About
This mod offers you a couple of differences from most other Half-Life 2 mods. Firstly, you are a monk in a temple and your weapon is your hand, strangely it has similar power to a gravity gun. The second difference is the ability to pole-vault. Yes, that’s right, pole vault.
The screenshots are not in the exact level order to avoid you feeling that you know what is coming.
Basic Details
- Title: Zen Monastery
- File Name: hl2-sp-zen-monastery.rar
- Size : 31.08Mb
- Authors: Team Gasket
- Date Released: 21 April 2007
Reviews
Syndicated Reviews
Files
Screenshots
Click on the thumbnails below to open a medium size image. Viewing the screeshots *MAY* spoil the mod for you!
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Reader Recommendations
7 recommendations, average score: 4.14 (out of 5), standard deviation: 2.12
Broken Link?
Check out FileFront Direct, it lists every file I have, for posts with non-working links.
Published
20th July 2007
Categories
Half-Life 2, Single Player Mods and Maps
Tags
New GameplayGet the most from the comments
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24 Comments
20th July 2007
Review
I have a lot of respect for developers who introduce and try something new. This mod does both. The gameplay is generally standard throughout but the setting and weapons are not. Your main weapon is a type of hand-produced spell, that is upgraded later in the game. The levels are quite boxy until you reach the outdoor area then things improved.
Negatives
- Gameplay was a little boring.
- The level changes. (Again!)
- Lack of a challenge.
Positives
- The concept.
- The Pole vaulting.
Conclusion
If you are looking for something new then this mod will interest you. I have no hesitation in giving this mod a “Play It Now!” but only because it offers something new, not becasue it was great fun to play.
All in all, it was worth the download and the play time, around 25 minutes, but is certainly not a mod I would replay.
My Recommendation
20th July 2007
The pole vaulting was a lot of fun once I’d got the hang of it. The story was original and fun. The mapping, though basic, had some original ideas.
The problem was it was all rather clumsily put together – the map changes were abrupt and the hand weapon didn’t flow like I felt it should for a Zen Monk.
If it wasn’t for the pole vaulting and the unique end game bad guy I’d say Consider It but it was fun and different enough to say…
21st July 2007
The installer did not install anything anywhere. It said “Output folder: \zenmon”, but it didn’t actually create it anywhere. Every single file said “Skipped”. I have Steam in a non-default location, could that be it? Is there a zipped version of this I can just extract to my SourceMods folder?
21st July 2007
I like this one, too bad they don’t have the polevault in the main HL2 game, that was fun! To #3 you have to have the default Steam location for this one!
21st July 2007
Does anyone know how to contact the author?
21st July 2007
I will compress the folder you later today but will not email it to you for a number of reasons. I will post a link in the basic details. Also I believe that gmail limits the attachment size to 10Mb.
One possible immediate solution would be to create an empty Steam folder installation in the standard location and see if the folder will install in there and then copy it to you ral location.
Regarding contacting the author, have you tried the Team Gasket page? I haven’t looked carefully, perhaps there is an email address on there.
Lastly I have removed your email address because that’s a new PP policy: no email addresses in comments.
21st July 2007
I created C:\Program Files\Steam\SteamApps\SourceMods, but it did not work either.
The only contact info is a general info email address on the DigiPen website. I did just send an email inquiring about Team Gasket.
I didn’t know I wasn’t allowed to post email addresses in the comments, sorry about that. The file size limit for Gmail is 20 MB now, by the way.
Thanks for the help, I’ll look for a link to the zipped version later.
21st July 2007
I’m uploading a compressed .rar version. I don’t use .zip
The strange thing is that the compressed file is approximately 60MB, twice as much as the .exe I always use the maximum compression.
Anyway, once it’s uploaded I will post a link.
21st July 2007
I’ve uploaded it but the MD5 hash didn’t match my local copy, so I am downloading it to test it before I delete it and start again.
21st July 2007
I’ve added the link under the main download graphic. I think the MD5 hash is d9ifferent because of the PlanetPhillip.readMe.txt file.
I downloaded the file and it opened with no problems, remember, it may not work by simply copying the folder into your SourceMods folder, although I don’t see why not. I’m just covering my back!
21st July 2007
I’ll save you the trouble of this up/download stuff, I removed the extracted files, folder name “zenmon” from my Steam sourcemods, and put them in a non legit (shame on me) HL2 folder on my other computer. I tried all this folder stuff you are talking about, and it still won’t work! You got to have a “real” Valve/Steam/sourcemods HL2 game to make it work!
21st July 2007
That might be because it’s a non-legit installation.
One possible option is for me to delete my working zenmon folder and then copy the newly download one. Of course it might still work for me and not you because it’s a copy of th folder from my installation!
The file has been downloaded by somebody else besides me, so perhaps that person can report back.
22nd July 2007
I’m not sure what you mean by non-legit. I have a Steam account, and only changed the destination of the Steam folder; i.e., F:\Games\Steam instead of C:\Program Files\Steam. Steam does not create a Valve folder, only a bought game on CD/DVD does as far as I know.
I downloaded and extracted the compressed file you posted, and it shows up in Steam as Gasket Mod. I’ll run it a little later and see what happens. Thanks for helping out!
22nd July 2007
anyone know why the “shrine3″ map doesn’t load. It ends shrine2 and loads the very short week9 map then loads the courtyard map where you battle the dragon, then fades to black. That’s it. Something’s wrong. Any takers?
22nd July 2007
It works fine, thanks again!
22nd July 2007
I’ve tried both dl at the top, twice each. The mod will not load shrine3 map. Loading manually I lose, suit, and everything. Cheating to get everything I had at end of shrine2 map doesn’t work. When picking up scroll from 1st ledge on right, I get a pistol instead of scroll. I give up. No since in trying to complete this if it’s not loading properly.
23rd July 2007
I am only a short way into this mess and cannot recommend it. As I am only in a short way that is subject to change.
23rd July 2007
except problem for launching it (i used the console and the black screen after defeating the dragon, everything seems to work fine i didn’t like the pole vault not easy enough to manage but the idea was interesting, design was pretty messy with a mixed theme full of combine??? and a sometime surpising environment especially when you open an out of context door to load the next map also message didn’t appear for a correct time so you don’t follow esaily the storyline a miss to amnient sound and music is also a negative point.
So I have a mixed feeling
+ battle with dragon, new weapons, idea
- design, missing of sound and music (would have add defenetly a monastary feeling with boudha songs), uncoherent cohesion between maps, combine???
so i can only
but defenetly would like to see another mod using their source…
24th July 2007
I finished by cheating right, left and center and my opinion is:
24th September 2007
Gameplay:
You take the role of a monk and the shrine you’re in is under attack. This one would have been a really dull experience if it wasn’t for the few new features included during play. The first weapon you own is basically your hand which acts quite like the primary gravity gun fire but you can also attack enemies and shoot far away objects. This gets upgraded a little later, giving you a secondary fire mode.
Then other feature is pole-vaulting which can be used as a weapon as well. Some places in the maps can be too high for the player to get to, which makes the pole-vault quite fun. Then of course the final boss, which is a dragon can be slightly enjoyable to fight against but the whole mod doesn’t come across as a satisfying experience and could have been better. The only enemies beside the boss you encounter are Combine Soldiers throughout each map, is small, boring packs.
Design:
Very average level design throughout which is structurally simplistic except for the exterior entrance map, but could have been much better. Lighting is below average which lacks mood and looks really bad in some areas leaving a lot of dark, boring patches throughout. There was also some intense blue lighting in early stages which is not good for my eyes. Level transitions are also quite terrible, no sense of flow between maps and feel awkward when doing so. Finally the level design doesn’t come across as anything memorable but it’s bearable to play through.
Conclusion:
Quite a dull experience, except for the new features and boss fight, which is set in some average looking levels with bad transition between them.
Rating: 65%
26th October 2007
Choppy feel, ok gameplay, but excellent as a proof of concept. I like the monk/spiritual idea, maybe develop that beyond ‘monk with an energy gun’? Pole vaulting is fun, too.
22nd March 2008
Dam this is good mod but kind a short
10th April 2008
damn i sure loved that mode!!!! its short but very fun and i wounder cuz after i killed the dragon my screen turned black and nothing happoned and i just pressed f10 i dont know if i finished it is it the end?!
27th July 2008
This was cool but way too short. Loved the pole vaulting concept, and a NEW a.i creature. The 1st one I think I’ve ever encountered in all these HL2 Mods ive played up till now(100 approx).