Black Mesa, the name of the research facility that defined theHalf-Lifefranchise, has been actively in use by a Boston-based manufacturing company.
However,their websitenow has a mysterious countdown written in small text at the very bottom, along with the exact same logoon top and a possible Half-Life reference in its code.
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Adding to the recent Half-Life 3 leaksstemming from a voice actor’s resume and various data mining efforts, the recent website discovery seems to belong to an actual manufacturing company.
But everything about it just adds to the mounting confusion and cautious optimism about an actual Half-Life installment.
Interestingly enough, the Black Mesa company, includingits LinkedIn page, employees, and the previous version of the websiteindicate that it’s a legitimate company.
Despite having nearlyidentical name and logo, the website states in the About sectionthat it has active contracts with several U.S. Governmentdepartments.
If the latter is actually true, that should be more than enough to prove that the website is not part of a marketing campaign for Half-Life 3. In addition, the previous design of the website had an encrypted recruitment message that stated it was not part of an alternate reality game (ARG).
It’s also a possibility that it’s part of a collaboration between the Black Mesa company and Crowbar Collective, whodeveloped the Half-Life remake.
The Black Mesa Website References Half-Life In Its Code
That being said, the website does have a countdown written in tiny text set to end on September 30th, which is convenient considering the resurgence in Half-Life leaks. But what’s really strange about the website lies in its code, though.
Several Redditors analyzing the websitefound the term “lambda-incident” in the code, which does not make any sense in the programming jargon butit does refer to the catastrophic event in the Half-Life universe, as we all know.
Assuming that the Black Mesa is a legitimate manufacturing company that has nothing to do withValve’s beloved franchise;using the same name and the nearly-identical logo, along with a Half-Life reference in the code can not be a series of coincidences.
According to LinkedIn, the company’s CEO is Charles Fracchia,and he does not have an idea what Half-Life is, based on his reply to the Redditor u/pryvisee who reached out to him via his socials.
It’s a sarcastic answer, of course, as Fracchia has a crowbar and a headcrab on the photos ofhis X profile. He is the CEO of a website that seems like it jumped out of the Orange Box bundle, after all.
It seems like the rabbit hole is about to get deeper once again,25 years after the initial releaseof the original Half-Life.
Whether the countdown on the Black Mesa website is a precursor to a Half-Life 3 announcement or something entirely different, it has clearly reignited hope in the gaming community.
That being said, it’s best to take everything with a pinch of salt when it comes to Half-Life. At the end of the day, it might be a legitimate company founded by Half-Life fans, or it might be a group of mega fans who are hellbent on milking the recent Half-Life 3 leaks for some wave-riding.
However, it could also be Valve working with scientists and professors for an elaborate ARG before announcing its long-awaited magnum opus, too.
The website just posted a message titled Resonance Cascades, stating that they are a real company in the Boston areabut are not working with Valve on Half-Life 3 or “Project White Sands.”
The message ends with a PS calling out Valve’s president, Gabe Newell, saying that he knows where to find them. While the countdown still remains, the Black Mesa company refuses any relation to the long-awaited Half-Life 3.
