I just hope the LJ controls a little better than it does right now. I makes it far harder to crouch-jump, as it is.
So we did some calculations in the Hazard Course Alpha Tester Skype chat, and we came up with something like a maximum speed offset of 0.7 m/s if Gordon actually used a fire extinguisher to try and maneuver around Xen. That’s about 75% average walking speed, mind you, and in practice the actual speed offset would be less due to various inefficiencies.
Needless to say, I don’t think using a fire extinguisher is a good idea. 
What about the gluon gun or tau cannon. I see no problem with this.
That could work.
I just got this hilarious image of Gordon with Wall-E’s head badly photoshopped on flying around Zen by using his Gluon Gun/fire hose screaming “ZEN BLACK MESA IS BEST BLACK MESA”
There’s artists on this forum, right? Somebody draw it.
I was laughing about the idea of the fire extinguisher myself… 
I watched Gravity an amazing film and I got the idea from when she jumps out the hatch with the fire extinguisher . It was fun anyway
I want to see this. DO 'EET!
how dare you. It was an excellent piece of foreshadowing and a very memorable part of the game. I remembered it as a little kid, it was amazing.
I agree, loneliness is a big part of the feel. My brother and I felt we had to cheat to get through Xen, it really took a toll on us.
Something important to note is that the original Xen actually DID contain lots of foreshadowing. A small part is that you can see Gonarch’s Lair through the portal leading to it. Really, look closer.
Second of all, the Nihilanth is alluded to. A lot. He speaks to you whenever you teleport, and frankly, maybe it’s a little too much and too predictable. If you were walking through a cave, and you suddenly heard that voice, maybe with some visual distortion or illusions, THAT would be creepy. And as you jumped from island to island in that final void, he’d talk to you rather than just when you got there… I would like the Nihilanth to be terrifying even before you see him. And, of course, when you do.
Speaking of that place, I like how his portal is so hellish and unnatural, and how you can see it all the way as you get jump closer and closer to it. And how when you’re standing next to it, you can hear the scientists from the very beginning (Bookends, like the top of my post), concerned about your safety as shit goes down, rebuilding your faith and confidence in humankind… It’s a great buildup and execution, the portal itself just needs a proper makeover
Been playing HL & 2 and the rest since its been out! I don’t understand the bad feelings here for the Xen part of HL. of course it was a major shift in feeling from Black Mesa, it’s not just another planet, it’s a whole different universe! I never thought of it as lesser or inferior part of the game, just the Xen part. So I disagree with the notion that it should be changed as much as possible just because it can be done. You can like it or dislike it, but do NOT betray it.
As for particulars – yes, I do like the idea that we could find some of our own installations, as in Blue Shift.
I think it would be possible that weapons caches could have been teleported in by themselves, just for that purpose; I don’t think we should necessarily be restricted to just what we can scavenge off of dead comrades. It might be difficult making it clear to the player, though, just why he can find caches like that without providing some explanation. Alternately, perhaps ammo could be even scarcer, and some new alien weapon provided to compensate.
Xen is tough, but so tough that nobody has survived? I can see a few tough cookies who have held out over there and are ready to fight with Gordon, much as he has the Resistance in HL2. Besides, who can say that time passes the same way in Xen? Maybe someone who had disappeared from Black Mesa 2 months ago has only been in Xen for a couple of hours, from his point of view.
In general – run with the physics of HL2, and make more physics-based puzzles, but without losing the flaky stuff that made the original what it is. I mean, I thought the floating islands and blowholes and things were great, you definitely felt you were in an alien universe.
Finally, I will agree that once you’ve found the “chicken” way to fight the Nihilanth, it’s pretty pat. Last time I played, I hid behind the one stone pylon and took him out with nothing but the crossbow; finished the sequence in minutes. No teleporting to the other caves, no bouncing around the walls. I actually went back and did it again just to play through the 3 (?) other areas. On the other hand, you don’t want it so hard it becomes a misery. Now THAT is the quickest way to kill the pleasure of a fun and well-crafted game. (There have been a couple of mods that did that.) Tho speaking of which, the only part of HL that came close to that was one of those Nihilanth side-trips, where you have the underwater lake with the ichthy in it, and you have to bounce up to the ceiling and hit the teleport globe. I remember that getting pretty tedious a couple of times: but that is a rather petty complaint considering the size of the game.
Well, I’ll shut up there. Just wanted to stand up for Xen and toss in a thought or two. Really looking forward to your final product!
Agreed with this, and I believe this is supported by canon material. I believe in Half-Life (although it could be in Opposing Force that this happens) that we see stuff teleporting into Xen. We can see a scientist get tele’d in, only for him to fall into the bottomless starry expanse. If that’s the case, what’s not to say other things tele’d in and landed safely?
Plus if Gordon isn’t wearing a helmet, this mean Xen’s atmosphere is habitable, and if we believe Blue Shift to be canon, since Barney is not wearing any sort of gas protection like Adrian and Gordon do, then it’s proof positive.
also there is the one living scientist in the final bosses chamber, that supports teh habitable part. For all we know the helmets are there to protect against head crabs and other hazards.
Though I think it would be cool for gordon to get a helmet in xen, for my reasoning see the last level of half life 2 where the power stations bring the armor up to 200, the helmet would just be like that only would change the max to 150 or something, and give a screen border.
Seeing as it isn’t Black Mesa per se, can it be called Xen Odyssey (or Black Mesa: Xen Odyssey)? It seems like a really good name for this venture.
Hey, what about “Hazardous Environments”?
Surviving scientists with fighting capability might be stretching the artistic liberties of adaption a bit, even if it makes sense. The sense of loneliness and other-worldliness is an integral part of Xen.
I will admit that it’s a cool idea, though, and I’m still kinda vouching for reestablishing contact with Earth at some point. If Xen is indeed expanded to a credible length, this kind of stuff should definitely be saved for later in the game.
I actually have a question: Those dead soldiers at the end of the original game: Were they supposed to be in Xen? Do you think we will be seeing anything else of the Whole “Xen is in our control, for the time being” thing?
I’d prefer absolutely no live contact with Earth in any form, but I’d be completely okay with in-depth, albeit lonely, exploration of failed Black Mesa outposts on Xen; I’ve always thought that one of the Xen chapters should be set entirely on the largest Black Mesa base in Xen (which is still incredibly tiny in comparison to any one section of the BMRF).
No, the dead soldiers were supposed to be on earth, but due to limitations of the GoldSource engine the skybox was that of xen and not earth.
Like this, right? Make it more ruined, of course. Scientists were kidnapped by the Xenians, the scientist that sends you off says so. In one of the beta maps, you can actually see what came of them, 5 minutes in here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DfVfq150Vaw. These old maps are a bit more [COLOR=‘Black’]nostalgic atmospheric than the retail ones, IMO.
In the base, there should be basically the same stuff you’d find in a space station, with the addition of cages for captured specimens… and zombified scientists.
So how was the skybox changed without loading a new map in OpFor’s ending?
Possibly a painted-on texture brush rather than skybox geometry?
think they just took a room and gave it a sky texture.