Half-Lifeand its sequel are consideredto besome of the best games of the first-person shooter genre. They star protagonist Gordon Freeman and combine a mix of gunplay and puzzle solving wrapped up in an engaging story that has left gamers wanting more for over 12 years. It seems as if Valve has an unnatural fear of the number three sinceit appears thatHalf-Lifeas well asPortalandLeft 4 Deadwillbe forever stuckat level two. It remains tobe seenif we will ever see a proper sequel, but Valve hasdecided to revisitthe Half-Life universe with theupcoming PC VR game, Half-Life: Alyxcoming in March. Until then you candownload and playboth mainHalf-Lifegames and all of their expansions for free.
Whether you are a longtime fan or are brand new to the series, this is a great opportunity. Please remember that this is a two-month trial and you will not get to keep the games forever so don’t procrastinate. All of theHalf-Lifegames run on Windows, Linux, andmacOS, however,macOS10.15 Catalina is not compatible since the games are32-bit apps.
During the two-month test period you will have access to the game that started it all,Half-Life,with all of its expansionsHalf-Life: Blue ShiftandHalf-Life: Opposing Force.It should be notedthat this is the Source version of the game with added physics to make gameplay feel more modern but doesn’t include the excellent fan-madeBlack Mesa. You will also be able to try outHalf-Life 2, additional levelHalf-Life 2: Lost Coastand it’s two episodic expansions. Further provingValvehates three, the episodic expansions were initially to be a trilogy but the third episode never happened.
Half-Life: Alyxtakes place before the events ofHalf-Life 2and will feature Alyx Vance as the playable hero. Alyx made her debut inHalf-Life 2as a non-playable character that helps Gordon Freeman and was a groundbreaking achievement in that she was one of the first NPCs that made NPCs matter. Her depth and useful presence made her almost as beloved as Freeman himself.
