Xbox 360
Us folk living here in the bunker that is SquareGo, love Half Life. A seminal game which changed the face of first person shooter (FPS) titles forever. As such, when we saw the trailer for a Half Life 2 modification (an adaptation of the game, re imagining the original with the new technology), and how well it was coming along, we had to know more.
And so, we dove into the internets and found a fellow who knew the score, who knew every little detail about the project and whom hopefully, might be able to tell us when we can play it! That man is Carlos Montero, the lead designer on this epic labour of love - Black Mesa Source.
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SquareGo: Ok, Carlos, can you explain to anyone who hasn't played it, what Half Life is, and why you are bothering to remake it... (with no money, and offering it as a free mod [is that still the plan?])
Carlos Montero: Half-life was one of the landmark First-person shooters that really helped set the stage for strong story elements in the FPS genre, and helped elevate the FPS genre to a new level over a decade ago. Black Mesa is a recreation of that game made to the current high-standards of high-fidelity art and gameplay. Black Mesa is being made by the fans for the fans, and will definitely be released as a free mod.
SG: How many people and how long do you think it will have taken overall to get this game out.
CM: By the end this game will have taken 5 years and the combined effort of over 120 different people to complete. It's definitely been a huge undertaking.
SG: So far as this goes, it is effectively a hobby for you guys, right? Have you had any support in terms of donations for this?
CM: We have never accepted donations, both for legal and ethical reasons. We've had a lot of strong support from the community, so luckily most of our needs have been fulfilled by others free of charge, or we've been fortunate enough to find our own ways of covering costs.
SG: How have Valve reacted to what you are doing. Have they been communicative, open? Has anyone from the original game development team been involved?
CM: Valve has reacted to our project with excitement but has been very hands-off. They haven't been involved in development whatsoever.
SG: How much time would you say this takes up for you personally?
CM: Myself and most core team members treat this as a part time job, putting in at least 20 to 25 hours a week.
SG: Do you think this revamped classic will stand up to modern games?
CM: We've done a lot of work to make sure that it does both in terms of visuals and gameplay. We definitely want the game to have its nostalgia, but still be able to stand up to modern standards.
SG: How much artistic license have you taken with the game, or is it true to the original.
CM: We've taken some artistic license, but only to further enhance the immersion of depth of the game. In most cases, our artistic license should feel invisible to the player, like it was always part of the game even if it wasn't.
SG: What game do you think is better, Half Life or HL2?
CM: Half-life is pretty hard to beat, if only for the place it holds in the history of gaming and the first-person shooter genre.
SG: Is BlackMesa Source better still?
CM: We hope Black Mesa serves as a tribute to what we believe was one of the best games of all time, so we certainly do hope that it can hold up to that high standard.
SG: Is anyone on the team a professional game designer? Do you or any of the team intend to start any original games once this is over?
CM: While we have several professional programmers and game artists involved in the project, we do not have any professional game designers.
There has been lots of talk by many members about what may come next, but no one can know for sure what the team members will end up doing.
SG: Thanks for your time Carlos! The final question... Can you tell us the release date?
CM: We are aiming for a Late 2009 release, I won't get any more specific than that. :)
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If you wan't to exercise your nostalgia gland, or if you haven't yet played Half Life. Check the trailer on YouTube.
And for more up to date info on the project, check the official site. BlackMesaSource.com