Valve’s announcement of Half-Life: Alyx may not be exactly what fans of the series were hoping for, but the success of the VR exclusive may lead to the development of more Half-Life games, which will hopefully include Half-Life 3.
Half-Life: Alyx takes place in between the events of Half-Life and Half-Life 2. The alien race known as the Combine is already in control of the earth, rounding up the human population. Players will take control of Alyx Vance, who was first seen in the sequel, followed by Episode One and Episode Two.
Will Valve ever continue the storyline of the franchise, after the cliffhanger ending of Half-Life 2: Episode Two? Apparently, that depends on how gamers react to Half-Life: Alyx.
In an interview with The Verge, Valve programmer David Speyrer talked about what fans of the franchise may expect from Half-Life: Alyx, including that the VR game marks a full return to the series, and the possibility of more Half-Life games in the future.
“It’s probably no surprise that many people at Valve have been wanting to get back to the Half-Life universe for a long time, and this experience has only reinforced that,” said Speyrer.
“In the process of creating Half-Life: Alyx, we’ve had to explore new ways to tell stories with these characters and this world, and we’ve discovered a lot of new gameplay experiences that go beyond what we’ve been able to do before. Of course, we’ll have to wait and see how people react to Half-Life: Alyx once it’s out, but we’d love to continue pushing forward.”
A hint that Half-Life 3 may be under consideration at Valve is Speyrer’s recommendation that players finish Half-Life: Episode Two before playing Half-Life: Alyx “for reasons that will become clear as you progress.” Will Half-Life: Alyx provide clues to what happened in Episode Two, and possibly lay the groundwork for Half-Life 3?
Valve’s plans for the series beyond Half-Life: Alyx remains unknown for now. Half-Life 3 may come right after the VR exclusive, or it may take a few more prequels before the long-awaited third installment. There is even the possibility that Half-Life 3 will also be only playable in VR.
In any case, Half-Life: Alyx is a new Half-Life game that should keep fans busy until Valve’s next project in the series. It is probably a good time to get a virtual reality headset, in anticipation of the VR exclusive’s March 2020 release.
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