Half-Life 2 Celebrates 20th Anniversary with Special Update
Half-Life 2 reached a significant milestone this weekend as it turned 20 years old. To commemorate this occasion, Valve has released an anniversary update that includes a new documentary, commentary, Episodes 1 & 2, and more. As an added bonus, the game is free to keep for a limited time.
The sequel to Valve’s iconic shooter, which follows the adventures of Gordon Freeman, was released on November 16, 2004. With its release, Half-Life 2 quickly became a genre classic, and Valve has chosen not to create a numbered sequel since then.
Now, two decades later, Valve is celebrating by releasing a special anniversary update. Similar to the previous year’s celebration for the original Half-Life’s anniversary, this update introduces bonus content, previously separate DLCs, and various improvements.
The update includes a new documentary created by Secret Tape, offering insights beyond just the game’s creation. Valve describes it as covering topics such as financial challenges, security breaches, lawsuits by publishers, and the development of Steam. In addition, Valve has shared old presentations from the game’s development on its anniversary website.
In addition to the documentary, Valve has added a new commentary for Half-Life 2 in this update. Furthermore, Half-Life 2: Episode One, Episode Two, and Lost Coast – previously sold separately – are all now bundled with the base game. The update also includes integrated Steam Workshop support, allowing players to access and download user-created content within the game.
Valve has meticulously scrutinized every map in the game, addressing longstanding bugs, restoring lost content, and enhancing features like lightmap resolution and fog. Players now have the option to choose between original launch day effects or those introduced in later episodes, along with updated gamepad controls. The update also includes graphics settings, high-quality models, and enhanced detail options.
The 20th anniversary update for Half-Life 2 is now available for free on Steam. For those without a copy of the game, it can be downloaded for free and kept on Valve’s platform until Monday, November 18th at 6 pm in the UK.