I wasn't expecting to jump into VR, and then Alyx came along. I don't even have Half-Life nostalgia, since I barely made progress in the first two games. I could see why people enjoyed them, but my tastes just weren't there to get me to commit to playing through. Portal and Portal 2 were my big Valve turning points. VR wasn't on my radar for the normal reasons: extra expense, cumbersome hardware to wear, no games I was seeing as must-play. Then Alyx was announced. The trailer got me. I knew I wanted to see where they would take the technology.

Since I didn't already have an investment in VR and wanted the full Alyx experience, I took the plunge and put myself on the waiting list for the full Index VR kit after some dragging of my feet. After a couple of months of waiting, I finally received it a week and a half ago, and I just finished the game tonight. Holy crap. Now I know what people are talking about when they say "immersion." Being in such a richly-designed game world, peering around corners, having enemies get right up in your face.... It's an experience I want everyone to have. This being my first VR experience, I'm not familiar with the progression of the technology, but now is the time to embrace it. Yes, the headset display technology can improve some more, but my jaw has dropped with where they are right now. It also seemed wrong not to enjoy it on the sound system I've pumped so much money into, but the slightly off-ear speakers do an incredible job of informing you where you are in the space.

The game itself is relentlessly engaging. The characters pulling you through the narrative portions are always entertaining, and the puzzles and enemies filling out the remaining majority of the game are never phoned in. Even when there are variations on a theme, they tweak them enough to keep them fresh. I'm not the most committed game player anymore, but this is one I had to see through to the end. And what can you say about the production value except "OMG"? They took their time giving the world a crazy amount of detail, and I'm going to credit this authenticity with making me almost fall over once because I thought I could lean on an in-game object. The whole game is a blast, with AAA polish ensuring its place as one of the all-time greats.

To sum up, even if I don't get too into other VR games, Half-Life: Alyx has single-handedly justified my $1000 Valve Index purchase.

I wasn't expecting to jump into VR, and then Alyx came along. I don't even have Half-Life nostalgia, since I barely made progress in the first two games. I could see why people enjoyed them, but my tastes just weren't there to get me to commit to playing through. Portal and Portal 2 were my big Valve turning points. VR wasn't on my radar for the normal reasons: extra expense, cumbersome hardware to wear, no games I was seeing as must-play. Then Alyx was announced. The trailer got me. I knew I wanted to see where they would take the technology. Since I didn't already have an investment in VR and wanted the full Alyx experience, I took the plunge and put myself on the waiting list for the full Index VR kit after some dragging of my feet. After a couple of months of waiting, I finally received it a week and a half ago, and I just finished the game tonight. Holy crap. Now I know what people are talking about when they say "immersion." Being in such a richly-designed game world, peering around corners, having enemies get right up in your face.... It's an experience I want everyone to have. This being my first VR experience, I'm not familiar with the progression of the technology, but now is the time to embrace it. Yes, the headset display technology can improve some more, but my jaw has dropped with where they are right now. It also seemed wrong not to enjoy it on the sound system I've pumped so much money into, but the slightly off-ear speakers do an incredible job of informing you where you are in the space. The game itself is relentlessly engaging. The characters pulling you through the narrative portions are always entertaining, and the puzzles and enemies filling out the remaining majority of the game are never phoned in. Even when there are variations on a theme, they tweak them enough to keep them fresh. I'm not the most committed game player anymore, but this is one I had to see through to the end. And what can you say about the production value except "OMG"? They took their time giving the world a crazy amount of detail, and I'm going to credit this authenticity with making me almost fall over once because I thought I could lean on an in-game object. The whole game is a blast, with AAA polish ensuring its place as one of the all-time greats. To sum up, even if I don't get too into other VR games, Half-Life: Alyx has single-handedly justified my $1000 Valve Index purchase.