half-life posts (Subscribe to this feed)

Half-Life fridge magnets open portal to alternate 8-bit dimension

by Randy Nelson { May 22nd 2009 at 5:00AM }

The world no longer has to wonder what the character sprites from an NES version of Half-Life would look like, as Etsy artisan ArcadeArt has given us the proverbial goods ... and they're magnets made out of beads. The three-magnet set sells for $20 and includes pixel art versions of bespectacled Gordon Freeman, the gray-suited G-man and a scientist with a bad case of headcrab. Their creator has even crafted a mock Half-Life NES box cover, included with each order.

Should Valve's FPS classic somehow not be your thing, ArcadeArt also fashions similar sprite magnets based on Resident Evil, Pikmin and Super Mario Kart.

[Via Wonderland]

Gabe Newell presents his vison for the gaming industry at D.I.C.E.

by Justin McElroy { Feb 19th 2009 at 1:40PM }

Long story short: Do it like Valve does it. Long story reasonably brief: Valve boss Gabe Newell wants to shake up the way the industry works by keeping pricing in flux, updating content more frequently and getting away from DRM as copy-protection, among other things. Newell also suggested leaning more on the release of concept art to get gamers excited, though we're not still not sure what effect that one Half-Life image is having on us.

You can see more of the Freemanifesto that Newell delivered yesterday at D.I.C.E. right here. We'd love to know how closely your own view cleaves to his vision for the gaming landscape. Or, if you're feeling less cerebral: OMG Team Fortress 2 comics!

Half-Life 2 mini-series blows minds on a dime

by Griffin McElroy { Feb 13th 2009 at 1:31PM }

We've found some fairly unwise applications for $500 in the past, including (but not limited to) a few pyramid scheme investments and a number of unused gym memberships -- if only we'd followed the example of the upstart indie filmographers at Purchase Brothers, who recently spent five Benjamins on an extremely worthwhile cause: Producing the first two episodes of a Half-Life 2-inspired miniseries, titled Escape from City 17.

The Purchase Brothers recently dropped the first episode onto an unsuspecting internet -- we've got it posted after the jump. If you've played the series (we find it difficult to believe there are people who haven't, at this point), you really need to check it out. A touch of naughty language and a healthy dose of gunshootery might make it a bit NSFW, but we think you'll agree -- it's worth risking your employment to watch this video with all available haste.

[Via DailyGamesNews]

Continued →

Durham University uses Valve's Source Engine for fire drill simulation

by Griffin McElroy { Feb 8th 2009 at 5:00PM }

Researchers at England's Durham University recently found a use for Valve's Source Engine that doesn't involve crowbars, headcrabs or unsettling, suited men -- using the engine's relatively simple tools, they've begun making fire drill simulations by recreating some of the university's departments, then coating them in virtual flame. The simulations are designed to not only teach users good fire safety practices, but to see how users react when confronted with snarling, searing death.

On that note, the gaming community should feel particularly proud of the results researchers have witnessed when gaming veterans go through the simulator -- according to one researcher, "if a door was on fire, they [gamers] would try and run through it, rather than look for a different exit." Just in case they weren't aware, we feel compelled to bring the fellow denizens of our cultural niche this important PSA: Fire is hot, and it hurts when you touch it.

Mario Kart Source: made by fans, for fans

by David Hinkle { Jan 22nd 2009 at 7:11PM }

If you're a fan of PC games, then of course you've heard of the Source engine. It powers Half-Life 2, which is the bee's knees. Well, an ambitious bunch has decided to use the Source engine to code a new Mario Kart racing game, Mario Kart Source. The best part about this project is that the team is looking at all of the previous games in the series and is attempting to take just the best bits for their new game. Our verdict? Awesome.

Sadly, Nintendo won't likely be as excited to hear about the project, so we're sure they'll step in at some point or another and intervene.

[Via Go Nintendo]

HL Source mod generates $3m; Valve reveals retail sales numbers

by Ross Miller { Dec 3rd 2008 at 1:30PM }

Half-Life application Garry's Mod celebrated its two-year anniversary of being on Steam last week. On his blog, creator Garry Newman celebrated by divulging the sales figures of the software so far on Steam: 312,541 copies. At about $10 per copy, that amounts to over $3 million. Not too shabby for the 26-year old English developer -- even if Valve takes a piece of the pie. Maybe now he can make a suit of money.

Speaking of Valve, who as a general rule is very secretive with its sales figures (especially regarding Steam), the company has released its worldwide lifetime-to-date retail sales (via Gamasutra). Pre-Steam release Half-Life is on top at 9.3 million, followed by Half-Life 2 at 6.5m and Counter-Strike at 4.2m. These figures don't include Steam sales, which CEO Gabe Newell has said he expects to typically surpass retail sales. Full list after the break.

Continued →

Fan-made Black Mesa trailer reinvents original Half-Life

by Andrew Yoon { Dec 1st 2008 at 12:45AM }

It's been over ten years since Valve's Half-Life was released on PC, changing FPS gaming forever. In 2009, the fan-made Black Mesa will do more than just revisit the classic Valve game – from the looks of this newly released trailer, Black Mesa will reimagine the game with modern tech and modern production values. (Update: The project was originally called Black Mesa Source, but Valve requested a name change to not as confuse it with an official Valve project.)

The spirit of Black Mesa is true to the original; however, we're stunned by the ambitious goals for this project. The new character models and textures used in this Source Engine-powered mod urge us to give them money. The addition of multiplayer modes, such as co-op, make us think Valve will downright buy the team (if they haven't already!).

Black Mesa won't require Half-Life: Source to play. So long as you have any Source Engine game on your PC, you'll be able to download and play this amazing total conversion when it comes out.

[Thanks, Andrew H.!]

Gallery: Black Mesa Source

Gordon Freeman receives crowbar, will defend raging Hadron

by Ludwig Kietzmann { Nov 21st 2008 at 5:09PM }

They found him! The Large Hadron Collider is now under the vigilant protection of the world's least communicative hero, Gordon Freeman. You have the folks at Reddit to thank for equipping him with an iconic weapon, originally intended as an ominous gift before the potentially apocalyptic Collider was fired up for the first time. We wish Gordon the best of luck as he trains in the fine art of bludgeoning parasitic creatures to a pulp.

He has until Spring 2009 (view his progress in this photo gallery) -- that's when the Collider is expected to stop being broken.

PSA: Half-Life now available for $.98 on Steam

by Randy Nelson { Nov 20th 2008 at 6:00PM }

Valve has taken a crowbar to the price of the original Half-Life on Steam. Originally priced at $9.99, the award-winning, if-you-haven't-played-it-don't-talk-to-us FPS can now be had for $.98. No, that's not a typo – Ludwig checked.

On the opposite end of the spectrum is the $99.99 Valve Complete Pack, which, as we reported earlier, contains all of Valve's games – even the newly released Left 4 Dead – plus Peggle Extreme. But seriously, if you haven't played the first Half-Life, do yourself a favor and spend 1/100th of that on the game. You won't regret it. We promise. (It's ninety-eight cents!)

Valve may show Half-Life 2: Episode Three this year; release still a ways off

by Randy Nelson { Oct 14th 2008 at 11:59PM }

In an interview with Kikizo, Valve's Doug Lombardi says we won't have to wait long for ... our first glimpse of Half-Life 2: Episode Three. Quizzed on whether the dev would have something to show in 2008, Lombardi plainly said, "We may at the very end of the year." So, yay – a (possible) Half-Life Holiday.

As for when the game will actually ship – er, not so soon. "The next time you play as Gordon will be longer than the distance between HL2 to Ep1, and Ep1 to Ep2," Lombardi confirmed. We're guessing he didn't mean all of that ~~time~~ distance combined. Still, given that Episode One hit in June of '06 and we didn't see Episode Two until October '07, we're likely looking at an 18+ month wait for Episode Three. That would put its release ... around May or June 2009. Or, in comparative terms, sometime around the debut of the next new Lost episode.

CERN: Only one crowbar received, Gordon Freeman 'impossible to find'

by Ross Miller { Oct 10th 2008 at 2:59PM }

Even more terrible news, folks: CERN, the group responsible for the Large Hadron Collider, have only received one crowbar. In a message to Joystiq, "Large Hadron Rap" creator alpinekat (who also happens to work with CERN on the project) told us, "To my knowledge, there has been only one crowbar sent to CERN. I tried to track down that man, but he's impossible to find."

"That man" she is referring to is the Gordon Freeman, of Half-Life infamy, we saw in the picture above. The Large Hadron Collider is currently halted until Spring 2009 due to a "magnet failure" ... or was it? With a supposed malfunction and a missing Gordon Freeman, we need not worry: at least he's got a crowbar.

Continued →

Terrible news: Gordon Freeman spotted near Large Hadron Collider

by Justin McElroy { Sep 9th 2008 at 4:10PM }

Well, that was fun, wasn't it, human race? We had a good run, didn't we? Had a few laughs? ... Oh, why are we saying goodbye to everyone we know and love? Well, as you can see in the picture above, Gordon Freeman was recently spotted at the Large Hadron Collider, a device with the capability to create a world-ending black hole.

Sure that's troubling enough, but here's the beautiful part: They're turning it on tomorrow. Yeah, and Gordon Freeman is there, so there's absolutely no way it's going to go well. We just want to be the first to say: We called it.

Gordon Freeman invades Animal Crossing

by David Hinkle { Aug 14th 2008 at 8:00PM }

We guess the incident at Black Mesa opened up more portals than the crowbar-wielding scientist could have known. One of which clearly led to Animal Crossing: Wild World, as evidenced by the image to the right. Along with Gordan, you can see a Combine soldier standing about. Why that Combine soldier is probably waiting to knock over a can and force Gordon to dispose of it in the nearest receptacle!

Other cool dress-up scenes include Call of Duty 4, Brokeback Mountain and the Mario brothers' kitchen. Oh, and Hitler. You can't have customization in a video game without creating the world's most evil dude.

Today in Joystiq: July 11, 2008

by Ross Miller { Jul 11th 2008 at 11:59PM }

Part of this year's Into the Pixel collection is a sketch from "Half Life EP3" (wonder what that could be), coming to Xbox 360, PC and PlayStation 3. We're not exactly surprised to learn there's concept art for Episode 3, but it's still nice to a glimpse. We're still not betting on a surprise E3 performance. Check out the highlights for today:

Joystiquery
BigDownload plays conference-wide PC bingo
DS Fanboy Lite: July 5 - July 11
Joystiq Podcast 057 - Girls or vacations edition
Nintendo E3 2008 press conference: Let's play bingo
This Week in Review is preparing for the storm
WRUP: One million polygons per second edition

News
Mainstream jumps on Xbox 360 price cut bandwagon
505 Games sinks its teeth into new DS Buffy game
Major features cut from Warhammer Online
Sega announces console-specific RTS in Stormrise
Midway launches online arcade, digital storefront
Don't be sad, but a Far Cry 2 demo isn't happening
Variety: Microsoft to show 'singing game' at E3 (read: Lips)
We just noticed: Rhythm Tengoku Gold coming to Japan July 31
Sony CFO: PS3 'plan is to not reduce the price'
Flagship Studios confirms layoffs, extent unknown
Ion reveals $299.99 price for premium Rock Band drums
MTV Games finds Konami's Rock Band lawsuit 'surprising'

Rumors & Speculation
Rumor: Motus Games' Darwin is Xbox 360's motion controller
Rumor: Animal Crossing, Punch-Out!! Wii being revealed at E3
Rumor: Xbox 360's 'Lips' microphone, box art leaked

Culture & Community
Bethesda to host post-apocalyptic film festival in August

Half-Life: Episode Three may come to PS3

by Andrew Yoon { Jul 11th 2008 at 11:00AM }

Although Valve's distaste of the PS3 is well-known, the Half-Life series has still found its way to Sony hardware courtesy of EA. It looks like the franchise will continue on PS3 as well, as this initial piece of Episode Three concept art reveals. The piece, by Valve artists Ted Backman, Jeremy Bennett and Tristian Reidford, shows an ominous advisor from Episode One and Two flying forward at Gordon Freeman in a stunning cavern. We can't grasp any real details on Valve's upcoming finale to the Half-Life 2 saga, but the platforms listed clearly include the PS3 as well.

Check out Into the Pixel for a high-res version of this piece. PS3 fans would also take note to check out the spectacular high-res WipEout HD art also available in their gallery.

[Thanks, MC Fresh Beatz! Via Shacknews]