Archive for February 2015

CityStreetsVille Mapping Challenge Podcast

Myself, Don, Darren and Joseph discuss the CityStreetsVille mod.

We talk about each map in detail and praise and complain in almost equal measure.

In general, we agreed about most maps but not all.

Listen to find out which ones we disagreed on.

28th February 2015 No Comments

Half-Life 3 Review Writing Competition

I’m sure you’ve seen the recent rumours about Half-Life 3. Some may have even seen my silly prank on Steam, where I changed the name of a mod to something like “HL3 – Dev Test” – sorry about that. You would be surprised at how many people messaged me and asked..”IS THAT F*%KING REAL?!“.

Anyway, I am a fan of Stanisław Lem, a Polish science fiction writer. He wrote some great SF but he has also written fictitious criticism of non-existing books, which is an idea that fascinates me. So much so, that I decided to steal it for a writing competition.

27th February 2015 13 Comments

Poll Question 307 – How long will you play until turning on GOD mode?

As some may have seen from my Video Playthrough of the CityStreetsVille mod, I switched to GOD mode at the end of one of the maps. I mainly did it because I was livestreaming and it seemed unfair to force people to watch my attempts to beat the final Combine Gunship.

That said, at some point I might have switched but it would have been much longer. It’s a fine line between dying a lot of feeling that it is still possible. It got me thinking about how long readers wait until cheating.

I have asked a similar question before: Poll Question 120: How long do you spend on a puzzle before cheating?, but as you can see, it was just about puzzles.

I’m torn between feeling it should never happen, especially on EASY but I also know that some players (me included) just aren’t very good and that’s hard to design for.

What are your thoughts?

26th February 2015 23 Comments

Poke 646

for Half-Life

Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3

It’s 13 months after the incidents at Black Mesa. The Black Mesa Research Facility has been shut down. The nation never got to know anything about the experiments there. The less you know, the less you worry. The government founded a new organisation to handle “alien related topics”. They hired the best scientists, technicians and military forces worldwide, its name is Poke646.

Some days ago the Poke646 scientists spotted alarming signals from the Xen homeworld. It looks as if the aliens plan to invade Nation City by opening a massive amount of portals. But the Poke646 Tech Labs are already prepared: some months ago the technicians developed a huge generator which is able to close hundreds of portals at once with a bundled energy beam. Four generators are about to be installed at the edges of Nation City. With all four activated they will form a giant beam and hopefully destroy the alien portal technology forever.

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20
12

Total Downloads: 10,41922nd February 2015
104 Comments and 37 recommendations, most say "Play It Now!"

CityStreetsVille

for Half-Life 2: Episode Two

Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3

The streets battle in Episode One were fantastic.

This mod contains 9 maps where mappers have created situations based around the idea of City Streets.

Don’t expect simple full-on fire fights though.

You might have to “think” you way out of a few situations.

I’m sure you will enjoy them.

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Total Downloads: 6,37721st February 2015
106 Comments and 18 recommendations, most say "Play It Now!"

Tr1p

for Half-Life 2: Episode Two

Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3

You wake up after a car accident you can’t remember.

Your family is alone! You must make your way back to them.

Unfortunately, you are very far from home and a lot stands between you and them.

Remember, every journey starts with a single step.

Good Luck!

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3
3
4

Total Downloads: 2,37517th February 2015
18 Comments and 12 recommendations with no significant bias

Sky Mesa

for Half-Life

Single Player First Person Shooter Maps and Mods for Half-Life 1, 2 and Episodes 1, 2 and 3

Teleported into a Black Mesa style base, you need to work your way through the accessible areas.

You will encounter a variety of enemies.

The G-man is watching you.

Can you meet his expectations?

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2

Total Downloads: 1,59015th February 2015
12 Comments and 8 recommendations, most haven't enjoyed it