Half-Life: Alyx

Half-Life: Alyx is a single-player VR first-person shooter with elements of action and horror set in an incredibly detailed and well-developed game environment. At launch, it supported VR headsets such as HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Valve Index, and headsets based on the Windows Mixed Reality standard. The game can be completed in about 10 hours, while a detailed and complete playthrough will take around 15 hours, largely due to the full story campaign, which is rare in VR.

The action of Alyx takes place in City 17, 15 years after the events of the first part and 5 years before the appearance of Gordon Freeman. The city is completely occupied by the Combine, which uses it as a central base to implement its plans for the genocide of humanity.

The developers preserved and enhanced all the characteristic features of post-Soviet City 17: the industrial design of human buildings coexists with the cyclopean structures of aliens, the same cars, containers, air conditioners, apartment furnishings, and much more are used. More attention was paid to the breakthrough of the fauna from the Zen world into the game reality — many places, especially basements, are filled with creepy mushrooms, carnivorous plants, and flowers with harmful spores.

The world of Alyx is realized through linear levels, with the player constantly moving forward. Valve made an effort to develop every square centimeter, not only with high-resolution textures but also with meaning. The player is free to pick up and use a variety of items: wear a bucket on their head to fool a barnacle; open a box and rummage through a stack of magazines; turn the knob of a radio; draw on windows; pick up a barrel, throw it at an enemy's feet, and blow it up.

Exploring the world is an important part of the gameplay, as resources are always scarce. Behind a book on a shelf, you can find ammunition, in a toilet tank — grenades, and in some refrigerator — a first aid kit.

Alyx features a familiar set of enemies (headcrabs, zombies, barnacles, Combine soldiers, antlions, observer drones, striders, and others), trained in new tricks. At the same time, the bestiary has expanded with subspecies, such as armored and electric headcrabs and zombies, machine gunners, and stormtroopers of the Combine with energy shields.

The events of Alyx take place between Half-Life and Half-Life 2, during a period when little is known about the enemy. The main character is Alyx Vance, who is familiar to Gordon Freeman from the second part. Together with her father, Eli Vance (one of the employees of Black Mesa who escaped during the Incident), she learned an important secret of the Combine that will allow them to deal significant damage to the occupiers.

At the same time, the Combine has intensified its control over the planet. Surviving humans are herded into cities, including Alyx's father. If the Combine discovers who he is, they will kill him immediately. The brave girl must not only save her loved one but also continue his work — the emerging Resistance needs weapons, and crucial research is conducted underground.

Alyx remembers all the important characters from Half-Life, including G-Man and the Vortigaunts, and introduces a couple of new ones. For example, the inventor of the gravity gloves, Russell, who will be Alyx's advisor and navigator during her adventures. Unlike other VR projects, this one is more personalized, containing many cutscenes featuring secondary characters.

Unlike the tough Gordon Freeman, Alyx is a young girl who has spent her entire conscious life under the occupation of the Combine and the reliable protection of her father. Recently, she has joined the Resistance and has not seen many terrible things. Therefore, throughout the gameplay, she shares her feelings, jokes with herself or with Russell, and asks to keep her occupied with chatter.

At the same time, Alyx expands and deepens the Half-Life universe with new weapons, monsters, and enemies, descriptions of events, as well as details of the global plot with extremely unexpected twists.

Alyx has changed the characteristic aspects of the series. Instead of dynamic shootouts with Gordon Freeman, there are more intimate encounters where the heroine faces a couple of diverse enemies, such as heavily armored Alliance soldiers and a few zombies. The available weapons include only a pistol, shotgun, and submachine gun, although they can be modified with resin—a universal crafting component.

Shooting differs from classic Half-Life: instead of a crosshair, there is a ring indicating the area in space where a bullet can hit. Later, you can add a reflex or laser sight for more accurate shooting. Boss battles remain in the game, and each will be unique.

An important part of Alyx is the horror with survival elements. Designers have created many very dark rooms where the player frantically looks around with a weak flashlight and relies on sound, like the running of a headcrab or the moans of a zombie. Otherwise, the single-player game is typical: kill-fetch, go and find, and similar tasks, in the spirit of old-school shooters.

Puzzles take full advantage of the 3D space, such as hacking an interface in the form of a three-dimensional sphere; connecting a device while searching for wiring scattered across several rooms, and enemies may walk nearby.

The gravity gloves are responsible for indicators (health, stamina, ammo), illuminate the path, grab objects around Alyx and more, and will be useful for solving particularly complex puzzles, like unlocking a lock from a distance.

Movement is implemented as classic teleportation, accelerated movement to a designated point, or classic walking, with the game taking into account the position of the head, organically changing the angle and enhancing the immersion effect. Controllers are used for shooting, Russell's actions, and all other interactions.