Half-Life - XEN Reimagined in Source 2

Probably my favorite scenebuild I did so far. It was refreshing to work on something that didn’t had to adhere to reality too much.
Xen is the matter of some debate as to how it should or shouldn’t look. The devs didn’t have enough time to realize it properly and what we got in the end is up for a lot of interpretation. The way I always saw Xen and its 6 polygons was this very cold, dull and unlivable environment with life barely hanging on to it, and its only beauty lying in the cosmos surrounding it. That’s what I was going for with this anyway. I hope it comes across more or less. Enjoy!
Software:
Source 2 Filmmaker
HLA Workshop Tools
Adobe Premiere Pro
Adobe Photoshop
Audacity
Twitter:
/ theparrygod
Artwork:
www.flickr.com...
Support my work:
/ theparrygod
www.buymeacoff...

[@Aw-ev1mv]

In HL1, Xen was cold, fleshy, kind of creepy. In Black Mesa, it was beautiful, almost heavenly to look at, and full of life. You managed to combine both of those in a way that really works out well.

[@jasonx1174]

Dreadful and unsettling yet life flourishes.

[@geeworm]

definitely agreed. i absolutely love black mesa's xen, but this really does capture the deathly, desolate feel of hl1's xen

[@squigglycups5666]

Looks like a view into xen after black mesa, the red glow of the final island is gone leaving it cold looking and desolate

[@V-95K]

All they need to do in black mesa is to change color grading and thats it

[@GalihPratama-ky3ox]

that's what i thought too

[@combine1175]

Really encapsulates the name of "Border World". I love Black Mesa's version of Xen, but it felt more like a living, alien world rather than one that isn't meant to be lived in.

[@adudeontheinternet8246]

in fairness, life usually finds a way, but I totally agree with you this Xen also looks amazing

[@Hydrolaevea]

Xen istnt just a planet or system, its the entire universe. Think of all that fauna and flora of xen as the pigeons and other critters of our own urban biosphere.

[@mrsubject1]

Yeah this dark, dingy dimension really hammers home how alien of a palce it is. The fact you saw flora such as actual, earthlike trees in BM xen kinda pissed me off. I thought that really took away from that feeling when i first played HL1 and xen and really thought 'god damn, this is *NOT* a place im meant to be' instead of the forests of trees rather prefer the ecosystem that is clinging to floating rocks and getting by rather than thriving.

[@MildMisanthropeMaybeMassive]

The _Black Mesa_ version of Xen looked and felt too much like Pandora from James Cameron’s _Avatar._ I liked it, but it didn’t feel enough like Xen.

[@SHDW-nf2ki]

Black Mesa felt like a Star Wars planet. This feels like a truly alien world just barely recognizable as a place.

[@harper5128]

amazing work as always, really captures the colder 'nothing was actually meant to live here' motif

[@tanybrachid]

Valve's Xen: Dark, lovercraftian, gross and alien. Crowbar's Collective Xen: Warm, teeming with wildlife and natural wonders, it's beauty only matched by it's dangers. TheParryGod's Xen: Cold, desolate, greyed out. A place where life only exists because it got there from other worlds, and would otherwise be a barren expanse. I wonder what Tripmine's Xen will look like.

[@eternal7912]

The HLA and Parry God depictions are definitely my favorite, and much closer to how I would have pictured the place, but with Xen being so massive and being a borderworld, its probably got quite a few different biomes in it.

[@AmicusVA]

Tripmine dev here, xen is one of my favourite designs of any strange alien dimension. I am making a ton of the assets used for xen and you can rest assured it will be in very good hands :)

[@eternal7912]

@@AmicusVA Stop. You're getting me excited.

[@SomeKindaSpy]

TheParryGod's is the closest to the supposed lore of Xen, where it's literally a "sink trap" dimension, where all matter and energy ends up if there's a glitch in reality.

[@tanybrachid]

@@AmicusVA The content you guys have been showing to us is insane. I can't wait to buy O:BM, im sure y'all going to blow it out of the water. Godspeed!

[@dopplah3703]

The amazing detail of the houndeye group sleeping meanwhile one stays awake in case other xen creatures attempt to ambush them, just simply incredible.

[@project1game648]

I love the way you brought back the “lifeless” feeling of the border world back from HL1. Xen in BM was great, but this is something else... something sinister yet beautiful

[@jasonx1174]

Sinister barely scratches the service of the mood I felt. I was genuinely unnerved the entire time. It's just cold and dreadful in this depiction.

[@KauaiboyRayce]

@@Gogglesofkrome TIL Xen is the Backrooms

[@FreakinGrooves]

Every dream, every thought, every picture I have, of Xen mentally, is this. This is everything I've ever wanted Xen to be, I love it. It's a master piece. This is a world between worlds, where the very ground you step on is an amalgamation of remnants from distant worlds. Where the impossible is possible, but you might not like what you find. A place meant to be forgotten now leaking into a new world. Ah I could go on for days I just love this so much! This is exactly everything I've ever wanted in Xen.

[@eternal7912]

I've always loved the feeling Xen gave me, and the potential it had. I truly hope future Half-Life games take us back to Xen. Considering there was some Episode 3 art depicting Xen a while ago, it could be possible if we ever get Half-Life 3.

[@the_fixer2593]

While I personally prefer the Black Mesa interpretation of Xen, this is definitely something that I'll hold in my heart; the dark, cold, lifeless, yet otherworldly beauty is something else.

[@oliverandom6808]

id say this more closely resembles the original game

[@Daxer2009]

i think it looks better then the black mesa one but both did a great job

[@Bluellamao]

its just another part of xen, different biome

[@pilotearesolutioner582]

@@oliverandom6808 you mean, the one even Valve themselves admitted to be the weakest and most rushed part of the game?

[@mrsgtshepardxd6193]

The original was more "ALIEN" inspired while Black Mesa was had more of an "AVATAR"; Pandora feel.

[@DinoKelFilms]

I honestly love this take on Xen. It really feels like a place unlike any other. A true border world, containing a mismatch of different types of aliens and celestial bodies. Truly breathe taking in all the right way!

[@TheJayson8899]

*breath

[@travisdickens4304]

I’d like to imagine that only some certain spots of xen look like the black mesa version, and the rest of it looks like this. Like a few lush oasis’s in a vast barren desert.

[@travisdickens4304]

Particularly those spots where transportation between universes can occur. As though the weaknesses of the barrier between them that allows tunneling also bleeds some of the life from that universe into xen.

[@lordofthegeckos533]

For sure. I mean, in a universe-sized ecosystem there's bound to be different habitats, with lush and inhospitable areas.

[@matearas7787]

Its probably vice versa actually

[@Freelancer837]

I like to imagine BM's version just doesn't exist lol

[@matearas7787]

@@Freelancer837 its better thsn original

[@NealjanYT]

That looks incredible! I love the dark theme you put on it which is more similar to the original xen Maybe i wouldnt have used a planet there but that concept also looks really cool Youre an amazing source artist

[@MERCENARIE]

I agree, the planet detracts from Xens other demension feel.

[@ethanlivemere1162]

I think the planet might relate to what G-Man shows Alyx at the end of HLA. The thing you're standing on at that moment looks like Xen stuff.

[@Cysco8575]

@@ethanlivemere1162 Maybe isn't even a planet, maybe is one of those "Gas Giants" inhabited by "Sentient Fungi" like Breen said to Eli in HL2.

[@jasonx1174]

@@Cysco8575 Always liked that part before Gordon is presented to Breen. Wallace trying to explain to Eli what exactly the Combine are capable of but is having a hard time due to it being "Impossible to describe with our limited vocabulary." and just how very out of world and difficult it is to try and believe it to be the case.

[@Cysco8575]

@@jasonx1174 If we think about it Gordon is one of the few people that saw Xen first hand and lived to tell the story. Such a shame the Combine Dyson Sphere is not canon, that would be even more fcked up in relation to how OP the Combine Empire is.

[@GregFurey98]

This is what I thought the Black Mesa version of Xen would be like. Dark, atmospheric, and horrifying. Fantastic work.

[@MrVoidwalker714]

The Black Mesa version of Xen looks like my inner mind sanctuary I visit regularly when daydreaming, so I kind of like that one a tiny bit more... but this version is incredibly beautiful as well, and portrays Xen more closely to Half-Life 1, than the magical version of Black Mesa. Great job!

[@awesomemouse]

1:30. I love the moment when the giant manta rays appear. If in the rest of the video Xen just looks like a gloomy and alien world, then at this moment you really feel yourself a completely helpless little creature in a giant deadly world in which you would not have survived even a few minutes.

[@Goaty_1]

I would like to imagiine the reason the Combine were able to make dropship synths were by finding those giant manta rays who got randomly teleported into Earth (like every other Xen creature during Half-Life 1) and capturing them.

[@ThePigeon5734]

Honestly I love both this AND Black Mesa's versions of Xen. Black Mesa was a fresh spin on it to try and make it feel more lively, but yours... yours highlights why Xen was always perfect and just limited by the technology.

[@krueger-x1892]

I love how you've made the scale of it so large. It screams cold and desolate.

[@jtsuxatgames]

Please, dude, keep doing what you are doing. You are helping keep Half-Life alive with this stuff. This is absolutely fantastic. I hope one day we get a movie in the Half-Life universe that includes Xen in some way, shape or form similar to this. This environment would make for such a terrifying Sci-Fi horror movie. This is such a fantastic blend of Valve & Crowbar Collective's iteration of Xen. The same dark, cold, eerie & unforgiving vibes in Valve's xen, combined with the sheer scale & detail and liveliness as Crowbar Collective's Xen. Amazing stuff.

[@voktam5517]

great detail the watchful houndeye warning his group of danger

[@lucasgaming681]

HL1 Xen: No Life BM Xen: Full Life TheParryGod’s Xen: *Half Life* Good work on this 👍

[@AmicusVA]

Absolutely love this, the ambience used is actually one of my favourites from the original. It is such an iconic sound for xen

[@kindlyplausible5855]

This one definitely shows that even if Xen is an otherworldly demented region, there is still beauty to it in some way or another. Really cool animation, Parry.

[@CarlosMoreno-cv8fq]

I love this version. It's like everything is dead, but at the same time full of life. It makes me think that, apart from what is shown in the game, there are life forms in that universe that are not yet known. The meaty look that the original game had, when I was a kid, made me wonder if I was really on top of a giant rock or something alive.

[@toasty2672]

Holy crap the attention to detail is amazing. It looks almost exactly like how it would look like if the og half-life was made today (Plus seeing the manta ray get teleported in the distance was cool)

[@dylan6957]

this is the BEST sfm animation i've ever seen. you're truly in a lane of your own

[@yacabo111]

Black Mesa's Xen felt like a truly alien world that had its own ecosystem and really nailed the idea that you were in an utterly different dimension. It's something I hold dear to my heart, but I kinda want to experience something like you just made here now. An absolutely cold, dark, inhospitable hell. The only life you meet here is absolutely ruthless by necessity, and you have to question how there even is an ecosystem.

[@theoncomingstorm7903]

Finally someone who's able to compliment this one without trash talking BM Xen for no reason. Love both for different reasons personally.

[@SomeKindaSpy]

@@theoncomingstorm7903 It's not for no reason.

[@mrfreeman9555]

Simply sublime. Feels like a truly alternate dimesion, I am the only one finding it damn relaxing?

[@fukudacal]

while in my opinion i do like the vibrant look of the black mesa xen interpretation, YOUR interpretation on the other hand. MY GOD IS IT SO COOL i just love how gloomy, dark, and cold it feels like, like it makes you feel that you are truly somewhere out of earth and in a very veyr hostile place. it honestly really encapsulates the feel of a border world. pheonmenal work as always this is one hell of a scenebuild!

[@Mandalorian777]

Loved the big alien getting teleported due to the resonance cascade

[@sholancethomas1614]

I like how you used Black Mesa’s version of xen but you made it look more desolate, mysterious yet expansive. U essentially Brought valve xen and Black mess xen together and put a darker spin on it

[@0turi]

this has the same feel as Jordan Peele's most recent movie 'Nope' and now i'd really like the combination of those two - (more) cosmic and psychological horror in the half-life series would be awesome

[@sp4de971]

this is much better then black mesa, really nails the original half life vibe thats incredibly hard to recreate

[@eternal7912]

I needed this. All the xen infestation in HLA and the brief glimpse of the Borderworld at the end got me thirsting for more. Thankyou ParryGod. You're fucking amazing. I like the touch of entire planets existing in Xen that HLA officially introduced. It implies that if the Resonance Cascade was never halted by the Combine, Earth might have wound up swallowed by Xen to drift through its void for the rest of eternity. Plus it opens up a lot of possibilities for travel to Xen in theoretical future Half-Life games.

[@scowler7200]

Earth being swallowed by Xen would've been preferable to the Seven Hour War. Can't conquer a planet that isn't there...

[@sharp14x]

>I like the touch of entire planets existing in Xen that HLA officially introduced what?

[@eternal7912]

@@sharp14x What do you mean what?

[@Nbinparticular]

@@eternal7912 What?

[@QuellicheilMarza]

@@sharp14x I think he refers to the flora and fauna found in Alyx, like the shock dog

[@plch8983]

Nihilanth called, asked me to tell you that you very accurately conveyed the type of area where he grew up) Great work Parry!

[@lordofthegeckos533]

You managed to blend HL1 and Black Mesa's versions of Xen in an absolutely spectacular way! If HL3 ever comes out, its version of Xen had better look like this.

[@drenchedinsyrupp6059]

Literally clicked as soon as I saw the upload. You produce the undisputed *best* Half Life content in the community.

[@gigachad9227]

This is beautiful dude keep up the amazing work, one thing I hope happens (it never will) is that we get source 2 redux of black Mesa but a man can only dream.

[@eternal7912]

I'm just hoping some fans make a mod that makes their Xen closer to this. Black Mesa's Xen is incredibly beautiful but its just not how I picture the Borderworld... or how Valve does for that matter.

[@VladislavZharkov]

Gives me strong Dead Space vibes, especially when that floating dead body appeared. Solid atmosphere.

[@d3lt452]

I can say without a doubt that I feel the same the same amazement and surprise along with pure desire of experiencing this as the people that first saw James Benson's trailer for the first Half Life years ago. You're spot on on every thing you do man. Keep it up!!! ❤️❤️❤️

[@vitaugglan]

This is a real masterpiece. Imagine playing this

[@MUSTASCH1O]

It's alive, yet so cold, lonely and inhospitable at the same time. It looks like it could exist, but that it shouldn't. Truly alien. I loved the portal effect at the end; I never thought the portal effects from the original game could be made to look so convincing in high detail.

[@Theplayerthatexists]

I love the H.E.V suit reference here: 0:24

[@canadianblt8667]

A much darker and bleak (almost Giger-esque) take on the border world. So used to seeing all the colours and glowing neons in Xen, this was a fresh take on a barren world. Nice touch with the flocking floater (at least I think that’s what it was?) - added a nice bioluminescent glow to the abyss.

[@trainenthusiast5199]

The Manta, you mean? Oh - the Protozoan floating.

[@RizzY_RUS]

Gives me half life 2 beta chills because of that dark green tone Really impressive

[@jonahc2807]

Aww, the houndeyes got spooked by the controllers :(

[@ThePhotoshopGuy]

This is awesome, definitely what I would expect if Valve made us go back to Xen again.

[@8-Bit_rade]

These video just never stop amazing me unreal talent. Keep it up man, its inspiring to see this stuff!

[@jasonx1174]

Really love the cold ominous look and feel for this one. Probably something I prefer over the Black Mesa interpretation.

[@theoncomingstorm7903]

Love the different interpretations of Xen. It's always cool to see unique spins on it. HL1 Xen is underrated and was held back by tech more than concept. BM Xen is one of my favourite fictional worlds of all time and this Xen perfectly captures the idea of an inhospitable border world with it's inhabitants barely hanging on to life. Bring on more interpretations of Xen.

[@SHDW-nf2ki]

I like this better than Black Mesa's weird neon jungle and Half Life 2 puzzles.

[@9mmdose]

Aww man, I love the Zen Atmosphere seen in both HL1 and Black Mesa, there's something so cool about the skyboxes present in them. It's also quite nice to see that you built a Zen Scene, I really like it.

[@CaptainPositron]

I do admit, I like the idea of this Xen better than Black Mesa's. It's like Xen is the cancer dimension, you really wouldn't want to be there. However, I also prefer the giant enemy citadel from Black Mesa since it gave the entire Xen part of the game an overarching goal to focus on. It would be neat to combine the two ideas together. Also, I'm not sure if those planets in the background work for the scene. Their presence seems kind of "normal."

[@SomeOneLite]

If Half Life alyx had Xen:

[@TheParryGod]

spoilers it very briefly has at the end.

[@ultgamercw6759]

Black Mesa Xen is a lush colourful wonderland of countless creatures and life forms we can never fully understand despite it's beauty. This version of Xen is a cold, dark and desolate places where only the strongest of life forms survive. I won't say which is better because they both have such a different tone and feel that any preferences would entirely be down to taste. Both however are utterly breath taking.

[@KEJA06]

I mean, BM's Xen is portrayed having multiple biomes, so without knowing just how vast the borderworld is who are we to assume it can't have both this as well as something at least along the lines of BM's Xen?

[@naturesquad9174]

@@KEJA06 BM saw HL1's "xen fungus" and said "Thats a tree", and that's about the level of depth BM's vision of Xen contains

[@shadowgriffin.4884]

Seeing the jelly blobber was really awesome.

[@dluzar]

Perfection! One small thing though: the green light from the teleport wouldn't reflect off of the far asteroid, especially if there's no reflection on the one the camera sits on.

[@monkeycake2612]

An asteroid field located in a nebulous gas cloud made ENTIRELY of breathable atmosphere. It's not impossible

[@someguy1894]

This is more of a border world feel than the actual planet feeling black mesa gives

[@Jocoiscool]

Looks amazing. Imagine playing the whole Xen chapter in source 2

[@mrm1987]

As always, stunning work you did there! I always feel excited, when I see, you posted a new video and even more, sometimes can't wait till you drop the next one. It's People like you, who really illustrate the beautiful yet horrific and also sad world of Half-Life. Thanks for that!

[@Danci1337]

I just can't express how amazing your videos are. I countinously return to watch them from time to time, really, movie worthy level work. Üdvözletem.

[@yeah-8492]

Everything about this is amazing, the little details, the description of Xen, the creatures, the luscious layout, and more. You’ve outdone your self @theparrygod

[@humanbeing418]

Now I wondering what Tripmine Studios' interpretation of Xen looks like.

[@Loona_imp]

With all the call backs ParryGod makes, we are no doubt going to see that Manta come back later on lol

[@candelalumen6334]

Amazing work dude..

[@Man_Aslume]

Somewhere..... A orange mute is fighting a space infant

[@Vo_Memes]

[ happy amazed crowbar noises ]

[@Horrorz95]

This might be my favorite rendition of Xen. Yes, even more than Black Mesa's stunning interpretation of it. You really are a god.

[@agentgollem1919]

Oh my god this is soo beautiful, there is so many details I love it it's short but a masterpiece ! can't wait for the next one.

[@algea2921]

A reminder we need Half-Life Alyx props ported into Black Mesa Xen. We need some more spike poles yo.

[@TheRundas95]

Amazing like all your other static Camera SFM this will be added in my android and Computer live wallpaper playlist. I hope to see more of this kind of SFM, - The citadel on alert scenery in Half Life 2. - City 17 before street war - Episode 2 destroyed citadel with portal storm these 3 could look so nice with your style. Amazing work as always

[@pouncelygrin6699]

That ray getting teleported looks so seamless, I like it

[@courier_06]

This is amazing, when I think of half-life 1's Xen this is what i picture, you did an amazing job. I'd love to see more HL1 stuff done by you, seeing a S2FM short of the HECU would be so cool

[@nathangray-fu7cg]

that floating dead guy at 0:27 really freaked me out

[@JvneXII]

You once again outdid yourself. This interpretation of Xen feels more closer to the original than Crowbar Collective's version.

[@demomainintf2963]

Thanks for adding the houndeyes in your vid there my favorite xen species to oberseve at

[@amaranthpeak]

Incredible. I only checked your channel 10 mins ago to see if you had any new uploads lmao, was glad to see this notification

[@locusgaudi]

Those chapter screens for HL3 are looking amazing! ---- Looked very much inspired by Dead Space aesthetics, what with the muted colors, spacescape and the floating body, and oh yes it fits. Feels very different from Black Mesa's version of Xen, much colder, spacier and hostile, more alien. Can't wait to see more!

[@armorhide406]

It's like heaven and hell rolled into one

[@AMBATUKAMceo]

Props to the cameraman who placed his camera inside xen just to take this beautiful video!

[@arandomyoutubecommenter728]

I have nothing to say other than this is just stunning, really brings out how alien Xen was.

[@mr_nothing.the_one_that_no9134]

This is some really good eye candy

[@CS_Uravity_PRO]

This is the BEST Xen incarnation. Cold and Hostile like HL1's yet full of life like BM's

[@Austrasie2.0]

Insane work ! My new favorite and your best yet imo.

[@Septus_The_Bloated]

Stunning work, I love the scene where the controllers slowly move into the camera view, I always imagine it’s them looking for some stray vortigaunt

[@dxfan18]

0:46 What the hell..... what is that, doc? I don't know, I've never seen that species before

[@Dr_Al_]

"Impossible to describe with our limited vocabulary."

[@ultmateragnarok8376]

Woah. I love this. The way it's in space, yet clearly doesn't seem to care and has its own thing going on. The details, such as the lighting of that teleport at the end showing on the distant islands, or the larger creatures' movements actually throwing particles and floating rocks around. The way the creatures interact, such as being scared of the alien controllers. How the flora is more animal or fungus than plant, not spreading across the barren rocks but more just being singular growths in their spots. The strange shapes of the rocks with those massive spiked pillars reaching only in two directions, and the web-like formations between them. The way this place both has no gravity and still retains a single plane everything aligns to, and some creatures simply retain gravity altogether. The fact that the rocks are clustered around the larger islands, clearly having been pulled in by simple mass as any free-floating objects will, and show how some have moved apart from each other in the trails they leave. The way air resistance and sound transmission seem to still be a factor in some ways, and not in others. The fog in the distance, which makes the farther islands and creatures somewhat hidden by the haze. Amazing.

[@nnikitov57]

Keep up the work, you're without a doubt the best (non-meme) Half-Life SFM creator right now

[@Bolloxed]

Is there a widescreen version?

[@TheParryGod]

Nope. The scene was built for 2.76:1

[@Bolloxed]

@@TheParryGod Shame, would make an amazing wallpaper / animated Desktop background :( It's so pretty

[@SollidnitrogeN]

It definitely captures that feeling of cold hollow-ness that I love about HL1 Xen, though I'm not sure what's up with the planet in the background.

[@lambdrey]

Amazing... Nobody would believe that this was firstly inspired by a videogame from 1998.

[@fireposeidon43]

another top notch video again, thanks for keeping half life lively! keep up the good animations, you're very underrated and can't wait for the next one.👍

[@hunterfranklin1948]

Without a doubt beautiful work! When the controllers came up, those were actually frightening to see just patrolling. I will say the planets feel kind of out of place. With Xen being the border between dimensions, I imagine the reason for the floating islands is the same reason we have an asteroid belt. Two massive entities gravitational pull keeping things separated. Regardless, amazing work!

[@glycine7695]

People have been mentioning how HL games used brighter themes for Xen, and that's because video games need more vibrant colors and clear contrasts for visual instructions in level design. This dim, dark, cold rendition of Xen is better for cinematic portrayal and world-building depiction.

[@I_am_a_human_not_a_commodity]

This was crazy good! I am a bit sad that that the floaty boi lost his friend to a portal, though. Also, shoutout to Buttnipples on Patreon. What a guy!

[@TheKingofBunga2912]

If somebody created a Source 2 version of Black Mesa. This would probably be the Xen used in that said version.

[@lassihelin4187]

Absolutely fantastic as usual really taking that original xen aesthetic and making it into something new and cool with source 2

[@jaredgunkle1562]

those controllers are absolutely terrifying really adds to the cosmic horror

[@CucumberYoghurt]

Finally someone who mentioned the controllers 😊 I also think they're scary as they patrol the emptiness

[@judsongaiden9878]

It makes sense that creatures adapted for Zer0-G, Low-G, or variable-g environs (but still lower than Earth gravity) would resemble marine life.

[@ICOMr.President]

This is really cool, love the sound design