HALF-LIFE: ALYX is Here with Expansive New VR Game

It’s been 15 years since Valve’s last full-length Half-Life game graced our screens. The groundbreaking, and beloved First Person Shooter series centers on a scientist who faces down an alien invasion and today fans everywhere are rejoicing as another entry to the series is coming, this time in full Virtual Reality.

The aforementioned physicist, Gordon Freeman, was the main character of the first two games; this entry is a prequel to Half-Life 2 and will focus on a young woman and her father.  They’re trying to build a rebellion against the new alien overlords. You can get more insight into the game with the full description here.
“Set between the events of Half-Life and Half-Life 2, Alyx Vance and her father Eli mount an early resistance to the Combine’s brutal occupation of Earth. The loss of the Seven-Hour War is still fresh. In the shadow of a rising Combine fortress known as the Citadel, residents of City 17 learn to live under the rule of their invaders. But among this scattered population are two of Earth’s most resourceful scientists: Dr. Eli Vance and his daughter Alyx, the founders of a fledgling resistance.”

It’s a VR game, so you’ll be quite literally in the center of the action. As Alyx, you’ll aim to change the world forever alongside her good old dad. “You and your father were relocated to City 17. In the years since, you’ve continued your clandestine scientific activity—performing critical research, and building invaluable tools for the few humans brave enough to defy the Combine. Every day you learn more about your enemy, and every day you work toward finding a weakness.” The official website teases.

some masked goons with guns attack you

Valve

One of the most exciting things about virtual reality gaming is the ability to commit outrageous feats and really exist in the world of the games we love. From this segment on the site, it sounds like Half-Life: Alyx will provide exactly that for fans of the franchise. “Lean around a broken wall and under a barnacle to make an impossible shot. Rummage through shelves to find a healing syringe and some shotgun shells. Manipulate tools to hack alien interfaces. Tear a headcrab off your face and throw it out the window. VR was built for the kind of gameplay that sits at the heart of Half-Life. Half-Life: Alyx supports a variety of play environments, locomotion methods, and input devices.”

The new trailer hints at just how action-packed and awesome the new game will be. But that’s not all! We also got this brilliant look at the making of the game that also works as a really smart potted history of the Half-Life series and the people who made it. Those of us who have enjoyed Geoff Keighley’s in-depth BTS series Final Hours will be excited to hear that he’ll be creating another one about the process of making the new VR game and this 22 minute video is a great taster of why the series is so popular.

The new game will be released in March 2020 and according to PC Gamer “will retail at $60, but is free to anyone who owns a Valve Index VR headset.”

Header Image: Valve

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