Half-Life: Alyx (formerly: Half Life 3 is coming??)

one armed dwarf · 25-11-2019 9:53am

It just sounds like a type of cognitive dissonance to pretend that this game isn't in fact Half Life 3.

Every numbered Half Life has brought with it some new boundary pushing tech or design ideas. That they're doing this VR thing but not calling it 3 just seems like an admission of nervousness to the viability of VR, or something

TitianGerm · 25-11-2019 10:27am

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Rift S is the way I'm going

Black Friday price fingers crossed

Oculus Rift S PC-Powered VR Gaming Headset https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07PTMKYS7/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_s552DbPXA65Y3

Reduced by £50 on Amazon this morning.

25-11-2019 10:34am

TitianGerm wrote: »

Oculus Rift S PC-Powered VR Gaming Headset https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07PTMKYS7/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_s552DbPXA65Y3

Reduced by £50 on Amazon this morning.

Had a 100 sterling voucher on the account too

BOOOM done!!! HL: VR...here we go

TitianGerm · 25-11-2019 10:45am

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Had a 100 sterling voucher on the account too

BOOOM done!!! HL: VR...here we go

That was fast :pac: I was going to buy a new phone but tempted to get this now

25-11-2019 12:22pm

TitianGerm wrote: »

That was fast :pac: I was going to buy a new phone but tempted to get this now

sweetie · 25-11-2019 1:07pm

Would I be right in saying that this machine would suffice?

TitianGerm · 25-11-2019 1:09pm

sweetie wrote: »

Would I be right in saying that this machine would suffice?

Do you need a laptop? You'd build a much better PC for that price.

25-11-2019 1:09pm

sweetie wrote: »

Would I be right in saying that this machine would suffice?

The min spec for HL:VR is a GTX 1060 or an RX 580
Also depends on what VR headset you are getting

25-11-2019 1:13pm

Deleted User wrote: »

As a Rift S owner, I agree with everything he said in that video. I'd add one con: Both my straps broke pretty quickly because myself and girlfriend were swapping back and forth a lot with Beat Saber. Now everyone has just learnt to hold on to them tight.

I got lucky as hell that my 2015 gaming laptop had the mini displayport needed for the Rift S. It was a forced $50 upgrade due to the shop in Vietnam being unable to sort out my broken CV1. For the CV1, I had to use a powered USB 3 hub, and a 4k? mini displayport to hdmi because the HDMI didn't have enough power or bandwidth or something, so was pleasantly surprised that the S just worked.

Have to laugh a little bit at some of the talk of spec requirements for VR in general. I could do with a bit more power but my experience has been pretty damn good on a 980m, because of using Open Composite instead of SteamVR. I really wanted to buy a new PC when I went outside in Lone Echo (amazing game turned unplayable), and if Alyx gets good reviews, I will finally actually go get one. It's just a bitch that parts are so expensive here in Vietnam.

Anyways, I think the Rift S is fantastic. No headset is perfect but what this does for the money is pretty amazing. The screen is great, and the tracking since 1.39 has been perfect. I don't want to take away from what Linus said but I think he can notice the 80hz more because he is constantly making videos about screens these days. I don't notice it and I play Beat Saber on Expert.

B.A._Baracus · 25-11-2019 1:14pm

Absolutely

sweetie wrote: »

Would I be right in saying that this machine would suffice?

I am not an expert on PC requirements. But I too have been looking out for things. The min requirements for the game have been revealed to be:

OS: Windows 10.
CPU: Intel Core i5-7500 / AMD Ryzen 5 1600.
RAM: 12GB.
GPU: Nvidia GTX 1060 / AMD RX 580 - 6GB VRAM.

So the laptop wouldn't be any good. Only has 8gb of ram and the graphics card needs 6gb. Which it is currently 4gb.

As another said a desktop would be cheaper.

B.A._Baracus · 25-11-2019 1:18pm

Absolutely

Here's an interestling link I thought I would share.

https://www.scan.co.uk/shop/computer-hardware/gpu-nvidia/nvidia-geforce-gtx-1060-6gb Price comparisons of the min-graphics card required. Which seems to be floating around the 200 pound mark.

and index controllers cost around 299 euro https://store.steampowered.com/valveindex

Already getting pricey.

25-11-2019 1:22pm

I'm not sure why anyone would be aiming for the min spec either if you are willing to invest in a headset and an upgrade in the first place.
Surely it will scupper the HL:VR experience.

sweetie · 25-11-2019 1:22pm

TitianGerm wrote: »

Do you need a laptop? You'd build a much better PC for that price.

Ah yeah but I already have this laptop, got it for €600 18 mths ago. I was looking at the spec for the S and thought it might be ok but forgot that the game had it's own specs.

Also, the Rift S looks to be €399 on the european amazons so might be a bit cheaper than UK?

25-11-2019 1:23pm

sweetie wrote: »

Would I be right in saying that this machine would suffice?

Nope. Around the same graphics power as my 2015 gaming laptop and benchmarks say my CPU was around 8,000 whereas that one is at 6,700.

It's good enough for a lot of VR, but not Alyx. I have no hopes for my laptop being able for it.

25-11-2019 1:24pm

sweetie wrote: »

Ah yeah but I already have this laptop, got it for €600 18 mths ago. I was looking at the spec for the S and thought it might be ok but forgot that the game had it's own specs.

Also, the Rift S looks to be €399 on the european amazons so might be a bit cheaper than UK?

To note: I'd suspect your laptop won't work with the Rift S unless you have a Display Port.
Rift S doesn't use HDMI connections.

B.A._Baracus · 25-11-2019 1:24pm

Absolutely

This is getting out of hand already with the price :pac:
Still think it will come out of PS5 tho. That console looks like it's still suporting VR so Alyx could be a 1 to 2 year old game by the time it comes out. Maybe that's a better cheaper option.

25-11-2019 1:29pm

I like the synergy between Valve and Oculus here. Oculus make quality affordable VR to keep the market alive and then Valve come out with a AAA game that could be huge for VR.

cnocbui · 25-11-2019 1:35pm

one armed dwarf wrote: »

It just sounds like a type of cognitive dissonance to pretend that this game isn't in fact Half Life 3.

Every numbered Half Life has brought with it some new boundary pushing tech or design ideas. That they're doing this VR thing but not calling it 3 just seems like an admission of nervousness to the viability of VR, or something

I don't think you understand timelines. There is no cognitive dissonance. If this proves to be a success, it might give Valve the confidence to finally tackle HL3.

TitianGerm · 25-11-2019 1:47pm

B.A._Baracus wrote: »

This is getting out of hand already with the price :pac:
Still think it will come out of PS5 tho. That console looks like it's still suporting VR so Alyx could be a 1 to 2 year old game by the time it comes out. Maybe that's a better cheaper option.

It'll probably still cost the guts of €800 if not more in two years for a PS5 and PSVR2.

K.O.Kiki · 25-11-2019 1:58pm

Absolutely

B.A._Baracus wrote: »

Here's an interestling link I thought I would share.

https://www.scan.co.uk/shop/computer-hardware/gpu-nvidia/nvidia-geforce-gtx-1060-6gb Price comparisons of the min-graphics card required. Which seems to be floating around the 200 pound mark.

and index controllers cost around 299 euro https://store.steampowered.com/valveindex

Already getting pricey.

The GTX 1060 has been replaced by the GTX 1660 (cheapest models are already £189), though you should ignore both and instead opt for GTX 1660 SUPER (from £209) on Nvidia side.

On AMD side, you can pick up a new RX 580 8Gb for as low as £152, however if you want good temps & low noise, the only models you should consider are the ASUS STRIX (£180) & Sapphire Nitro+ (£180)

Also don't forget that they are both old cards - RX 580 was released in 2017, GTX 1060 in 2016, and just before the mining craze.
They're easy as chips to find on the used market now.

ERG89 · 25-11-2019 2:00pm

B.A._Baracus wrote: »

This is getting out of hand already with the price :pac:
Still think it will come out of PS5 tho. That console looks like it's still suporting VR so Alyx could be a 1 to 2 year old game by the time it comes out. Maybe that's a better cheaper option.

Don't buy a VR headset if it's just for one game. If you think you could make use of it besides this game consider it. Maybe HL: Alyx might come to PSVR2 or maybe it might get a non VR release down the line. Valve have a VR headset they need to sell so their incentive is to try get them moving with games like this but games of this level being frequent releases looks to be a way off right now.

cnocbui · 25-11-2019 2:01pm

Hmmm, would I rather play Crysis with minimum spec hardware or with the specs necessary to get the optimum experience?

K.O.Kiki · 25-11-2019 2:13pm

Absolutely

cnocbui wrote: »

Hmmm, would I rather play Crysis with minimum spec hardware or with the specs necessary to get the optimum experience?

Crysis was an unoptimized mess.

:pac:

B.A._Baracus · 25-11-2019 2:32pm

Absolutely

TitianGerm wrote: »

It'll probably still cost the guts of €800 if not more in two years for a PS5 and PSVR2.

True.
Not sure what to do. I prefer the idea of buying a console to experience games. As long as the thing lasts you are covered for the current generation. With pcs, stuff can go wrong.
My last couples of devices (laptop, desktop) never lasted an entire console generation.

Would be so easier to just get a console and away I go...

cnocbui · 25-11-2019 2:43pm

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

Crysis was an unoptimized mess.

:pac:

That's irrelevant - it set a standard that forced the entire gaming eco system to improve. It's also missing the point. The optimum requirements for Alyx are heavy. It's the same situation as with Crysis, and optimization, or not, is irrelevant. The full experience potential provided by the game developers can't be had with minimum specs. Valve have raised the bar, Just as Crytek did.

Just be thankful Samsung haven't yet commercialised their 1500 ppi OLED panels for VR. 4K per eye at 90 fps would be rather expensive to drive in terms of graphics cards. :P

K.O.Kiki · 25-11-2019 2:58pm

Absolutely

Last console generations have been unusually long (PS3: 8 years, PS4: 7 years by 2020).
Also, if you bought a high-end machine in 2011/12 (i7-2700K) you would've only felt the need to upgrade CPU last year.

GPUs are another matter, but I've been upgrading for the past 4-ish years on a budget of ~€250 per GPU, which has allowed me to go from GTX 970 (new) -> 980 Ti (used) -> RTX 2070 Super (new) by selling old GPU & using it to fund the difference. My GPU performance has more than doubled in that timespan.

TheValeyard · 25-11-2019 6:02pm

K.O.Kiki wrote: »

Crysis was an unoptimized mess.

:pac:

What a game though.

mrcheez · 29-11-2019 10:00pm

https://www.reddit.com/r/PSVR/comments/e3jctu/from_vr_sucks_to_i_bought_vr_for_this_game_in_one/

cnocbui · 30-11-2019 12:58am

My son's index with all the extras was supposed to arrive by courier today, it didn't. However, the tracking shows it as being delivered - after 7 p.m. would you believe? Of course the courier company is closed until Monday.

30-11-2019 6:58am

cnocbui wrote: »

My son's index with all the extras was supposed to arrive by courier today, it didn't. However, the tracking shows it as being delivered - after 7 p.m. would you believe? Of course the courier company is closed until Monday.

Any games in mind to play first?

Half-Life: Alyx (formerly: Half Life 3 is coming??)

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