Valve Announces Launch Date for Half-Life: Alyx, but Index Headsets Are Still Sold Out

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Image: Valve

After more than a decade, PC gamers can finally return to one of the greatest franchises ever. Valve has announced that its VR-exclusive prequel/sequel, Half-Life: Alyx, will be released on March 23, 2020. That marks 12 years, 5 months, and 13 days since the series’ last outing, Half-Life 2: Episode Two.

Again, this is a title meant to be experienced in virtual reality, so a PC rig without a headset won’t suffice. Valve has been hyping up its own VR hardware since the game was unveiled back in November, but while the Index might be the definitive way to play, it’s still completely sold out on the Steam store. There’s a chance that one of the bundles could return just in time for Alyx, but don’t hold your breath.

Those who were lucky enough to score a Valve Index headset can expect their pre-order bonuses to be available the week of March 2nd. These include Half-Life: Alyx environments that can be explored in SteamVR Home, alternate gun skins, and special themed content for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. A free copy of the game itself should also appear for Valve Index owners, even for those who only own the controllers.

Half-Life: Alyx can also be played on the HTC Vive, Oculus Rift, Oculus Quest (with PC and Link Cable), and Windows Mixed Reality headsets. We’re just a few weeks away, but Valve has gone ahead and released a couple of new screenshots to keep us happy.

Tsing Mui
News poster at The FPS Review.

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