* Half-Life: Alyx *

neoboy · 21 Nov 2019 at 19:45

Something inside me got really excited watching the trailer. Played the original games during my prime gaming years so a lot of old memories. Not sure how newer gamers will be interested in this though.

I'll be building a new gaming PC next year anyway so hopefully can pick up a cheap headset at some point.

EDIT: As above though, L4D3 in VR could be REALLY fun!

AStaley · 21 Nov 2019 at 19:53

Thought it looked amazing, but won’t be splashing out on a VR headset just yet.

Oh Ed not again. · 21 Nov 2019 at 19:55

I suspect the "weapon" is part of bringing Freeman to the start of HL2, and I seriously hope there's an EP2 easter egg at the end of Alyx.

Also, it's nice to be excited about a Valve game again. Been far too long.

uncle_rufus · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:12

I think it looks really cool, and am not disheartened...

The way I see it is that there was just no way that after all this time, Valve could drop actual HL3 and have it not be a huge disappointment. It'd have to be perfect beyond measure and even if they did a very good job there's a good chance it wouldn't be the worthy sequel they want to make...

However drop a Half Life title that pushes the envelope with VR now; they get to "break the seal" as it were with a game that isn't HL3 and has a built-in defense if it isn't received brilliantly (it's not HL3 and is a dedicated VR title) - they can gauge how much actual appetite there really is for more Half Life (versus all the memes about HL3), harvest as much feedback about what players want from the series and then with people undoubtedly wondering if this means Half Life is back they can take that renewed faith and carefully come out with an actual HL3...

Or maybe not! Who can say

Malevolence · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:13

So a game concerning Alyx Vance that's only available on VR? Yeah, this isn't going to get modded much. God help the poor sod who figures out how to get his Bluetooth sex toy working with his VR kit.

hyperseven · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:18

@Malevolence Fleshlight launch already does

SkeeterUK · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:36

Maybe it could be modded to be a normal game as hl games were modable in the past wernt they?

Name · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:39

Sad to see this going VR only, way to cut up the HL fanbase. I can understand this from a business point of view though, flogging more headsets etc.

Cosmic Schwung · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:53

Updated the OP with a few details. Thanks to whoever changed the title.

MBennett · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:56

May as well have gone the whole hog and just released it on mobile - not interested

Secret_Window · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:57

Time to revisit Half-Life 2 and Episodes 1 and 2. :cool:

CaptainRAVE · 21 Nov 2019 at 20:58

I take it back. That looks absolutely insane keeping in mind the vr aspect. Best get saving.

ci_newman · 21 Nov 2019 at 21:01

As an existing Vive owner, and as a devoted fan of HL - today's trailer has made my week

I am very much looking forward to it... bring on March 2020!

DELETED_195422 · 21 Nov 2019 at 21:06

The game looks amazing. Glad it's VR only. This is what i want to see, pushing tech forward, doing stuff that isn't possible on other hardware.

If this was a pancake game it would just be like any other fps out there. The immersion just wouldn't be the same.

Wizzfizz · 21 Nov 2019 at 21:12

Poneros · 21 Nov 2019 at 21:26

Rock_n_Roll said:
The game looks amazing. Glad it's VR only. This is what i want to see, pushing tech forward, doing stuff that isn't possible on other hardware.

If this was a pancake game it would just be like any other fps out there. The immersion just wouldn't be the same.

Agreed. People are just hard to accept progress. They'd rather play the same tired formulaic fps re-skinned a thousand times, but it's clear Valve wants to keep pushing themselves and not stagnate, and let's be honest - nothing would be easier for them. Private company, steam prints money, etc

That anyone thinks Valve's doing the index or Alyx in vr for money is beyond stupid. Who in their right mind would go in a tiny niche market (VR) and dump millions of dollars when there's hundreds of millions of gamers on PC+Consoles+Mobile they could target instead? It just goes to show how little thinking people do before they start typing.

markoboyo11 · 21 Nov 2019 at 21:26

I had a sneeking suspicion that if half life 3 ever did come out it would be in vr, they need to do something more than a standard game because it could never live upto the hype surrounding it.
And with valve pushing vr headsets, its too obvious.

I think this looks awesome, as long as you can actually move like a normal game and not stuck in one place shooting crap like some vr games.

spoffle · 21 Nov 2019 at 21:37

ic1male said:
You'll have to explain that reasoning to me. I've seen plenty of games go from PC to VR like Doom, Borderlands, etc. Why not the other way?

Yeah they do, but it isn't "porting." The game just has VR support added to it, or in the case of a VR only game, normal monitor and input support added. There's no "porting" that happens.

DELETED_195422 · 21 Nov 2019 at 21:43

Poneros said:
Agreed. People are just hard to accept progress. They'd rather play the same tired formulaic fps re-skinned a thousand times, but it's clear Valve wants to keep pushing themselves and not stagnate, and let's be honest - nothing would be easier for them. Private company, steam prints money, etc

That anyone thinks Valve's doing the index or Alyx in vr for money is beyond stupid. Who in their right mind would go in a tiny niche market (VR) and dump millions of dollars when there's hundreds of millions of gamers on PC+Consoles+Mobile they could target instead? It just goes to show how little thinking people do before they start typing.

Spot on. This is the first game for years i've truly been excited about.

A lot of games today, it's just a case of more of the same but better looking. Especially with popcorn games (AAA titles).

MadMossy · 21 Nov 2019 at 21:55

In the video that I posted with Geoff Keighly interviewing the developers they said that because of the time involved everyone was scared to do anything Half Life related and the only way they were going to do something is if it was different/unique. They experimented for a while with different things and started working on HL:A in 2016. It took a while before they were confident in it to even push forward with development. During playtesting which was only a 15 minute demo, they often had people playing for upwards of an hour just exploring doing random things that you wouldn't even consider in a 2D game.

They also discussed about the reasons for going VR rather than 2D with one of the explanations pretty much summing up what VR brings to a game. In a 2D for example, you come to a door, you press a button and it opens. It has 2 states, open/closed. In VR you can interact with it just like you would for real. Open it slightly, peak through the gap, lob a grenade in, shut the door again etc. Something that would be impossible to do with a 2D game and traditional controls.

*** Half-Life: Alyx ***

* Half-Life: Alyx *