Valve has marked the 25th anniversary of Half-Life with a substantial update for the 1998 landmark PC shooter to go with an hour-long Half-Life 25th Anniversary Documentary. Half-Life is also currently free on Steam for PC according to their website. The Half-Life 25th anniversary updates delivers a renewed gaming experience and also introduces exciting content and improvements. The update even gives a bit of support to the creative Half-Life modding community.
Half-Life Uplink Comeback
Half-Life 25th anniversary update brings back Half-Life Uplink. Uplink is a mini-campaign originally released exclusively on CD for magazines and hardware manufacturers but comes now bundled with the main game. Valve explained: “We thought it was finally time to bundle it with the main game—no sound card purchase necessary.”
Expanded Half-Life Multiplayer with Four Extra Maps
More maps is always good. And we get ‘Contamination’, described as “Two-foot-thick steel doors block off access to this contaminated waste facility, which has questionable scientific goals at best.” Valve just loves to tease.
‘Pool Party’ is an abandoned Xen outpost floating in space, centered around healing pools. The mystery of how to breathe in this unique setting only adds to the intrigue.
‘Disposal’ takes players to Processing Area 3, a massive radioactive waste plant gone eerily silent. A fun playground, with ample space for experiments with Tau Cannons and hand grenades.
‘Rocket Frenzy’ beckons players to a decaying orbital satellite launch facility. Holding the promise of ignition if oxygen lines, power, and fuel can be restored.
Updated Graphics Settings
Half-Life 25th anniversary update gives players the choice to experience Half-Life with updated graphics settings. “Play the game the way it looked in 1998, but on a modern monitor.” Welcome additions include widescreen field of view and lighting fixes. The update offers a blend of classic aesthetics and modern display capabilities.
Enhanced Controller Support and Steam Networking (with Invites)
The Half-Life 25th anniversary update brings a more seamless gaming experience with improved controller support right. Additionally, the inclusion of Steam Networking facilitates hassle-free game invites and instant game joining. Half-Life 25 makes it easier for players to connect with friends.
Steam Deck Support
The Half-Life 25th anniversary update also brings supports the Steam Deck. Players can enjoy the game on the Steam Deck in 800p resolution with enhanced controls and UI.
UI Scaling for Higher Resolutions
Recognising the advancements in display technology, the entire user interface (UI) has been reworked to scale at larger screen sizes. This will accommodate the masses of players who have upgraded their setups since.
Love For Mod Makers
Valve has given the modding community a few handy additions like engine optimisations. They increased limits for dynamic sound channels, sentences in the sentences.txt file, entities, GL textures, and software renderer geometry. Half-Life 25th anniversary update will allow Mod makers to benefit from the incorporation of func_vehicle entity support from Counter-Strike. Possibly a big deal, I couldn’t tell you, I’m not a modder.
Definitive Edition
Valve declares this updated version of Half-Life as the definitive edition. Consequently, visibility for Half-Life: Source on the Steam Store will be reduced. While Half-Life: Source remains accessible for the Source engine community, Valve encourages new players to explore and enjoy the enhanced features of this anniversary version.
For more on the new Half-Life 25th anniversary update and the full update notes on Valve’s official page.
The accompanying documentary, available to watch for free on YouTube provides an exclusive look into the genesis of the legendary video game first released on PC in 1998. Details on the hour-long documentary Valve released for the Half-Life 25th anniversary update can be found here.
