Reviews - RandomlyChosen

Definitely some of the best Battlefront II experience I've had.I came searching for a mod that added new maps to Galactic Conquest, and I found a carefully improved experience, well balanced, engaging, fun, and showing great love for Star Wars.
I've only played the Galactic Conquest of the Republic but, although I can't comment on all the content (which is a lot) I can say that it was totally worth it.

Pros:
- New experience to spice things up.
- New and well crafted units and vehicles.
- Improved Galactic Conquest, with more variety of maps. Some planets have even more than one map, and two new planets are available.
- Greatly improved space combat. The mechanics are the same, but it's really well balanced making it faster and with more interesting fighters.
- A good selection of maps for Instant Action, with many modes to choose from.
- Greatly improved graphics, but keeping the art style uniform.
- Mod installs on a different folder from main game, and has a different executable. That way, it doesn't interfere with other mods.

Cons:
- Not compatible with Steam/GOG multiplayer.
- Shaky camera sometimes during Space Combat, when explosions happen. Nothing mayor.

Surely, Mevious is one of the most famous creators of mods and maps for the Portal series. It's clear that he really gets how to create good, logical challenges, which, at the same time, are interesting and keep the original Portal's feel. As the name suggests, this chambers are hard, compared to the base game, but the solution are always fair and logical, and may seem obvious once you reach the "aha" moment. Its new testing elements are a welcome addition too. It will keep you busy for a decent time, as it is quite long. As for the story, it mostly mirrors the one of the first game, but using original GLaDOS lines, which are very well done. Many people complain about the ending (which I won't spoil), but before judging it, keep in mind that this mod has a sequel (Rexaura). If you are in for a challenge, I can't recommend this enough!

Official exclusive levels of the Xbox 360 port. Valve quality. Some new elements, some of which made it into Portal 2. What more can I say? Didn't notice any flaw or bug in the port. The original The Flash Version Mappack, which is included, is also worth checking out.

I wouldn't generally recommend Portal mods that require twitch reflexes and crouch jumping, as I don't think that is what Portal is about... but this one is so beautifully designed and has so many interesting concepts and test elements that I think it's worth forgiving the mistakes. Once you get used to the difficult jumps it feels almost as its own game, and a very interesting and fun one. The soundtrack is also one of its redeeming points. The Extended Play expansion should deserve a separate review, as I found it even more enjoyable, as it gets rid of the questionable jumping mechanics and has some welcome surprises. I'm sure that the future Redux version will deserve a higher rating. Worth checking out!

The perfect way to replay Half-Life. It feels improved, but not changed. I have done a full playthrough of the base game and I noticed hardly any bugs, probably due to the use of an old Xash3D FWGS version, but nothing that couldn't be solved by restarting the game. The only con I can find is that I have been unable to get it to run correctly with Opposing Force, as there is a mouse bug that renders it unplayable. If that gets solved, this mod will be excellent. I should note that the Blue Shift Unlocked version linked in ModDB didn't work for me, but there's a different one linked on this mod's homepage that worked correctly.

A classic! It used to be included in Counter Strike CDs and in Half-Life Generation, along with Wanted!, another mod by Maverick. It was originally developed for PC Zone magazine. One of the oldest popular mods out there. It has its (many) flaws, though, and there are much better mods out there. I recommend playing it if you are interested in the obscure parts of Half-Life history and modding (or if you have enough free time). It acts as a sequel for the original Half-Life, taking you out of Black Mesa to find three little alien butterflies necessary for preventing an invasion on Xen. The plot is just an excuse to take you through three very different maps: an Himalayan monastery, an amusement park, and a heavily guarded facility. The first two are the strong point of the mod, as they are quite original, especially considering when this mods were made. The third one is a not always intuitive maze, which may end up feeling a bit boring. It's not an easy mod, and I definitely don't recommend playing it on hard. There are some counterintuitive things: you may get a bit lost at places, and it uses strange methods to recover health depending of the map, which you may not realize at first. It doesn't have new enemies or weapons, although it uses a new security guard model. It also has cutscenes, which may feel a little odd. All in all, this mod is not perfect, but it has some really interesting points and, very likely, Valve took some ideas from this in the development of Half-Life 2. Play it out of curiosity (or nostalgia).

A masterclass in level design which could be easily taken for official Valve or Gearbox content. It follows the common premise of letting you play as a different survivor of the Black Mesa incident, facing (mostly) the enemies you already know and using the weapons you are used to. But it really stands out from other mods, as it takes you through some very detailed new zones of Black Mesa, which feel more alive, open and detailed, knowing how to maintain, at the same time, the signature claustrophobic feel of the series. Expect and average difficulty, which some simple puzzles here and there. I never felt lost or required a walk-through, as with some other mods. I found it very intuitive.I won't spoil anything about the plot, but it delivers, being mysterious and fitting the lore. The scripted sequences never feel out of place and are really well made. Last, but not least, the graphics really stand out (for a GoldSrc mod) as it uses very detailed textures and character models. This mod is definitely worth playing and, for sure, I will be looking forward for any future works of its creator.