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HalfLife A Place in the West

 
The Steam Spring Sale is Here!Mar 17, 2023 - Community Announcements{STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/00b8367a8aeb342a527467ec5539a7ef578f5382.png Hey everyone! The spring sale just landed, and we've discounted every chapter of the comic. If you haven't picked up some of the later chapters, now is a great time to do it - we're about a month and change away from the next release: Interlude 8.5 - The Philosopher's Paradise. Expect sepulchral horror, cosmic mysteries, and a very resentful tumbler of whisky. Best wishes, Mike and RossSteam Winter Sale and 2023 Update!Dec 22, 2022 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang! First things first: we're sorry for the radio silence these past few months. We know you've had lots of questions on achievements - like, when will they work? - and when you can expect the next chapter, but we've had to dial our production schedule back. Unfortunately I've been really, really sick, and Ross and I decided the next thing to do was for me to focus on getting better. I'm still going through that process, but we have every intention of upping our game in 2023. And yes, that includes fixing Steam achievements and getting the comic Deck verified. These are our priorities outside of making more issues. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/7adb9e9ea7c187398d4af71f3259c28374597a11.png Right now, though, it's the Steam Winter Sale, and we've discounted every chapter! Although the year has been slow, we're super pleased with our release of Chapter 8 - Remnant, which we honestly think is our best chapter yet. If you haven't checked it out yet, it's on sale right now. We hope you've all had a wonderful year and wish you the very best for the next one. Merry Christmas, too, ya filthy animals. Mike and RossAnniversary Sale!Oct 1, 2022 - Community AnnouncementsHey everyone, We're just dropping a quick line (slightly late) because yesterday marked six years that we've been on Steam! In that time, we've released 8 chapters (two of them twice) totaling about 267 pages, plus the interludes for another 68 pages. It's been quite a journey, and there's much more to come. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/0f51814140aa1327ec995e7e42ba49a98443b1fc.png To celebrate, we've discounted every chapter of the comic (including the recently released Chapter 8 - Remnant) as well as the soundtracks, and some by considerable margins. Pick 'em up now if you haven't already! We apologise for being a little quiet since the release of Remnant. There'll be some substantial updates to follow soon, both on Interlude 8.5 - Shing Optimacy and Chapter 9 - Echoes of Time in the City of Dreams, as well as achievements and translations. My Steam Deck is also slated to arrived later today, so hopefully we'll be able to make the comic compatible with that system before long, too. See you up ahead, Mike and RossA Place in the West is in the Steam Summer Sale!Jun 24, 2022 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang, We hope you're all enjoying Chapter 8 - Remnant. As you've no doubt noticed, the Steam Summer Sale is officially live. We've discounted chapters 2 - 7 and both volumes of the soundtrack, so if you haven't caught up yet, now's a great opportunity to do just that! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/8c4676f009ef55835efd98b8d4a439319edacee4.png Coming up we'll have more information on translations, achievements (finally!), and, in a few months, Interlude 8.5 - Shing Optimacy, which contains flashbacks to both Leyla and Dreyfus' recent past... and a surprise new face. Best wishes, Mike and RossChapter 8: Remnant released!Jun 19, 2022 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang! We are incredibly excited to announce the release of the eighth chapter of Half-Life: A Place in the West! You can pick up Remnant right now, with it being available to read via our Steam app or as a PDF in your Steam Directory. The art team have done an amazing job, producing what we honestly believe to be our best chapter yet. Yes, we say that every time, but we just feel so confident in our creative growth, and hope you will, too. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/91ea35ad06213c25580b161d073d13d2e4befc2f.png Next up is Interlude 8.5 - Shing Optimacy, which we'll be looking to release some time around our anniversary in September. Along with that we're planning to release some other things that have been in the works for some time - translations (both for Russian and for German!), an update to the quality of the comic images delivered, and hopefully a fix for achievements. We hope you enjoy the new installment as much we do, and can't wait to hear your thoughts on it. It's a game-changer. Mike and RossChapter 8 released!Jun 19, 2022 - Community AnnouncementsChapter 8, Remnant has been released!Chapter 8 Store Page is Live - Wishlist now!Jun 4, 2022 - Community AnnouncementsHey everyone! We apologise for the radio silence so far this year. We've been busy! Chapter 8 - Remnant is close to completion and will release quite soon. The store page is officially live, so give it a wishlist to be notified of its release! What's the next installment about, then? Good question: Sejal Rajani’s Opposition have captured City Hall and imprisoned Major General Long – as well as Leyla Poirier and Albert Kempinski. As Rajani prepares to put Long on trial, the vortigaunt Dreyfus penetrates the mysterious edifice known as Remnant, determined to hunt down an ancient enemy. A shard of metal stripped from the lost Citadel, Remnant’s purpose – and the fate of the kidnapped children – is at last revealed. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/9c7c3366a80b961725c18a4d64dd6818ba58f5df.png I've also been working hard to get achievements up-and-running again. Expect to hear more about that soon. It's been a rough ride, and we apologise. But it really is drawing to an end - promise. At our next update, we'll also give some news on where the translations are - both for Russian, and for a new release of German. We'll see you up ahead. Mike and RossPrequel Novel Half-Life: Phase TransitionJan 11, 2022 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang! Happy New Year! Just a short update from us: For the past year Ross has been hard at work on a full-length prequel novel to A Place in the West called Half-Life: Phase Transition. It's not yet complete and won't start releasing until the summer, but as a taste of what to expect we have made the prologue available for reading. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/cfefb94925802fb81e812fe9dbfc622627b712ab.png You can find it right here: https://www.halflifenovel.com/chapter/prologue/ Let us know what you think and stay tuned for updates on Chapter 8 - Remnant very soon... ...very soon. Best, Mike and RossWinter SaleDec 26, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang! We hope you've all enjoyed Interlude 7.5 - Castle Okno! We just wanted to drop a quick word to say we've discounted every chapter of the comic for the Steam Winter Sale, as well as both soundtracks. If there's any chapters you're missing, now is a great time to pick them up. A very Merry Christmas to all of you - stay safe. Mike and RossInterlude 7.5 - Castle Okno Released!Dec 20, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHey all, We’re very proud to announce the release of Interlude 7.5 – Castle Okno! It’s eight pages in length and, as is our custom with the interludes, totally free: just boot up the app or check your Steam directory for the PDF. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/65ec577307a5915ee03c891ff0c08580460081a0.jpg What’s it about? Over a year before Leyla and Dreyfus arrive in North America, they infiltrate a Combine weather station in Eastern Europe - Castle Okno - on a secret mission. It’s brought to you by Ross Joseph Gardner, Michael Pelletier, Kristian Rossi, Ester Salguero, and DC Hopkins. What’s up next? Well, that'd be Chapter 8 - Remnant. Unfortunately the ongoing pandemic has contributed to our efforts being slowed somewhat, but we're excited to kick into gear with it in the new year. Chapter 8 contains some big revelations. We will also have more changes coming! We're going to prioritize reworking the images and PDFs to be a higher quality without hopefully cutting into file size too much. Special thanks to monad for his continued assistance in that regard. Russian translations are still in the works, but we have no update on that front. Separately, our friend Artur Neufeld has also been working tirelessly on a German translation! He has the first 4.5 chapters translated, but there's still a little bit left to do on them before release. Here's an early sneak peek. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/a4ae42bbfa4545c0efdc36842ee55a3cc5016e07.png In the meantime, check out 7.5 and tell us what you think! Speak soon. Mike and RossAutumn Sale and 7.5 Update!Nov 26, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang, We just wanted to drop a quick word to say that the Steam Autumn Sale is now live and we've discounted every chapter of the comic as well as both volumes of the soundtrack. If you haven't checked them out yet, go go go! We're also on the cusp of releasing interlude 7.5 - Castle Okno. It's an 8-page story that details a key event in Leyla's past. As a teaser, here's the first page. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/f801e0229b3c985c14ac6ab9afc8112f2b97709b.jpg See you in a couple of weeks! Mike and RossAnniversary Sale and Update!Sep 30, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHello gang, We hope you’ve had a stellar summer. As we head into autumn, we thought we’d give you an update on where we’re at and what to expect for the rest of the year. We want to first take a moment to celebrate our five year anniversary of being on Steam! It's a huge milestone for us - Five years ago, Ross and I were huddled around a laptop together in Boston, pushing out the first build of the app, and preparing for the Steam Dev Days conference in Seattle. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/5b215b43ec65c62573d820d3fbdd3730a5e19d3f.png A whole lot has changed in the world since then, and that’s true of us, too. Five chapters, two remakes, several interludes – it’s a lot of pages, and puts us squarely at the halfway point in our story. We’d prefer not to take another five years wrapping things up, but comics are an expensive business. Which brings us to the remainder of 2021. Whilst our original plan was to have Chapter 8: Remnant well into production by now, it sadly wasn’t an affordable prospect. At present, Interlude 7.5: Castle Okno is partway through its production cycle, and will be released before the end of the year, with Remnant firing up in early 2022. In accordance with the big anniversary, we’ve discounted all chapters and both volumes of the soundtrack by a whopping 75%. The sale will run for the duration of the day, so if you haven’t checked out the later chapters, now is a great time to do so! We’ll see you in a few weeks. Thanks for sticking with us! Mike and RossWe're on sale! The Steam Summer Sale is live!Jun 24, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsThe Steam Summer Sale is now live, which means chapters 2 through to 6, plus both soundtracks, are now sale! We hope you’ll take this opportunity to pick up any chapters you’ve yet to read. We're officially halfway through our story! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/8c4676f009ef55835efd98b8d4a439319edacee4.png It's been a real honour to see Chapter 7 – The Dark Between The Stars so positively received. Up next is Interlude 7.5 – Castle Okno, which will be released for free later this year. It’s a flashback to Leyla’s time in Eastern Europe, and takes us to a Combine weather station somewhere in the outlands… We’ll have more details very soon. We are also still working on getting the Achievements fixed, and would like to apologize once again for the length of time that it is taking. Our friends Vsevolod Stepanov and Pavel Lapinsky are also hard at work on the Russian translations. In the meantime, do pick up the other chapters – whether it’s for yourself, your significant other, your folks, your cat, your dog, whoever or whatever. Literally anyone. Thanks for reading. Mike and RossChapter 7 Released!May 24, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHey folks! We’re very pleased to announce that Chapter 7: The Dark Between the Stars has been released. It marks the halfway point in our story and features 38 pages of all-new artwork by Kristian Rossi, Ester Salguero, and DC Hopkins. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/45459fa073332b225ea02924fb54bf033c41cb4d.png It’s an incredibly exciting chapter that sees the comic’s setting, New Franklin, descend into civil war as Long, Rajani, and Banks fight for control of its future. Next up is Interlude 7.5: Castle Okno, which will be released for free later this year. It’s a flashback to Leyla’s time in Eastern Europe, and takes us to a Combine portal monitoring station somewhere in the wilderness… {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/c731b2897c6438dfec0c7c5e0fbb739aff404d70.png But that’s not all we’re working on. We know the wait between chapters is long. It’s not ideal, but comics are incredibly expensive and are funded by our jobs. We can only make what we can afford. However, we want to introduce more content that expands the comic’s world and gives our readers something to enjoy in those months when we’re in production. First up is a prequel novel written by Ross. It’s called Half-Life: Phase Transition and takes place a few years before the events of A Place in the West. The story follows a helicopter pilot called Ray who is shipped to Eastern Europe in the first weeks of the Combine occupation, where he meets a young Leyla Poirier and joins her on a journey into the heart of City 17. We’ll start releasing it for free, one chapter a week, towards the end of the year. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/896a746dff5c7011332d5eee85787f1df1d0b547.png Secondly we’re putting a third soundtrack volume into production. It will once again come courtesy of the very talented Chris Jolley, whose work you can check out here. The third volume comes with a twist: it will feature a narrative component, exploring the life of a particular set of people in New Franklin. We’re very excited about all of these projects and the comic’s future – it’s going to be an exciting and surprising year! As ever, please do share news of the comic, leave us a review, and check us on Twitter and Discord. Mike and Ross PS: In case you missed it, we have Achievements currently disabled. You can read more about this in our news post from yesterday. We hope to have this resolved soon!Achievements Currently DisabledMay 23, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHi all, We wanted to give a quick update because we know a few people have been having trouble unlocking achievements over the last couple of months. Unfortunately, there appears to be some kind of problem with the library that we’re using where it sometimes(?) can’t seem to load the proper files. We're incredibly sorry that this has occurred. We know it's not acceptable, especially when half of those achievements are locked behind a paywall; we're meant to deliver the service we say we are, but right now we can't. That's just not okay, and we're going to try and make it up to our readers as soon as we can. Our plan is to hopefully work with the creators of the library to get this sorted out, but in the meantime, to keep the potential break from negatively affecting other functionality, we’ve disabled achievements within the app. In the interest of transparency, we’ll also be posting this message on the discussion forums, and adding a disclaimer to the store page. We will keep you updated as we continue to try and get this sorted out, and thank you for your patience. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/c5f62944e2e9cbe113a8217ef3dccb6d74e5f847.png In better news, we're not letting this set-back stop us. As much as we wanted to have this resolved before release, we don't think delaying Chapter 7 is the right solution, so we're going to be going ahead with it. How soon? Chapter 7, The Dark Between the Stars, will be released both on the app and as a PDF tomorrow! If you haven't wishlisted it already, you can do so right here. Please do let us know what you think of it. Best, Mike and RossChapter 7's Store Page is Live!May 17, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang! A super quick update from us: the store page for Chapter 7: The Dark Between the Stars is now live! We’ll be releasing this month, but in the meantime give us a wishlist! We can’t wait to release this! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/207215090a9ec33aae6156f933c0dcf27a84b803.jpg Mike and RossProduction on Chapter 7 is complete!May 11, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang, A short update carrying some very, very good news: production on Chapter 7: The Dark Between the Stars has been completed! We don’t have a precise release date yet, but our plan is to have it to all of you by the end of this month. We’re so excited with the completed product and it represents the halfway point in our story. Better yet, it’s 38 pages as opposed to the traditional 30, and at the same price – a thank you from us for your patience over the last year of remakes! {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/45459fa073332b225ea02924fb54bf033c41cb4d.png Here’s the synopsis: The Dark Between the Stars is the seventh chapter in the Half-Life: A Place in the West saga, and continues the story of New Franklin – an American enclave with a mysterious cosmic tower at its heart. Leonard Banks, the power plant foreman, issues an ultimatum to Cormac Long and Sejal Rajani: relinquish control of the city or he will start deactivating its defences. When neither Long nor Rajani submit to his demands, Banks makes good on his threat, unleashing hordes of antlions on the city's borders. As Long scrambles to defend the breach, Rajani sees one last chance to capture Long and assume control of the city, and rallies the Opposition for an all-out assault on City Hall. We’ll see you in just a few weeks! And don't forget to join us on our new Discord server and follow us on Twitter for more updates! Mike and RossChapter 7 Update (and a new Discord server!)Mar 3, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang, We just thought we’d give you a quick update since it has been a bit. We’re about to hit the halfway mark on Chapter 7: The Dark Between the Stars, which puts us in a comfortable position to release sometime in June. At 38 pages it’s a larger chapter than most, but that’s befitting the scope of the story. It puts us at the midway point in our comic, so it’s a big deal for us! We’re very excited as to how it’s coming together and the team are doing a stellar job. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/25c6825a0fcfeeff084d06861da4c56686d7b80b.png We have also launched a Discord server for the comic. If you’d like to chat to us, tell us what we’re doing wrong, or have suggestions for the app, come on over! We’d love to hear what you have to say. Beyond that, you’ll find a very pleasant and amiable community of Half-Life fans. Join our Discord! That’s it from us for the time being. We hope you’ve enjoyed the remakes and are looking forward to the future of A Place in the West. There are some big surprises in store… Mike and RossThe Lunar New Year Sale is here!Feb 11, 2021 - Community AnnouncementsHey gang, Happy New Year! We’re hoping you're all safe and well, given last year’s less than stellar global performance. Steam’s Lunar New Year event has just started, which means all chapters, including both soundtracks, are now on sale! As you likely know we have remade the first two chapters of the comic, so now’s a really terrific time to check them out. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/e7873c73ade333e46b164d17e8129ae992625c06.png For better or for worse, do consider leaving us a review—we’re really keen to hear what everyone thinks of how the project is taking shape. At present we’re knee-deep in production on Chapter 7: The Dark Between the Stars, which is roughly the halfway mark in our story. We can’t commit to a release window just yet, but as soon as we can, you’ll know about it. {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/f4c6727686ab0f1e2b02620a5e1d3d993d19cb9e.png In the meantime, do check out the rest of the comic and, as ever, thanks for sticking with us. Best wishes, Mike and Ross2020 Comes to a CloseDec 22, 2020 - Community AnnouncementsHey folks, It’s time to ring in the end of the year. And what a year it has been. For us, it saw the completion of our plans to remake Chapters 1 and 2 of our comic, which we successfully released last week. It was an enormous relief, and we’re very excited to start making some real headway on our story, starting with Chapter 7: The Dark Between the Stars. Progress on 7 is already underway and is slated for a Spring release. It’s the halfway point in our story which sees the battle between Long, Rajani and Banks reach its dramatic and explosive conclusion. Here’s a small taster of what’s to come: {STEAM_CLAN_IMAGE}/26319859/4b36bf65cd964b6d2ce8319106b649a6a8a7aefd.jpg Following up from last week's release, we also have some things we're working on behind the scenes. The Soundtracks have been converted into being actual Soundtracks, and will be made available within the app again. We're also having a chat in the discussion boards about the image quality & compression, feel free to drop by there and weigh in if you have any thoughts on it! We'll be making tweaks there shortly. Finally, we're also aware of an error that occurs when launching through Steam on Ubuntu (note that the app does work when launched from the folder, and that there are PDFs available). I'm going to be getting one of my machines set up with Ubuntu so I can properly diagnose & fix that. In the meantime, the Steam Winter Sale has just started, and we’ve discounted every chapter including both volumes of the soundtrack. It's a better time than ever to get into the comic if you haven't before. And if you have, gift it to someone you like. Thank you for your support throughout the year, and we’ll see you in 2021. Mike and Ross