At just over $20, Half-Life: Alyx is essential playing for VR headset owners
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Valve’s unique return to the world of Half-Life is 66 percent off and definitely worth picking up before the sale ends on July 11th.
By Antonio G. Di Benedetto, a writer covering tech deals and The Verge’s Deals newsletter, buying guides, and gift guides. Previously, he spent 15 years in the photography industry.
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Image: Valve
The Steam Summer Sale is raging on, offering significant discounts on the Steam Deck and hundreds of PC games. While we rounded up a bunch of our top Summer Sale picks last week, one title that should definitely not fly under your radar is Valve’s own Half-Life: Alyx — which is selling for its all-time low price of $20.39 (nearly $40 off) until the sale ends on July 11th at 10AM PT / 1PM ET.
Now, Alyx is quite a unique game and experience. For starters, when it came out in 2020, it was the first time Valve returned to the world of Half-Life (the 26-year-old series that put it on the map) since 2007. It’s a prequel to Half-Life 2, starring supporting-character-turned-protagonist Alyx Vance. And, notably, you take control of her through her own eyes since Half-Life: Alyx is solely designed around VR and requires you to own a compatible headset. Much like previous Half-Life installments, it’s received near-universal praise for its excellent gameplay and exquisite setting.
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Valve’s latest Half-Life entry is exclusive to VR headsets, and it’s a must-play if you have the hardware. Half-Life: Alyx is a prequel to Half-Life 2, serving up crucial plot advancements that any fan should enjoy.
It really is an absolute must-buy and must-play if you own a VR headset and have the means, as Valve really put thought and care into how you explore this world in virtual reality (no, it’s not a glorified tech demo only for Valve to boost Index headset sales). Also, for any of you PlayStation VR2 headset owners looking forward to Sony’s PC adapter that’s due out August 7th, you might want to pocket Half-Life: Alyx at this excellent price for safekeeping until then. The game is used as the poster child for the PSVR 2 adapter for a reason, and it only gets this cheap a few times a year.
