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We Are The Lambda Generation. LambdaGeneration is a website dedicated to the video game Half-Life. ( We're basically really passionate about crowbars, headcrabs and anyone who has goatee with a PhD in theoretical physics… )

Articles related to Team Fortress

Peeling Back the Layers – Looking at Maps Differently

Source

Many of us will have played through most of Valve’s titles and enjoyed them. When we’re wrapped up in the action or the story however, the rules of the game we’re playing are almost invisible to us.

As a level designer it often pays to take a step back and look at the purpose of the content of a level. Why things are placed where they are, what do they add to the gameplay and what can we learn from them.

Four Things Valve Didn’t Intend for the Sandman to Do

Team Fortress

When the Sandman debuted during the Scout Update, Valve broke new ground regarding ranged melee weapons. Not since the Direct Hit has Team Fortress 2 been given a more spammable immediate-range weapon that crits like crazy, since the Sandman’s baseball shares the bat’s increased melee crit chance.

However, perhaps because of it’s unusual design, there have been a number of bizarre exploits associated with this weapon over the years and a few of these are still in the game today.

What Makes a Good Mod? Simple Answer…Fun!

Source

My name is Jim Partridge and I’m a modder primarily for Half-Life 2. My previous work includes Half-Life 2: Deep Down, Half-Life 2: Daylight and numerous PlanetPhillip competition entries. I decided to join LambdaGeneration this year as a contributor for the site’s Modding & Development section. My primary interest is in level design with a focus on gameplay, I’m a gameplay nerd in fact… Join me in my nerdiness!

A Call for Collaboration

Other

Update 11th August: Thanks to everyone who emailed in!

If anyone is still interested, we are still looking for contributors to cover the following specific topics:

  • Garry’s Mod – Modding news, playthoughs, gamemode/map reviews, comics! etc.
  • Portal Series – Modding news, mod/map reviews, community creativity eg.fan-films, artwork etc.
  • Left4Dead Series – Official news, modding news, map reviews, community creativity eg.fan-films
  • DOTA 2 – Official news, events coverage, community projects

We are also appealing to anyone who is interested in producing video content, such as playthroughs, mod/map/gamemode reviews and video tutorials.

Also, if you are someone who is interested in producing very occasional articles for the site, we are always interested in publishing ‘guest articles’ as opposed to dedicating yourself as a contributor.

‘Mods Going Retail.’ Sounds Fantastic, but at What Cost?

Steam

Many moons ago, you might remember an article we posted about how Valve had given the Black Mesa team (now known as the Crowbar Collective) the opportunity to sell their mod as a full retail product. Despite announcing that a Source SDK 2013 version of Black Mesa would also be available for free, the announcement was met with mixed criticism. There was an overwhelming amount of support for the team, but there were a number of people who were concerned with what ‘ethical’ implications this choice to go retail might have. Should community made content that has always been available for free suddenly be given the chance to be monetized?

All Things Lambda – The new LambdaGeneration Podcast!

Other

For a long time, we had this idea of making a little something like a podcast. Now, after months of throwing ideas around, it’s finally here! This is the first episode of “All Things Lambda”!

In the first episode, Ooiman, Jeff and Dhel talk about the SteamBoy handheld, the mysterious Team Fortress 2 Bread items, and Dota 2’s ‘The International’. But of course, we couldn’t forget about the biggest gaming event of June: E3! We share our opinions about the conferences and go over a list of games announced!

This episode turned out to be longer than anticipated, too! Future episodes will be about 40 minutes long.

We hope you enjoy out first try at producing a podcast, and please do leave us feedback!

Email [email protected] or send us a Tweet.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel for future episodes!

Community Spotlight: The works of Chemical Alia

Half-Life

There has been a lot of impressive Valve-related art over the years, from the Team Fortress 2 propaganda contest to WillHelmKranz’s works on DeviantArt, and among them, Chemical Alia’s paintings have to be some of the most impressive pieces of fanart we’ve seen. In this community spotlight, editors ThePerson5 and Jeff share and discuss their favourite pieces of Chemical Alia’s artwork, and present an interview with her.

Cat in the Hat Simulator: Valve and the Decline of Humor

Valve

This is an editorial by Lilgreenman which discusses the involvement of humour and comedic elements in Valve’s more recent games. All views expressed in this article are his own.

With all the noise Valve makes about Team Fortress 2 being “The world’s number 1 hat simulator”, their creative staff seem to have neglected a grounding in hat-based literature. Specifically, it seems they’ve never picked up a copy of the best selling hat-based book of all time (eat it, Oliver Sacks!), Dr. Seuss’ 1957 classic The Cat in the Hat.

Spoilers ahead for those who haven’t read C-I-T-H: The moral of the book is related to the two young protagonists by the titular feline, after he helps them clean up after a rowdy playtime session; “It’s fun to have fun, but you have to know how.” Which brings me, in my roundabout way, to my point. Valve’s top writers – internet comedy alumni Erik Wolpaw, Chet Faliszek and Jay Pinkerton – don’t seem to know how to have fun.

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