It's been a pretty slow day today, so I've mucked around with some old media from the game Majesty to make some avatars for people to use, if they wish. Credit for the original images belongs to Cyberlore:

Adept

Foreign nomad from afar, renowned for his quick reflexes; carries a staff. Follower of Lunord, God of Moonwind.

Barbarian

Savage brute who charges into battle with both club and axe. Follower of Krolm, the Eldest God.

Cultist

Zany, dagger-tossing maniac, who charms the wild beasts. Follower of Fervus, God of the Wilds.

Dirgo the Cyclops

Lumbering, one-minus-one-eyed giant, who stumbles over houses and squashes heroes with an old tree trunk.

Dwarf

Sturdy architect of ballista towers. Employs his great hammer for smiting foes and repairing damaged buildings.

Elf

Cunning archer who enjoys living in luxury. Elven lounges and gambling halls boost the economy, but spread idleness.

Gnome

Wretched little demi-human, who scurries about repairing buildings. Breeds rapidly; happily fights with no weapons.

Healer

Peacekeeper and supporter of virtue. Defends herself with a dagger. Follower of Agrela, Goddess of Life.

Avatar of Krolm

Eldest God incarnate who has a great disgust for the trivialities of civilization. Crushes with his mighty stone sword.

Monk

Devout enforcer of justice, who fights only with his bare hands. Follower of Dauros, God of Law.

Paladin

Righteous maiden, who honors the laws of Dauros above all else. Smites evil with a two-handed sword.

Black Phantom

Frighteningly powerful spirit, who relentlessly destroys the souls of the living with ancient spells of evil fury.

Priestess

Sinister practitioner of the dark art of necromancy. Devout follower of Krypta, Goddess of Death.

Ranger

Noble explorer of wilderness areas. Skilled with the longbow.

Rhoden

Overlord of the Ratmen, who masterminds nefarious raids from his sewer underworld.

Rogue

Shifty opportunist, who has a strong thirst for gold. Protects his interests with a heavy crossbow.

Solarus

Hot-tempered warrior woman from afar; equipped with a two-handed mace. Follower of Helia, Goddess of Sunfire.

Tax Collector

Uppity bureaucrat, who travels some dangerous routes, and yet is scorned by the common folk.

Vendral

Ancient two-headed terror, who rampages without mercy, spewing forth deadly flames that destroy entire kingdoms.

Warrior of Discord

Fearsome gladiator, who has been touched by the madness of Fervus. Swings a scythe to dismember his foes.

Warrior

Tough, aggressive hand-to-hand combatant. Wears full plate armor.

Wizard

Old and befuddled, but a caster of powerful, pyrotechnic spells. Wields a crystal staff.

What's it look like on your side? Seems pretty desolate from my vantage point.

I think we might be the only ones left...

Rosencrantz: Did you ever think of yourself as actually dead, lying in a box with a lid on it?

Guildenstern: No.

Rosencrantz: Nor do I, really. It's silly to be depressed by it. I mean, one thinks of it like being alive in a box. One keeps forgetting to take into account the fact that one is dead, which should make all the difference, shouldn't it? I mean, you'd never know you were in a box, would you? It would be just like you were asleep in a box. Not that I'd like to sleep in a box, mind you. Not without any air. You'd wake up dead, for a start, and then where would you be? In a box. That's the bit I don't like, frankly. That's why I don't think of it. Because you'd be helpless, wouldn't you? Stuffed in a box like that. I mean, you'd be in there forever, even taking into account the fact that you're dead. It isn't a pleasant thought. Especially if you're dead, really. Ask yourself, if I asked you straight off, "I'm going to stuff you in this box. Now, would you rather be alive or dead?" Naturally, you'd prefer to be alive. Life in a box is better than no life at all, I expect. You'd have a chance, at least. You could lie there thinking, "Well. At least I'm not dead. In a minute somebody is going to bang on the lid, and tell me to come out." [bangs on lid] "Hey, you! What's your name? Come out of there!"

[long pause]

Guildenstern: I think I'm going to kill you.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmgEN5Crr2c&playnext=1&list=PLBE09276223352616

Parts One and Two here, er... there....

The Citizen

At some point, one goes through so many stories "expanding" the Half-Life narrative that one becomes intensely cynical about the entire idea. Unfortunately for The Citizen, I had already reached that point of saturation by the time I came to it.

Premise-fatigue aside, this mod doesn't do anything bad, but neither does it do anything great. The story, of an average citizen pushed over the edge and joining the Resistance, is tired but shows evidence of effort. Scenes of emotional gravity generally fall flat, while scenes with humor tend to be a little more successful. Voice acting is decent, but sound quality is noticeably worse than Valve-produced voice files. Maps are well designed, but so tiny you often feel you're spending as much time looking at loading screens as you are playing the game.

The Citizen is an OK mod, and I recommend it under two conditions: (1) You are looking to kill time. (2) You go in with moderated expectations.

CSS SCI FI 3: Hardwired

The opposite of The Citizen and many other narrative-oriented projects, CSS SCI FI has an eloquently simple purpose: throw a ton of unconnected missions at the player.

Presenting several dozen Counter-Strike maps painted up in a Half-Life 2 style, adding tons of custom weapons, a few new enemies, and about half a dozen mission types, this game brings a lot of content to the table. With non-linear mission progression and arena-style maps augmented with minor randomization, it embodies the "pick up and play" style in a very positive way. You may not sit down and play it for hours on end, but you'll probably find yourself coming back to it again and again.

Flesh

A third person adventure with a riff on the Silent Hill premise, Flesh fails to ever be truly scary but succeeds at occasionally looking and feeling really cool. Level design and art is mostly just serviceable but occasionally wanders into "great" territory. Voice acting, with lots of distortion, is good, although occasionally character monologues drag on too long. By far the best aspect, however, is the soundtrack, which complements the eerie, winter-night setting masterfully.

Mission Improbable

In short: Wow! What a great way to show off the potential of mods and the modding community.

Mission Improbable is another Gordon Freeman story, but in a very subtle way that doesn't say "HAY GUISE THIS IS SRS BSNS!" Our intrepid doctor is simply and directly tasked with activating a lighthouse shut down by the Combine and then escaping. And it's one hell of an escape.

With a sense of pacing and design to rival Valve and MINERVA, this mod is attractive, intelligent, cheeky, and just plain cool. The only downside is that, as a work in progress, there are only two maps currently. But enough of my gushing; go get this mod.

And thus ends part 3 of my bite sized reviews. I just impulsively bought a crapload of games on Steam, so it may be awhile until I get to more mods. And as always: a useful thread for mod tech assistance.