Dev says Half-Life: Alyx is ‘a return to this world, not the end of it’

Valve developer Robin Walker has given Half-Life fans hope that upcoming VR instalment Alyx will be the first of multiple new entries in the series.

“Half-Life means a lot to us, and it’s been incredibly rewarding to refamiliarize ourselves with its characters, setting, and mechanics,” he told Game Informer.

“There are Half-Life: Alyx team members who have been at Valve since Half-Life 2, and quite a few who go back to the original Half-Life. There are also people on the team for whom Half-Life: Alyx is their first time working on this series at all – and many of them certainly hope it’s not the last.

“We absolutely see Half-Life: Alyx as our return to this world, not the end of it,” Walker added.

Set for release on March 23, Alyx is the first new release in the series since 2007’s Half Life 2: Episode Two, which was originally planned as the middle part of a trilogy which remains incomplete.

Nevertheless, Valve has said Alyx is not a spin-off but “the next part” of the story, and Walker also told Game Informer players would benefit from replaying Episode 2 before starting Alyx – the first two Half-Life games and their expansions are currently free to play.

Set between the events of Half-Life and Half-Life 2, the new game sees protagonist Alyx Vance and her father Eli secretly mount a resistance to the occupation of Earth by a mysterious alien race known as The Combine.

“It’s not a bad idea for players to have refreshed themselves on the events of Episode 2 before starting Half-Life: Alyx,” Walker said.

Valve released 10 minutes of Half-Life: Alyx gameplay on Monday.