Something to look forward to: In the realm of VR first-person shooters, there hasn't been much to follow up Valve's critically acclaimed Half-Life: Alyx in the two years since its release. A team of modders plans to change that by giving the game a whole new mini-campaign.
One of the highlights of the 2022 PC Gaming Show was Half-Life Alyx: Levitation, the upcoming mod campaign for Valve's 2020 VR FPS. The free add-on first teaser emerged last year and a short gameplay trailer appeared in April. On Sunday the developers showed a few minutes of action in their first uninterrupted gameplay reel.
The new footage shows a lengthy shootout in an all-new level where the main game's heroine, Alyx Vance, fights familiar Half-Life enemies like Combine soldiers and a Strider. Levitation is set in a place called Sector X, where Alyx investigates a mysterious floating building and tries to discover what the Combine want with it.
Although the modders can't get Half-Life: Alyx's original voice actors to reprise the returning characters in their campaign, the video shows that they've cast some skilled impersonators. One of the main contributors is a Source Filmmaker creator who specializes in animating the series' enigmatic recurring character, G-man, whom we briefly see in the new trailer.
Levitation is supposed to offer around five hours of new gameplay. Although it didn't get a specific release date at the PC Gaming Show, it's still scheduled for 2022.