Half-Life: Every Game Ranked Worst To Best
2. Black Mesa
It may not be an official release in the series, but in its final form, Black Mesa is very deserving of its place near the top. It was a fan project years in the making, with Crowbar Collective getting started on it following the mediocre response to Half-Life: Source in 2004.
Feeling that the original classic could be massively upgraded, the small team got to work; creating a modern look for Half-Life while also fixing many issues the older game had. After many iterations and an extended period in early access on Steam, the final release arrived in early 2020.
Whether you've played the original or not, Black Mesa will floor you with how great it looks; every graphical element has been overhauled and certain parts of the levels have been reworked for a more balanced experience.
Much like the elusive Half-Life 2: Episode Three, Black Mesa would be viewed as vapourware for some time as the thirteen-person team worked over many years to make the final product as polished as possible.
Even Xen, Half-Life's final set of levels that received criticism have received an upgrade. Accomplishing a remaster as brilliant as this is an awesome feat, making it the superior version of Half-Life is something else entirely.