Half-Life: Blue Shift

aka: Bantiao Ming: Lanse Xingdong, HL: BS, Half-Life: Guard Duty, Hλlf-Life: Blue Shift
Moby ID: 4376
Windows Specs
Buy on Windows
$4.99 new on Steam

Description official descriptions

Return to the Black Mesa complex in this additional Half-Life storyline. In this module, you play Barney Calhoun, a security officer working Blue Shift who is present at Black Mesa at the same time as Gordon Freeman. Your goal is to try to get out of Black Mesa alive as all hell breaks loose and reality is altered around you.

This version can be played stand-alone and also includes the Half-Life High Definition Pack that replaces most of the Half-Life/Opposing Force/Blue Shift player and weapon models and textures with updated high-res models and textures.

Spellings

  • ハーフライフ: ブルーシフト - Japanese spelling
  • 半条命: 蓝色行动 - Simplified Chinese spelling
  • 戰慄時空:關鍵時刻 - Traditional Chinese spelling

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Credits (Windows version)

127 People (99 developers, 28 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 68% (based on 42 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.7 out of 5 (based on 134 ratings with 9 reviews)

The Making of Barney Calhoun

The Good
In 1998, a new game who would leave its print on the FPS world is released. It lets control a scientist, Gordon Freeman, in a devastated research center, just after an experiment which turned to be a disaster, allowing an alien race, coming from a world called Xen, to invade the Earth... well, the Black Mesa Center, given the fact that Half-Life 2, released later, told basically the player that the invasion was much extended than believed.

In 1999, an add-on is released, allowing you to play through the eyes of Gordon's human enemy, a Marine whose name is Adrian Shepard. Sent to kill our favorite scientist, his plane crashed. He was trapped in Black Mesa by a certain G-Man (who were watching in the same time Gordon) and had to struggle in order to stay alive.

In 2001 is the making of Barney Calhoun. Barney was the nickname for all the guards in Half-Life. Blue Shift makes Barney an unique human being, one of Gordon's friends, trapped in a lift when the disaster striked Black Mesa. Him too had to struggle for his life but like Gordon (only hope to stop the invaders) and Adrian (only hope to stop... well another alien race), Barney is the only for some scientists for freeing them and making an old machine work. The reason? It was the same given to Gordon: the fact that they were wearing protection. Well, Barney hadn't the famous HEV but still, when surrounded by scientists in white coat, when you have a sort of armor, you have no choice but to go to dangerous locations. If you know what happened in Half-Life 2, you already know that Barney is a leader figure for the Resistance...

Blue Shift is probably the weakest link in the Black Mesa Era. But will I find positive points? Yes.

Storyline, despite being classic, is, in HL universe, important. You're playing a security guard, making it the third point of view of the Black Mesa Incident. And with a new storyline comes new locations, even if some are familiar. Barney is just your average guard but he will become the most resourceful and strongest of his colleagues.

Gameplay hadn't change and I don't complain about that: it's Half-Life, I mean, you have to climb ladders, find a way to kill enemies when your weapons aren't sufficient, you have to be careful when nearing toxic areas and when you're jumping on Xen...

With an established universe like Half-Life, Blue Shift couldn't forget to make some references to the two previous games: you see Gordon in his tramway when you're trying to enter to your department for work (a scene present in the original Half-Life) or just before he's entering in it. You're seeing him in the Sector C, walking to his destiny, you're seeing the famous crystal that will triggered the portals being carried to its final destination and last but not least, the professor you're rescuing is thinking that Gordon will not solve things, that it's a foolish idea to believe in him. Oh, have I mentioned that the last you'll be seeing Gordon is when he's captured by the Marines? Next time, it would be years later, in City 17 train station. Well, Blue Shift is taking place at the same time of the first part of Gordon's story, so, it's normal to have a lot of references to Half-Life. For Opposing Force, the only mention of Adrian Shepard is made by a Marine when throwing Otis, the fat guard, in a pit you're climbing.

Graphics are still the same if you don't install the High Definition Pack. If you do so, the HDP is making the characters less angular, your environment is less sterile and a new skin is given to your weapons. Anyway, Blue Shift's graphics are good if you're not allergic to "old" engines.

Soundtrack is good. Yes, I love HL's soundtrack. It's immersing you in the story.

You don't need HL to make it work. But a lot of gamers are tending to think of it as an add-on instead of a stand-alone and I can really understand why. Even me, I have the same opinion. You'll understand in the next part of the review.

The Bad
Blue Shift, despite enjoying it, has a lot of flaws.

First of all is the famous problem of the flashlight which wasn't working. It's was such a problem when you have to crawl in obscure areas with headcrabs trying to suck your brains out. Well, fortunately, a patch was released for this problem but this is not really funny to discover that you'll be probably lost because of that.

Second is the lack of novelties. Blue Shift isn't bringing something new besides the story. Barney only uses Half-Life's weapons (no Opposing Force did make it) and worst of it, he has less than Gordon. No more experimental weapon, no more crossbow. Then, the enemies are reduced to what Gordon encountered (less the giant boss like Gargantua), so, no Race X from Opposing Force. And last but not the least (for me), soundtrack is good but isn't renewed like in Opposing Force. No new tunes, no new sounds, well, it's kind of frustrating for me who loves soundtrack, particularly when a game set in an universe has a different music than the others.

One huge negative point is the fact that you can't use HEV device for increasing your protection... contrary to Adrian Shepard who can use them, despite not being a Black Mesa worker! It's kind of frustrating for a player not to be able to use something useful for the hero's life.

Well, another disappointment for some will be the absence (safe for the beginning) of G-Man. Well, no more sighting hunt, a trademark of the HL series was put on hold. Has it a particular meaning for the story?

And give me back the nice woman in the training! The guard that gives instructions is too... well, not as nice as her and not as funny as the sergeant in Opposing Force.

Finally, Blue Shift, for a stand-alone, is shorter than the add-on Opposing Force... who was shorter than Half-Life. Five hours of playing (and more if your flashing is buggy) isn't enough for Half-Life. Well, the episodic games set in HL2 universe are as short as Blue Shift but the content is more extended than Blue Shift's. Here, we're in 2001, players were waiting for HL2 and well, they're in the right to expect much more for HL. It was like the game was rushed for giving something to impatient fans.

The Bottom Line
Blue Shift is your average FPS, set in HL universe and showing what happened when you're trying to give something to impatient players waiting for the second part of the series. It could have been a reference but the lack of novelties, the flashlight bug, the lifetime and the useless HEV devices makes of it an average or mediocre game. Yes, I've enjoyed it. But if it wasn't for the story, reference and the intuitive gameplay, I would have thrown it accross my room by frustration. Some players have made their own mod (Azure Sheep), with a guard named Barney (but not Calhoun) and his fiancée Kate, also a guard, trying to survive in the Black Mesa devastated center. Note that Gordon and Adrian are also present in this game and that Azure Sheep is considered by their creators as what Blue Shift should have been.

I don't know if I must recommend the game or not. Being a HL fan, it would a pity to miss Barney's story. But for others, it would be more an average FPS you don't need in your collection. Do what you want and if you're playing it, try to enjoy it.

Windows · by vicrabb (7272) · 2008

Perfect asset to fit the trilogy.

The Good
For those that aren't familiar with the 'prequels', Black Mesa is top secret government facility that consists of a bunch of well educated scientists and guards that put their life's safety at most minor priority. Now, you're playing one of those guards, Barney Calhoun. You arrive at your duty by an underground train (pretty much the same as the intro to the original "Half-Life"), put up your protecting suit and uniform, and try to find something to do while another boring day, that mostly consists of playing a puppet to those jerky scientists just because they have B.S. of something, will pass. But something has gone wrong in G section, and since the subway seems to be out of order, you'll have to crawl through some other way in. As we all know, Gordon Freeman and the other scientists had bad luck with some project, and now it's coming back on them. Bedazzled as you can be, you're trying to find the exit from a building hauling infestation of alien creatures.

By no means is this story any less quality than "Half-Life" or "Opposing Force". It's pretty much the same, and actually during the same time, only playing it with another person. Pretty neat thing to use in the further releases of a same game's sequels. This game may seem a bit short to some of you, but in fact it isn't, just because we're familiar with "Half-Life" and we know how to pass some things very quickly and are familiar with commands doesn't make the game shorter, only us faster. I don't find this game much shorter than "Half-Life", but maybe because it doesn't consist of too many places it may be considered as such.

I don't think I need to mention this game has improved graphic, though I really couldn't notice that at first, maybe because I played "Half-Life" some time ago and I thought of its graphic as super-ultra-kewl also, I dunno. Still, when you approach to certain NPC, you can see the difference quite clearly. Not that it makes this game any better than "Half-Life" though, but fits today's standards little closer.

Also, it gives you opportunity to play it no matter weather you own original "Half-Life" or not. It's not as dependent as "Opposing Force" sequel-add-on, but rather standalone version. It also brings a few nice things along, such as HD (High Definition) pack that improves visuals of the original "Half-Life", and "Opposing Force" multiplayer patch.

No matter what you may think of the game as something done quickly to attract masses while the title's still hot, that's entirely wrong. Game may not now be original to certain point, but brings us very nice story and bunch of dialogues and live atmosphere, and what's even more appealing, we are invited back to Black Mesa facility to escape from it for the third time ;)

Now that we mastered jumping and such puzzles that are easy now, but were rather complicated before, we will see some very nice puzzles in the game which quite clearly pull this FPS away a bit making it adventure just as well. For instance, you need to drain toxic water away, and then go in the pool and push barrels that were previously floating so you will easily jump to another side once you refill the pool with lethal liquid once again. It really is a very nice game with a returning us to our past, though experienced players will finish it too quickly and either enjoy that short time they had, or say it's too short and spoil the experience. I say, go get it if you're keen on "Half-Life" titles and want more of the same that differs.

The Bad
Well, game as game alone doesn't have any backward points as I could see it, but it does come with some drawbacks that were expected to be sen in it. I know that "Half-Life" didn't come with some strong background music, but they had some at certain suspenseful points, just remember those chapter starters. But that's not such a bad thing, no music makes you be more aware of the surroundings and stereo sound works quite nicely so you'll know where's the direction of your threat. What's very hard to believe is that there was no single new weapon in this game. Sure, as a commando in "Opposing Force" you had more new weapons than you wanted, but these here are just the same as in original "Half-Life" with exception that even those are not all, the game lacks some very nice weapons even from the original, like that alien-cockroach-bomb, or alien launchers. But guess Barney just didn't get to see all that in his adventure, even though he saw many other things Gordon and Freeman and Sheppard did not.

The Bottom Line
Three years have passed since the original "Half-Life", and yet this game still has the most interesting story as a first-person shooter (I don't compare it to "Deus Ex" or such games with a great stories). First time you were a scientist surprised by your own project gone wrong. Second time you were a sergeant, sent by the military government to make sure noone at Black Mesa survived. And this time you're one of the in-guards caught unready in a day's events. All they could do now is make another game and put you in a role of either those unknown assassins, or one of the aliens ;) It's more than just for a few hours of fun, it's a game to bring you back to known horrifying place and show you what yet you didn't see. This game comes with its own pluses and minuses, and spares you the battle with the final nemesis, but it's by no means less worthy than best add-on ever, "Opposing Force", or originator of the series, "Half-Life". If you're not planning on getting it, then you're probably by accident clicked on the wrong link and are now reading the wrong review.

Windows · by MAT (240759) · 2012

Surprisingly Not Boo Shift.

The Good
The second expansion for Half-Life was intended to be for the Dreamcast version, however when that was canned, PC owners got it with an added bonus the HD pack which upgrades the graphics significantly, it also includes Opposing Force.

In Half-Life: Blue Shift, you are Barney Calhoun, the security guard from Half-Life’s opening. He like Gordon is having a bad day. And it is about to get worse. Experience the Black Mesa incident from Calhoun’s perceptive. There are no dumb new monsters, there is not even a final boss. Blue Shift is a short romp through Black Mesa gunning your way out with the help of Dr. Rosenberg. Like Gordon you just have to survive. Blue Shift is better than Opposing Force in all the ways that count. It is more like the original game, it’s difficulty does not spike, and you still get to kill Marines.

With the HD pack which works with all versions of Half-Life, the graphics are awesome! The sub-machine gun is now a full sized M5. And all the weapons, aliens, and characters look better than ever. I would recommend picking this up just to install the HD pack.

The Sound and Music is mixed. The sound effects are still solid, but the music pales in comparison to that of the original. Furthermore this game has little music to begin with.

The Gameplay is a mix of action with moments of horror. Although Blue Shift is more action than horror, at least it does not abandon the horror like Opposing Force did. The game itself is quite short but that is not a bad thing in this case, as how long could it be before getting tedious?

The Bad
On the negative side, this game should have been on the Dreamcast not the Playstation 2. There could have been more music, and horror moments.

The Bottom Line
This unlike Opposing Force is actually worth playing. And you have to play these games with the HD pack.

Windows · by MasterMegid (723) · 2006

[ View all 9 player reviews ]

Trivia

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The advertising on the back of the box is rife with inaccuracies. * Two new episodes for "the best PC game ever" -- The Half-Life: Opposing Force add-on is not new. In fact, there are some versions of the box with a sticker on the front giving existing owners of Opposing Force a $10 rebate. This rebate, by the way, involves not only cutting up the Blue Shift box but also requires sending in the Opposing Force CD.

  • Return to Black Mesa as the security guard who allied with Gordon Freeman in the original, award-winning thriller. -- There were multiple security guards who interacted with Freeman.

  • 32-Person Multiplayer. Battle opponents from around the world in Capture the Flag and more Half-Life online games. -- This is misleading. While it is possible to play online Half-Life games with this package because it includes the original engine (not storyline, just the engine), there are no Blue Shift-specific games or features except for some additional levels.

  • Includes the Half-Life HD Pack. Automatically upgrade all of your weapons and characters with new high definition content. -- There is nothing technically wrong with this statement, but it leads people to believe that the weapons themselves are upgraded, not just their appearance.

Barney

The name of the main character, Barney Calhoun, is a tongue-in-cheek reference to what most fans of Half-Life started calling the various security guards around the Black Mesa complex in both Half-Life and Opposing Force. The reason the fans started to call the guards "Barneys", is because they were usually slow, dim-witted, and not very helpful, which is very much like the deputy sheriff Barney on the old show The Andy Griffith Show.

Development

Blue Shift was going to be the killer app added to the Half Life Dreamcast port, specially since Sierra promised to take full advantage of the Dreamcast's capabilities to handle the new high definition models. The Dreamcast port of Half Life had been in development limbo since 1999 and was eagerly awaited by every Dreamcast owner and his sister until Sierra flushed the port following SEGA's decision to flush the console.

Freeware release

On August 24th, 2005, the full expansion was released for free through Valve's electronic distribution platform Steam for anyone that owns the Half-Life Premier Pack, the Half-Life 2 Silver package, or the Half-Life 2 Gold package.

German version

There are a number of changes in some German releases of the game: * All human enemies were replaced with robots (not when the HD Pack is installed) * All blood (except blood which is part of the level design) and gore effects were removed * Killed scientists don't die but sit on the ground and shake their head * Some cries of fear were toned down

References

In the beginning of the game, there is an arcade cabinet with the game Prax Wars. This is a little joke by Randy Pitchford. He had been working on the game Prax War at Rebel Boat Rocker for Electronic Arts, but it was never released. The extra "s" was added because people often mistakenly referred to the company as Rebel Boat Rockers or to the Gearbox game as Half-Life: Opposing Force**s. Also, they couldn't use the real name as EA still held the rights.

Information also contributed by NGC 5194, Sciere and Zovni.

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by frin.

Macintosh, Linux added by dukat.

Additional contributors: Trixter, Unicorn Lynx, Jeanne, Foxhack, JoonaZZ, Litude, Paulus18950, Cantillon, Patrick Bregger, Plok.

Game added June 25, 2001. Last modified January 19, 2024.