next-gen 'Source 2'" engine along with various "Source 2 tools" icons from the guts of the Source Film Maker.

Valve have previously played down the need for an entirely new version of Source, and have concentrated instead on updating the original version to keep up with modern engine tech. That's worked quite nicely so far, but if these references are correct, a more significant step up is on the way. Here are a few of the pulled strings referring to Source 2.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
def setEngine( self, version=ENGINE.SOURCE ):
'''
Set the engine version for the project, i.e. 'Source 2'
------------------------------------------------------------------------

------------------------------------------------------------------------
Line 1387:
'''Return an str with the current engine version.
If key doesn't doesn't exist, assume 'Source', otherwise invalid -- assume next-gen 'Source 2'.'''
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Exciting stuff. But it wouldn't be a post about Valve and the future without somebody saying something about Half-Life 2: Episode Three. Is the reason that it's taken so long that it's being built in a more advanced engine that will explode our minds when it's finally released? I have no idea. Here are the icons that Valve Time discovered. Look at that high fidelity hammer. Oooo.

Aug 3, 2012
GoldenEye: Source v4.2 released, adds AI bots for you to shoot
Half-Life 2
GoldenEye Source
http://youtu.be/YQRKlQox-OQ

Mod-homages and remakes are a favorite template of PC gaming's terrific species of tireless gnomes. Black Mesa: Source. Star Trek in Homeworld 2. MechWarrior in Crysis. Star Wars in like, everything.

GoldenEye: Source is one of the best of this group. It shows incredible reverence for its ("Don't say it, don't say it...") source material (ugh) while implementing choice changes that respectfully modernize a classic multiplayer FPS. GE:S' trouble, unfortunately, has been a sparse population. The devs have solved this by adding bot support alongside some other improvements in version 4.2. Here they are:


BOTS - full featured running on Python AI
Team radar colors and standardized blip colors
Loading screen images with tips
Overhead Team icons
Full-screen help display for advanced scenarios
Brand new character selection screen
Recoded Capture The Key focusing on teamplay
New Ourumov model
Gamemode customizable weaponset selections
Create server menu for easier LAN and single play
Python enhanced for custom scripting
Over 50 music tracks from 3 talented artists
Overhauled Runway, Caverns, Facility, Backzone and classic maps

 

Click to download GoldenEye: Source's latest version.
Jul 30, 2012
These Are The Most Important 60 Seconds of Half-Life 2
Half-Life
Half-Life 2 is a vast and interesting game. This YouTuber fragments it into 60 seconds to give you the best, most accurate and important impressions.


And by that I of course mean silliest. Do you ever just randomly talk to the games you play? Poke fun at characters playfully? That's essentially what BlackLightAttack does with his 60 Second Let's Play series.


60 Second Let's Play: Half-Life 2 [YouTube]


Jul 26, 2012
Slender Man Source mod will let you scare the hell out of yourself for free, with friends
Half-Life 2
Slender Source


Remember the Slender Man game we mentioned a couple of weeks back? It's a terrifying indie horror based on the spooky Something Awful monster. You had to wander through a dark forest with a pale torch hunting for messages while trying not to look directly at the creature. It's scary as hell.

GOOD NEWS EVERYBODY, a different team are creating a version of Slender Man in Valve's Source engine. Fittingly, it's called Slender Source, and this one will let you avoid a horrifying death with friends. Yaay!

It's a work-in-progress deal at the moment, but the bare bones are in place. Here's the challenge: "Players must work together to collect a certain amount of creepy dolls all while trying to avoid the abomination that is the Slenderman. The kick? No weapons."

Sadly, nobody has ever invited me into the woods to collect creepy dolls before, but if they did I'm pretty sure I'd say "hell yes BRING THE SCARES," which probably makes me that guy who dies horribly at the start of every horror movie. Thankfully, games like Slender Man, Slender: Source, Hide and SCP Containment Breach give us the chance to experience those scares without, y'know, the dismemberment. You can keep an eye on how the Half-Life 2 mod is progressing over on ModDB. Here's an early screenshot showing the wooded environment, which is one of two planned for release. The other will be set in an abandoned hospital.



And here's the trailer for the other Slender Man game, to give you a taste of the Slender Man vibe:



Are there any other horror games/mods that you've enjoyed? Let us know, we need some new ideas to test on work experience applicants.
Jul 26, 2012
Hands On Horror Mod: Grey
Half-Life 2 - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (John Walker)

This is the kind of image my mum probably thinks is at the top of RPS all the time.

Scaring someone is a fine art. Scaring someone when they’re expecting to be scared makes it even trickier. So Grey is a big task for the Deppresick team of modders. A total conversion mod for Half-Life 2, it’s a horror game that borrows liberally from every other horror game, movie, book, and scary painting you once saw. I put on my bravest trousers and had a look.>

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Jul 25, 2012
Unlimited Hyperborea: Half Life 2′s Missing Information
Half-Life 2 - contact@rockpapershotgun.com (RPS)

Joe Martin is a Half-Life 2 obsessive who often wells up with actual tears when he thinks of the content Valve cut during development. Imagine his joy at finding the Missing Information mod, which collects workable snippets from the stolen HL2 beta and assembles them into a Steam-compatible mod. Joe takes a look at the parts of HL2 Valve didn’t intend for us to see, and wonders if the game we got was the best it could have been.>

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