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Half Life Alyx - No VR mod is shaping good

SF Kosmo

Al Jazeera Special Reporter
Damn. Guess I just need to get VR to play a VR game then. Isn't VR very expensive and very few games do VR right? Seems like a huge investment with little gain.

For those of us without VR, this mod sounds interesting. But yeah, it would be diluted big time without VR. But it is watered down beer or no beer for me.
If you have a good gaming PC, Quest 2 is quite cheap and offers an amazing experience. Definitely enough great games to get your money's worth too.

If you don't have a good gaming PC, then yeah you're looking at a huge investment.
 
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Wonko_C

Member
I just did the unthinkable: My PC is far, far from being VR capable (Core2Quad GPU that doesn't even support AVX, paired with a GTX 1050Ti), and I only own PSVR, so I did the frankenthing of connecting the PSVR (3DOF only as I don't have a Kinect/PS3 camera), downloaded some Alyx hack that let's you use KB/M, and the game actually ran. I managed to get past the title screen, and into the balcony.

Framerate was ovbiously below 60fps and it had some very bad stutters and geometry culling if I turned my head around too quickly, but just standing still the visuals were pretty dang good (lowest settings), way above anything I've played on PSVR.

I just did this experiment to see if my PC could run the game at all, because... I'm going to use the no-VR mode, being fully aware I'm not going to experience the real thing (I'm a glutton for punishment and already saw a playthrough when the game launched). So based on how "well" it ran in VR, it's going to be very playable non-VR on my PC.

Hmm, I wonder if I could LowSpecGamer the thing, add a PS3 camera and use my move controllers...

 
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ZoukGalaxy

Member
I just did the unthinkable: My PC is far, far from being VR capable (Core2Quad GPU that doesn't even support AVX, paired with a GTX 1050Ti), and I only own PSVR, so I did the frankenthing of connecting the PSVR (3DOF only as I don't have a Kinect/PS3 camera), downloaded some Alyx hack that let's you use KB/M, and the game actually ran. I managed to get past the title screen, and into the balcony.

Framerate was ovbiously below 60fps and it had some very bad stutters and geometry culling if I turned my head around too quickly, but just standing still the visuals were pretty dang good (lowest settings), way above anything I've played on PSVR.

I just did this experiment to see if my PC could run the game at all, because... I'm going to use the no-VR mode, being fully aware I'm not going to experience the real thing (I'm a glutton for punishment and already saw a playthrough when the game launched). So based on how "well" it ran in VR, it's going to be very playable non-VR on my PC.

Hmm, I wonder if I could LowSpecGamer the thing, add a PS3 camera and use my move controllers...


Wow, I didn't know that PSVR on PC was a thing. What software(s) did you use please for this experiment ?
 
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Wonko_C

Member
Wow, I didn't know that PSVR on PC was a thing. What software(s) did you use please for this experiment ?
iVRy on Steam allows you to use the PSVR as a PC headset. It has a trial version so you can test how it runs before buying.

psvrhack on reddit has setup tips to make it work with moves, and even 6-DOF+full body tracking with Kinect, but setup is some really fiddly shit that doesn't always work. (I borrowed a Kinect and could never get my Moves detected)
 

ZoukGalaxy

Member
iVRy on Steam allows you to use the PSVR as a PC headset. It has a trial version so you can test how it runs before buying.

psvrhack on reddit has setup tips to make it work with moves, and even 6-DOF+full body tracking with Kinect, but setup is some really fiddly shit that doesn't always work. (I borrowed a Kinect and could never get my Moves detected)
Oh nice !
Thanks for all these great informations and tips, really appreciate them ^^
 

Videospel

Member
No need to imagine, it's just as bad as it sounds:

AK6KdIU.jpg


Moving with a dpad was a chore, it felt nothing at all like the real SM64. And don't get me started on the thumbstrap.
I played the game with the thumbstrap. It worked great until the thumbstrap got a sharp speck on it that scratched my screen.
 

IbizaPocholo

NeoGAFs Kent Brockman


****Changelog****
- Improved collissions
- UI Improvements & Custom hints
- Game story is now more playable
- Working pen/draft
- Some complex puzzles were adapted to non-vr
- Custom items (pipe)
- In-Game menu is now working (very important feature)
- Panorama is reacting to user input while paused (Only by using in-game menu)
- Custom Engine Functions

New weapon animations & improvements are coming. Everything still in development and is not final.
 

Romulus

Member
I have a ton of respect for the work done to get it running, but playing that game in 2D makes absolutely no sense from a foundation standpoint. It just compromises all the way around unless you've only seen videos of Alyx and not actually played it, then in that case you can probably convince yourself it's "not that big of a difference." There is literally no bigger difference than 2d to full 3d. It's absolutely colossal.
 
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Wonko_C

Member
I have a ton of respect for the work done to get it running, but playing that game in 2D makes absolutely no sense from a foundation standpoint. It just compromises all the way around unless you've only seen videos of Alyx and not actually played it, then in that case you can probably convince yourself it's "not that big of a difference." There is literally no bigger difference than 2d to full 3d. It's absolutely colossal.
Agreed completely, the amount of work being put into this mod is nothing short of amazing, but I'd rather wait until either it is announced for PSVR2 or I build a VR-Ready PC.

I might play this mod as a curiosity though.
 

nemiroff

Gold Member
I have a ton of respect for the work done to get it running, but playing that game in 2D makes absolutely no sense from a foundation standpoint. It just compromises all the way around unless you've only seen videos of Alyx and not actually played it, then in that case you can probably convince yourself it's "not that big of a difference." There is literally no bigger difference than 2d to full 3d. It's absolutely colossal.

I agree. The creator is doing an excellent job putting hours into this, but yeah.. Folks, just go watch a playthrough on Youtube instead, having this experience on a 2D screen makes no sense to me.
 

IbizaPocholo

NeoGAFs Kent Brockman


****Changelog****
-Moved NoVR engine to new HLA Version. On the past the mod was using an old version of the game. Now it should work on newer versions.
-Improved interaction system
-Anim Interactable/physics objects can be dragged in a better way (not perfect, anyhow this feature was improved a lot).
-Added Shotgun weapon.
-Using Shotgun temporary model: https://gamebanana.com/mods/243462 (credits to Just Kris)
-HL2 Ladders can be created dynamically by Lua Script (not seen on video)
-Featuring 'Extended Tools', a dll injection that can give access to multiple Source2 non-exposed functions.
-A lot of improvements were done and most of the things were remade from the scratch.
 

ResurrectedContrarian

Suffers with mild autism
Not so sure about this idea...

What I really want is just PS5 VR with this game (and a small Portal mini-adventure bonus? please?) as a launch title.

I don't want to play Alyx until I can experience it correctly.

Saw this thread pop up again and had to update my old comment from a year ago:
- I did get to play it correctly this year via quest2+pc link
- it was amazing
- don't cheat yourself by having only half the experience
 

rofif

Can’t Git Gud
I get this point, however there are a lot of people like me who have no interest in VR at all, but are huge Half Life fans who want to experience another part of the story, especially given the huge gap between Alyx and HL2:Ep 2!!
There is not much there without vr
 

Crayon

Member
A cool project and a fascinating challenge. As far as playing it, alyx will still be a vr game. You'd be a desky in vrchat. Distant. Jailed. Poor soul.
 

Pakoe

Gold Member
Playing Alyx without VR is like getting your dick sucked through a glory hole while wearing a condom that's too small.
Sure, you'll probably end up having an okay time but you'll be missing 99% of what makes the game so amazing.
You can't translate VR to a screen.

Here's hoping it'll release on PSVR2 so more people can enjoy this masterpiece of a game.
 

THE DUCK

voted poster of the decade by bots
The only people that have no interest in VR are ignorant. You got no excuse.

LOL, I have a quest 2 and have played plenty of VR games, yet have no interest in the game in VR, at least not until things improve such as resolution of the screen, fit and comfort, etc. Soon though.

And like others have said, if the game is worth it in VR, it should still hold up as a regular game. (obviously not as immersive, but the graphics and gameplay and story should all still be good or the hype is in overdrive)
 
Playing Alyx without VR means you don't get the experience of hitting various body parts off things due to trying to avoid in-game cupboards.

I had fully intended on not playing in VR - but, fortunately, I managed to borrow a headset and had the time of my life. Fully recommend trying this out before any form of non-VR mode. The game is VR-game-defining.
 

Maiden Voyage

Gold™ Member
I suspect you have financials stakes in vr equipment, otherwise there is no logical reason for you feverish defence for alyx to stay vr-only.

Im joking...kinda. Please dont hate me. ;)
I don’t have any stakes in VR companies.

The difference to me is night and day. If you’ve played Alyx in VR it’s easy to understand why it cannot translate to 2d. If you’ve haven’t, trying to explain the difference is like trying to describe color to a blind person. The VR experience greatly impacts the gameplay. With out the VR you are left with a shell with the best parts removed.

I would describe the difference in VR gameplay to that of the transition from 2D games to 3D. To me, Alyx is the Super Mario 64 of VR. Imagine trying to remove the 3D / polygonal gameplay of SM64 so it could run on the SNES. That is the level we are talking about.
 

Crayon

Member
Damn I plan to get psvr2 day one and it turns out not possible for the community to make it work on PC I'm going to be disappointed. I'd say I've been a little too optimistic by counting on it working. Def not counting on alyx for ps5.
 
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Otre

Banned
After finishing that game and being the only thing I consider the only true next gen experience in the past years along with Walking Dead: Saints and Sinners, I cannot imagine this without VR. Might as well watch a youtube Letsplay. Hope im wrong.
 

Osaka_Boss

Member
Alyx does nothing to further the plot. The experience is meaningless without VR so you're doing more harm than good by 'playing' through without VR.

Keep in mind the combat in Alyx is specifically tailored for VR. Reloading, aiming, enemy placement is all based around being in VR. This means there are fewer enemies compared to previous games but the tension in combat is much higher. If reloading is done via a single keystroke, you're circumventing the entire experience.

This is like playing Mario 64 modded to be a 2D snes game. Or an easy mode on a Souls game.
Who hurt you? Playing like this won't take away the experience from VR users. Let people have fun the way they want, gatekeeper
 

Thaedolus

Member
I don't have anything against anyone wanting to play this game, even in a modded 2D experience, but that really sells the game short. It's not like an old school Half-Life game where you're running and gunning with all the insane agility of a mouse and keyboard. It's designed around standing up and using your hands to aim and reload and all of that stuff. You have pitch black rooms during certain sections with only a flashlight in your off hand and it's just pants-shitting awesome to experience. If you just really need to play it in any form, have at it, but it's not going to be anything close to the VR experience. If you can't afford a head set or don't want one, find a way to borrow one or something.
 

Romulus

Member
I can't do VR, can't see 3D, medical issue. Yeah, I know I won't get the true experience playing this, but I'll take any Half-Life I can get. I just hope Valve will make Half-Life 3 a regular game.

Well the 3D part seems you would miss either way, but the other HUGE element missing from non VR is the life sized world. Even a stadium sized TV can't replicate that.
 
I think most people advocating for it don't understand the difference between 2D gaming on a monitor vs VR 3D. Many think it is something like 3DTV lol.
what year is it?

People still don't understand that VR is VR, and not "some other screen".

You get a 1:1 world. No screen can replicate that.

And missing out on "presence" combined with motion controls means missing out on everything.

It's basically the same difference between driving an actual car versus playing some sim on a monitor (with a controller).

Good on the devs for the effort, though. It might lead to good things in the end.
 

Romulus

Member
what year is it?

People still don't understand that VR is VR, and not "some other screen".

You get a 1:1 world. No screen can replicate that.

And missing out on "presence" combined with motion controls means missing out on everything.

It's basically the same difference between driving an actual car versus playing some sim on a monitor (with a controller).

Good on the devs for the effort, though. It might lead to good things in the end.


Yup, even in 2022, I talk to gamers that have never tried real VR. I just demoed Quest 2 to a coworker a couple of months ago who plays every platform imaginable, just never gave VR a shot because of all the misinformation. He was blown the hell away by Superhot.
 

Wonko_C

Member
I can't do VR, can't see 3D, medical issue. Yeah, I know I won't get the true experience playing this, but I'll take any Half-Life I can get. I just hope Valve will make Half-Life 3 a regular game.
What you see in VR works almost the same way you see in the real world, you would still be able to play in VR and it would look the same way the real world looks to you.
 

Crayon

Member
What you see in VR works almost the same way you see in the real world, you would still be able to play in VR and it would look the same way the real world looks to you.

And with no stereoscopic vision, you get your depth info from parallax effect, which works in vr.

...

I'm dumb for letting it bug me, but there are going to be a bunch of people who don't like vr and are in denial about alyx being a vr game. They get to play it on a desk and come out saying that if it wasn't that good on a monitor, then it wouldn't be any better in vr because it's just a gimmick. Circular reasoning gonna be annoying.
 

SmokedMeat

Gamer™
I'm dumb for letting it bug me, but there are going to be a bunch of people who don't like vr and are in denial about alyx being a vr game. They get to play it on a desk and come out saying that if it wasn't that good on a monitor, then it wouldn't be any better in vr because it's just a gimmick. Circular reasoning gonna be annoying.

It’s like watching a Roller Coaster ride on Youtube, and claiming you experienced it. The Roller Coaster is just a gimmick.
 
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