In an unexpected but very welcome act by Valve, the entire Half-Life franchise is currently free to play until April. This means you can play anything from Half-Life 1 up to Half-Life 2: Episode 2 completely free. This is likely due to Half-Life: Alyx‘s release nearing as a way to hype up that title’s release. If you haven’t played through the series, you’ll want to give them a go now. It’s a beautiful series, and two months is plenty of time to play through it all. For those interested, you can download the games here.
It all starts with Half-Life 1, following Gordon Freeman as he helps the other scientists accidentally create the Resonance Cascade. You must fight many different monsters, human and creature alike if you are to survive and escape Black Mesa. You can see the Resonance Cascade from two other perspectives through the expansions, or play PvP through the Deathmatch mode. This all continues through to Half-Life 2 where you must put a stop to the Combine who’ve taken this world over. Meet familiar and new faces, and continue their stories in the following two episodes. There are many hours of content to be experienced here, meaning you won’t want to miss out on this deal!
These games should prepare you for Half-Life: Alyx. If you’ve never heard of this game before, it’s a VR experience being developed by Valve. It takes place in between Half-Life 1 and 2 and follows the story of Alyx Vance. You must help Eli Vance and other members of the Half-Life roster (including the elusive G-Man) to begin an early resistance against the Combine. If this game interests you and you want to pre-order, you can do so here.
Are you going to play through any of the games? Will you be pre-ordering Half-Life: Alyx? Let us know, and stay tuned at The Nerd Stash for your news, reviews, and more!