The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced a sense of uncertainty to the video game industry. Social distancing rules have made the cancellation of major expos and live presentations necessary, and the future of major events, such as esports tournaments and Geoff Keighley's annual Game Awards show remains up in the air. While Keighley recently promised to hold the awards show on time, working on his major production has not stopped the longtime industry veteran from working on several ventures at once. After announcing the return of the Steam Game Festival this year, Keighley returned to Valve to produce his next major project.
Yesterday, Keighley gave the gaming community a first look at The Final Hours of Half-Life: Alyx: A Decade Inside Valve Software. The in-depth documentary is a continuation of Keighley's popular Final Hours series, which compiles the complete development of major video games like Portal 2 and Mass Effect 3 in feature-length articles and interactive apps.
In a series of recent tweets, Keighley unveiled a brief teaser video and promotional art for his latest documentary. As the notes of Half-Life 2's familiar tune "Triage at Dawn" kick in, the camera runs through some of the game's iconic locales before ending on the documentary's title screen. In the Twitter caption, Keighley confirmed that he had been working on the project for over six months. All of the promotional tweets across Keighley's and the official Final Hours Twitter account promise that more details are coming "very" soon.
In the Twitter replies, fans met the promotional materials with a warm reception. Several responses praised the trailer's "Triage at Dawn" remix, which Keighley commissioned from film and TV composer Frederick Lloyd. When one enthusiast asked if the latest Final Hours documentary would be released on the iPad like previous entries, the Final Hours Twitter account confirmed that the Half-Life: Alyx interactive story would be released as a Steam application.
Although not much information has been released, some believe that Keighley's documentary will release sooner rather than later. Specifically, fans are citing the producer's initial November 2019 announcement of the project on YouTube as proof that the documentary is likely already ready for release. Hopefully, The Final Hours of Half-Life: Alyx will explore what Valve has been developing over the past ten years for curious fans.
Source: The Game Awards