Let's get the obvious out of the way: HalfLife Alyx is a supremely polished, well thoughtout game that's a 'mustplay' for anybody interested in gaming, or technology. Or both! It's worth it purely to experience what a 'high budget VR' title should feel like, as a glimpse of what gaming might be like in 23 years' time. But rather than spend this whole video gushing about it, I cover the design choices they've made, how it changes the experience, what I like / don't like, and where I hope they take HalfLife in the future. (Spoiler: probably involves VR)
0:00 What I think of HLA, compared with earlier HalfLife games
2:03 Length of game, difference between segments
3:53 Scavenging simulator, not FPS
4:33 Weapons
6:09 Resin and how the upgrades affect combat
7:55 Hacking minigames
8:36 Movement and teleporting
9:46 Health
10:13 Other ways in which VR immerses
10:43 Audio
11:01 Loading screens
11:34 Graphics and Source 2.0
12:29 Enemies in HLA
14:17 Character animation most convincing NPCs ever?
15:20 HLA's dialogue and how it changes things
16:40 HLA's best bit (Minimal spoilers / clips shown)
18:02 Conclusion. What is this game? What comes next?