Half-Life fans may soon get the opportunity to enjoy Half-Life 2 in modern VR headsets thanks to a group of modders. Aptly titled Half-Life 2: VR, the mod"s new trailer showcasing its features is seen above.
This isn"t the first time these modders have tried to implement VR to the Valve developed game, with a former version of the same mod being available from back in 2013, going by the name HLVR, which derived its motion control functionality from using the Razer Hydra. However, due to Valve not maintaining the Source engine"s VR implementation, HLVR has the severe drawback of only being playable using early VR devkits.
Now, the original modding team has joined up with some fresh faces to develop the new version, which arrives with a score of improvements for the game. In addition to supporting HTC Vive and Oculus Rift VR headsets, the mod boasts overhauled textures, effects, models, maps, a new 3D GUI made specifically for VR, as well as multiple methods of in-game mobility.
The mod also introduces realistic weapon interactions, where players can manually reload the plethora of weapons in Half-Life 2 using motion controls, and even wave around the iconic crowbar of Gordon Freeman for dealing with those pesky crates and enemies up close.
Although at first, the mod will only provide its VR functionality for the base game, the modding team has plans to bring the two episodes into the fold as well.
Half-Life 2: VR will be available completely free of charge, however, it does require players to own the Steam versions of Half-Life 2, Half Life-2: Episode 1, and Half-Life 2: Episode 2.
The developers behind the mod are currently hosting a Steam Greenlight campaign to get the mod into the Steam store for the purpose of easy installation. For those who are interested in supporting it, the page can be found here.