ItвЂ™s a game of physics and, now more than ever, the physical Combine encounters, for example, evolve from their run-nвЂ™-gun roots to heftier, more tangible slowburn shootouts in which the world is both a weapon and a shield. Much of Alyx is spent both re-familiarizing yourself with the world of Half-Life and re-examining what its staple elements mean in VR. More importantly, though, itвЂ™s a great way for the franchise to find its feet again, especially in uncharted territory. And, conveniently, it pits Alyx at a crucial and unexplored time in the Half-Life canon, with the human race still licking its wounds as it adapts to life under the rule of Combine stormtroopers. The decision to double back to a time before Half-Life 2 and cast you not as the crowbar-wielding Gordon Freeman but instead the pistol-slinging Alyx Vance is a wise one, freeing Valve up from at least some of the crushing pressure that putting a вЂ3вЂ™ in that title would apply. But what it does right, it almost always does the best. For a long-time VR player, Alyx doesnвЂ™t hold a lot of вЂnewвЂ™, and it doesnвЂ™t have many answers to the mediumвЂ™s more persistent issues. And yet, for better or worse, Alyx is also a game of surprising familiarity, not just in the DNA itвЂ™s dusted off after these many years but in how it approaches the platform. Alyx has a world so lavish in apocalyptic dressing and setpieces so thoughtfully sequenced youвЂ™d be forgiven for mistaking the game for a flagship PlayStation or Xbox exclusive. Half-LifeвЂ™s big return is, for starters, unparalleled in production.

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