In 2007, Valve released Half-Life 2: Episode Two, and since then fans have been waiting for the promised Episode Three, or preferably, a full-fledged Half-Life 3. But it's been over a decade since the release of Half-Life 2: Episode Two, to the point that the lack of Half-Life 3 has become a meme. Valve still hasn't revealed any plans for Half-Life 3, but the company has at least finally announced a new Half-Life game in the form of the virtual reality title Half-Life: Alyx.
Half-Life: Alyx was leaked a few days ago, but Valve didn't waste anytime confirming its existence. Since then, more Half-Life: Alyx details have come out, revealing that the game is a prequel to Half-Life 2, set between it and the events of the first time. As the title suggests, players will take on the role of Alyx Vance, who was Gordon Freeman's companion throughout much of Half-Life 2's story. But now a new trailer has revealed even more details about the game, giving fans their first look at gameplay in the process.
The Half-Life: Alyx trailer reveals that the game will launch in March 2020 for various high-tier virtual reality devices, including HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. The game looks like one of the more impressive virtual reality games to date, with Alyx seemingly able to interact with most objects in the game world. How it holds up in real world testing remains to be seen, but this could very well be virtual reality's killer app.
Half-Life: Alyx's impressive gameplay aside, there are a couple of other things to note about the upcoming game. For one, owners of Valve's expensive Index headset will get the game for free. And secondly, the trailer confirms the return of Half-Life's most mysterious character.
The end of the Half-Life: Alyx trailer confirms that the G-Man will be returning in the new game. It's unclear what role he will play in the events of the story, but hopefully fans finally get some answers about his motives and powers in the upcoming Half-Life VR game.
While Half-Life: Alyx isn't exactly the Half-Life 3 that fans have been waiting for, it's still exciting to have a new Half-Life project in development at all. The gameplay trailer is very impressive and it's clear that Valve spared no expense in its development, and hopefully it paves the way for Half-Life 3 itself.
Half-Life: Alyx launches in March 2020 for various PC virtual reality headsets.