Black Mesa Source coming alive once again

There's been some better info coming out recently, partially due to a new community manager engaging people on the forum. (TextFAMGUY1, who was the guy who made the Surface Tension and On a Rail uncut maps, and has since been hired onto the team to make MP maps too).

Firstly on Feb 21st he ran down some of the enhancements that will be seen in the Steam version
The Steam integrations, MP and huge improvements across the board the selling points of the Steam release. Those SP improvements include:
  • Some new weapon models, some of the lower res models up-res'd
  • Almost entirely reanimated weapon set
  • Rewritten soldier AI
  • Entirely rerecorded and rewritten soldier voices
  • Entirely rebalanced singleplayer (yours truly!)
  • Loads of new models/props and textures to replace older, lower fidelity stuff
  • Craploads of bugfixes and improvements
  • Much higher game stability due to newer Source engine build and access to engine-level fixes
  • Better optimisation in places (particularly Lambda Core)
  • New particle effects and sounds for many weapons
That's just off the top of my head. It's very far from just a few nice new textures. There's plenty more which I'm sure I forgot.
Click to expand...
Source: http://forums.blackmesasource.com/i...iries-about-the-mod/?postID=599162#post599162

When asked about the SP rebalancing, he said on Feb 23rd

The brunt of the work has been done in skill.cfg. I spent a long time on a careful balance pass, comparing mod values to HL1 values, and adjusting to bring them closer together where I thought it would be more fun - based on my own thoughts, the team's thoughts, and community feedback. I also worked with the programmers to add in some variables for things we couldn't previously change, such as the Vortiguant charge speed, or the Marines movement speed, etc.

The most notable change is probably the Marines. Not only did our lead programmer rewrite their AI entirely, their values and behaviour were adjusted a lot too. They're no longer aimbots, but are instead much more like HL1 in that they run around a lot (and move fast), and are very good at finding angles and applying pressure on you with nades and tactics. Testers and the team seem to think they're way more fun and less frustrating to fight now, and I certainly think that too. In particular some of the tougher set pieces like the QE ambush are really fun now because there's a lot of unpredictable, run and gun action. The LAV is also tough now.

The Vorts now behave much more like their HL1 selves - they're tankier, hit much harder, but charge slower so it's much more possible to dodge their shots. They're a bit more of a challenge now. In general, the Xen aliens are tougher than before, with a few exceptions such as the Houndeyes.

Weapons wise, they've been normalised a bit - there were too many weapons which were too good and a few which were too weak. The MP5 in particular is the mainstay weapon now, as it should be. Almost everything about it has been changed and it looks, feels, and plays totally badass now. New model, animation, sound, values, particle effects, bullet casings - the works. Other weapons have been tweaked too but the MP5 is definitely the main one.

We also have a brand new recoil system which replaces the old spread system. Before, bullets would fire within x degrees inside their cone of accuracy. This was frustrating as it meant at longer ranges you could be aiming perfectly on target, but the gun would not fire straight due to spread and would miss because the game randomly decided it should. (Note: this is how spread works in the majority of shooters, Black Mesa was no exception). But now, rather than random "spread" determining where your bullets randomly land (which hurt the MP5 in particular), the guns actually recoil properly and move your aim around with each shot, forcing you to adjust your aim. This is much more realistic and fun as it means you end up actually missing because your aim goes off the target. We've struck a good balance with the recoil - full auto MP5 for example is tough to keep on target at range but it is possible, making player skill more of a factor.

These are all subject to change and we're currently still testing all of these new values and designs - but the tester and team response thus far has been really good. We're excited to get the new balance changes out there and see what the community thinks - and make further adjustments and tweaks post release.

Details, details!
Click to expand...
Source: http://forums.blackmesasource.com/i...iries-about-the-mod/?postID=599432#post599432

Finally, on March 6th he said
We'll get you guys up to speed on the game's development, relatively soon. And I don't mean SOON™, I mean soon soon. Patience is a virtue, frienderinho. We're working on it!
Click to expand...
Source: http://forums.blackmesasource.com/i...s-information-about/?postID=600620#post600620
 
Im the most excited for new weapon models, sounds and animations and also Solider AI. Those were the only things which I was dissapointed by in the Mod, but the MP5 (The gun they said they focus on the most) was actually one of my favorite weapons in the Mod.
 
This is just fantastic! I will instantly buy this when possible. But I will wait for the uncut parts to be added into workshop before playing.
 
It'll also be in the free version, which is why it wasn't on that list of Steam features.
 
So, there's something going on with the Black mesa website (http://blackmesasource.com )

Specifically it has a big link to http://www.bmrf.us where there's a countdown to May 5th, 10:47am. It's 10:47 no matter what time zone you're in, so I'm guessing it's supposed to be 8:47 mountain time (i.e. New Mexico) and whoever whipped up the website was in the EST timezone.
 
8:47 is the time Gordon Freeman arrives at Black Mesa in HL1. Black Mesa is in New Mexico.
 
I didn't think I could be less interested in downloading BMS than when it was a free mod, but now it costs money! It's mind-bottling.
 
Im a hyped as hell for this game! Well only if Xen is in it. Also Im excited for the new gun models/sounds/animations, because those were the weakest part of Black Mesa imo. And I guess they will also put the missing parts of Surface Tension and On a Rail into the new version, especially because the guy who made the Uncut version of that parts is part of the development team now. And on top of all that it also has multiplayer.
I will gladly give them 20-30€ for this.
 
Aizawa said:
Im a hyped as hell for this game! Well only if Xen is in it. Also Im excited for the new gun models/sounds/animations, because those were the weakest part of Black Mesa imo. And I guess they will also put the missing parts of Surface Tension and On a Rail into the new version, especially because the guy who made the Uncut version of that parts is part of the development team now. And on top of all that it also has multiplayer.
I will gladly give them 20-30€ for this.
Click to expand...
No, the missing parts won't be added, but he said he will be putting them in the workshop right after release. Also they said price will be "reasonably low" so I guess 9-15€. (I would pay like 30€ even more but yea).

And for the others, there will also be the free version so there is no reason to whine. ;)
 
Aizawa said:
Im a hyped as hell for this game! Well only if Xen is in it. Also Im excited for the new gun models/sounds/animations, because those were the weakest part of Black Mesa imo. And I guess they will also put the missing parts of Surface Tension and On a Rail into the new version, especially because the guy who made the Uncut version of that parts is part of the development team now. And on top of all that it also has multiplayer.
I will gladly give them 20-30€ for this.
Click to expand...

I absolutely agree with this. Developers behind games like BMS deserves to be paid.
 
Black mesa devs are now openly inviting YouTubers to the steam version
I guess there's an announcement to follow

0uWhdCd.png
 
unfortunately they said they arent finished with Xen yet :(
so Multiplayer only
 
Up on Early Access for $20.

Multiplayer is there, but still no Xen.


Why Early Access?
“Making a game with the scope and scale of Black Mesa is a massive undertaking. Back in 2012 we made the decision to release what we had completed up to that point, and were blown away by the community’s response, feedback and improvements to our work. We want to keep that relationship alive and well by using Early Access as a tool for allowing our community to participate in the final phase of Black Mesa’s development.

In addition, we simply didn't have the resources to create Xen as we would like it. Our ambitions go beyond the original Xen section found in Half-Life. We have a standard of quality that we have to achieve. By using Early Access, we are allowed the resources to bring you the remaining chapters with the quality that you expect.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?
“We currently have the first ~85% of our single player campaign completed. For the last 15% we want to not only recreate it, but improve upon it to make it an enjoyable and memorable experience. We feel it will take us considerable time to get the last 15% up to our standards, and putting a time estimate on it would be a total guess.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?
“The conclusion of the single player campaign, with the addition of the Xen chapters
Final polish on the Earth-based chapters of the single player campaign
More multiplayer maps
More multiplayer gameplay modes”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?
“Over 10 hours of single player campaign. Multiplayer deathmatch and team deathmatch with 6 completely re-imagined Half-Life 1 maps on the Source Engine.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?
“Yes. Black Mesa will be $19.99 USD during the Early Access phase. This will be bumped up to $24.99 USD when in retail.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?
“We intend to work closely with our community as we complete the final portions of Black Mesa. We started out as a modding team aiming to do true justice to a Half-Life: Source port, and we won’t forget our roots.

The Black Mesa game hub and forums will be the primary points of interaction with our users. Many team members regularly browse these areas to discuss ideas with the community, and to show progress on game development. Community feedback will be sorted into groups and taken into account as we develop.

We also support Steam Workshop, and will be watching and encouraging developments there.”
Click to expand...
 
Wolfenstein The Old Blood and Black Mesa on the same day is too much ;S
 
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