Just seeing a new trailer for a new Half Life game gives me the heebie jeebies. That being said, fuck it looks awesome. Might be time to finally pick up a VR system.
Looks great, but I'm very hesitant to invest in a VR setup right now. Like, the valve index is 1000 euros, and on to of that i would need a capable PC.
Hey that trailer looks pretty cool! Too bad it’s a fucking VR game. I guess valve doesn’t want it to succeed.
This seems like a weird statement. There's lots of very successful VR games. Valve has their own headset they want people to buy!
I think it’s pretty weird to tie one of the most beloved franchises in gaming to a specialized hardware that may or may not ever achieve parity with traditional gaming hardware.
Yeah, a VR-only Half-Life 3 would have been a dumb move, PR-wise. It would’ve antagonised people without VR gear. A prequel, though? Much smarter, because you can skip it, but you might still be tempted.
Personally, I’m surprised it’s less than half a year away, and I’m curious how long it’ll be. Myself, I’m okay with VR games not being 20+ hours long (I put in up to five VR hours a week and I’m fine with that), but the length of games may be the main complaint I’ve heard from people.
"Nothing is gonna save us forever but a lot of things can save us today." - Night in the Woods
Yeah, a VR-only Half-Life 3 would have been a dumb move, PR-wise. It would’ve antagonised people without VR gear. A prequel, though? Much smarter, because you can skip it, but you might still be tempted.
Personally, I’m surprised it’s less than half a year away, and I’m curious how long it’ll be. Myself, I’m okay with VR games not being 20+ hours long (I put in up to five VR hours a week and I’m fine with that), but the length of games may be the main complaint I’ve heard from people.
My main concern after seeing that trailer is definitely that this thing is only 3-4 hours long. If it is 8-10+ I'll be happy I think.
Hey that trailer looks pretty cool! Too bad it’s a fucking VR game. I guess valve doesn’t want it to succeed.
This seems like a weird statement. There's lots of very successful VR games. Valve has their own headset they want people to buy!
I think it’s pretty weird to tie one of the most beloved franchises in gaming to a specialized hardware that may or may not ever achieve parity with traditional gaming hardware.
If it were someone else's random specialized hardware, sure. Their own? It would be weird if they didn't employ their branding. Why would they launch a headset without backing it up with games, and if none of those games have Half Life in them, what are they even doing?
Looks great, but I'm very hesitant to invest in a VR setup right now. Like, the valve index is 1000 euros, and on to of that i would need a capable PC.
I agree that the Index is incredibly expensive, but as a middle ground you can get cheaper sets, and apparently the Vive and Oculus Rift are able to work with Knuckles controllers even (through workarounds, admittedly).
I haven't been able to test it yet, but my gaming rig is over 4 years old, and the Oculus Rift test tool still says my system will run at higher than Recommended standards.
No idea how that will hold up next year when Valve is asking for every last bit of power a system can throw at it with those graphics, but at least in theory these things don't have to be $2000+ super computers.
Now, as someone thinking of pulling the trigger on a Rift next weekend during the black friday sales, maybe I'll have a different story to tell after a few days of playing around. But I thought it was worth mentioning.
First they came for the Muslims, and we said NOT TODAY, MOTHERFUCKER!
They need a shocking revelation like Alyx is an android.
The game ends, the credits pass, things fade to black...
And then you snap back into things, held in place by the Combine, witness the end of HL2E2 play out from her perspective.
Splash screen: HL3 AVAILABLE NOW
I know, I know I'm just rubbing salt in the wound here, but if they did that (and note, I'm not saying it should be a VR exclusive), things would get real crazy, real fast.
Just the first thing that came to mind in terms of how they could really blow things out of the water here.
Like, all kidding aside, even just hearing it play out as a stinger would probably drive another decade of frustrated demand...
Forar on
First they came for the Muslims, and we said NOT TODAY, MOTHERFUCKER!
Hey that trailer looks pretty cool! Too bad it’s a fucking VR game. I guess valve doesn’t want it to succeed.
This seems like a weird statement. There's lots of very successful VR games. Valve has their own headset they want people to buy!
I think it’s pretty weird to tie one of the most beloved franchises in gaming to a specialized hardware that may or may not ever achieve parity with traditional gaming hardware.
If it were someone else's random specialized hardware, sure. Their own? It would be weird if they didn't employ their branding. Why would they launch a headset without backing it up with games, and if none of those games have Half Life in them, what are they even doing?
Upon further reflection I’m just salty. Been waiting a long time for a new half-life game and I’m not at all pleased that THIS is what we get. If it eventually leads to an actual half-life 3 then I’ll be elated. Until then, fuck valve.
I love it. My biggest complaint with VR has been the lack of AAA games that use it. The VR in Ace Combat 7 was awesome but it was 3 missions with the graphics turned down to PS2 quality. AC4/5/6/7 full campaign in VR would have me dropping money for a top end PC VR set easy.This trailer looks amazing and I love bits that showcase what VR can do over traditional consoles, in particular the scene where Alyx is hacking and defending herself at the same time.
I'm not a huge Valve fan these days but I'll support them trying to kick-start AAA gaming in VR.
I think my impressions of the trailer shows probably the biggest hurdle in selling VR:
"Looks cool but why can't I play it with a controller and on a tv?"
Well I asked this and people pointed out to me that some of the little stuff can't be done with a controller. Sweeping stuff off a shelf to get to the stuff behind or putting one hand on that terminal while you lean around and shoot at the enemies coming towards you for instance. I'm guessing there will be a lot of little things that don't stand out as a big massive shift on their own, but demonstrate lots of little things you can do in VR that you can't do elsewhere.
Half-Life: Alyx is Valve’s VR return to the Half-Life series. It’s the story of an impossible fight against a vicious alien race known as the Combine, set between the events of Half-Life and Half-Life 2.
Playing as Alyx Vance, you are humanity’s only chance for survival. The Combine’s control of the planet since the Black Mesa incident has only strengthened as they corral the remaining population in cities. Among them are some of Earth’s greatest scientists: you and your father, Dr. Eli Vance.
As founders of a fledgling resistance, you’ve continued your clandestine scientific activity—performing critical research, and building invaluable tools for the few humans brave enough to defy the Combine.
Every day, you learn more about your enemy, and every day you work toward finding a weakness.
ABOUT GAMEPLAY IN VR:
Valve’s return to the Half-Life universe that started it all was built from the ground up for virtual reality. VR was built to enable the gameplay that sits at the heart of Half-Life.
Immerse yourself in deep environmental interactions, puzzle solving, world exploration, and visceral combat.
Lean to aim around a broken wall and under a Barnacle to make an impossible shot. Rummage through shelves to find a healing syringe and some shotgun shells. Manipulate tools to hack alien interfaces. Toss a bottle through a window to distract an enemy. Rip a Headcrab off your face and throw it out the window.
Extra content for Index owners
Customers who have purchased Valve Index hardware by the end of 2019 will have access to unique bonuses starting early next year:
Explore environments from Half-Life: Alyx in your SteamVR Home space
Alternate gun skins to embellish Alyx's arsenal
Special Half-Life: Alyx-themed content for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
Community-built environments
A set of Source 2 tools for building new environments will ship with the game, enabling any player to build and contribute new environments for the community to enjoy. Hammer, Valve’s level authoring tool, has been updated with all of the game’s virtual reality gameplay tools and components.
It's a full 60 dollar game. 53 bucks right now if you prepurchase.
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The_SpaniardIt's never lupinesIrvine, CaliforniaRegistered Userregular
I think my impressions of the trailer shows probably the biggest hurdle in selling VR:
"Looks cool but why can't I play it with a controller and on a tv?"
How many controller games let you physically and fluidly use your hands to push stuff around on shelves and then grab individual shotgun shells to stick into your weapon? There is a bit of an extra layer of immersion here.
I think my impressions of the trailer shows probably the biggest hurdle in selling VR:
"Looks cool but why can't I play it with a controller and on a tv?"
How many controller games let you physically and fluidly use your hands to push stuff around on shelves and then grab individual shotgun shells to stick into your weapon? There is a bit of an extra layer of immersion here.
That is tiring.
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The_SpaniardIt's never lupinesIrvine, CaliforniaRegistered Userregular
I think my impressions of the trailer shows probably the biggest hurdle in selling VR:
"Looks cool but why can't I play it with a controller and on a tv?"
How many controller games let you physically and fluidly use your hands to push stuff around on shelves and then grab individual shotgun shells to stick into your weapon? There is a bit of an extra layer of immersion here.
It's been pointed out in a few places that Valve has only made Half Life games when there's some big paradigm-shifting jump. Like how the original was the introduction of heavily scripted fully first-person games, the second was the introduction of a pervasive physics system and programmable shaders, and even the episodes were supposed to be the revolution of episodic game releases. So it makes sense that with a change as big as VR, they'd make a new Half Life for it.
tbh this is HL3. Even if they set the story as a prequel. And if they do make another game set after HL2, it's gonna be VR as well.
Immersion is the name of the game. It may not be for everyone, but man, for me I can already feel the extra tension of having to grab the shells and load them in while the guard is 2 seconds away from finding me vs pressing x.
I got chills from that trailer. I've been waiting so long for anything Half Life that I'm so very excited for this to happen. And only in a few months!
Also was that Rhys Darby I hear in the trailer? Sure sounds like him, I can't help but think of Mulder and Scully Meet the Were-Monster (the best damned X-Files episode ever) every time I see him in something.
I already have PSVR, but nooooo, this will not be on that.
The Oculus S. It's only caveats are that it has a regular TN panel instead of OLED, does not have a lens slider and it doesn't have the best tracking for stuff behind you. But, it's only $400.
If you really want the full room experience, then the Oculus Rift Touch bundle which includes 2 sensors, but I think they discontinued it. Other setups are $600 and above.
The understanding was always that the new Half Life had to do something unique or novel or special. HL2 was all the physics, HL1 was AI routines or something, and the joke was always that HL3 would be a VR title or something.
I just don't know if Valve can succeed where others have had mediocre results in forcing VR as a thing that people care about and adopt widely. Remember when Gabe Newell said Linux was the future of PC gaming?
And Steam Machines, and Steam Controller.
Personally I like VR, but I'm having a hard time seeing how it ever stops being niche. Sony's been going crazy trying to make VR a thing, but even at $200, their set isn't really taking off.
But I'm sure the 2% of Half-Life's fanbase that owns a VR headset will dig this.
I'm not part of the fanbasr but a vr owner and I'm excited by this. Valve wants vr to be a thing, why not a game by them to show what vr can Do?
I'm one of those people just kind of played the half life games, thought they were ok, and stuck to multiplayer
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Er, there's quite a few oculus rift and vive headsets out there. the valve Index topped sales charts on steam for a while.
I think there's quite a lot of people who have access to this. And it'll probably sell more headsets!
Nah, they're not going to make the next section of the HL story exclusive to vr. This was always going to be a spinoff.
Personally, I’m surprised it’s less than half a year away, and I’m curious how long it’ll be. Myself, I’m okay with VR games not being 20+ hours long (I put in up to five VR hours a week and I’m fine with that), but the length of games may be the main complaint I’ve heard from people.
"Nothing is gonna save us forever but a lot of things can save us today." - Night in the Woods
My main concern after seeing that trailer is definitely that this thing is only 3-4 hours long. If it is 8-10+ I'll be happy I think.
If it were someone else's random specialized hardware, sure. Their own? It would be weird if they didn't employ their branding. Why would they launch a headset without backing it up with games, and if none of those games have Half Life in them, what are they even doing?
I agree that the Index is incredibly expensive, but as a middle ground you can get cheaper sets, and apparently the Vive and Oculus Rift are able to work with Knuckles controllers even (through workarounds, admittedly).
I haven't been able to test it yet, but my gaming rig is over 4 years old, and the Oculus Rift test tool still says my system will run at higher than Recommended standards.
No idea how that will hold up next year when Valve is asking for every last bit of power a system can throw at it with those graphics, but at least in theory these things don't have to be $2000+ super computers.
Now, as someone thinking of pulling the trigger on a Rift next weekend during the black friday sales, maybe I'll have a different story to tell after a few days of playing around. But I thought it was worth mentioning.
The game ends, the credits pass, things fade to black...
And then you snap back into things, held in place by the Combine, witness the end of HL2E2 play out from her perspective.
Splash screen: HL3 AVAILABLE NOW
I know, I know I'm just rubbing salt in the wound here, but if they did that (and note, I'm not saying it should be a VR exclusive), things would get real crazy, real fast.
Just the first thing that came to mind in terms of how they could really blow things out of the water here.
Like, all kidding aside, even just hearing it play out as a stinger would probably drive another decade of frustrated demand...
And that trailer looked great.
"Looks cool but why can't I play it with a controller and on a tv?"
I'm not a huge Valve fan these days but I'll support them trying to kick-start AAA gaming in VR.
Well I asked this and people pointed out to me that some of the little stuff can't be done with a controller. Sweeping stuff off a shelf to get to the stuff behind or putting one hand on that terminal while you lean around and shoot at the enemies coming towards you for instance. I'm guessing there will be a lot of little things that don't stand out as a big massive shift on their own, but demonstrate lots of little things you can do in VR that you can't do elsewhere.
It's a full 60 dollar game. 53 bucks right now if you prepurchase.
How many controller games let you physically and fluidly use your hands to push stuff around on shelves and then grab individual shotgun shells to stick into your weapon? There is a bit of an extra layer of immersion here.
That is tiring.
tbh this is HL3. Even if they set the story as a prequel. And if they do make another game set after HL2, it's gonna be VR as well.
That seems like a potential big deal.
How long until someone makes an unofficial Portal VR?
I already have PSVR, but nooooo, this will not be on that.
There are echoes of that cliffhanger in the trailer too. P.sure Eli's "close your eyes" is repeated verbatim.
https://mondotees.com/blogs/news/new-half-life-gordon-freeman-1-6-scale-figure
Resident 8bitdo expert.
Resident hybrid/flap cover expert.
Negative 3 years: https://store.steampowered.com/app/446750/Portal_Stories_VR/
The Oculus S. It's only caveats are that it has a regular TN panel instead of OLED, does not have a lens slider and it doesn't have the best tracking for stuff behind you. But, it's only $400.
If you really want the full room experience, then the Oculus Rift Touch bundle which includes 2 sensors, but I think they discontinued it. Other setups are $600 and above.
Welcome...to vomit town.
I'm not part of the fanbasr but a vr owner and I'm excited by this. Valve wants vr to be a thing, why not a game by them to show what vr can Do?
I'm one of those people just kind of played the half life games, thought they were ok, and stuck to multiplayer