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Black Mesa Training Simulation: Resonance Cascade 
| Author | RaptorSKA |
| Released | 5.26 - October 09, 2024 |
| Latest Version | 5.26 - June 11, 2025 |
| .bsp filename | bts_rc + bts_rc_ns |
| Status | Waiting for AI Update then Discontinued |
Requirement
THERE IS NOW TWO VERSIONS OF THIS MAP AVAILABLE - MAKE SURE YOU RUN THE CORRECT VERSION
BTS_RC = SURVIVAL
BTS_RC_NS = NO SURVIVAL
Important Information Regarding the Next Update
This current build uses AI Generated Content, which will be removed in the next update. Currently, the code is being reworked to be as optimised as possible for dedicated servers. At the moment, the map has a heavy toll on performance due to the RNG nature and scale of the map. I wish to have this optimised, to allow many more players to enjoy the map.
Regarding AI Generated content:
Voices and Music have been fully replaced by a team of dedicated people. Including Members of the half life speed running community, and a member of the sven co-op team themselves. All of which, have done the best to their ability, and provided excellent voice overs. all music, was replaced thanks to the efforts of Four Nines, Robert.- and Shiekyerbouti. who worked within a possibly frustrating situation, with the constant push towards bts having its own style and theme.
I would like to thank everybody involved with removing the AI Generated Content, along with Mikk155 and Mad, who are currently reworking the entire code base to have it as optimised as possible.
The Update will be released at somepoint in the future. But only after thorough testing.
Thank you,
RaptorSKA
Description
███████████████████████████
██████ TO: EMPLOYEE OF THE BLACKMESA RESEARCH FACILITY
██████ FROM: SECTOR H MANAGER
██████ DATE RECEIVED: 1ST MAY 200-
██████ RESTRICTED: LEVEL 5 ONLY
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You have been selected for a training simulation, please report to Sector H for the meeting explaining the simulation - This months simulation is based on the resonance cascade, chosen by Dr Rosenberg. Sector C has just received the purist sample they've ever discovered and wish to conduct the experiment as soon as possible! however, even though it is highly unlikely.. the Resonance cascade simulation will be given out to our members of staff of level 5 clearance. all the classified information like the █████████████████████████████████████████████████ have been included in the simulation, we expect that ████████████████████████████ and.. unfortunately the █████████████████████████████████████████████████ may be called to ███████████████████████. however the administrator and doctor Rosenberg remain confident that this simulation will prepare all our staff in the future for a possible, but again, very unlikely scenario! sharing this information with anyone outside the clearance of level 5 will result in ███████████████████████████████████████████████████████████
███████████████████████████████████████████████████. Our team is waiting for you in Sector H, Good luck!
Map explanation
This map is a hardcore map, it will require a few plays to fully grasp the size and what to do - it's an escape map based on the resonance cascade that uses the inventory system to a whole new level, class system based on three occupations in blackmesa.
Each area has sub-areas such as labs, doctors wings, legal wings, server rooms and security rooms.
you will need to explore the map to fully understand the alternative pathways, routes and benefits.
The scientist monitoring the simulation will give you dialog through the map, if it becomes too much - you can use the music volume control to adjust - he uses ambient_music to allow you to turn him off.
The map also has an intro video which can be skipped - it explains the map pretty well and hints towards an obstacle.. the map has various ways to inform you about objectives, it could literally be written on the wall or revealed with an effect.. sometimes its subtle details to point you in a general direction. Signs, Billboards, even maps are around the facilities allowing you a smoother understanding of the map
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Class explanation
You will be given the choice of four positions in the map start.
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Lighting situation
Flashlights are disabled on this map, you must use your standard flashlight and batteries to navigate vents, hallways and shafts. Some weapons like the M9 Beretta, BM Desert Eagle and Mossberg 500 have attached flashlights making them desirable weapons. Batteries drain fast - but you can share batteries with players - you will also find flares on the map, which is a great alternative to be able to use other weapons.
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Elevator and Tram system
This map uses relative teleporters for the elevators and the tram system, this has been tested for almost 3 months - it's not perfect, but the job gets done
these elements in the map work fantastic for gameplay - however make sure to have L bound to unstuck, even though I've almost perfected the teleporters - it can't be 100% perfect, so it can still get you stuck.
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Inventory system
You will need to fully understand the inventory system before playing the map, this map heavily uses it for a more survival experience - you are not Gordon Freeman, running around with an HEV suit killing everything on sight. Weapons, items, and Key items all go into your inventory system, and to use them - you activate them.
this allows the following:
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Monsters, Items, Weapons, Ammo spawning
All of the above, are randomly placed around the map, meaning every single playthrough of the map is different and unique each time. Key items have limited locations to avoid soft lock scenarios - but the map will have just about everything randomly placed. This will prevent rushing to a degree but also allow alot of replay ability. Some playthroughs you will find a shotgun and have zombies in the room - next you'll have a pipe and a Gonome will be hauling ass at you.
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Difficulties
The map features various difficulties and settings, this will allow you to have the best experiences on the map and to allow more replay!
Though be advised, the difficulty goes from 0 to 100 extremely fast.
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Installation Info
Download the zip archive and extract/copy all of the contents into your svencoop_addon folder, where they will merge with the existing folders of the same names.
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Changelog
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Additional credits
Tags
Rate this map
4.3 / 5 (39 votes)
Reviews
5 / 10 by Chimz View »
9.8 / 10 by Four-Nines View »
9.5 / 10 by Isaac "Iggy" Kleiner View »
9.9 / 10 by Sock View »
Comments & discussion
Rules:
- Feedback should be constructive.
- For discussion not related to this map, post in the forum.
- If you need help installing maps, please read the installation guide.
I discovered it yesterday and played with 3 other players (Survival mode). The concept is very nice and the idea to be coordinated with reflexion and the importance for each class is very nice. Especially because the spawn and the items are each time different.
However, more explanation is needed in the game (how weapons, items works, the classes, the administation part choice etc…) The possibility to skip the entrance area would be nice and maybe a better balance in some areas could be considered.
I have to precise that when I died at one point, my items were in the water and it was impossible to pick up again. Maybe a fix to be sure that the items are always recoverable would be better.
2 and 3 are adressed, spam between the soda cans until you hear button clicks 5 times, this will competely skip all intro and let you choose difficulty and forces at whim
all important keycards and key items all spawn back in about 2 minutes, if it doesnt then its not important
storymode should be able to just explain things, as the scientist voice over kind of tutors you, theres a tutorial, but the map is overwhelming so you need to put a lot more hours to beat it consistently
I'm hoping that the update coming will fix most of the issues stated above,
The new intro has a Voice actor explaining items on the map, batteries and the general objective - to help guide players.
The map size is very large, making it confusing. New signage has been added to the map to point players towards the correct direction, along with npc interactions, sprites and more obviously hints towards the goal.
Items wise, like SV BOY stated, return after a two minutes mark. Map Roulette and S/V/EN have the latest test build, with most of these issues fixed. The current build has most of these fixed but will be thoroughly tested to make sure it balances out. Most items, such as key items (Maintenance Cards, Level 3 Security, Reception keys) are all respawnable after 2 minutes, it'll usually take you longer to get to these locations lol.
Weapons, Enemies and Items are all being rebalanced as well to make it seem more fair, I hope you'll try the new update when it releases. Thank you for the feedback
Hello! Please, can you help me?
1- In the 30/08/2025 Final version, the changelog says the final version of bts_rc_ns was added. However, in the latest release (v5.50), the file is no longer included. It's crossed out in the .bsp filename section, but not under Requirements. Will it no longer be available? Since it's a long map, having a non-Survival version is nice because other players can still join mid-game.
2- Both times I reached the ending, the game faded to a white screen and stayed there. I think it's probably just an issue on my end, since I haven't seen anyone else mention it, including the player who finished the map with me. Do you have any idea what might be causing it?
PS: I'm checking my video settings… but If someone experienced soemthing like this… please, tell me!
Thanks!
Yeah no problem.
1. BTS_RC_NS was discontinued because the map originally included AI features, and replacing all of the voice actors required a significant amount of work. Over time, the side map became much more difficult to maintain and update because it had gameplay and code changes that differed from the standard version.
It was originally created because people were making their own edits of the map. However, when those edits caused problems, people ended up complaining to me directly, even though I wasn't aware those versions even existed.
With the new codebase currently in development, the addition of custom enemies, and a desire to stay closer to the original concept of the map, I decided to discontinue the side map.
2. I have heard this issue before, I will need to remember who it was that had the issue, but with the new testbeds, it has not been reported since. I'm hoping the update will be out at some point. It's being completely restructured, all AI replaced, along with geometry changes and optimisation efforts.
I hope this helps
Ok! I'm waiting for the update, it's not big deal because I always reopen the game!
Thanks!
I played it for the first time yesterday, but I joined in the middle of someone else's solo playthrough. It was difficult at first because I wasn't sure what to do or where to go, but it was a lot of fun!
I'd like to play it a few more times and become more familiar with the map before giving a more detailed opinion. But I can already say that it's an amazing map!
PS: The other player told me he chose "Storymode"! (I can't imagine Tortured)!
PS2: The PS play above had Robots… I played one time alone and only monsters appeared and I didn't finish the map… I still get lost and the crane to get the last gear is problem for me! I will try again to figure out it!
Mistype. Can't delete the comment, requires an admin.
bro compared it to th after event i aint deleting after dat
Your Review is fair though
the current version that is out has a lot of changes that are coming, and I agree with a lot of what you said regarding weapon balance.
1. Weapon fire rates and damage has been changed on the next version, giving all weapons a buff, melee weapons like the Pipewrench, Pipe, Axe and Sledge will be given a stun amount of damage to stop slaves and houndeyes, I completely agree with what you said.
all calibres have been buffed damage wise and accuracy wise, don't get me wrong though - some classes still have an accuracy nerf due to them being a scientist and stuff. but for example, the mp5 has a faster fire rate, a tighter cone and is able to take down an alien grunt within 6 well placed shots
2. Alien grunts have been nerfed on the next version, they had their HP brought down to a more rounded number from the Vanilla standard - this is because they are a lot more mobile compared to other versions, and they can be run ending. However it is part of the RNG formula - and I hope with the next version you and your friends enjoy it a lot more, if not - fair enough.
3. the Intro sequence can be skipped, as in the openning door sequence then voting and stuff. A skip was added for play tests, however became part of the map - And it reduces the replay time significantly compared to the 5 minutes waiting.
The left vending machine on the intro tram station, if you press it 5 times before the start up sequence begins, it will open both doors and open the admin room immediately - you can then choose storymode + no forces if you are only wanting to do storymode. The Class selection will not open unless both buttons are pressed
I hope this helps Chimz - Currently got a lot of changes for the next version, along with Nerfs, Buffs and Code Optimisation - along with additional enemies.
Thanks for you feedback
Playing this map mostly required multiplayer.
However, I managed to finish the map with single player by multiple tried.
The reason single player would not recommend this are:
1.melee to monster is horrible pillow damage.
2.aliens spawn very frequently compare to limited ammo for those freaks.
3.Aliens will spawn at area which you weren't spawned there and they stack are horrible.
4.do not drop items for long time , And they will disappear.
5.A room with turrets together with zombies but not fight each other, which is un make sense.
From based on the above , I played story mode with no military enemies.
Hi, Thanks for playing the map:
1. The Pillow damage has been rectified in a newer update coming that is replacing the AI generated content
2. The map is more Survival-Horror, so ammo is very limited, it is also limited on player count and with additional rooms like the chemical lab storage, the basement shutters and A-106 and B-201 dormitories provide a lot more ammunition if you find the requirements
3. Aliens have been calmed down and given a new shuffling timer to avoid overwhelming the player along with replacing the limited amount of Xen-Makers that were stacking the enemies, so that has been rectified and I understand it is annoying
4. Items disappearing was actually a fail safe for multiplayer, as trolls would take important items and kill themselves on the tram platform or jump into the Radiation. Important Key Items such as Keycards, Toolboxes, Valves and Elevator keycodes will respawn after a duration to avoid soft locking.
5. When you turn on the Security System in the Area 4 Desync Scenario - the warning sign states -The Security System is Glitched and Targetting all non-authorised personel' all the zombies and even Gonomes on non-storymode have Security Skins as they were once Authorised Personnel, there is also a billboard kicking around that states this, however I will put in additional hints to indicate the Turrets are glitched
Storymode is actually the one that most people complete solo first before moving on, I would also advise multiplayer if you wish to have a joyful co-op experience with friends who find similar types of map fun, however even the hardest difficulty on Tortured and even Hellbound Tortured has been completed in Singleplayer - its a gimmick to make the map more replayable as the years go on
The next update is basically delayed until I have the remaining content replaced, and with my current situation getting slightly worse, I'm not entirely confident when that will be released
I hope you understand, Thanks.
Thanks to:
Zode for the crossbow sounds
Arasefiq for the flamethrower
Hi,
Thanks for making this. I was able to bring down the sounds folder from 160 MB to 56 MB by compressing with ffmpeg using adpcm_ima. Let me know if you are interested, I can attached the compressed files and you can take a look if it's worth considering.
Sounds Great, I know I need to get to converting all the sounds to .ogg
I have an update coming out this week hopefully, but I want to get sounds sorted afterwards so i'm not rushing to get it all fixed in one massive update.
Could you send it my way through discord/steam and i'll include it and give you credits for contribution?
Cheers!
Thanks to all who contributed.
Server crashing Non survival
FATAL ERROR (shutting down): Host_Error: PF_precache_model: 'models/bts_rc/items/tool_box.mdl' Precache can only be done in spawn functions
This is to be rectified in the next update, just taking a bit longer than usual. I'll get it out Friday, sorry about that
I play the map with my friend last night, during the gameplay, we noticed that there's a secret room in "Chemical Handling And Research Research Level 1", the room is on the upper path of leakage area, just right next to the broken crane, the door was locked with a retinal scanner, and my friend susccessfully unlocked the first two locks with Security Keycard Lv3 (or other keycards i'm not sure) and HEV suit on him, but we still cannot unlock the third lock even until we finished the map. And if you tried to get in it with noclip, the game will warp you back。
I have another question, is there anyway to get Research Keycard if there's no one were research class in our team? Though unlock the HEV suit isn't necessary for finish the map, but there's still many retinal scanners that requires people who has Research Keycard.
you need
1st requirement: HEV Suit
2nd requirement: lvl 3 Security card
3rd requirement: lvl 2 Maintanance Access Card
there are 2 guranteed places where a research card spawns
at dorms, after you finish the valve event, a 105? a middle door opens with huge amount of zombies, there is a card on the table once you clear the way out
at offices, after you get your way to armory, on the upper floor where theres kitchen theres a dead scientist with a card