Half-Life revolutionized the first-person shooter when it released in 1998, what with its top shelf storytelling and novel puzzles. But who needs any of that crap? What if there was a game that turned the clock back just like, a year or two—same alien menace, some of the same innovations, but it plays a hell of a lot more like Quake. No, I’m not talking about Unreal, I’m talking about Half-Life: Element 64, a fresh mod that released a demo today on Steam.
After spending some time with that demo, I can say it’s more of an asset flip into an original game with new levels and music than a mod merely tweaking Half-Life’s mechanics. There’s no train ride, no resonance cascade, nothing waiting for you in the test chamberrr; it drops you into a level select hub not unlike Quake, HEV suit and all, and from there you’ll be blasting away head crabs and vortigaunts in a matter of seconds.
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The levels, too, are remixed into more straightforward shooting galleries. Hitscanning marines and aliens lurk around every corner, so you’re never waiting long between firefights (for which your guns have been provided a pleasantly centered viewmodel). There are secrets to find and an enemy counter tracking your bad guys slain, making the whole affair feel a bit like id Software’s Half-Life.
I don’t enjoy the original Half-Life’s gunplay as much as Quake’s or Doom 2’s, but Element 64 maintains a good sense of challenge in its demo with scarce ammo and health pickups. Be ready to pull out the crowbar every now and again.
The full release is set to have four episodes with a host of missions each, and the challenge should only escalate with each new addition. As the Steam page says of the final chapter. “only the most skillful MIT graduates will survive this!”
No release date for the full mod has been announced yet, but developer Dark Vector is already rolling out hotfix to polish up the demo in the meantime. In two weeks, the same team is set to release Half-Life Arena, a deathmatch overhaul “inspired by the Head-to-Head mode of the PS2 version of Valve’s timeless classic.”
It’s funny how things come full circle. In an era where Doom games have lore logs and fan wikis dedicated to documenting every last detail, modders are nixing the narrative bits from Half-Life to make it more like its ancestors. If we’re lucky, the definitely-soon-to-be-announced Half-Life 3 will basically be Ultrakill if it starred a physics major.
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