Shmraggon
Charleston, South Carolina, United States
Too many games. Not enough life.
Too many games. Not enough life.
Favorite Game
13.9
Hours played
34
Achievements
Favorite Game
6.2
Hours played
18
Achievements
Rarest Achievement Showcase
Review Showcase
575 Hours played
09.03.25 Update (410.5 Hours):
What Da Hopper released Eye Tracking via PSVR2Toolkit, check it out!
https://github.com/BnuuySolutions/PSVR2Toolkit

LunchandVR has a good video on setup, use and benefits of eyetracking coupled with Foveated Rendering provided by Mbucchia's OpenVR PimaxMagic4All!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sgGJMa60OY0

Original 04.28.25 Review (322 Hours):
Requires the PSVR2 PC adapter to use, if your graphics card does not have the older DisplayLink port on the back of it for the headset to plug directly into. It's a little clunky, But it works fairly well with SteamVR.

The largest hurdle is keeping the Bluetooth working. My internal Bluetooth that came with my motherboard works, but only because i think it allows for an antenna to be placed on the front of my PC case, limiting any issues with interference. Sony lists on it's website a couple of cheap $15 bluetooth adapters it recommends that work with the APP/headset combos.

https://www.playstation.com/en-us/support/hardware/pc-ps-vr2-bluetooth/

Couple folks have been keeping a google form of BT adapters that the community have tested as well:
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1STMSm8qhSa5LkttSEmpZCyJz1oObddpLgCaOidmA7_o/edit?usp=sharing

HDR, Foveated rendering, eye tracking, and haptic feedback features are disabled, these are exclusive to the use of the headset with PS5, likely due to licensing. Some dedicated developers are still at the experimental stages of trying to get these features to work currently with the PC adapter(iVRy), but it is a slow going, hard problem to solve.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1021000/BETA_iVRy_Driver_for_SteamVR_PSVR2_Premium_Edition/

Had limited issues with controller profiles on a few games (which is a per game dev issue, not related to PSVR2 or the PSVR2 app). But, overall 95% of games work out of the box with the old vive or index controller profiles/bindings pairing well with the PSVR2 controllers. I really have very little complaints about this headset, the controllers, or the dongle/software. Overall been a fantastic first VR experience for me, and the dozen of folks I have had try it out.

Still going strong with it after 300 hundred hours.
Review Showcase
17.3 Hours played
A must play VR title. About 15 hours long for the base game, played this on 3090Ti with PSVR2 headset. This is a pinnacle stone of VR gaming. The level of polish on the characters, environments, the interactivity with items is top notch. The gun-play is fantastic, the way the game runs and controls is an incredible feat of engineering. The gravity gloves feel so good.... to the point where if you play any other vr game without them, you get a little angry. This is a must play VR game, and for good reason is still one of the top 10 best, if not THE best VR game on many peoples lists, even 5 years later in 2025.

There are experiences in this game that should not be missed by anyone with a VR headset.
I don't think it would hold up very well as a flat-screen game.

Additionally, there are a metric crapton of extremely high quality community made steam workshop mods that are worth checking out after the main game.

Also, if you own Half-life 2, the Half-Life 2 VR mod is free, and easy to add to your library and install on steam. I think playing through the Half-life 2 and episode 1 and 2 was as enjoyable or more enjoyable than Alyx! (I think HL2 is the better game of the two, and Alyx is the better experience).

After my gripes below, I have copypasta'd a reddit post that gives a pretty good rundown on some of the strongest half-life alyx mods, and the links to another steam reviewer who has meticulously reviewed and ranked almost 1,000 mod campagins.

My only gripes for this game are:
1. The movement speed for locomotion is far too slow and a lot of jumping, and more active movements are limited to teleportation (likely for nausea reasons).
2. The gunfights are kind of uninspired. Throughout most of the games, the gun encounters are basically a square box area, with 2-3 enemies, then another round of 2-3 enemies. The enemy AI is not super mobile or challenging either, there's no real complex coordination, flanking, repositioning, like something like Uncharted or F.E.A.R., and the areas with gunfights have limited verticality.
3. The environmental usage/puzzles that Half-life 2 was known for is lacking in this one.
4. The enemy variety is pretty limited as well. If you have played a Half-Life game.... all the same enemies are here.
5. The gun selection is really limited. But..... the guns they give you, and their upgrades, are gloriously good.
6. The story is kind of weak, the ending is a classic half-life troll.

Additionally, this is also the ultimate half-life alyx mod guide
There is easily 50+ hours of AAA campaigns here:
https://v1.steam.hlxgame.cc/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2443128935
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1HefptbgP2pwxDCVITIH5ax8bJ0LFxn6NTVcoM8e6SQ4/edit?gid=0#gid=0

For some of the highlights, a Reddit copy pasta (someone else's words):
Half-Life Alyx has an incredibly dedicated community of artists and designers creating DLC sized chunks of content for an already incredible game. In this post I will offer recommendations on which mods are the most worth the average VR player's time.

Loco-Motive (1 Hour) - Developed by Maarten Frooninckx of Ubisoft Berlin. Set in an Antlion infested trainyard, This level plays like an extra chapter cut from Half-Life Alyx itself. With custom VO and exhilirating combat scenerios, you would be forgiven for mistaking this for a Valve-designed level.

Post-Human (1 1/2 Hours) - Designed by Abraham Lee with the assistance of many members of the community, this mod takes place in a long abandoned apartment block. The moody atmosphere and exceptional gameplay design left me wanting more after the credits had rolled.

Re-Education (45 Minutes) - Designed by Nate Grove of Annapurna Interactive (Me). I developed this mod as a portfolio piece and pulled out all the stops. Set in an abandoned and Xen-infested school it is complete with custom VO, custom props and materials and developed over the course of a year. Re-Education is meant to feel as polished as a short piece of DLC for Half-Life Alyx.

Storm Drain (1 1/2 Hours) - Developed by Rostik Fomich. You must make your way through a Combine-controlled section of City 17's decaying infrastructure. Some exceptional design skill showcased here, and it recently received an update to make it more polished.

The Undertow (1 Hour) - Developed by Dormin and Higgue, this mod probably strays furthest from Half-Life's atmosphere. Set in a psychedelic Combine-themed night club, the design of the level is pretty standard for Half-Life: Alyx, but the visuals and narrative will throw you.

Incursion (45 Minutes) - Developed by Nate Grove and Maarten Frooninckx. This mod was made to be more challenging than anything in the main campaign, and made to use as many of the combat systems as possible. What resulted was a highly polished combat arena with unlockable guns and scavengable resources. If you're inexperienced with Alyx, try this one last.

All together, this list will provide you with at least 5 hours of extra content at a near Valve-quality standard. There are many more experiences on the Workshop not listed above. Here are some shoutouts for experiences still worth your time, but with a bit less polish -

Levitation (make sure to play after campaign)
Cityscape
Cornered
Overcharge
Goon Squad
From Here to There
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