COMPLAINTS AT THE END. SPOILERS AHEAD!

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ this game is beautiful! This game really makes you feel bad for all the human NPCs, rather then laughing at the original comical distorted voice of the HECU and the "STAHP" of the scientists.

Maps

I am glad that they changed some of the design of maps (Ex: Black Mesa entrance). Some people may not be happy with Xen being very long, but I am glad because I want to enjoy the most out of my 20$ that I spent on this game, and after beating it, I can say that this game is worth all the money you spend on it.

Soundtrack

I find myself listening to the soundtrack all the time, Nielsen did a fantastic job and I'm glad he stayed throughout all its development. Xen's soundtrack is my favorite though.

Weapons
The weapons have mostly stayed loyal to their original design, I very much like what Crowbar Collective has done with the Tau, and its impossible not to feel bad when throwing the adorable snarks at your enemies.

Xen

Finally, there's Xen. I think its obvious that this is the most beautiful part of Black Mesa, being about 9 years in development. They turned what was a half an hour platforming puzzle into a living ecosystem. Each environment was stunning and never made me lose interest, and the Gonarch's new look and battle sequence was phenomenal. I first played on the hard mode difficulty and it didn't feel like I was too short on ammo when I needed it. Next is Interloper, you are first greeted by the dark orange and red space, and the 2 tentacles hitting the ground. This chapter shows the lives of enslaved vortigaunts, and the God-forbidden sounds of the controllers. I really like how Crowbar Collective made HL1 make sense to the HL2 lore, making vortigaunts friendly, unless controllers take over them. Instead of the encounter with 1 gargantuan and luring it out for it to be killed by a tree or to kill it yourself, you are chased by a bunch of them, with intense music playing to add to the feel. The alien factory is a long put puzzle filled way up, the gluon/tau is your best friend in this part. You will fight stronger versions of the alien grunts you fought on earth, on the hard difficulty, alien elites can survive a direct rocket hit. The puzzles will change the more you go up the factory. These crystals that regenerate your gluon gun is the only source of ammunition you're going to have for a while. The lift all the way to the top shows how desperate the controllers are to stop you. After the ride, you will enter a lab with things from Black Mesa that the aliens wanted to analyze, including some weapon boxes, you can grab them for some ammo.

Nihillanth

When comparing this to HL1's Nihillanth battle, HL1's final battle feels really dull. He now has spinning shields around the crystals that have to be broken. You get ammo and healing from item capsules teleported around and parts of Black Mesa that the Nihillanth teleports in. Instead of the annoying portals, he is now equipped with a larger array of attacks, requiring you to be more engaged. Instead of jumping on pads to shoot at his head, you now have to fight him until his head opens and shoot the crystal within.

End Chapter

You first start by being teleported outside the Nihillanth's lair and seeing it explode, time stops and Gman greets you. The voice actor is not the best, but not the worst. Instead of just being teleported instantly to a bunch of alien troops, a cool scene happens where the tram breaks apart as you get sent into a red portal that leads to the alien troops retreating, then noticing you.


Problems

Too many houndeyes in Xen, although the basic ones can be killed with a single shotgun blast to the face on every difficulty, there's a lot of them and it sometimes gets annoying, and theres 2 new types, a one that explodes upon contact and shooting, and a tankier version that knocks you back more.
The chopper fight after obtaining the rocket launcher is quite tough. While the regular chopper goes down in 1-3 hits, on the hard difficulty, I spent about 7 rockets to take him down.
A lot more HECU, combine this with their advanced AI and you've got quite a battle. On the plus, you can now throw back grenades at them. The shotgun marine reflexes are bogus, shooting you almost in an instant within range.

Nice game, Crowbar Collective.

COMPLAINTS AT THE END. SPOILERS AHEAD! God DAMN this game is beautiful! This game really makes you feel bad for all the human NPCs, rather then laughing at the original comical distorted voice of the HECU and the "STAHP" of the scientists. Maps I am glad that they changed some of the design of maps (Ex: Black Mesa entrance). Some people may not be happy with Xen being very long, but I am glad because I want to enjoy the most out of my 20$ that I spent on this game, and after beating it, I can say that this game is worth all the money you spend on it. Soundtrack I find myself listening to the soundtrack all the time, Nielsen did a fantastic job and I'm glad he stayed throughout all its development. Xen's soundtrack is my favorite though. Weapons The weapons have mostly stayed loyal to their original design, I very much like what Crowbar Collective has done with the Tau, and its impossible not to feel bad when throwing the adorable snarks at your enemies. Xen Finally, there's Xen. I think its obvious that this is the most beautiful part of Black Mesa, being about 9 years in development. They turned what was a half an hour platforming puzzle into a living ecosystem. Each environment was stunning and never made me lose interest, and the Gonarch's new look and battle sequence was phenomenal. I first played on the hard mode difficulty and it didn't feel like I was too short on ammo when I needed it. Next is Interloper, you are first greeted by the dark orange and red space, and the 2 tentacles hitting the ground. This chapter shows the lives of enslaved vortigaunts, and the God-forbidden sounds of the controllers. I really like how Crowbar Collective made HL1 make sense to the HL2 lore, making vortigaunts friendly, unless controllers take over them. Instead of the encounter with 1 gargantuan and luring it out for it to be killed by a tree or to kill it yourself, you are chased by a bunch of them, with intense music playing to add to the feel. The alien factory is a long put puzzle filled way up, the gluon/tau is your best friend in this part. You will fight stronger versions of the alien grunts you fought on earth, on the hard difficulty, alien elites can survive a direct rocket hit. The puzzles will change the more you go up the factory. These crystals that regenerate your gluon gun is the only source of ammunition you're going to have for a while. The lift all the way to the top shows how desperate the controllers are to stop you. After the ride, you will enter a lab with things from Black Mesa that the aliens wanted to analyze, including some weapon boxes, you can grab them for some ammo. Nihillanth When comparing this to HL1's Nihillanth battle, HL1's final battle feels really dull. He now has spinning shields around the crystals that have to be broken. You get ammo and healing from item capsules teleported around and parts of Black Mesa that the Nihillanth teleports in. Instead of the annoying portals, he is now equipped with a larger array of attacks, requiring you to be more engaged. Instead of jumping on pads to shoot at his head, you now have to fight him until his head opens and shoot the crystal within. End Chapter You first start by being teleported outside the Nihillanth's lair and seeing it explode, time stops and Gman greets you. The voice actor is not the best, but not the worst. Instead of just being teleported instantly to a bunch of alien troops, a cool scene happens where the tram breaks apart as you get sent into a red portal that leads to the alien troops retreating, then noticing you. Problems Too many houndeyes in Xen, although the basic ones can be killed with a single shotgun blast to the face on every difficulty, there's a lot of them and it sometimes gets annoying, and theres 2 new types, a one that explodes upon contact and shooting, and a tankier version that knocks you back more. The chopper fight after obtaining the rocket launcher is quite tough. While the regular chopper goes down in 1-3 hits, on the hard difficulty, I spent about 7 rockets to take him down. A lot more HECU, combine this with their advanced AI and you've got quite a battle. On the plus, you can now throw back grenades at them. The shotgun marine reflexes are bogus, shooting you almost in an instant within range. Nice game, Crowbar Collective.