Half Life Alyx is the latest game from Valve! A game! from VALVE!! Man when was the last time that happened? Last I recall is Portal 2, which was like 2012? And of course the last Half Life Game was a bit before that right?? So my history with the Half Life series is not a super one - I played the original in middle school for a while but have no particular memory of it? The opening scene is fuckin' ace though, riding through the train in Black Mesa, awesome! We might actually see the remake Black Mesa on this review list soon enough actually... I managed to force myself through the Half Life 2 series (didn't get through episode 2) because I kinda hated it? Hahaha..

Anyway, so Alyx is a shooter/puzzler like the Half Life games before it - you move through very well curated environments and occasionally get into some gun fights. Alyx adds a very strong survival horror vibe that I am ALL about though. There's loads of places full of darkness and shadow and creepies crawling through the vents or along the rooftops you need to be aware of - pretty damn scary in some places actually. Those fuckin headcrabs flying at you out of the darkness is always terrifying... And I think this leads into the games focus - VR. This game uses virtual reality so god damn well. I felt MANY times that I was IN this place, and would often forget my own surroundings. At least twice I knelt on the ground to look about for resources and I would lift my hand to brace myself on a nearby table to stand up - only to remember just before my hand phased through that the table was not real!! Or the amount of times a headcrap snuck up on me successfully and I just EMPTIED a clip into them to put it down because I was so damn scared... it takes like 2 or 3 bullets to put one down, btw. Just saying fuck those things.

So the atmosphere is off the damn charts, the graphics are great, the sound design is solid, the gunplay is pretty good... okay, the negatives I guess? The story is a bit one note? We are chasing down our dad (formerly played by the superb 'Isaac Jaffe') who has been captured by the Combine - they we find him, talk to him for LITERALLY 30 seconds, then he talks to us a bit over the radio and we get to the twist ending: we're liberating Gordon Freeman! Bit rote, honestly? I do REALLY like the ending, and I like that we pick up essentially where we are leaving off with the Half Life story previously. Also it is always awesome to see the G-man... a bit sad we'll be playing as Gordon next time though??

All in all - holy hell VR is the real fuckin' deal. Gun fights may not be superb, but the world-building and sense PRESENCE to this game, drawing you in and immersing you, is like none other. I can't wait to dive in for more.