Half-Life: Alyx Reviews
Half-Life: Alyx is billed as a VR return to the series, and that's exactly what it delivers. It does what Half-Life has historically done well, and without the clouding of nostalgia or unhelpful notions of what constitutes "revolutionary" design, it ranks alongside Half-Life 2.
Half-Life: Alyx is an accomplishment no matter which way you spin it.
Valve has showcased a clear way for developers to create a high quality AAA experience built for VR that still hits all the marks of a traditional PC game.
Alyx doesn't propel VR to unseen heights, nor does it overcome the limitations of the platform. What it does is provide an exceptional name-brand experience that is extraordinarily polished and just about the best example of what VR has to offer right now. Every puzzle is satisfying, every gunfight is a thrill. The environments are beautifully horrifying and the interactables are absurdly detailed. It has no lulls, nothing ever gets played out or boring. It has a ton of fan service and builds some really exciting hype for the future of the series. However, I wish that the game built its core mechanics over time the way Portal 2 so famously did. Alyx is much more akin to a rollercoaster ride than a hill to climb. If you can afford the price of admission though, it's one wild ride.
If you were worried about the quality, you can calmly exhale - Valve has not forgotten how to make great games. Half-Life: Alyx is not just the best and most beautiful project for virtual reality to date, but also an excellent and very worthy addition to the Half-Life series. It is simply a "must have" in the collection of a fan of the genre and franchise. If you were looking for a reason to buy an expensive VR helmet for PC, then you have finally found it. And everyone else should at least play it at a friend's house. And, Valve, you are now obligated to release Half-Life 3!
Review in Russian | Read full review
Half-Life: Alyx sets a new high standard for VR games, both in technical terms and gameplay itself. Visually impressive and customizable for accessibility, Alyx's 20-hour campaign strikes an enjoyable balance between action, horror, puzzle-solving, and humor. VR gamers shouldn't miss this one.
Confidently serves as both a vindication for the magic VR can bring to gaming, and a satisfying new entry in the beloved Half-Life series.Dustin Bailey
Valve has surpassed impossible expectations with Half-Life: Alyx, bringing a series long thought buried back into the limelight with extraordinary impact. While some might find it unfortunate that such an experience is housed inside virtual reality, I feel it's an innovative step forward for the series. If you have the means to play it, Half-Life: Alyx is absolutely essential.
Prepare for the experience of your life in the best VR game yet from legendary Developers Valve. Valve have taken all their innovative ideas that they've kept bottle up for years and finally unleashed them unto the world.
Half-Life: Alyx is the perfect example of the best Virtual Reality can be. After years of what felt like nothing more than tech demos or ports, this game has arrived to show everyone how it’s done.
Half-Life: Alyx is a triumph for VR games and sets the benchmark for other developers to follow suit.
Half-Life: Alyx is a true Half-Life, a real game that lives inside our VR system and expands the dimension made by a videogame.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Alyx is a trooper throughout the entire adventure, and while she can get freaked out by the places she needs to go, she never stops moving forward.
As someone who’s already sold on VR, I think Alyx is a hell of a good time. I put in four or five hours straight on Saturday (thanks to Dramamine) and few VR games manage to hold my attention that long. But I don’t think it’s the revolutionary new experience that people might expect, particularly people who owned a Vive or a Rift and have been living in this future for a while.
If you were waiting for that one "killer game" before you wanted to dip into the VR scene, this is it. If you already have a PC VR headset, you absolutely must own this game. Half-Life: Alyx is easily one of the best VR games I've ever played, easily beating out my previous favorite Beat Saber, and every Half-Life fan should experience the game in one way or another.
Half-Life: Alyx is a full VR experience the platform needed years ago. Its great story and interactive environment shows what you can do with virtual reality and a larger budget, and I hope this game blazes a path forward for more high quality VR experiences in the future.
Half-Life: Alyx has its flaws, though these are hard to focus on when no other game offers an experience such as this. For now, Half-Life: Alyx is an absolute must-play title for both Half-Life fans and VR enthusiasts or anyone that has an opportunity to play it.
Half-life: Alyx falls short on accounts of length and issues with the platform, but manages it strengths well enough to be a game that can push the platform further and set a new standard.
Fans of the Half-Life universe will be more than satisfied with what Alyx has to offer, and newcomers will be introduced to a rich and intense world to explore and solve puzzles as plot threads related to the previous games are revealed.