If you need more Half-Life 2 VR, you’re in luck. Following the incredible success of Valve’s Half-Life: Alyx and the fantastic community-created Half-Life 2 VR mod, the creators behind it are back with more VR adventures for the classic FPS game, with support for all SteamVR headsets including Meta Quest 2, HTC Vive and Valve Index. Half-Life 2 VR Mod Episode One is out now on Steam, and it looks spectacular.
Coming from the Source VR Mod team behind the base Half-Life 2 VR mod, this Episode 1 adaptation once again puts you in the shoes of everyone’s favorite silent protagonist, Gordon Freeman, as he returns to City 17 and teamed up with Alyx. forward. With a fully integrated radial menu, working iron sights, two-handed weapons and manual reload, plus an optional laser sight and quick reload accessibility setting, all the modern conveniences of VR are at hand.
Perhaps the biggest draw of all, seen in the trailer below, is just how fun the VR gravity gun can be. Perhaps one of the most iconic weapons in any first person shooter, picking up everything from barrels to soldiers combined with the zero point energy field manipulator and throwing them around the environment is just as pure a treat today as it was in 2004, it has done so much better when it’s in your hands for real (well, virtually).
The mod can be played on all SteamVR compatible headsets, including the Valve Index, Meta Quest 2, and HTC Vive, so if you’ve picked up one of the best VR headsets for PC, you should be set. It even includes support for bHaptics vests, so if you really need to feel full-body immersion, the option is there.
Half-Life 2 VR Mod Episode One is now available on Steam. It’s free, but you’ll need to have the original Half-Life 2 Episode 1 in your account (not just through Family Sharing). However, you don’t need to have the original game currently installed to play this VR conversion.
If you’re not in the mood for virtual reality right now, maybe this Half-Life 2 remake in the style of the classic Resident Evil is more to your liking. Otherwise, take a look at more of the best old PC games you can play in 2023.