Half Life: Alyx

[Protocol7]

https://twitter.com/valvesoftware/status/1196566870360387584

I am really looking forward to this. Sure it isn't Half Life 3 but it's something huge for VR.

[RuneSR2]

New patch has just arrived, there's now full support for lefthanded persons:

Half-Life: Alyx Update 1.2 released

Additions:

• Added full-featured support for left / right hand for movement controls, independently of left / right hand for weapon controls.
  To use this: Select Left / Right hand in the in-game UI, and then select the desired Weapon / Off-Hand bindings in the SteamVR controller bindings UI.
  
• Added an option to draw subtitles and captions to the spectator window only.
  
• Clarified Height Adjust accessibility options, and set better defaults across various controllers.
  

Performance notes:

• Created a Performance Tips Page: https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=7689-WAKZ-8117
  
• Improved discoverability of the Performance UI settings.
  
• Added better detection of low-memory situations.
  

Bugfixes:

• Fixed a UI issue where graphics settings would appear to drop from Medium to Low.
  
• Fixed not being able to use Quick Back, Shift-Dash-Jump, and teleport feet rotation when Controller Turning was turned off.
  
• Fixed a case where loading a left-handed savegame from the Main Menu could cause the player to lose ammo.
  
• Fixed savegames where the SMG was missing parts of its model.
  
• Fixed a number of crashes.

[kojack]

pyroth309 said:

Until a couple of weeks ago I wasn't going to buy Alyx. I was skeptical and honestly was disappointed that they chose Alyx as the protagonist instead of Gordon for VR.

A VR only game was a risk. As was continuing a game so long after the previous one. Just look at how Duke Nukem Forever went. Using Alyx as the protoganist had the advantages of being a major well known character (with a voice actor), but also meant if the game flopped it wouldn't be seen as HL3 but as a side project.

They've done similar before, with the HL expansions by Gearbox: Opposing Force with Adrian Sheppard and Blue Shift with Barney.

(There was another HL expansion being worked on by 2050, a friend of mine was a level designer on it. But it was cancelled)

[Zenbane]

Saw this, had to share:

[RuneSR2]

Quite nice that you can hold 3 grenades - 2 can be stored in the wrist holders and one on the shotgun.

Upgraded to the grenade launcher just before I met the first really big Combine soldier, but he (she? Lol) was very easy to kill with the grenade launcher - and at least I didn't bring a knife to a gunfight 😉

I'm at Northern Star, which is really awesome. Love that the game does not feel repetitive, although you do meet several similar opponents.

Found some places with bad quality shadows and a few more places where high quality shadows emerged like 8 feet from the object and finally I though that I had found something that would look better when forcing Ultra - but it didn't, it was exactly the same. Well, maybe I should just play the game and no longer focus on the graphics, lol. 

[RuneSR2]

Shadowmask72 said:

kojack said:

I never really noticed it during the earlier game chapters, but at the end the combat music got so loud I actually couldn't hear a manhack until it was right in my face. I went straight into settings and turned the music off.

I think I didn't notice earlier because the combat was always short.

I generally hate music during games where audio is important to situational awareness.

Yes I turned it off entirely in Saints and Sinners. 

It may be distracting, but the music is really awesome in Alyx, I've kept it on, max volume, it greatly pumps up the adrenaline during combat.

Btw, 3D positional sound was so awesome that tonight I often was unsure if some of the in-game sounds instead were noises from the real world, never tried that before, lol.

[Wildt]

IIRC the LOUD music during combat was also there in HL2.
That game was great on the DK2, but boy did it demand strong VR legs :sweat_smile:

[Shadowmask72]

Music is funny in VR because you're effectively role playing. But who has this cinematic soundtrack playing in real life as they go about their business? Additionally, sometimes the soundtrack can actually spoil some of the surprises by letting you know something is about to happen or danger still present.  I think a lot of effort and expense is put into video game music production now which is fine and dandy for 2D gaming but perhaps needs a rethink for VR.

[Zenbane]

Shadowmask72 said:

Music is funny in VR because you're effectively role playing. Bit who has this cinematic soundtrack playing in real life as they go about their business?

Bro. I do! Always.

For many years, this was my life soundtrack:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFjoOOPU6Xo

[pyroth309]

Zenbane said:

Shadowmask72 said:

Music is funny in VR because you're effectively role playing. Bit who has this cinematic soundtrack playing in real life as they go about their business?

Bro. I do! Always.

For many years, this was my life soundtrack:

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFjoOOPU6Xo

I'd love a game with a Slayer soundtrack. Closest we got was Doom borrowed a few riffs lol.

[Wildt]

Mmm.. I think I still have  South of Heaven and Seasons in the Abyss on vinyl in a box somewhere ??