Half-Life : The Beginning mod

Half-Life : The Beginning is different from many of the other mods around in the way that there is no definitive game play 'modes'. However there are 3 definable themes that are present throughout all maps. These are listed below:

• Cooperative Team Play (Common objectives)
• Team Deathmatch (No Objectives)
• Opposing Team Play (Differing Objectives)

Cooperative Team Play

In a game based on this rule set players from both teams will find themselves working together in order to survive the map and / or complete its respective objectives. The teams will, as the title suggests, be working together in a cooperative format. Therefore friendly fire is discouraged but not impossible. This means that friendly fire is still a very dangerous possibility. Maps are likely to have at least one objective and in some cases more. It is without doubt that these maps will be heavily populated with NPC enemies. Players will gain points for killing monsters but this is not the main concern. If a player approach’s a map with the intent of increasing their frag count it is probable that they will die often. The NPC characters in HL:TB are considerably more powerful than they were in single player Half-Life.

Team Deathmatch

Team deathmatch is exactly what it says on the label. The player chooses a team and then aims to kill the other. There are no rules to this sort of game, none at all. TK’ing is possible but discouraged because there are bound to be many more “Team Orientated” players than there will be gung-ho characters who like to kill their teammates. Team Deathmatch is really just HLDM with HL:TB’s weapons and teams. Hold tight for this one, its going to be hectic.

Opposing Team Play

This rule set is proving to be as popular as Cooperative Team Play with the mappers. Upon choosing a team the player will have to fulfill ‘their’ objectives and prevent the other team from completing theirs. Deceptively simple in theory yet it leads to complex and exciting running gun battles as people fight and defend at choke points. The 2.2-second respawn delay is enough to discourage ‘rush’ tactics but not too long as to bore the player. However those 2.2 seconds could be crucial in defending the last hallway into a reactor core!

Game Flow

The principles of a HLTB game are simple enough. Upon entering a map the player is presented with the map specific briefing. Once this has been read the player can choose a team. The two teams available have already been explained prior to this section. After choosing a Team the player spawns in the map. They could spawn in a room surrounded only by players of the same team (Cooperative Team Play), in mixed company (Opposing Team Play) or in random places on the map (Team Deathmatch). Weapon allocations are based on the team chosen. Other weapons can be found on the bodies of Allies, enemies and in realistic locations (shelves, crates etc). The accuracy of some weapons will depend on the team that the player is assigned to. Because as can be appreciated the HEET have been trained with their expedition weapons to a far greater degree than any of the military personnel would have been and vice versa. When the player is killed (regardless of cause) they will respawn 2.2 seconds later. In Cooperative and Deathmatch mode this is merely an inconvenience but in an Opposing Team Play game those 2.2 seconds could be just the amount of time needed for the enemy to penetrate your teams outer defenses and complete their objectives. Your life is precious but not terminal. A player can respawn as many times as needed throughout the game. Although the continuous respawning element detracts from the feeling of being a small team trapped in a lethal predicament it does keep the game fun!