About
This is a single player Half-Life 2 mod, being made by just one person. His name is Thomas “Stadric Gonzalez” Kelley and there are currently two beta maps available for you to test. As always the author is looking for some insightful and intelligent feedback, so please play the maps and post your comments here.
Basic Details
- Title: As I Lay Dying
- Author’s Website: Thomas “Stadric Gonzalez” Kelley
- Author’s Email: aildfeedback@gmail.com
- Download Cave Beta: PlanetPhillip Filecloud Server
- Download Tramride Beta: PlanetPhillip Filecloud Server
Screenshots
Click on the thumbnails below to open a medium size image.
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14 Comments
SP Map Corner Syndicated Review
Rating: C (69%)
Play Time: 10 Minutes
Review:
This is the second release from the author (check is site for the other one that isn’t bad too). This one can be, I think, considered as a totally playable and enjoyable DEMO map. In this one (like the title explain it without any doubt) you will pass most of the time in a…cave. The design starts slowly in a simple squared room were you will take you HEV suit that is in charge (you can cut the power) and after you will try to get out when you hear an explosion in the toilet room. There is a hole in the ground that will lead you to the cave quite well build with a high atmosphere full of Quake and RTCW spirit. Design is average to above average (more through the effect use by the author that are cool but i won’t spoil them). The atmosphere especially in the cave is enhanced by sounds. Combats are not really present (but will be perhaps more part of the upcoming entire release). Progression and puzzles are easy and you are more in place to enjoy them than getting nervous not beating them. Ending is a little wierd and abrupt but certianly manage to make us seen more from the author.
Conclusion:
Even if the release is short in playtime (but certainly not in construction time) and can suffer from the absence of real gameplay or lack of fluidity to the theme visited (difficult to mix a medieval cave with futuristic train ride), it’s worth to play it through and appreciate the neat effect that the author add to is map.
Copyright:
This review was written by Stef and first appeared on SP Map Corner and is republished by express permission.
Ah man this map looks good, will give it a try – am however wracking my videogame-damaged brain trying to think of an old HL1 mod which looks a lot like this, can anyone tell me what it is? 1) Starts off with a women talking about the local scientists from ‘that base’ 2) You then discover an entrance to an underground cave in a house 3) There’s a waterfall down there.. that’s all I can remember.
Your description sounds familiar to “Dwell” for Half Life. You enter a series of underground caves via the basement of a house.
OK the maps are that great being done by only a person. the water reflections on the ss made me dl tath. now, as i lay dying is also a metal band and … u should pay royalties (laughs like Grigory).
This guy maps with style.
I enjoyed playing theses a lot.
one wierd thing is that some of the screenshots shown here I didnt see an either of the maps…
I believe you are correct cubedude. Unless we missed something very important, I didn’t see a lot of the sceenies in the game either. Perhaps it’s part of the bigger mod? The info did say that these were only two maps for beta testing.
I enjoyed the train ride but didn’t like it too much when I had to get out of it to get it going again. When I saw the first blue sizzle screen coming at me, I thought it would slap me right in the face & the train keeps going, but NOT! How come in some areas, they are passable, others, they are not?
I’m the modder in question.
I just now got Phillip’s email about adding this, and while I would’ve appreciated him waiting for a response first, I’m not complaining…much.
I actually emailed Phillip only a moment ago in response to him hosting AILD here.
Firstly, As I Lay Dying is the title of a book by William Faulkner, which he took from Homer’s “The Odyssey”, when Agamemnon speaks to Odysseus, “As I lay dying, the woman with the dog’s eyes would not close my eyes as I descended into Hades.” That’s where the band got their name. It’s copyright has already expired, I’m sure.
As for the screenshots that aren’t from Cave or Tram Ride, they’re from levels that don’t have betas out yet. They’ll all be included in the final release. Whoever put up the explanation failed to state that fact, so there it is.
As for inspiration, the only inspiration I had was for the last level, which will be a mostly faithful recreation of Hyperblast 2 from Unreal Tournament 2004.
Goddess, I don’t know what you’re talking about, I’ve never had a problem with one of those fields being solid. Please email me back at aildfeedback@gmail.com with the specifics of your problem, so that I can fix it.
Lastly, don’t let the review phase you from playing the mod. That review applies to the beta version of cave, which, if I might say so myself, is a product of my younger self. The final release will be much more polished, and testing will eliminate most, if not all, bugs.
Check the website for updates:
http://www.halfwit-2.com/aild
[quote comment="70430"]Goddess, I don’t know what you’re talking about, I’ve never had a problem with one of those fields being solid. Please email me back at aildfeedback@gmail.com with the specifics of your problem, so that I can fix it.[/quote]
I wasn’t saying there was a bug or problem. Usually, the blue fields won’t let you progress unless you deactivate them or unplug them but I realize you’re on a “combine tram” so I guess the tram itself grounds you from being zapped by them. Whereas in the prison area, that one zaps you but that’s because it’s a prison cell. When you are on the actual ride itself, what’s the point of having the blue fields anyway?
The only problems for me were that the tram would not go steadily in some places unless you moved around a little bit.
[quote comment="70430"]I’m the modder in question.
Lastly, don’t let the review phase you from playing the mod. That review applies to the beta version of cave, which, if I might say so myself, is a product of my younger self. The final release will be much more polished, and testing will eliminate most, if not all, bugs.
[/quote]
I think it was clear in my ‘review’ that this was just a demo that looks promising but needed more work, whish is actual the phase Just hope you don’t find it to critic
Goddess, I got and responded to your email.
Stef, I appreciate the review, and I will take your advice into consideration. Thank you for taking the time to review this smear on the windshield that is the internet.
wow, these are some cool demo maps, really interesting architechture and game flows. some things need polishing, sure, got stuck on the key and had to noclip out and the tram was a bit ’sticky’, however the promise is evident and i look fwd to much more from aild!
I’ve played both the cave and tramride and would really like to play the finished mod. The Cave was pretty good IMHO.
Really good work! These demos look alot different from others. They have a modern and futuristic feel to them yet still seems like a HL mod and not some total conversion. Great idea and really nice looking demos-looking forward to the finished product.