While developers from the Valve studio are rumored to be working on a major update for Half-Life 2 to mark the 20th anniversary of the legendary shooter, enthusiastic fans are preparing a surprise of a different kind for the game’s anniversary.
Image Source: Steam (Nova)
The team of the fan portal Half-Life Project Beta announced the release date of the new build Half-Life 2 Beta: Mega Build – their “megabuild” of the beta version of Half-Life 2. The release will take place on the 20th anniversary of the game’s release, that is, November 16 .
Presented on the occasion of the announcement, a four-minute gameplay trailer for the “megabuild” of the beta version of Half-Life 2 demonstrates how the legendary shooter should have looked initially.
The new build will offer more than 1,000 restored textures, character models (including 2000-2002) and items, content from recent leaks, including cut mechanics, locations and enemies.
In particular, the video showed the initial version of City-17, a pre-release variation of the gravitational gun, the removed ability to pierce water tanks with firearms, and much more.
The train station from the beginning of the game in the new beta version (image source: Half-Life Project Beta)
This version of Half-Life 2 was based on a “beta” leaked in October 2003 by German hacker Axel Gembe, stolen from Valve. For the past few years, the Half-Life Project Beta has been restoring a game that fans lost.
Half-Life 2 debuted on November 16, 2004 and sold over 12 million copies in its first seven years alone. The game received the highest ratings from critics (96% for the PC version on Metacritic) and has earned cult status in the community.