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Wiki non-canon This article is non-canon. Its subject matter does not take place in the "real" Half-Life universe.
Imagecat For other uses, see Black Mesa (disambiguation).

 
"Run. Think. Shoot. Source."
Black Mesa tagline, a nod to Half-Life’s original tagline[src]
 

Black Mesa, previously known as Black Mesa: Source, is a fan-made remake of the original Half-Life. The ultimate goal of the mod is to recreate the original Half-Life from the ground up, using the advanced capabilities of the Source engine to create a new and more engrossing in-game world with more varied, complex environments and more challenging, realistic gameplay.

Originally requiring Source SDK 2007, Black Mesa is now considered standalone and now available at Steam. The original release date for the project was set for 2009, but was delayed for 3 years. On the 1st of September, 2012, the project leader Carlos Montero (cman2k) had announced that Black Mesa will be released in 12 days [1] and posted a countdown on the official website. [3]

The multiplayer and early access was made available on the 5th of May 2015. Throughout 2019, each part of the Xen chapters were released, with the final "Nihilanth" being released before the year was out. On March 6th, 2020, the game was fully released, 15 years after it originally started development.

Overview[]

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The Anti-Mass Spectrometer.

Black Mesa, whose development began in November 2004, was born of the discontent fans experienced when playing Half-Life: Source; when considering the living environment Valve created with Half-Life 2 using the Source engine, the original game fell far short of what many players thought could be done with the software, basically being a straight port, except for improved water and lighting effects along with the inclusion of ragdoll physics. According to the developers, "Black Mesa: Source was built and founded on the principle that Half-Life: Source did not do the original title enough credit... [Black Mesa] set out to reconstruct the original title, giving it new environments, models, and abilities."

Black Mesa features original textures, models, sounds, voice acting, and music (composed and produced by the mod's sound designer, Joel Nielsen)[4] designed specifically for the mod. However the developers intend to preserve all of the gameplay elements from the original game, without adding entirely new enemies, weapons, or levels. Some Half-Life 2 models were used with custom textures, such as the crowbar, the Headcrab, the Barnacle, and the crow.

Since development began, the team has released many images, including in-game screenshots of most chapters and multiplayer maps, model renders, concept art, as well as several gameplay videos and trailers, and excerpts from the soundtrack.

Most likely due to the amount of publicity given to an unofficial third-party mod, Valve Corporation privately asked the producers of the mod to remove the "Source" part from the title to avoid confusion on whether it is an official Valve product or not.

The developers released a teaser trailer in early 2007, and a full-length preview trailer in late 2008. They have also released images, videos, and concept art during the project's development. Black Mesa was given an official release date of "late 2009" in the spring of 2009, but this date has since been changed to "when it's done", after the development team was unable to fulfill this date.

After almost 8 years of development, the mod was released on September 14, 2012, although it is only playable up to the Lambda Core. Xen and the later chapters were excluded due to being unfinished at the time and slated for a release at some point in the future. As of September 11th, 2012, Black Mesa was accepted into the Steam Greenlight service with the next release to include the missing Xen chapters and possibly also the Deathmatch multiplayer segment. The developers stated this version of the game would be a paid-for version but that the free version would still be available.

In May 2015, Black Mesa was released as a Steam Early Access, however it still did not include the Xen chapters but did include Deathmatch multiplayer mode. The old 2012 version however won't be updated anymore due to technical and time constraints.

In November 2018, an update containing Xen was announced on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of Half-Life, given an official release date of 2019.[5] The first part of the chapter Xen was released on June 25th, 2019 as part of a technical beta.[6] The rest of the chapter Xen, along with Gonarch's Lair, became available on August 2nd,[7] and the first part of Interloper was released on October 1st.[8] The final chapters of the storyline were eventually released on December 7th.[9]

The four Xen chapters (Xen, Gonarch's Lair, Interloper, and Nihilanth) were all completely overhauled, greatly expanded, and improved in comparison to those in the original game, which at the time were considered the weakest part of the game. Gonarch's Lair is now a full chapter rather than just a boss fight, whereas Nihilanth remains strictly a boss fight.

Community Modifications[]

This is an abbreviated list of notable mods created for Black Mesa

  • A remake of Half-Life: Uplink called "Black Mesa: Uplink" was created by community member Hezus in 2012. Another remake titled "Further Data", created by Chris Bryant, was released in December 2020.
  • A remake of the Hazard Course created by PSR Digital was released in December 2015. Initially, it was only compatible with the mod version due to technical issues with the Black Mesa Steam Workshop. Following fixes to the workshop for the Definitive Edition, Black Mesa: Hazard Course eventually came to the Steam Workshop in December 2020. This remake features the entire voice cast of Black Mesa.
  • Chon Kemp (also known as TextFAMGUY1) created two extensive map packs called "On a Rail Uncut" and "Surface Tension Uncut" that seamlessly add areas from Half-Life that were cut by the Black Mesa team. TextFAMGUY1 later joined the team to work on multiplayer maps before becoming lead level designer, with a heavily updated "Surface Tension Uncut" eventually being integrated into the main game's public beta in 2016 and "On A Rail Uncut" was added to the game's Steam Workshop. There are no plans to integrate "On A Rail Uncut" into the full release: Kemp reasons that such a project would require him to completely remake the map from the ground up as he did with "Surface Tension," and the abbreviated "On A Rail" is more in line with Crowbar Collective's vision for the game.
  • .RK created two small expansions, the "'On a Rail' - Loop Mod" and "'We've Got Hostiles!' - Vent Mod" that adds in small parts of Half-Life cut from Black Mesa. The "Loop Mod" is fully compatible with the aforementioned "On a Rail Uncut".
  • HECU Collective, the developers of the Black Mesa remake of Azure Sheep, are currently developing a remake of Blue Shift, featuring much of the cast of Black Mesa reprising their roles.

Characters[]

  • Gordon Freeman - Like the original, he is the main protagonist and playable character.
  • Eli Vance - Eli appears in the chapter Anomalous Materials and in the next chapter Unforeseen Consequences. He is in the role of the unnamed black scientist who checked out the broken equipment and later let Gordon Freeman through the door, telling him to get help, in the original Half-Life, who was retconned as Eli Vance and revealed in Half-Life 2. Voiced by Kevin Sisk.
  • Isaac Kleiner - Like Eli, he appears in the chapters Anomalous Materials and Unforeseen Consequences. He is one of the three scientists who Gordon meets up with when heading to the test chamber, and also one of the two scientists checking out the broken equipment with Eli Vance. In Unforeseen Consequences, he replaces the Einstein scientist who is sitting on the floor in shock being comforted by Eli Vance in the original Half-Life. When a headcrab spawns nearby in one of the containers, which Kleiner inspects, he is fascinated by it. Voiced by Mike Hillard.
  • Wallace Breen - Although he doesn't appear, just like the original Half-Life, he is still indirectly mentioned by scientists as the "administrator." In an Easter egg, a paper on a corkboard reveals Wallace Breen's plans to take over the world, including making friends with aliens and building a giant towering headquarters, referring to the Combine Invasion and Citadel Half-Life 2. Moreover, a security guard can trick Gordon into thinking the "administrator" is right behind him.
  • Barney Calhoun - He "appears" in the Black Mesa Inbound Chapter like the original Half-Life, trying to get access through the door. However, the developers decided not to disclose that this particular security guard is Barney in order to not conflict with the narratives between the original Half-Life and its expansion pack Half-Life: Blue Shift, but they still made a nod to the expansion pack by portraying the guard as missing his equipment and making the player unable to see his face in normal gameplay. Barney's voice can later be heard in the chapter "Gonarch's Lair" as a voicemail recording found in a hidden research lab on Xen. Voiced by Kevin Sisk.
  • The G-Man - Like his original appearances in the Half-Life games, he observes the player from a distance and always disappears. His appearances are pretty much the same as in the original Half-Life with some tweaks. He appears in the level Questionable Ethics, where he did not appear in the original Half-Life. When talking to Freeman at the end, he still retains his original speech pattern from the original game, albeit with a different voice actor (Kevin Sisk) filling in the role. In his second appearance during the second chapter "Anomalous Materials", he is again shown conversing with a scientist, but upon spotting the player, the scientist will close the shutters on the window, preventing them from observing.

Other minor characters seen in Half-Life 2 are possibly also seen. For example, the headcrab that Kleiner inspects could be Lamarr. Dr. Arne Magnusson is indirectly referenced if the player interacts with the microwave in the break room in "Anomalous Materials".

Other voiced roles include the Black Mesa Announcement System, both under civilian control (Victoria Teunissen, including the tram ride) and military control (Cris Mertens), the HEV Suit (Kevin Sisk), most male scientists (Mike Hillard), female scientists (Lurana Hillard), and The Stanley Parable narrator Kevan Brighting in a cameo guest role as one of the scientists who speaks to Gordon before he enters the room with the Anti-Mass Spectrometer.

Like the original Half-Life, the game includes groups of scientists and security guards that Gordon comes across during his path, although all the models have more varieties. Some of the scientists and guards have names of their own revealed through dialogue. HECU Marines appear again, including medics (which were mentioned in Half-Life but did not make their proper introduction until Opposing Force); the latter will heal wounded Marines as long as Gordon is at some distance away from them, and now they wield the same primary weapons (MP5/SPAS-12) as the regular soldiers. In the retail release, the medical personnel are more appropriately referred to as corpsmen, seeing as real-life Marines receive treatment by Navy hospital corpsmen as opposed to medics. Some HECU soldiers occasionally use RPGs, likely substituting the mounted M202A1 FLASH that is absent from Black Mesa. In some instances, soldiers also use mounted Browning M2 heavy machine guns.

In the mod version, HECU Marines were always heard communicating with loud voices via radio, like in Half-Life. However, the Steam Early Access release has replaced their chatter with more suitable voice lines performed by a new voice actor (Michael Tsarouhas). This resulted in the soldiers sounding much more human than before, especially that they ended up speaking with an unfiltered voice during normal circumstances, similarly to Opposing Force. This has been altered in the full 1.0 release, where gas-mask soldiers exclusively use radio-filtered voice lines, which are edited versions of the lines from the Early Access release.

Black Ops assassins (voiced by Janet Oliver Wilson) also return, now wearing what appear to be black Advanced Knee Replacements or Long Fall Boots from the Portal series. They also wield dual Glock 17 pistols (as opposed to a single one like the original game), and while they don't have visible suppressors, the sound effects indicate otherwise. Unlike in Half-Life, where security guards only carry Glock 17s, some guards are equipped with the Colt Python and SPAS-12 shotgun, which boost their effectiveness somewhat (although shotgun-equipped guards are immobile while firing).

Creatures[]

The Xen creatures are roughly the same as the original Half-Life, with some minor visual modifications.

  • Both the Headcrab's and Vortigaunt's models look closer to their appearances in Half-Life 2.
  • Houndeyes have a visible beak on their underside instead of a gaping mouth.
  • Bullsquids have their eyes moved to the top of their head, more suited for being an aquatic predator.

In the chapters set in Xen, there are some new variations of existing creatures:

  • ZEVs - Zombified scientists wearing HEV Suits; their suits emit distorted voices, and when a ZEV is killed, the "beep" sound for an HEV user's death is heard. Due to the HEV's resistance, ZEVs are much more durable than the average zombie, leaving only their heads unprotected.
    • It should also be noted that the part set on Earth features zombified security guards and zombified HECU soldiers, both of which were only present in Opposing Force.
  • Hoteyes - Red glowing Houndeyes that explode when attacking the player or when shot with a single bullet.
  • Knockback Houndeyes - Tougher version of the original Houndeye; their sonic attacks heavily knock the player to the back and/or upwards rather than dealing direct damage.
  • Beneathicles - Underwater Barnacles attached upside down at the bottom of the water that work like normal Barnacles.

Xen Trees can now be killed with any weapon, either curling up or gibbing depending on the damage.

The battle with the Gonarch is now much longer and much more brutal. The creature can now rapidly launch pieces of rubble at the player; its charge can go through scenery, and is impossible to avoid without long jumping. It launches the player backward a huge distance, and it has to be outrun in certain sections. It still has the Headcrab launch and explosive toxin attacks, but now it also has the ability to fire green globs of acid that explode after a few seconds. Additionally, it is possible to spawn three Gonarchs during the Nihilanth fight at the end. This can be done by pressing the "use" key on three specific plants present in the chamber; the Gonarchs will appear as soon as the player destroys the Nihilanth's three healing crystals.

During the chapter "Interloper", all Vortigaunts are docile towards Gordon. This behavior, understandably a rebellion against the Nihilanth, was carried over from the original game, where this was only the case at one instance; it helps provide context for the Vortigaunts' reverential behavior towards Gordon in Half-Life 2. Early in the chapter, an Alien Grunt is seen beating up a Vortigaunt while another Grunt keeps an eye on the other frightened Vortigaunts, until Gordon intervenes. While they do not assist Freeman in direct combat, the Vortigaunts will help him in a few tasks, such as disabling some force fields that were blocking his path. However, Alien Controllers will sometimes appear, and will force them to attack Gordon. Unlike in the original, the Vortigaunts will immediately resume their passive behavior when the Alien Controllers are killed.

It should be noted that Alien Grunts are more agile in Xen than they were on Earth, being able to strafe faster and jump towards elevated surfaces. It is also made explicit in this section that Alien Grunts are biomechanically altered Vortigaunts. The Vortigaunts are forced to perform the process of transmutation upon themselves on their brethren in factories within the Nihilanth's tower.

Finally, the Nihilanth is far more challenging than his original counterpart, and has various types of attacks and moves to try and kill Gordon Freeman. Unlike the original version, this one doesn't teleport the player to separate parts of the map, but will occasionally teleport some large objects from Earth and throw them at Gordon.

Weapons and equipment[]

The same handheld weapons from Half-Life appear, remodeled, although the behavior of some of them has been modified in single-player. For example, the MP5 has a realistic 30-round magazine and less reserve ammunition than before, but deals higher damage, is more accurate, and fires M203 grenades faster. Another example is that the Crossbow deals extremely high damage (being capable of killing an Alien Grunt with one hit in the unarmored part of the torso, even in Hard mode), at the expense of a very low fire rate and much less bolts in reserve. Weapons with magazines also take more time to reload if the magazine is empty. Two mounted weapons are usable: the Browning M2 machine gun, and the BGM-71 TOW missile launcher (which replaces the M198 Howitzer from the original game).

Like in Half-Life 2, the player can pick up certain objects, often required in order to progress through the game. Flares can sometimes be picked up, allowing Gordon to set enemies on fire, most notably early in the game when he hasn't picked up the crowbar yet and has to fend off zombies.

The Long Jump Module is now equipped with landing jets, negating fall damage while progressing through Xen.

There are some devices in Xen (including Healing Showers) that will restore not only the player's health, but their armor as well. Additionally, some crystals in the chapter "Interloper" have the ability to indefinitely refill the depleted uranium ammunition for the Tau Cannon and the Gluon Gun when the player is near them, provoidng a viable source of regeneration for otherwise rare munitions.

Awards and recognition[]

  • Mod DB – Top Unreleased Mod for 2005[10]
  • Mod DB – Top Unreleased Mod for 2006[11]
  • Mod DB – Honorable mention for Top Unreleased Mod for 2007[12]
  • Mod DB – Honorable mention for Top Unreleased Mod for 2008[13]
  • Mod DB – Honorable mention for Top Unreleased Mod for 2009[14]
  • Mod DB – Honorable mention for Top Unreleased Mod for 2010[15]
  • Mod DB – Honorable mention for Top Unreleased Mod for 2011[16]
  • Mod DB – Mod of the Year 2012 - 1st Place.[17]

Soundtrack[]

The tracks with a "pre-2019" note next to them were only played in older versions of the game, prior to the Xen updates of 2019. Additionally, while "Resonance" plays in a part set on Earth, Joel Nielsen's OST lists it among the Xen tracks, as it was released alongside them. There are a few tracks that don't have proper names; in this case, the names found in the game files (such as "Mscl_Ambience1" and "xen-ride0") are used in this list.

Earthbound soundtrack[]

Title Length Note Location played
Anomalous Materials 00:59 Anomalous Materials: when Gordon acquires the HEV Suit.
Apprehension (Mesa Remix) 01:27 Apprehension: in a room with three pistons that must be jumped on.
Apprehension 01:47 1st part (00:27) Apprehension: while Gordon is being dragged by two HECU Marines.
2nd part Unused.
3rd part, reversed (00:17) Apprehension: when Gordon is knocked out by a Marine.
Blast Pit 1 01:03 Blast Pit: when encountering seven Houndeyes before entering the silo.
Blast Pit 2 (Mesa Remix) 01:59 Blast Pit: after turning the power generator on.
Blast Pit 3 01:32 Blast Pit: upon returning to the silo after having turned the power on and activated the fuel and oxygen lines.
End Credits Part 1 01:27 Pre-2019 only Lambda Core: during the first part of the ending credits.
End Credits Part 2 01:56 Lambda Core: during the second part of the ending credits.
Forget About Freeman 02:30 "Forget About Freeman!": while fighting the HECU and a Tank after exiting the sewers.
Inbound Part 1 01:50 Full track Black Mesa Inbound: during the first part of the tram ride.

(The Steam version has been shortened to 01:18)

1st part (00:06); Steam only Apprehension: while seeing a security guard get shot by a Black Ops assassin.
Inbound Part 2 04:00 Black Mesa Inbound: during the second part of the tram ride.

(The Steam version has been shortened to 03:16)

Inbound Part 3 03:08 Black Mesa Inbound: during the third part of the tram ride.
Lambda Core 01:08 Lambda Core: while descending on a freight elevator with a truck, prior to fighting the Black Ops.
Office Complex (Mesa Remix) 01:38 Office Complex: within the freezer area.
Office Complex 01:20 Steam only Office Complex: when entering the first office after the power switch has been turned off.
On a Rail 1 02:14 On A Rail: when Gordon descends into the tunnels.
On a Rail 2 01:08 On A Rail: upon attacking the Marines guarding the rocket launch site.
Power Up 00:50 Power Up: after Gordon kills the Gargantua.
Questionable Ethics 1 01:22 Questionable Ethics: when Gordon is ambushed by the Marines in the lobby at the end.
Questionable Ethics 2 00:55 Questionable Ethics: when picking up the Tau Cannon.
Residue Processing 01:01 Residue Processing: when riding on the conveyor belts in the solid waste incineration area.
Surface Tension 1 02:30 1st part (01:32) Surface Tension: upon reaching the dam.

(The Steam version has been divided into three subparts)

2nd part (01:12) Surface Tension: when fighting the Apache helicopter in the cliffside area.
Surface Tension 2 02:01 Surface Tension: while crossing the cliffside area.
Surface Tension 3 01:40 1st part (00:53) Surface Tension: as Gordon advances before encountering the Gargantua.
2nd part (00:47) Surface Tension: when encountering the Gargantua in the parking garage.
Surface Tension 4 01:30 Surface Tension: in the core of the missile storage room.
Surface Tension Uncut 01:33 Steam only Surface Tension: during a fight between Marines and aliens, when a Tank gets destroyed by an Alien Aircraft.
Unforeseen Consequences 01:07 Pre-2019 only Unforeseen Consequences: while descending on a freight elevator as Headcrabs come out of a vent above.
We've Got Hostiles 01:58 "We've Got Hostiles": when Gordon encounters the first Osprey and a squad of HECU soldiers.
Black Mesa Theme (Mesa Remix) 01:18 Pre-2019 only Unforeseen Consequences: when Gordon exits the test chamber after the Resonance Cascade.
Mesa Theme (UC Remix) 01:20 Steam only Unforeseen Consequences: while descending on a freight elevator as Headcrabs come out of a vent above.
Resonance 02:06 1st part (00:41); Steam only On A Rail: after the death of the shotgun-wielding security guard (if recruited until reaching the silo).
2nd part (01:30); Steam only Unforeseen Consequences: as Gordon wakes up after the Resonance Cascade.
Mscl_Ambience1 01:12 Unforeseen Consequences: while jumping on the hanging crates near the end.
Mscl_Ambience2 00:39 "We've Got Hostiles": when Gordon finally enters the locked security room.
Mscl_Ambience3 00:31 Lambda Core: after reaching the Lambda Coolant System, and upon reaching the Lambda Reactor Core.
Mscl_Ambience4 01:13 Power Up: when Gordon meets the wounded security guard in the control room.
Mscl_Ambience5 01:02 Blast Pit: while descending with the elevator at the start, or using the alternate path with ladders.
Mscl_Ambience6 00:42 Blast Pit: upon activating the elevator that descends towards the power generator.
Mscl_Ambience7 01:20 Blast Pit: when descending a long ladder before reaching the large fan.
Mscl_Ambience8 00:48 Questionable Ethics: when Gordon finds an Alien Grunt confined in a glass tube.
Blast Pit 2 01:29 Unused.
Black Mesa Theme 00:54 Unused.

Xen soundtrack (Steam version only)[]

Title Length Note Location played
Transcendent 01:34 Xen: after arriving on Xen.
Internal Conflict 02:50 Gonarch's Lair: during the final part of the Gonarch fight.
Entangled 01:44 Xen: in the first swamp containing Xen Trees.
Convergence 01:58 1st part (00:23) Xen: when Freeman sees the island that contains the teleporter leading to the Gonarch's lair.
Full track Xen: upon reaching the large tree branches connected to the aforementioned island.
Alien 03:02 Gonarch's Lair: during the first part of the Gonarch fight.

Also plays directly after "Internal Conflict", if the Gonarch hasn't been defeated yet.

The Hunting 02:53 1st part (01:36) Gonarch's Lair: when the Gonarch destroys a bridge in front of Freeman after he has crossed the toxic water.
2nd part (01:21) Gonarch's Lair: as Freeman escapes from the Gonarch after exiting a small cavern located next to a waterfall.
Lair 03:51 Gonarch's Lair: in a small area containing many yellow crystals, with the Gonarch standing on a large webbing above Gordon.
Mind Games 01:12 Interloper: when Alien Controllers appear in the Vortigaunts' village and force them to attack Gordon.
Shadows of Death 02:34 Interloper: when escaping from a wave of multiple Gargantuas.
Interloper 01:43 Interloper: in the first area of the factory.
Harbinger 02:43 Interloper: when fighting some Alien Grunts after exiting a cavern within the factory.
Critical Mass 02:07 1st part (00:59) Interloper: upon encountering Alien Controllers while riding on the conveyor belts.
2nd part (01:13) Interloper: when reaching the first Healing Shower next to the aforementioned conveyor belts.
Ascension 03:14 1st part (01:16) Interloper: while fighting a shielded Controller and four Alien Grunts next to the large elevator near the end.
2nd part (02:27) Interloper: while ascending with the elevator after the aforementioned fight.
Respite 01:39 Interloper: at the portal leading to the Nihilanth's chamber.
Limitless Potential 02:13 Endgame: during the first part of the ending credits.
Border Worlds 01:42 Endgame: during the second part of the ending credits.
Catalyst 02:31 In the main menu after starting up the game.
Event Horizon 01:25 Alternate track for the main menu.
Ascension Reprise 03:14 1st part (01:16) Interloper: plays directly after the second part of "Ascension".

(The in-game version is shortened, hence the lower duration of this part before being looped)

2rd part (01:10) Interloper: while fighting the last Alien Controllers at the elevator.
Nihilist 05:12 Nihilanth: while fighting the Nihilanth.

(The in-game version is shortened to 04:50)

xen-ride0 01:55 Interloper: at the beginning of the ascension with the large elevator near the end.

Trivia[]

D1 canals 050002

Detail from one of Black Mesa's computer models. Microsoft Outlook and Mozilla Firefox can both be seen on the desktop, and the desktop's start button (bottom left) reveals that it is running Windows XP.

  • Examining the desktops shown on the computers in the office levels show that they are running Windows XP. This is accurate, as the original Half-Life and Black Mesa are both set at some time in the 2000s.
  • Many have noted that despite his Doctorate, Gordon Freeman's job at Black Mesa is largely experimental, consisting mostly of manual labor. Black Mesa seems to make address this in Anomalous Materials, where two nameless scientists can be heard discussing how management has been forcing Ph.D's to perform functionary work.
  • The game includes a lot of nods and Easter eggs pertaining to the Half-Life mythology, as well as questions and debates raised by fans on certain issues in the series.
    • A guard makes reference to Freeman cutting off his ponytail. In most concept art and promotional photos, Freeman has a ponytail (and even has one on his original Half-Life model) although in some photos it is completely absent.
    • The interactive terminal in the Sector C lobby displays a chat log that features various scientist quotes from the original Half-Life, as well as a pair of original scientist models as chat avatars.
    • A group of scientists have a conversation about a popular experiment they are trying to recreate, which one explains was his inspiration for pursuing science but the others point out he will not receive recognition for just recreating an old thing. The first scientist insists that it is more than a reproduction because it will demonstrate how far the field has come since the original. This is a meta-commentary on the nature of Black Mesa itself as a remake of a critically acclaimed game.
    • A scientist in the locker room talks about the HEV suit and how it has a detachable helmet. In some concept art and promotional photos, Freeman is seen with a helmet, which is absent in his original in-game model, as well as most other photos depicting the character. This has caused a debate to fans whether or not Freeman is wearing his helmet at all during the original game.
  • At the end of the original Half-Life the player can fully control Gordon Freeman when being spoken to by the G-Man, but in this game the G-Man freezes time and space and takes Freeman through different visions of Xen. This is in reference to Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode Two, in which the G-Man freezes everything in order to speak to Freeman.
  • The game is bundled with a version of the Source SDK for its modified Source engine; the splash screen for the included Hammer Editor features meme faces in each of the letters and the subtitle "ABSOLUTELY ANCIENT SOFTWARE".
  • Valve level designer Dario Casali, who has worked on all of the Half-Life games, revealed that during development of Half-Life: Alyx he tried to replay the original Half-Life for research, but after five hours he decided to play Black Mesa instead. He declared it was a much more enjoyable experience, and commended the Crowbar Collective for doing "an awesome job."[18]

Gallery[]

While the official website is the main source for most official images, all personal websites of the respective team members also provide further, exclusive images.

Screenshots[]

Models[]

Note that many of these images show pre-release models, or models that are only in the mod version.

Weapons[]

NPCs[]

Vehicles[]

Other[]

Concept art[]

References[]

External links[]

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