MINERVA: Episodic, Single-Player Half-Life 2

MINERVA Development Environment, v2.0 -

Well, the iMac finally arrived a few weeks ago. It works very nicely, and is considerably faster at compiling maps than the old MacBook Pro. In fact, it's hardly had a chance to play at being a Mac - I installed Windows XP on it the evening after delivery, and it's been running the Source SDK almost ever since.

*cough* And occasionally the Team Fortress 2 beta...

Oh, and that 'MINERVA' thing? To be released on Monday evening, all going well. And all does appear to be going well!

Article Comments (now closed)

Esvandiary's gravatar

1. Gah, why do you taunt us so...

Posted by Esvandiary at 7:49PM, Friday September 28 2007

... and why did I even bother to ask that question? You exist solely to infuriate and ring the aforementioned bell so us canine acolytes can drool some more... Food, we want FOOOOD!!!

Ahem.

Anyhow... Now I have to rely on Valve to start the Ep2/Portal preload before Sunday, or the Bristol University's Excessive Bandwidth Usage SWAT team will be kicking in the door by next weekend.

(And since Sunday is two days away and tomorrow isn't a working day, that seems distinctly unlikely, unless they're going to flick a switch 5 minutes before they knock off work for the weekend...)

Flobster's gravatar

2. Heretic

Posted by Flobster at 8:15PM, Friday September 28 2007

You missed the 30th by one day?? The great god Lombardi shall smite thee down like a dog, as a penalty you must torture a room of screaming fans with an unrelated teaser video.

Baffled's gravatar

3. Caffeine Mania

Posted by Baffled at 8:17PM, Friday September 28 2007

Oh please tell me that, finally, this is really it!

But seeing those Coke cans and that Coffee mug, I have a terrible fear that Adam may be suffering from Caffeine Mania, the symptoms of which can include the following:

" ... silliness, elation, euphoria, confusion, disorientation, excitation, and even violent behavior with wild, inanic screaming, kicking and biting, progressing to semi-stupor.”

http://caffeineweb.com/?cat=7

Please let me be in error, I can hardly believe that we are so near after so long....

Au-heppa's gravatar

4. October 1

Posted by Au-heppa at 8:25PM, Friday September 28 2007

October 1?

danidomen's gravatar

5. AT LAST!

Posted by danidomen at 8:30PM, Friday September 28 2007

HURRA!

Well Adam, if you release Minerva on Monday at last, you make me the most happy man of the world!

Yar Kramer's gravatar

6. To quote the Predator

Posted by Yar Kramer at 11:18PM, Friday September 28 2007

"Ho ho ho ho ho. HURRR hur hur hur hur. HRAAA hraa hraa hraa hraa. HRAA HA HA HA HA ..." *cue self-destruct beepy-noises ... no wait*

Thanatos's gravatar

7. Minerva and Orange Box

Posted by Thanatos at 11:27PM, Friday September 28 2007

Orange Box and Minerva in the same month please be true so i can put my brand new Quad Core and 8800GTS through the paces.

Baffled's gravatar

8. Toucan play at that game

Posted by Baffled at 11:49PM, Friday September 28 2007

What is that, I spy beside the iMac?

Could it be a Bird Of Good Omen?

Auspicious indeed!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auspice

MrHappy's gravatar

9. Omens

Posted by MrHappy at 12:18AM, Saturday September 29 2007

Yesterday I was driving, lost in a shitty section of town. Everywhere I went burned out buildings and homeless people laughing. Laughing at me. I made turn after turn, onto sidestreet after sidestreet, desperately hoping to find my way from this rat's maze back to the highway.

I stopped at run-down Chinese restaurant to get my bearings, hoping I could find some light to guide me. I did not understand how I had gotten into this position, why I could not find my way. It was as if some maniacal force, some entity or deity had their on my shoulder, steering me into paths convoluted and dangerous.

And then I looked up.

And I saw.

And I understood.


I went back today, braving the deathly scene to capture a digital record for my fellow acolytes.

http://i136.photobucket.com/albums/q192/MrHappy_photos/DSCN1048.jpg

Divals's gravatar

10. Re: Omens

Posted by Divals at 12:32AM, Saturday September 29 2007

Excellent :D

Bhavik's gravatar

11. WOOOOOOOOOOPppppppppppeeeeeeeeeeeeee

Posted by Bhavik at 12:56AM, Saturday September 29 2007

been waiting so long this is gonna be one great spring for me

orange box and now minerva :D


Thank you.

Ace's gravatar

12. Re: Omens

Posted by Ace at 1:01AM, Saturday September 29 2007

Heh heh, nice!

(and what happened to our manly avatars?)

cypher543's gravatar

13. Re: Omens

Posted by cypher543 at 1:15AM, Saturday September 29 2007

That's quite creepy. :P

Birdoman's gravatar

14. Yay

Posted by Birdoman at 4:18AM, Saturday September 29 2007

My 21st birthday is on the 3rd. Sir, thankee for a gift that cannot be surmounted! Now if only all those pesky essays would disappear...

Foodstuff's gravatar

15. Re: Omens

Posted by Foodstuff at 11:22AM, Saturday September 29 2007

Follow the sparking power lines.

Pyro-Dude's gravatar

16. ooooooh, shiny

Posted by Pyro-Dude at 12:36PM, Saturday September 29 2007

Big sparkly power generator thing? Looks awesome.

All hail Minerva!

fuzz's gravatar

17. WooHoo!

Posted by fuzz at 12:51PM, Saturday September 29 2007

^^ that is all.

danidomen's gravatar

18. A question...

Posted by danidomen at 4:15PM, Saturday September 29 2007

This release contain the titles tranlated to other languages?

Nesretep's gravatar

19. We finally got it...

Posted by Nesretep at 6:39PM, Saturday September 29 2007

Looks like we finally got the screen shot we asked for, although it has been delivered Minerva-style. Nevertheless there it is! Before long it won't matter though...Monday is release day!

Yar Kramer's gravatar

20. Screenshot

Posted by Yar Kramer at 7:01PM, Saturday September 29 2007

The positioning of that glowing orb thingy in the background of the screenshot makes it look kinda like the SMG's being fired.

thejerry70's gravatar

21. Good news!

Posted by thejerry70 at 8:18PM, Saturday September 29 2007

Always good to hear from my mst beloved mod! :)
That's a nice machine on your table there... I would like to have one of these things too. But, well Apple is very expensive but exclusive though. Maybe in near future!
And there's another nice device on your table (asuming that the Sony Ericsson K750i is yours...)!
Had this one too, but the cursor wasn't the best, so I picked up another Sony.
Hm, might be boring to read this message, huh?
It's just to prevent myself from going crazy staring at the clock waiting for monday evening to come...
So, please apologize my impatience!

Vodkarn's gravatar

22. In-Coming

Posted by Vodkarn at 8:38PM, Saturday September 29 2007

I don't <i>really</i> think this counts as before the end of the month, but hey, we're all glad it's coming , heh.

TjOeNeR's gravatar

23. Yes yes yes

Posted by TjOeNeR at 8:39PM, Saturday September 29 2007

Finally, the greatest MOD i've ever seen, (I like polished), releases a third and hopefully not a final episode on monday.

Go Belgium go :)

And I've asked this before, but are you a real Belgian living in Belgium? Or have you migrated from another country?

Because I can't believe somebody else but me gets it in his head to speak, and build sites in, the english language. Offcourse you get a broad audience but I just find it convenient.

And now I'm rambling (worked an entire day). So I'll just shut my mouth.

Niet waar Adam? (Als je dit kan lezen zonder babelfish dan geloof ik dat je een echte vlaming bent :-) )

FinalWarning's gravatar

24. Glory Be!!!

Posted by FinalWarning at 9:58PM, Saturday September 29 2007

Went to Velvet Revolver last night, met the band, front of the Mosh Pit and now I find out that I can expect Minerva on Monday? Will wonders never cease! :-)

Yar Kramer's gravatar

25. A thought on Portal

Posted by Yar Kramer at 2:40AM, Sunday September 30 2007

I wonder if Portal's aforementioned "simplified" level editor will include the software they used to make the electronic voice-over (assuming it's entirely electronic, and not just someone talking funny and then getting their speech modified).

Not, of course, that you won't be able to just cut and paste words/sentences together on your own without worrying about it sounding "unnatural." ;)

Terrapin's gravatar

26. YESSSSSS!!!

Posted by Terrapin at 3:34AM, Sunday September 30 2007

I'm practically speechless. Yes, I'm disappointed I won't be playing this weekend, but that's all irrelevant now. So long as Adam doesn't miss this release date, all will soon be fine. Oh, and let's hope we actually get some answers on who Minerva really is.

That screenshot looks promising - I for one will be making sure I have no plans for Monday evening, because unless I miss my guess, we're in for one wild night.

Flobster's gravatar

27. Portal Voice

Posted by Flobster at 3:38AM, Sunday September 30 2007

There is a note in the TF2 developer commentary that says the same person does the announcer voices in every game in the orange box, so i assume that means the portal voice and overwatch announcer.

Sirc's gravatar

28. Let's Underscore Concurent Kinetics

Posted by Sirc at 4:16AM, Sunday September 30 2007

Of course, like all the acolytes, I am happy to hear such an imminent release. However, I will play the devil's advocate on this situation and make a comment...

So much good luck on one day, promises a sort of karma overload. Omens that point one way can just as easily point to another.

How does this have any relevance? All I'm saying is that with such an expenditure of luck, I'll be nervous of next week. Personally, I believe the higher you go, the more likely you are going to go low. People will likely ignore this in their euphoric stance on MINERVA's imminent release, which I do not blame them for in the least. Yet, let not my weariness dampen your spirits, merely, be wise, be safe, be aware...

(Especially you Creator...)

Yar Kramer's gravatar

29. Re: LUCK

Posted by Yar Kramer at 5:02AM, Sunday September 30 2007

First of all -- I'd say that goes both ways -- maybe all the bad luck that's been holding back this release for over a year is compensated by this final, sudden, imminent release.

Second of all: "be wise, be safe, be aware"!? I knew it! Sirc is actually Dr. Breen in disguise!

Vodkarn's gravatar

30. School's In, I guess

Posted by Vodkarn at 8:01AM, Sunday September 30 2007

I just pre-ordered the orange box on steam, which is something I don't like doing. I want a box, with stuff in it. I'm just oldschool that way, I guess.

I was curious though -- will you ever (be allowed to be Valve) release a purchasable version of all three MINERVA releases, with pretty manuals and whatnot?

I love manuals with backstory.

Cargo Cult's gravatar

31. What time is it?

Posted by Cargo Cult at 8:14AM, Sunday September 30 2007

Oh, hello - it seems to be light outside. And I'm hungry. Time for breakfast? Or a nap?

Been sorting out vital stuff like menus, chapter images, fuzzy backgrounds and all sorts of other packaging-related items. It's looking quite smart.

All I need now is to let the last few maps finish compiling, tidy up the titles.txt, zip it all up and send it out to the testers as a release candidate.

Then tomorrow evening, all going well, the installer gets built, I upload that somewhere suitable, get it mirrored - then release.

Woo.

Pyro-Dude's gravatar

32. Just a guess

Posted by Pyro-Dude at 10:49AM, Sunday September 30 2007

I'm guessing that a Combine portal generator is through the Mysterious Door, given the fact that they require a vast amount of power (i.e. the massive beam of energy being shot down from space) and the fact that the installation goes about as far down as a Citadel goes up.

But thats just a thought I had when I was bored, so it's likely to be wrong, or that someone else has said it.

SkUrRiEr's gravatar

33. Re: Just a guess

Posted by SkUrRiEr at 12:00PM, Sunday September 30 2007

Personally, I don't particularly want to speculate on what's behind that door at this late stage. We're most likely going to find out tomorrow. =)

Hmm, looks like I'm going to have to resurrect my WinXP partition so I can play some Minerva. Hmm a job for tomorrow =)

danidomen's gravatar

34. Spain says: Wherever you are.... we are with you.

Posted by danidomen at 12:38PM, Sunday September 30 2007

News in HL2Spain about your mod and the release

www.hl2spain.com

Regards!

PS: Your mod is the best GAME that i've play ever! Congratulations! ^^

rb_lestr's gravatar

35. .

Posted by rb_lestr at 3:20PM, Sunday September 30 2007

I'm too exited.

vecima's gravatar

36. monday...

Posted by vecima at 5:05PM, Sunday September 30 2007

mwahhaha hahahahahah

aaaahhhhhh hah hah hah hah hah hah hah hah haaaa


...wait... monday evening for you will be nearly tuesday morning to me.

i have to work on tuesday...

@%*#$&#*&%$@*&%#*$%*@&#%$*#$*@&#&&#&&%@*%*@&#%$*&#%$*&#%$*%@*&#%$*&%*@&#&&$*%@*#&%$$*@**@*&#&&#$%@*$%@*$&@@%$*@$%*@&#$%!!!!!!!!

oh well. close is close i guess.

vecima's gravatar

37. whoops

Posted by vecima at 5:06PM, Sunday September 30 2007

sorry folks...

don't mailto my excessively long curse word...

...i don't know who it is, and i don't want them to get spammed with acolyte emails!

Terrapin's gravatar

38. Time zones...

Posted by Terrapin at 5:14PM, Sunday September 30 2007

Vecima's post just gave me an idea. As far as I know, Adam lives somewhere in Europe (no offense intended if I'm wrong - I just remember reading that somewhere). That puts him relatively close to GMT, timezone wise. My living North America means that his evening is my early afternoon. And a one-hour lunch break means I could get a real head start on M3 before I even get home. This just gets better and better. :-)

Evan's gravatar

39. Oh, the joy of America.

Posted by Evan at 7:28PM, Sunday September 30 2007

The whole time zone thing occurred to me now as well - I may be playing M3 sooner than I think!

O's gravatar

40. ...

Posted by O at 8:20PM, Sunday September 30 2007

Oct 1st.

Clear signs of OCD.

Ace's gravatar

41. time

Posted by Ace at 9:29PM, Sunday September 30 2007

For those who didn't notice, he even put up a time on the steam group page; 2:00pm "Time-zone should be vaguely European, and is somewhat approximate anyway." For those of us more vaguely American, that's 8:00am EST Monday Morning! Ready for work everyone?

Mr. Bunny's gravatar

42. Yay!

Posted by Mr. Bunny at 9:35PM, Sunday September 30 2007

Awesome news, Adam! Best of luck!

Please remember to set up a torrent as well!

Cargo Cult's gravatar

43. Time-zones

Posted by Cargo Cult at 9:38PM, Sunday September 30 2007

I put in an estimated 8pm on the Steam Community thingy - and apparently it *does* do time-zones correctly. So the time you see on there should be your local time. No earlier!

As for downloads - there should be numerous mirrors and a torrent, like last time. I'm expecting this thing to be fairly popular...

MrHappy's gravatar

44. Approximate Time

Posted by MrHappy at 9:40PM, Sunday September 30 2007

MInerva's approximate release in your time zone:

http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/fixedtime.html?month=10&day=1&year=2007&hour=13&min=0&sec=0&p1=64

Ace's gravatar

45. my bad

Posted by Ace at 9:51PM, Sunday September 30 2007

oops, sorry about that, listen to Adam, not me. (..obviously..)

Pyro-Dude's gravatar

46. A little question?

Posted by Pyro-Dude at 11:39PM, Sunday September 30 2007

I don't know whether this has been asked before or not, but could we (I) get an approximate length time wise of the new MINERVA?

Pse's gravatar

47. =(

Posted by Pse at 2:33AM, Monday October 1 2007

I can't believe I'm having a test on saturday, monday and thursday next week. I. can't.

weirwood's gravatar

48. In before the rush

Posted by weirwood at 2:35AM, Monday October 1 2007

Just delurking to let you know how much your work is appreciated, before the storm of post-release adulation hits.

And I have a bugger-all night shift on monday...

Terrapin's gravatar

49. Anticipation

Posted by Terrapin at 2:52AM, Monday October 1 2007

The anticipation stress is starting to get to me. I theory, I should have my long awaited answers within 24 hours. But then, I once though I would have my answers before Bioshock was released. And then on September 3rd. And then in September.

What if, arriving home to my computer, I find that every mirror requires a registration or payment? What if they're all so busy that I can't get my hands on a stable download? What if, when I do finally get it downloaded, the file is corrupt, or some other miserable little thing goes wrong. For literally months, it seems that the universe itself has conspired against Metastasis 3, inflicting sickness, computer problems, and general obstacles to it's completion. And now, when it seems so close at hand, it seems only logical to believe that it's just as far away as ever.

Wow... I really must be going insane. In any case, like weirwood said, a thousand thanks to Adam, who through the myriad problems life threw him, continued to work valiantly on his latest work of art. Here's hoping that all is still going well, and continues to do so.

Foodstuff's gravatar

50. Dammit!

Posted by Foodstuff at 3:27AM, Monday October 1 2007

Its out on the 2nd of October!?

Yar Kramer's gravatar

51. Time Zoned Out

Posted by Yar Kramer at 3:28AM, Monday October 1 2007

What with one thing and another, I get out of bed two hours before M3's announced release. :)

vecima's gravatar

52. whoops

Posted by vecima at 5:15AM, Monday October 1 2007

please excuse my ramblings above. apparently for a bit there i forgot which way the world turns...

...i was under a lot of stress you know? ... the iraq ... south africa ... U. S. Americans ... edge you cajun!

Unknown's gravatar

53. Must... stay... awake...

Posted by Unknown at 9:29AM, Monday October 1 2007

Must play... must... play-*snore*

Evil-Dragon's gravatar

54. Many thanks

Posted by Evil-Dragon at 10:50AM, Monday October 1 2007

It's great to hear that things are finally moving along Adam.

I'm looking forward to playing Part 3 and seeing what you have instore for us all.

Good luck with the release!

kewl's gravatar

55. 6 hours

Posted by kewl at 1:57PM, Monday October 1 2007

omg!!!!!!!!!!!
only 6 more hours till its released!

Alas, i will not be able to download it until I come back from tae-kwon-do practice which is at 9:00 PM and tomorrow I have to do shit stuff until 2:00 PM *sigh*

Naurgul's gravatar

56. Meta: Announcement

Posted by Naurgul at 2:04PM, Monday October 1 2007

No, this is not an announcement, I want to say something about announcements. Mr. Foster, please do an announcement when you release this thing. I don't want to have a tab with your blog and another one with the Minerva site pressing F5 every minute. Pretty please?

Nesretep's gravatar

57. The Arrival

Posted by Nesretep at 2:37PM, Monday October 1 2007

I can't believe it is finally happening. Too bad I won't be able to download it until probably Wednesday (barring a brave attempt at an all night downoad session over my speedy dial up connection!). I am guessing that this release will include all 3 chapters of MINERVA together, right? Also, for those of you who get to play it before others...please please please no spoilers on the blog! :) I would hate to have the experience of discovering it myself ruined by an unrestrained spoiler entry on the blogbeast.

vecima's gravatar

58. natural SPOLER enlargement

Posted by vecima at 2:42PM, Monday October 1 2007

*HUGE SPOILER*

-near the end, one main character dies.

locworks's gravatar

59. Frodo dies near the end...

Posted by locworks at 3:13PM, Monday October 1 2007

Oh, wrong trilogy...

Terrapin's gravatar

60. Spoilers

Posted by Terrapin at 3:27PM, Monday October 1 2007

Snape kills Minerva

Oh, and also, the character who dies is... Combine Soldier # 3,562,033. The main character kills him. :)

Ufotofu's gravatar

61. Placement

Posted by Ufotofu at 3:44PM, Monday October 1 2007

Adam, I hope you're happy knowing that your sure-to-be-fantastic release will significantly decrease my ability to study today. ;D

Cargo Cult's gravatar

62. Uploading RC2...

Posted by Cargo Cult at 3:52PM, Monday October 1 2007

In case any testers are wondering where RC0 and RC1 went - they were both broken. I discovered so myself *after* uploading!

Pre-installer, it's 150MB. Yes, dear Minerva - your bum does look big in that.

Au-heppa's gravatar

63. release

Posted by Au-heppa at 4:11PM, Monday October 1 2007

the floating fat man

grox's gravatar

64. Problem encounterd

Posted by grox at 4:12PM, Monday October 1 2007

hi.
awsome work & many grats

dont know if any1 else got same problem running the mod

i have full HL2-EP1 and HL2-Demo (not full version)
after mod instalation it didnt show up in game tab

i looked up another mod files HL2-Riot Act which run without any problems

by comparing both mod gameinfo.txt files
i altared Minerva file by changing

SteamAppId 220 to 215

and after steam restarted Minerva mod was
wisible in game tab, but after trying to start
it gave an error of some file not being found

back again to analyse gameinfo.txt files
and added another line in SearchPaths section
just after Game hl2

Game sourcetest

and Minevra mod started to work

hope it helps

Cargo Cult's gravatar

65. Episode One...

Posted by Cargo Cult at 4:21PM, Monday October 1 2007

For reference, the latest MINERVA episode uses Valve's spangly Episode One. So now is a good time to buy the Orange Box if you dont have Episode One already!

grox: You should be fine with this new release.

macc's gravatar

66. awesomeness

Posted by macc at 4:28PM, Monday October 1 2007

Cant wait to download this. 150mb? Thats a lot more then the previous chapters. Of course thats a good thing.

Mr Gnang's gravatar

67. J'arrive!

Posted by Mr Gnang at 4:31PM, Monday October 1 2007

Woo, been waiting for this for ages :p One question, I haven't really been following the site, but does this installer contain the first two parts.... in HDARRRR?

Nesretep's gravatar

68. Holy large downloads, Batman!

Posted by Nesretep at 4:49PM, Monday October 1 2007

Wow...I don't think I'll be trying that overnight download over dialup anymore. It would take *much* longer than merely overnight at those speeds. I'll have to wait and either download it at the local university using their high speed connection or maybe good ol' Mom and Dad's broadband connection when I go to visit this week...

vecima's gravatar

69. anticipation is killing me.

Posted by vecima at 5:09PM, Monday October 1 2007

i get off work around 4:30... 10:30 your time, i believe.

all i can say is this... by 11pm your time you'd damn well better cut it out with all this R2D2 candidate crap and let the fat lady sing!

Yar Kramer's gravatar

70. Nyohohoho

Posted by Yar Kramer at 5:20PM, Monday October 1 2007

I, personally, will be occupied more or less the entire remaining hour and a half. (And without any reasonable access to the internet for another hour after that.) Strangely, I feel as if I get the better deal. ;)

besse's gravatar

71. Cant wait

Posted by besse at 5:38PM, Monday October 1 2007

when can we download it???????

LocoYokel's gravatar

72. Naurgul

Posted by LocoYokel at 5:53PM, Monday October 1 2007

"No, this is not an announcement, I want to say something about announcements. Mr. Foster, please do an announcement when you release this thing. I don't want to have a tab with your blog and another one with the Minerva site pressing F5 every minute. Pretty please?"

https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/115

no clicking F5. I just let it autoreload every few minutes. Keeps the web monitoring software at work busy also :)

Sortie's gravatar

73. Re: Cant wait

Posted by Sortie at 6:00PM, Monday October 1 2007

7pm GMT (Daylight savings inkluded)

AlienRyes's gravatar

74. Re:Can't wait

Posted by AlienRyes at 6:43PM, Monday October 1 2007

<unlurk>
where can we download it?
will idolatry be updated?
<lurk>

Cargo Cult's gravatar

75. Good questions

Posted by Cargo Cult at 6:56PM, Monday October 1 2007

The release candidate is being poked at by a team of highly-trained gibbons, and none have yet found any problems - a link was also sent to the Hallowed Creators Of The Installer, but nothing has been heard back so far.

So if it's a few hours late, it's not my fault. ;-)

MrHappy's gravatar

76. An hour by my watch

Posted by MrHappy at 6:59PM, Monday October 1 2007

Probaly more like fifty though. I need an oil change.

This is exciting though, it's been years since we started on this little adventure and this chapted in our journey is about to find a close.

Cargo Cult's gravatar

77. Still waiting for the installer...

Posted by Cargo Cult at 8:10PM, Monday October 1 2007

Suggest you go to get something to eat, or whatever, and come back later. We're running on Valve Time now!

(Why oh why oh why did I say 8pm?)

Yar Kramer's gravatar

78. Precise date

Posted by Yar Kramer at 8:11PM, Monday October 1 2007

Heh. What was Valve time for "it will be released at this specific date and time"?

Flobster's gravatar

79. Murphy

Posted by Flobster at 8:16PM, Monday October 1 2007

Somthing will always pop up at the last possible second, it is the way of the world!

Sortie's gravatar

80. Well 1 hour and 12 minutes left

Posted by Sortie at 8:17PM, Monday October 1 2007

I started the preload. XD

vecima's gravatar

81. I'm just waiting till you say go.

Posted by vecima at 8:27PM, Monday October 1 2007

then i'm going to ram my finger down my throat, upchuck my lunch, and go home for the day, unless of course you don't say go for another two hours... in THAT case, i'll just go home without the oscar worth performance.

Mercer's gravatar

82. Valve Time

Posted by Mercer at 9:49PM, Monday October 1 2007

Adam, don't you know that it's only forgivable for Valve to run on Valve-time?

Geez ... :P

j/k Patience is key fellow grasshoppers...

Esvandiary's gravatar

83. Re: Valve Time

Posted by Esvandiary at 9:53PM, Monday October 1 2007

He's waiting for an installer from Valve... So it's completely forgivable. :)

vecima's gravatar

84. Re: see above

Posted by vecima at 9:54PM, Monday October 1 2007

i don't think the installer is being put together by valve.

Yasutaka's gravatar

85. Time Zones

Posted by Yasutaka at 10:15PM, Monday October 1 2007

Last night, my roommates disconnected our router without warning me. Because I got the release time off of the Valve group and compensated manually, I had thought the release would be at 3 in the morning (I live on the US west coast). Needless to say... I was displeased with my roommates. I just reconnected everything myself (I had to wait for someone to leave, so I could get into their room) Seeing now that I was misinformed, and that the package is running a tad late anyways, I'm glad I didn't stay up. = )

I hope it goes without saying that I await your newest work eagerly, Adam. Godspeed.

FinalWarning's gravatar

86. HERE IT COMES!!!!

Posted by FinalWarning at 10:15PM, Monday October 1 2007

Downloading now. Should be playing in a couple of minutes!! OH JOY!!!

Cargo Cult's gravatar

87. Site's updated

Posted by Cargo Cult at 10:17PM, Monday October 1 2007

Still need to put the torrent up.

A Zip file rather than an installer for now, but it's a start. ;]

* LOOKING LONGINGLY AT 750ml CORKED BOTTLE OF DUVEL *

Nesretep's gravatar

88. @vecima

Posted by Nesretep at 10:22PM, Monday October 1 2007

You crack me up, vecima! LOL You are SO dramatic about having to wait for the release one would think you might die if you don't get it soon...BTW I frequented your forums today too...so go read my posts to pass the time.

Everybody else can go too...we need to drum up some support for vecima's mod. Check out the media, it looks awesome! You can find it at: http://phillymod.type3studios.com

macc's gravatar

89. yay!!

Posted by macc at 10:23PM, Monday October 1 2007

Downloading!

Perseus's gravatar

90. Ack

Posted by Perseus at 10:27PM, Monday October 1 2007

I guess this means I have to buy Episode One now ._.

Mercer's gravatar

91. YAY!

Posted by Mercer at 10:27PM, Monday October 1 2007

Zip file's fine as long as i get my Minerva! :D

locworks's gravatar

92. Enjoy the Duvel, Adam

Posted by locworks at 10:29PM, Monday October 1 2007

I'm opening an Orval and starting the French translation...

Mr Martini's gravatar

93. download link

Posted by Mr Martini at 10:37PM, Monday October 1 2007

where do i find the download link???

kast's gravatar

94. Download link

Posted by kast at 10:41PM, Monday October 1 2007

http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/phosphenes.shtml

Bottom of page

Ace's gravatar

95. bitchin!

Posted by Ace at 10:44PM, Monday October 1 2007

HDR looks awesome in carcinogenesis! Looking forward to the rest! woohoo!!

DiDo's gravatar

96. So... slow...

Posted by DiDo at 10:49PM, Monday October 1 2007

Hi all, I thought thatI might just start posting here now that Meta 3 is up... I 5 minuted left in the download. So close!

DiDo's gravatar

97. Spelling and Grammar

Posted by DiDo at 10:52PM, Monday October 1 2007

I 5 minuted? I'm pretty sure I said I had 5 minutes until the download was done... Oh well. No edit button, so double posting is the only method of correcting that.

garbel's gravatar

98. Size matters

Posted by garbel at 11:03PM, Monday October 1 2007

(started playing) I thought the Citadel was big, but THIS THING !? (and the elevator goes down and down and down...) Puh!

Eggplant!'s gravatar

99. Torrent!

Posted by Eggplant! at 11:04PM, Monday October 1 2007

I'm seeding from a nice, high bandwidth server. Free bits for everyone! Go, go!

Mr. Bunny's gravatar

100. OUT!

Posted by Mr. Bunny at 11:05PM, Monday October 1 2007

Yes! The Creator has bestowed us with the Gift!

Wrick's gravatar

101. textures?

Posted by Wrick at 11:57PM, Monday October 1 2007

Odd, getting a lot of textures not working. Got episode 1 and whatnot... Anyone know what could be wrong on my end?

Also, looks bloody amazing so far. Despite the flashing ERROR signs.

Cargo Cult's gravatar

102. Why the installer is important...

Posted by Cargo Cult at 11:59PM, Monday October 1 2007

Make sure you've fully removed the old metastasis folder before unzipping the new one, and RESTART STEAM! after adding the new one.

You're probably not playing an Episode One mod as an Episode One mod.

vecima's gravatar

103. great. just great, adam :(

Posted by vecima at 12:05AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

i get home form work, and you release M3 just after i pass out for a much needed nap!

next time, i'm giving you my cell phone number -and i don't care if i'm at the pope's funeral-i want to be disturbed.

oh well, just finished downloading... be back later.

Terrapin's gravatar

104. WOOOOO HOOOOO!!!

Posted by Terrapin at 12:05AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Extracting now, my god if this doesn't work I'm going to go on a killing spree. Just 5 minutes left, according to Vista.

Adam, thank you so very much. Even if this makes my computer die of sheer excitement, your time and effort are appreciated beyond words. On behalf of your acolytes, I thank you. And now, I'm off to vibrate in my chair from stress while Vista extracts the fruits of your precious labor.

garbel's gravatar

105. i'm stuck :(

Posted by garbel at 12:15AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Warning Spoiler !

I'm in the room with the three crates an the power-shield. Ok, i managed to find out what to do. And now i'm stuck. Combines attacking me an the worst of all - i have no weapon, nothing...

Gameplay is a bit disappointing and confusing atm...:(

locworks's gravatar

106. Helpline

Posted by locworks at 12:22AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

For all help requests, please consider going here
http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/forum/viewtopic.php?t=65

This will keep the blog spoiler-free.

Qjuad's gravatar

107. Well.

Posted by Qjuad at 12:24AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Downloaded. Played. Completed. Loved it.

LocoYokel's gravatar

108. virus in .torrent file

Posted by LocoYokel at 12:30AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Check your systems. I downloaded the torrent to my drive and clicked it to start bittorrent and got a trojan warning from AVG.

macc's gravatar

109. Awesomeness

Posted by macc at 12:43AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Completed it.

This is a serious masterpiece!

kast's gravatar

110. my review:

Posted by kast at 12:45AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

"Oh... my... god! Thank goodness it's over."

That will be all.

Mr. Bunny's gravatar

111. Glitch

Posted by Mr. Bunny at 12:46AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

When I fired up the first map, I didn't get the HEV suit upon landing from the helecopter, just the SMG. When I paused the game, went to new game, and started the first chapter again, I got the HEV suit and the other starting weapons. :\

Eigencondition's gravatar

112. Where to post bug/glitch reports?

Posted by Eigencondition at 12:46AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Is there a proper place to report bugs and glitches to?

kast's gravatar

113. re: Helpline

Posted by kast at 12:47AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Only Horsemen of the Apocalypse (mods) can post there. Not much use for the vast majority of us :P

locworks's gravatar

114. Where to post bug/glitch reports?

Posted by locworks at 12:56AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

http://www.hylobatidae.org/minerva/forum/viewtopic.php?t=66

M_Gargantua's gravatar

115. Oh God

Posted by M_Gargantua at 1:04AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Download fasterrrrrrrr..

Also Drakkel will being doing a Lets play of Someplace else and Minerva soon, that should be good.

Eigencondition's gravatar

116. contraint on "Notes and queries"-thread

Posted by Eigencondition at 1:11AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

As said before by kast:

"Sorry, but only horsemen of the apocalypse can reply to posts in this forum."

Baffled's gravatar

117. Superlative

Posted by Baffled at 1:15AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

I'm DETERMINED not to rush this as we've had to wait so long.

I am still on the first part, I think and wanted to post some response.

Adam, you could well have expected praise from those that have been loitering on your blog for the last year-and-a-half, but I must say, in all honesty, this is truly brilliant.

This is indecently, almost embarrassingly good.

I actually experienced vertigo at one point, and my mouth is slightly dry as it was hanging open in amazement at all the things I was seeing.

The sheer scale and ambition on show just put it in a class of it's own. The battle sequences, on hard, are challenging and exhilarating.

Then, of course, there are the plot developments....hmmm, so far a very tasty titbit....hmmm.......

I envy those playing for the first time, landing on the island and getting to plumb these dark depths all in one adventure.

To those who are stuck, look again at your surroundings, this game makes you work a bit, no easy tools to hand at first....

All this gushing and I'm probably not half way through yet!!!!!

I'm taking this masterpiece, a sip at a time, taking everything in, and savouring it.

Anskelmi's gravatar

118. Ah

Posted by Anskelmi at 1:18AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Well.. Damn... I mean, damn. (Sorry, I seem to be a bit verbally paralyzed at the moment.)

I loved the beginning especially, it was nice for a while to not run around, guns blazing and so.
And I loved the fact that Minerva seems to actually have some kind of humanly feelings (though might as well be misinterpretation.)

(what I didn't like was the (endless?) hordes of parasites near the end, but not so much that I can't infiltrate the island again and again ;-) )

Anyways, awesome job there sir, as always. I can't find words to thank you enough, so I think I'll just stay quiet.

(oh and hello everyone)

Magius5.0's gravatar

119. At long last

Posted by Magius5.0 at 1:19AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

I know my day got a whole lot better when I got back from the University Engineering lab after a couple hours of head banging and I see 'Minerva 3 Released.'

Truly there are just and sweet gods out there.

DiDo's gravatar

120. I'm speechless

Posted by DiDo at 1:24AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

Just finished on normal... I don't beleive that could have been done better.

Flobster's gravatar

121. Amen

Posted by Flobster at 1:29AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

I was expecting somthing good, I just was'nt expecting somthing THAT good, honestly ive paid for far to many games that dont have this kind of mapping quality, pacing. subtle delivery of story and switching styles of gameplay that this has.

The first real stump moment for me was in the room after the 'ooo pretty' scene, where i was a little confused and managed to get myself killed by stalkers (i suck) then when i acctully read Minerva's message the second time, all became clear, so simple and funny, it made me chuckle.

I would also like to give a shout out to the provider of your music, what starts as a subtle theme early on, gains quite a dramatic emotional connection at the end.

vecima's gravatar

122. ...

Posted by vecima at 4:20AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

thank you Mr. Foster, for teaching my PC how to love.

i've been playing for several hours. that's innacurate, i've been playing for several minutes at a time, for several hours while also trying to entertain a four year old. were it not my own spawn i might have considered sedatives.

anyway, absolute brilliance. you've beaten down my expectations. you've taken them into the town square and beaten them before their peers, later pantsing and, accordingly, humiliating them to the point of suicide.

Well played, Mr. Foster. Well played.

vecima's gravatar

123. just a slight update

Posted by vecima at 4:57AM, Tuesday October 2 2007

i was stuck near the end, and hadn't actually finished when i posted before.

having completed i'd have to say this is the worst mod ever.



i kid i kid. during the final moments with less than a minute left my lips were trembling.

kudos.

Pyro-Dude's gravatar

124. Yay!

Posted by Pyro-Dude at 7:04PM, Tuesday October 2 2007

I guessed right about what was down there!

*Spoiler (kind of)*
----------------------------
Interesting to see that the other side was fleshed out, as I could see Antlions running around there

That One Guy's gravatar

125. Mac User

Posted by That One Guy at 7:06AM, Thursday October 4 2007

I use a 15" macbook pro
ATI Radeon x1600 graphics card
1.8 ghz and an intel core duo processor.

How would you say Half-Life 2 and Episode 1 run on these? I'm trying to get the best gaming experience possible for Half-Life 2, without going bankrupt.

(I'm in high school, so I have no money to buy an iMac.)

Please reply in an e-mail to the address I posted under.

Thanks,

That One Guy

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