On Monday, March 23rd, Half-Life: Alyx was released, the new episode of a video game saga that longtime fans have been eagerly awaiting for over a decade. To everyone’s surprise when it was announced a few months ago, this new version is exclusively available in virtual reality, offering players equipped with VR headsets a solo immersive adventure (model Valve, Valve Index headset strongly recommended).
The world of Half-Life: Alyx plunges you a few years before Half-Life 2, into the heart of the dystopian City 17 where you will encounter various protagonists during your journey: aliens, zombies, soldiers, and members of the rebellion, among whom you embody a partisan. During your approximately fifteen-hour adventure, you will explore every corner of this incredibly rich universe with its uniquely atmospheric qualities, a hallmark of Valve‘s flagship franchise.
The interactions unique to virtual reality, such as manipulating objects, weapons, and environmental elements, seamlessly continue the technological evolution of first-person shooter mechanics. It now feels instinctive to open and search drawers, eject a weapon’s magazine to reload, or turn a crank to open a closed door. Regarding mobility, the integration of multiple different movement modes, such as targeted teleportation or continuous movement, makes the adventure accessible to all types of players (especially those sensitive to motion sickness).
We won’t reveal more, but if you have the opportunity to get and test Valve‘s new gem (especially during this period of confinement), we highly recommend it.
You can find the full review of Half-Life: Alyx here
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