Right off the bat, Half Life: Alyx is a weird game to recommend. If you already own an expensive VR system, then you will probably already know Half Life: Alyx is a must have. There is no parallel to the level of detail, polish and atmosphere in this game. So with that in mind, my review is already useless to you. If you don't have a VR system, you can't play it. So my review is useless to you too. All the same, I have to say Half Life: Alyx is an exceptional game.
I had reservations about Valve resuscitating an ancient franchise and returning to the exact same setting and characters. Once again you are a part of a scrappy rebel group, fighting an alien-human hybrid dictatorship called "The Combine" in the ruins of an East European city. Once again there are gravity devices, headcrabs, rusting industrial zones, and killer tripods. But despite the familiarity, VR makes everything feel completely fresh. Someone not already acquainted with the Half Life series might scratch their head at what is going on with the plot at times and the game makes no effort to catch up the new comers, so if that applies to you, you might want to give Half Life 1 and 2 a go first. You might as well spend a little bit extra.
The VR is excellent. At no point did I feel queasy or disorientated by movement, which is a problem I have with a lot of other VR games. The aiming and tactile elements are incredibly precise. You can easily miss a monster just a few feet away because you didn't take a second to line up your sights. On top of that, if you don't aim for weak spots, enemies in the game will absorb entire magazines of ammunition before going down. This leads to fierce battles, as you find yourself ducking and weaving around your own house, blind firing, looking for scattered ammunition, and crawling between in-game cover. It's like being a kid in the playground, playing army. Faffing around with guns is great fun too. Within the panic of battle, you have to manually release a spent magazine, pick a fresh one out of your bag, cram it into the gun, and rack the next round. It never gets old. For gun nuts it must feel utterly pornographic.
On top of all that, the game itself is constantly finding new scenarios to plop you into. Like the previous Half Life titles, there is an emphasis on constantly changing up the scenario. The blend of puzzles and combat are well balanced, and not once felt forced or tedious. Veterans of the series will also appreciate the new monsters and enemies included in the game, bringing with them some nasty surprises.
If you are considering VR, Alyx is an essential addition to your library. My only criticism is that it sets the bar so high for VR, you will be disappointed to find every other game falling short.
Futile Advice
Right off the bat, Half Life: Alyx is a weird game to recommend. If you already own an expensive VR system, then you will probably already know Half Life: Alyx is a must have. There is no parallel to the level of detail, polish and atmosphere in this game. So with that in mind, my review is already useless to you. If you don't have a VR system, you can't play it. So my review is useless to you too. All the same, I have to say Half Life: Alyx is an exceptional game.
I had reservations about Valve resuscitating an ancient franchise and returning to the exact same setting and characters. Once again you are a part of a scrappy rebel group, fighting an alien-human hybrid dictatorship called "The Combine" in the ruins of an East European city. Once again there are gravity devices, headcrabs, rusting industrial zones, and killer tripods. But despite the familiarity, VR makes everything feel completely fresh. Someone not already acquainted with the Half Life series might scratch their head at what is going on with the plot at times and the game makes no effort to catch up the new comers, so if that applies to you, you might want to give Half Life 1 and 2 a go first. You might as well spend a little bit extra.
The VR is excellent. At no point did I feel queasy or disorientated by movement, which is a problem I have with a lot of other VR games. The aiming and tactile elements are incredibly precise. You can easily miss a monster just a few feet away because you didn't take a second to line up your sights. On top of that, if you don't aim for weak spots, enemies in the game will absorb entire magazines of ammunition before going down. This leads to fierce battles, as you find yourself ducking and weaving around your own house, blind firing, looking for scattered ammunition, and crawling between in-game cover. It's like being a kid in the playground, playing army. Faffing around with guns is great fun too. Within the panic of battle, you have to manually release a spent magazine, pick a fresh one out of your bag, cram it into the gun, and rack the next round. It never gets old. For gun nuts it must feel utterly pornographic.
On top of all that, the game itself is constantly finding new scenarios to plop you into. Like the previous Half Life titles, there is an emphasis on constantly changing up the scenario. The blend of puzzles and combat are well balanced, and not once felt forced or tedious. Veterans of the series will also appreciate the new monsters and enemies included in the game, bringing with them some nasty surprises.
If you are considering VR, Alyx is an essential addition to your library. My only criticism is that it sets the bar so high for VR, you will be disappointed to find every other game falling short.