The idea of an article about the science behind some aspects of the Half-Life games popped into my head when I was listening to a physics podcast. It was talking about Zero-Point Energy and of course I immediately recognized the term.

I performed a quick search to see if somebody else had already written something and was initially disappointed to find somebody had. However, after scanning it and seeing the author say that the “Zero Point Energy” was just “a pointless quasi-scientific name that has no serious grounding in genuine physics”, I decided I would write my own.

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Back on 27^th February, I announced a writing competition, asking for people to write a review of HL3.

I received 4 interesting entries.

Continue reading to see them all and then select your favourite.

And the winner is…

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For each main event run and for each year of the event, if a reviewer reviews or re-reviews all of the mods in that event, they will be entered into a prize draw. The prize will be at least one game with a value of around $35 US Dollars.

So, for example, at the end of this year there will be 11 Classic of the Month mods updated and livestreamed. If you have posted a review or re-review for each of them you will be entered into the draw. If you reviewed the mod BEFORE the start of the event then it WILL NOT count towards your total reviews.

No “sign up” is needed, you just need to stay up to date with each of the events and post the reviews of the mods involved.

For your review to count, it must be posted AFTER the start of the event and AFTER each mod has been Livestreamed.

If you have any questions, just ask.

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Starting this Saturday, Darren Weekes AKA DaZ/Custom Gamer will be running a monthly event called The Ville Retrospective, where he will be livestreaming his play or replay of a Ville mod.

They will be replayed in chronological order, starting with SniperVille.

Like all the other events, we hope you will participate in the discussions and playthroughs.

There will also be regular podcasts discussing 4 Villes, but the first one will only be for 2 because we started late.

The event has its own page, see above, where all the details will be kept.

If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, please let us know.

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Hi All,

I am hoping to start a new monthly podcast, like Podcast 17 and All Things Lambda but with my special twist on it.

I have a very specific content focus that I don’t want to talk about yet, but I believe it will be entertaining enough to keep it fresh.

I might steal All Things Lambda ideas for running it live (sorry guys!) or it might just be a pre-recorded show.

Therefore, I am looking for hosts and regular guests. I want to appear on most of the podcasts but not all, therefore I hope to find another host, who is confident enough to run the show.

If you are interested and have a Skype account, with a fairly good mic and have a bold personality, please contact me for an audition.

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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.

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This coming weekend sees the start of a new event: CLASSIC of the MONTH.

During the third weekend in each month, one classic mod will be played, discussed, updated and reviewed.

A livestream is planned, although NOT guaranteed, for each mod on the Saturday, with the post updated on Sunday.

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It’s been a while since I posted a “Blog” entry – I just haven’t been motivated.

However, today, whilst listening to some music, something struck me as possibly very important about my habits and hobbies.

Let’s start with music, move onto mods and finish with children stories…

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For this mapping challenge, I would like you to create a map that is set in and around the streets of a city.

It doesn’t mean you have to stay ON the streets all the time. You can go under or over them, you can drive through parts too if you wish. There could be plenty going on, with Rebels around you or a dark and atmospheric setting.

The player could work their way through destroyed buildings or fight on pristine streets.

It’s your decision.

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