Could this be one of the three big VR games Valve has been teasing?
*UPDATE [11.18.19]: Valve has confirmed via Twitter that Half-Life: Alyx is currently in development. More information on the way this Thursday, November 21st.**
Rumors began circulating yesterday about a potential Half-life spin-off heading to VR headsets in 2020 called Half-life: Alyx after a leaker posted a transcript of a supposed interview between veteran video game journalist Geoff Keighly, Team Fortress 2 co-developer Robin Walker, and an unknown third party, during which Keighley states “March 2020, “Half-Life: Alyx” comin’ out.”
The unidentified party then goes on to confirm that the title will in fact launch as a VR exclusive, stating, “I mean we would love to be delivering a version of this that you could play with a mouse and a keyboard, but like as we said, it began as an exploration of VR.”
“You can see their whole body– Respond to the situation. You know, panicking, dropping clips on the ground as they fumble their weapons ’cause a zombie’s in front of them, all these things, they’re just – it’s been really fun watching playtests.”
Originally reported by PCGamer, this “transcript” and March 2020 release date come from the same source behind the DOTA Underworlds leak. As stated by PCGamer, however, Valve rarely celebrates the anniversaries of its games, so take that information as you will. If the reports are true, then Valve will officially announce Half-Life: Alyx sometime tomorrow followed by a world premiere during the 2019 Game Awards December 12th. The game would then launch in March 2020 on what we can assume would be the SteamVR platform; no doubt the title would take great advantage of Valve Index’s grip-sensitive Knuckles controllers.
In February 2017, Valve boss-man Gabe Newell revealed that the company was working on three major VR titles he promised would revolutionize the immersive entertainment market. Since then the company has remained tight-lipped, offering patient fans little in the way of development updates or progress. No doubt using the Half-Life name would bring mainstream attention to their Valve Index headset and SteamVR platform.
I guess we’ll just have to hold our breaths until tomorrow to find out whether the rumors are true.
A bigger question is whether or not this reveal was a direct response to yesterday and today’s leaks or a scheduled announcement. You can check out the full “transcript” of the reported conversation here.
Feature Image Credit: Valve Corporation
