Xen just ended up too long, imo. They should have released it as a free DLC and stayed more true to the source.
I really felt like the pacing suffered too much as a consequence. Everything up until then gives you the impression that you are heading towards the grand finale and Black Mesa is suddenly like: “Solve some more puzzles for the next 2-3 hours”.
I agree with you. For this reason I prefer the original Xen. It was bad, but at least it was short. Black Mesa’s Xen is mediocre, but way too long. They overdid it.
Both Black Mesa and the original are great. I’ve played both almost back to back, and I enjoyed both.
There are things the original does better, and there are things Black Mesa does better. Personally I slightly prefer the original.
Half Life 2 is a masterpiece, and you don’t need to play the original to appreciate it.
spoiler
Xen just ended up too long, imo. They should have released it as a free DLC and stayed more true to the source.
I really felt like the pacing suffered too much as a consequence. Everything up until then gives you the impression that you are heading towards the grand finale and Black Mesa is suddenly like: “Solve some more puzzles for the next 2-3 hours”.
I liked it but that really threw me off.
spoiler
I agree with you. For this reason I prefer the original Xen. It was bad, but at least it was short. Black Mesa’s Xen is mediocre, but way too long. They overdid it.