Twenty years have passed since Valve gave us Half-Life 2, and they’re throwing a big party for its birthday with a special update.
The fresh update brings new stuff like 3.5 hours of commentary from the original developers, where they chat about how they made the game awesome. Plus, there are fixes for old bugs like disappearing objects and weird map holes. If you hop onto Steam, you can grab Half-Life 2 for free, but hurry—it’s only until 1 PM ET today, November 18. In this update, players can also switch between the original and newer graphics for things like blood and fire, and there’s a fancy High Quality mode. The aim assist got a makeover too, making it smoother to play.
Fans often wonder why some things don’t work out as planned.
Now, Episodes 1 and 2 are bundled with Half-Life 2 itself, and Valve is making the separate versions less visible on Steam. Meanwhile, Valve teamed up with Danny O’Dwyer’s Secret Tape for a cool two-hour documentary that dives into the game’s backstory and even talks about the mysterious Episode 3 that never happened. According to Kotaku, Episode 3 would have taken place in the Arctic, centered around a lost ship called Borealis. But after six months, it was just a mishmash of levels without much story, and the team decided to focus on finishing Left 4 Dead instead.
The tale of Left 4 Dead’s success is a bit like a funny tragedy. Valve engineer David Speyrer mentioned that by the time they thought about Episode 3 again, it felt too late. He reflected, saying, "We could have definitely gone back and spent two years to make Episode 3."
Although Episode 3 never saw the light of day, Valve did release a new Half-Life game called Half-Life: Alyx in 2020, which was a hit. And thanks to the anniversary update, Half-Life 2 broke its own record for the number of players playing at the same time on Steam.
Here’s a little peek into the 20th-anniversary update:
Half-Life 2 20th Anniversary Patch Notes:
Content:
- Added developer commentary lasting 3.5 hours.
- Episodes One and Two are now accessible from the main menu.
- Lost Coast is included in the Extras menu.
- Steam Workshop support is added for community-created content.
- New custom Steam Game Recording features.
Rendering and Graphics:
- Fixed lighting issues on maps.
- Added smoother shadows with bicubic filtering.
- Improved grass detail and classic effects settings.
UI and Options:
- UI now scales for better resolutions.
- High Dynamic Range moved to the main settings page.
- Commentary mode can be turned on from the New Game screen.
Input:
- Updated default Steam Input setup.
- New Gamepad settings menu.
- Enhanced Aim-Assist mode introduced.
Gameplay:
- Fixed issues with Combine soldiers and game sounds.
- Resolved crashes in certain areas.
- Various map updates for better visibility and details.
General Map Updates:
- Improved lighting and details across all maps.
- Fixed floating props and missing shadows.
- Added glow effects to light sources.
Specific Map Updates:
- Adjusted intro sequence and fixed texture issues.
- Enhanced lighting in Ravenholm and other areas.
- Fixed various bugs and improved gameplay sequences.
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch Fixes:
- Resolved player model selection issues.
- Fixed Gravity Gun sound effects.
- Improved weapon visibility.
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch Maps:
- Added more player spawn points.
- Fixed prop placement and world visibility issues.
Other:
- Enhanced Valve intro movie quality.
- Added Episode achievements to Half-Life 2.
- Updated localization files and security fixes.
Notes:
- Previous game version archived as "steam_legacy" for compatibility.
- Episodes and Lost Coast visibility reduced on the Steam Store, now found in the Tools menu.
