After a thirteen-year hiatus, Half-Life: Alyx has brought Valve’s acclaimed series to the forefront once more, this time taking advantage of VR technology and what it has to offer. Set before the events of Half-Life 2, Half-Life: Alyx takes players back to City 17 while setting itself apart as one of the few fully-fledged VR titles.
If you’ve already experienced what the title has to offer and would like to freshen things up, our list of the best Half-Life: Alyx mods keeps track of what modders are contributing to Valve’s latest title.
The Best Half-Life: Alyx Mods
Although Half-Life: Alyx has been out for almost a month, the amount of available mods hasn’t skyrocketed yet. Nevertheless, the first offerings include a mod that makes combat more lethal, as well as the first attempts at non-VR mods for Half-Life: Alyx, which Valve also claimed to be looking forward to.
Lethal Combat Rebalance Mod
The Lethal Combat Rebalance Mod makes combat snappier by increasing the damage dealt by the game’s different weapons. The mod makes headshots against unarmored targets lethal and ammo much scarcer. Headcrabs, zombies and antlions have also had their damage increased, while health vials refill two hearts instead of just one. Find it on Nexus Mods.
Half-Life: Alyx FakeVR Mod
A first attempt at a non-VR mod for Half-Life: Alyx, the FakeVR Mod lets eager fans play through Valve’s latest title without the need of a VR headset and using a keyboard and mouse. Creator Unreal Academy does, however, stress that the mod “isn’t a full replacement” and that “One feature of the mod that is requried at the end” remains incomplete. Although it might not be the smoothest experience, you can find the mod on Nexus Mods
Half-Life: Alyx non VR mod (driver)
A second Half-Life: Alyx non-VR mod has since appeared, this one claiming to allow players to complete the game in its entirety. Although, like with its peer above you’ll likely bump into rougher patches, you can find both the mod and a very detailed explanation of how to install it over on Github.
XenThug Mod
The XenThug Mod introduces adds a horde mode to Half-Life: Alyx, tasking players with surviving waves of enemies encountered during the campaign, ranging from the humble headcrab to different types of Combine soldiers. In between waves, you use the money collected from dead foes to buy ammo, health and equipment from vending machines. The more you survive, the better you highscore. Find it on Github via Steam.
Piano Player's Room Mod
If you’ve played through Half-Life: Alyx, you’ve likely stopped to play something on its now-famous piano. The Piano Player’s Room Mod gives the instrument its own dedicated environment, away from the pull of the game’s excellent story, letting players practice their VR piano skills as much as they want. Find it on Steam Workshop.
Jedi Alyx - Lightsaber Training Mod
The Jedi Alyx - Lightsaber Training Mod introduces the iconic weapons to Half-Life: Alyx. Right now you can only use them on a small map but the mod does give you the chance of slashing regular enemies encountered throughout the game. You can do so with regular strikes or with an attack that behaves similarly to Force Throw. You’ll find three types of lightsabers available: standard, double-sided and “very long”. Subscribe to the mod on Steam Workshop.
