After 16 long years, Valve have finally delivered a sequel to one of their smash hit games, and in typical Valve fashion they have made a near masterpiece of a video game. Valve has always tried to push the bar for modern gaming and their expansion into VR shows how they are keeping this ideology.

The main difference with this game compared to the other half-life games is the obvious fact it is in VR; this means that the game plays at a difference pace compared to the others. Valve has made sure this game is accessible to as many VR users as possible, this is shown by the fact that there are multiple comfort options such as: smooth Turing, manual walking, teleporting etc.

Graphically the game is gorgeous, this is different compared to which VR device you own however it is still amazing looking no matter what, this is the closest to real life any VR game has gotten, and you can get highly immersed with the beautiful environments it takes you too.

The story is a bit complex at first on how it fits into the main story of the previous games, but it all comes together at the end of the game in an intriguing way for any Half-Life fan. The characters and the interactions they have with each other feel like real people talking to each other and are fun to listen to, especially the banter between Russell and Alyx.

The combat has drastically changed from the first few games, moving is more complex as the movement changes depending on your personal preference, combat is slower and steadier from the other games, this works in favour with the new VR perspective and feels better as if it were fast paste, it would feel very sickly. There was a part with an enemy called jeff, a monster who is completely blind and needs to be distracted by throwing bottles; this massively changes up the gameplay and is a welcome addiction as it is terrifying in the new VR POV.

Overall, I have no complaints about the game, the story and gameplay are amazing, and the graphics are incredibly realistic for 2020 standards and will uphold for years to come. This is truly a worthy successor; the Half-Life series and valve has truly smashed it out the ballpark with their newest game and it would not be a far stretch to call this game a masterpiece.