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Black Mesa, the re-imaging of the original Half-Life released out of Early Access recently after a long development period and it's quite brilliant. Crowbar Collective have now release the first proper post-release hotfix.

Like a lot of games it's big, complicated and bugs always slip through no matter how thorough a developer you are when testing. On the Linux side, an issue came up where some players saw visual issues across different dynamic lighting quality levels so they've changed their "internal texture formats" to hopefully solve it.

Here's what else they fixed/changed:

  • Fixed a bug related to the engine not detecting controllers
  • Fixed HECU bullet spread distribution not changing based on difficulty
  • Decreased HECU reaction time
  • Balanced damage of frag grenades used by NPCs (higher damage radius)
  • Added an option in new UI to toggle classic iron sights ON/OFF
  • Fixed Xbow classic iron sights not rendering crosshair
  • Fixed a crash related to marionettist
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You can find Black Mesa on Steam.

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16 comments
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fabertawe Apr 20, 2020
I've nearly finished my first run through and I'm enjoying it a lot. The Xen levels are gorgeous.
TheSHEEEP Apr 20, 2020
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It IS quite brillant.
Except for the Interloper chapter - wow, that was probably the most massive break of pace I've seen in a game like that.
Game goes from lots of action, shooting, dodging missiles, jumping and the occasional puzzle to...
Gigantic, long-reaching levels with lots of walking, lots of waiting (on slow-moving conveyor belts, among other things), lots of simple-yet-annoying puzzles and extremely little in the way of action.
Almost made me quit the game - just completely threw me out of the experience. And when you look around, lots of people quite strongly dislike that one chapter.

But except for that one blooper, the game is a great experience. I'd recommend it to anyone who likes FPS games.
grigi Apr 20, 2020
Seriously, Gonarch was so stressful I actually was happy for the interloper being so slow. Still stuck there, as it is very slow.
Still, Gonarch must be the most intense boss in a game I have ever played. You really get twitchy in panic of being followed/chased.
It's quite the difference when you realise that the HEV suite is so overpowering. You end up feeling a bit like a Xenomorph, so overpowered the HEV suits makes you, then you run into Gonarch... and it's so insanely powerful...
Big momma headcrab. Hungry, and later Angry top-level predator.
DamonLinuxPL Apr 20, 2020
from change log:
Quote- ToGL/Linux: Changed/tweaked internal texture formats and video options to avoid visual issues on different dynamic lighting quality levels

So Linux version use Valve ToGL? I thought it was completely native. But apparently I was wrong.
win8linux Apr 20, 2020
Quoting: GuestIts not funny when a Shotgun is like a Sniper.

In fairness to Crowbar Collective, real shotguns do actually have a surprisingly far reach compared to their gaming counterparts. BM's shotgun is one of the most accurate ones I've used yet.
CMDR_Kiel42 Apr 20, 2020
I don't quite get the hate on Interloper, I loved it. But to each their own.
(Oh also I hated every minute of On a rail when I first played the original HL, I'm so happy they cut it out)
Liam Dawe Apr 20, 2020
Quoting: DamonLinuxPLfrom change log:
Quote- ToGL/Linux: Changed/tweaked internal texture formats and video options to avoid visual issues on different dynamic lighting quality levels

So Linux version use Valve ToGL? I thought it was completely native. But apparently I was wrong.
It's a Source Engine game, and Source uses ToGL. Source 2 has native rendering.
PopeRigby Apr 20, 2020
Quoting: win8linux
Quoting: GuestIts not funny when a Shotgun is like a Sniper.

In fairness to Crowbar Collective, real shotguns do actually have a surprisingly far reach compared to their gaming counterparts. BM's shotgun is one of the most accurate ones I've used yet.

Yeah, games always get that wrong. A shotgun isn't supposed to have the range of a melee weapon. The spread of the pellets is usually pretty tight, letting them travel relatively far.
Linas Apr 21, 2020
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Quoting: PopeRigbyYeah, games always get that wrong. A shotgun isn't supposed to have the range of a melee weapon. The spread of the pellets is usually pretty tight, letting them travel relatively far.
And pistols are not sniper rifles .

TL;DR Games are not realistic. Neither are movies. It's just our perception.

Game developers have to work with a surprisingly delicate balance between "realistic" and "fun". Hollywood has given us a very twisted perception of how guns work. So if you make it too realistic, it feels less realistic, because you subconsciously expect the guns to work like they do in the movies.

But the hardest thing to simulate accurately is "you", because in the actual reality the mechanical accuracy of the gun does not mean nearly as much as the person wielding it. There are even records of actual soldiers in actual conflicts complaining that their guns were inaccurate or ineffective, whereas it was often the case that under stress and pressure they were simply not able to keep on target.

The closest I have seen is the original Operation Flashpoint, later renamed to Arma: Cold War Assault, where you would basically have no chance of hitting anything while walking around, and sprinting would make your heart race and your hands tremble. But this clearly wouldn't work for a fast paced game like Half-Life.
F.Ultra Apr 21, 2020
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Quoting: Linas
Quoting: PopeRigbyYeah, games always get that wrong. A shotgun isn't supposed to have the range of a melee weapon. The spread of the pellets is usually pretty tight, letting them travel relatively far.
And pistols are not sniper rifles .

TL;DR Games are not realistic. Neither are movies. It's just our perception.

Game developers have to work with a surprisingly delicate balance between "realistic" and "fun". Hollywood has given us a very twisted perception of how guns work. So if you make it too realistic, it feels less realistic, because you subconsciously expect the guns to work like they do in the movies.

But the hardest thing to simulate accurately is "you", because in the actual reality the mechanical accuracy of the gun does not mean nearly as much as the person wielding it. There are even records of actual soldiers in actual conflicts complaining that their guns were inaccurate or ineffective, whereas it was often the case that under stress and pressure they were simply not able to keep on target.

The closest I have seen is the original Operation Flashpoint, later renamed to Arma: Cold War Assault, where you would basically have no chance of hitting anything while walking around, and sprinting would make your heart race and your hands tremble. But this clearly wouldn't work for a fast paced game like Half-Life.

Another very realistic gun work was Brothers In Arms where the developers listened to old WW2 veterans that told them that early in the war they could empty a full clip at point blank range without hitting anything. I think most gamers finds the guns in that game "frustrating".
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