Last month, we informed you about the first non VR mod for Half-Life Alyx. And today, we are happy to present you another mod that makes the game playable on mouse and keyboard. Yeap, this mod has basically converted all of the VR gameplay mechanics to K&M.
Created by modder ‘r57zone’, this mod allows you to pull up objects (using the capabilities of the engine), reload weapons, fire weapons, and use a wrist pocket for an object. Basically, all of the gameplay mechanics of Half-Life: Alyx now work with a mouse and keyboard.
Do note that we still don’t know whether the full game can be finished with this mod. Moreover, this mod is behind a Patreon wall for its early version. The modder does plan to release a public version at a later date. In future versions, r57zone also aims to further polish these K&M gameplay mechanics.
You can find more details about this new non VR mod on its GitHub page. Naturally, we’ll be sure to let you know when the public version comes out.
Stay tuned for more!

John is the founder and Editor in Chief at DSOGaming. He is a PC gaming fan and highly supports the modding and indie communities. Before creating DSOGaming, John worked on numerous gaming websites. While he is a die-hard PC gamer, his gaming roots can be found on consoles. John loved – and still does – the 16-bit consoles, and considers SNES to be one of the best consoles. Still, the PC platform won him over consoles. That was mainly due to 3DFX and its iconic dedicated 3D accelerator graphics card, Voodoo 2. John has also written a higher degree thesis on the “The Evolution of PC graphics cards.”
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One of the most immersive games ever made, turns into a clunky abomination, i hope people don’t expect too much from this except for just experiencing and story…
If all a game has going for it is VR then maybe its not that great of a game.
It’s designed around it, so basically a console player can say if Arma, Quake III or any RTS has a mandatory keyboard/mouse requirements so it’s not that great, same thing for Crysis with powerful GPUs back then
Actually it’s a win/win situation, HL Alyx benefits from VR just as VR benefits from HL Alyx
Indeed
Dude… I’m a mobile gamer, Doom Eternal needs a PC to be played and i can’t play it on my phone, awful game with PC hardware gimmicks…
Just think objectively for a second, i see you commenting here often, you’re absolutely not stupid
Correct me if I’m wrong, but isnt Doom Eternal on consoles as well?
Correct, but i’m on mobile, and i want to play it on my phone…
So what’s stopping you?
Not possible, i have to buy a console or a PC and i want it on my phone, if this game needs that to run so maybe it’s not that great, because a genuinely great game is great even on a calculator and isn’t tied to any hardware…
That’s how Anti VR people sound to me, seriously, if you have the occasion to try this game yourself with VR, maybe in a convention or maybe some friend of you who bought a headset, try it, i’m 100% sure that you’ll change your mind, a lot of skeptical people through forums and youtube are regretting their words after trying it, even the saltiest ones and the people really angry at Valve, they’re at least acknowledging the huge potential
That’s a ridiculous comparison, you still need a PC for VR too…and i hope that “i’m a mobile gamer” is a joke.
Obviously, never played a mobile game in my entire life except for Snake on Nokia 1110 lol But that’s how it sounds to me, it’s a requirement for the game, and there are mods to get it on flat screen, mods that are even encouraged by Valve, so everybody’s happy i guess ? No of course, because now that a mod is available people will complain about the game being clunky and bad
You don’t know that, the sensical way for me, and with less effort…should be to port the maps and assets to regular Source and create the game from there, you have all the resources to create a mediocre FPS but, for people that cares about this section of the story and lore of Half Life would be appealing. For me this game is pointless beyond the “VR experience” and messes with previous HL games.
But how lol ?? The ending is fantastic and consistent, i can get that some people criticize the game being VR only, and somehow respect that, all that gameplay section is open to discussion, but the story is very good, so are the graphics/sound design, the world design, and the lore is very respected , if you can tell me what’s wrong without spoiling the folks here maybe we can discuss that point
No you dont, you just need to use some cancerous service like stadia
Fair enough lol, but never considered that sh*t, we agree that VR isn’t a cancer, even then far way from being as cancerous as Stadia, didn’t even know it works on mobile, someday VR will be very affordable, HLA is already creating a demand, someone has to start somewhere, Valve had the ressources to invest on a non-very profitable AAA to push that, why not having alternatives to classic games ?? Look at the comment on this site, it’s obvious that everyone including myself is tired of the typical AAA formula, i take VR as new way to experience new things, and maybe going beyond some limitations on game design
Well if you had to play Half-Life 2 with a dance pad maybe it wouldn’t be a great experience either.
Apparently VR games can’t be ported… EVER.
No one said so, it could, but they’ll never be half as good
What’s with the obsession with parity, it’s like Microsoft bribing devs to downgrade their games. Just port the game as best you can, we will be the judge which version is better.
It you guys that are obsessed with parity wanting the same thing for every hardware possible, it’s up to the dev, that’s not me who asked for a VR only game.
“we will be the judge which version is better”
Of course, but lest’s be honest, do you really think this Frankenstein up here in the video is any good ?
“It you guys that are obsessed with parity wanting the same thing for every hardware possible”
Not me, i know different hardware ields different results.
“Of course, but lest’s be honest, do you really think this Frankenstein up here in the video is any good ?”
It’s an amateur mod, off course it’s not good, but it has potential to be good over time.
Yet again, not want to sound condescending, but keep dreaming dude, anyone who actually tried the game with VR or any sane person with a minimum of game design knowledge knows it’s going to be a far inferior experience, the modders who made those VRless mods themselves say so, even Tyler McVicker who shared the console commands to access the game without VR acknowledges that, only delusional/desperate people have hope for it to be a decent game
Unlike Valve, modders actually delivers on content, so yeah i expect a mod in the future that makes the game decent on kb and mouse.
Maybe another game/total conversion why not ? And let it it be superior if possible, not against the idea, just saying that it’s not possible for this one and this one only, better make other games from the ground up for flat screen
And i’m saying it can be done in this game, but these things take time, the most basic stuff already exist, now it’s just a matter of “cutting the fat” or tweaking it to work good on a kb mouse setting.
Even with all the good intentions of the worlds, with high level of polish, and clever tweaks, the game will be ok at best, like i said, if you have the occasion to try it, don’t hesitate, you’ll know what i’m talking about, i’m pushing for this mod nonetheless, if the modder shows good support for it mod through time i’ll even donate through his Patreon, such a bummer there is no way for people to try this game with VR for free, i’m absolutely sure that this comment section will be different
What is this obsession with equal experience? Games run best on a high-end PC, yet nobody says that low settings should be prohibited or that games cannot release on consoles like Xbox One despite not offering the same experience as a high end PC, so why is this any different?
Low settings don’t change the experience as a whole except for the games that have high focus on graphics, i have 0 problems with people wanting a flat screen experience for HLA, my only issues is people saying it’s going to be superior this way just because it’s the only way they could play it, no it’s not going to be better just because you decided, this is a VR game, a rough port of the game in it actual state would be awful, and is only intended for experimental usage, the modders themselves say so
Why is this any different ? Even if i don’t use the “inferior” term, it will be VERY VERY different, just check videos side by side
Hah, I see you’re in the same situation I was a few days ago.
These people won’t listen and I just got tired trying to explain things to them. I was so patient and tried so many ways. I know that sounds condescending but that’s how it was. You’ll give yourself a stroke trying to get them to understand 😉
Some actually think the difference between VR and flat is the same as 3D and 2D movies. They literally think it’s just a perspective change. They have no concept whatsoever about how pretty much everything is built around the VR, about how it feels. Enemy movement, attacks, puzzles, environment and exploration, special effects…
They’ll only know how poor this modded game will be when they play it and they’ll only understand how great the real version feels when they play that.
Then, when you tell them that, they say, ‘Well, if it can’t be good without VR then it must be crap’. It’s like saying, ‘Well, if that car isn’t fast without the engine, it must be crap to begin with’. That’s how integral VR is to Alyx.
Many think they are having a perfectly ready to play FPP HL game unfairly being held hostage just because Valve want to show off VR without realising that without VR, Alyx wouldn’t exist at all.
100% this, i’m new to VR myself, perhaps that’s why i still have the energy to try convincing people lol, but i know it wont last long, people are so tied to their habits that they’ll even refuse common sense…
Well you wouldn’t want to play Wii Sports with a mouse and keyboard either.
Some games are not supposed to be “ported” because they were designed for specific platform to begin with. So it’s not really porting either. It’s butchering a game to force it onto a certain platform.
Hence why Valve will never release a 2D version of this. Nor a VR version of Half-Life 2.
Unless they remake either one from the ground up. But then it’s neither a port nor the same game is it?
Just the story remains the same.
Funny you said that, wii games have the potential of being best emulated on PC, i played the first Metroid Prime (from Metroid Prime Trilogy) on Kb and Mouse, and it was really good.
Metroid Prime Trilogy on Wii is still a pure FPS, i completed it with PrimeHack too, and it’s still have janky controls roughly ported from the Wii because emulation is still far away from being a PC Port but i digress… He’s talking about Wii Sports, a game that needs you to do actual movements with the Wiimote that are interpreted in a 3D space, not just aiming like you do with a Zapper, which can be 100% reproduced with mouse movement because it’s basically moving a cursor on a 2D screen space.
You’re dodging the subject and not brilliantly lol, go try Wii Sports with keyboard and mouse, and come back here and tell how awful it was
Soooooo….
Are you STILL going to tell me that it wasn’t possible after all? ?
Oh it was possible and as you can see it’s exceptionally inferior to the VR experience.
So an amateur beta mod is exceptionally inferior? Thanks for letting us know s/
I don’t get your point. It is well established that games run best on a high-end PC, yet nobody says that low or medium graphics settings should be prohibited (despite offering an “inferior experience”) or that games cannot release on consoles like Xbox One despite not offering the same experience as a high end PC, so why should this be any different?
Because Waaaaaa, don’t do this thing that doens’t affect me and my experience at all!!!!
I play my games to duck to get through a imaginary hole too…
If its moddable, then clearly we didnt need it
But will you be able to upgrade your gun and gain more ammo in this mod?
wow…
I think people got burned out of fantasy settings and scenarios and crave for a virtual experience where they can experience mundane things.
Maybe you should get more exercise if this seems to be too hard for you. It will make you more likely to live.
So you enjoy VR because you are too much fat? Ok then, maybe you should go to the gym when the world quarantine is over.
If it hurts your knees you can just keep a chair behind you and sit, does the same thing.
In fact, I think there’s an option in the menu to not have to duck anyway.
No one said it was impossible, a KB/M mod was very predictable, the game director himself encouraged modders for that, all we were saying is that game will never reach half it potential without VR, and that’s true, check the video, it’s trash
Valve fanboys are just moving the goalpost to “it’s inferior” or some bs excuse now.
HAHA do you really think that HL fans didn’t see that mod coming ? I was here since the reveal trailer saying to that ret*rd “Gordon Freeman” that a mod will come to make it KB/M, in fact, i was expecting the mod to be decent before i played the game, and realized how delusional i was
They where using this as an excuse for why they can’t make an kb mouse version. Now that there exist a crude kb mouse version, they are saying it’s inferior. Give it some time and they will improve it and we will see the next goalpost.
The brain dead people here who think that VR games are in anyway the same when simply ported to mouse and keyboard blow me away.
VR is different in so so many ways. Thinks that are meant to be really cool experiences like grabbing a car door and using it as a shield while hiding behind it are just pressing a button without VR. It simply doesn’t give you the same experience.
If you haven’t actually gamed in VR for multiple hours and learned how much more amazing it feels to aim a gun than using a mouse you simply wont understand why it needs to be in VR.
“The brain dead people here who think that VR games are in anyway the same”
The brain dead people here using strawman because they are mad modders are making kb and mouse an option blow me away.
” It simply doesn’t give you the same experience.”
Again with the parity bs talk. Repeat with me: It doesn’t need to give you the same feefees. Do you like VR so much that you forfeited all games non VR? Good, too bad i don’t care.
“you simply wont understand why it needs to be in VR.”
I don’t care, this is just a game dude, and not some super hyperrealistic VR simulation that can’t be played any other way. Lmao “it needs to be in VR”, just listen to yourself, are you always this pretentious?
Nah, no one with a brain thought you couldn’t take a SOURCE 2 ENGINE GAME and put it on a flat screen.
READ: If you took what they said in that way, you have no brain.
Take that up with the valve fanboys who believe anything they say.
I’m just on chapter 3 and I have to say it’s gotta be my goty. I feel like a kid again.. growing up with the Atari 2600 then Nes… PC CDROM, N64 etc, seeing graphics evolve.. it’s kind of the same thing. I can’t stand wearing VR for more than 15 minutes at a time,. but I’ve had like two 3 hour sessions with this game. I love it.
Get your vr legs and enjoy another reality
I’m loving the game and you down-voted me?
It’s not the vr legs situation, it’s about the isolation or heat. I have no stomach, equilibrium or vertigo issues.
I know right? The older the gamer, the more they realise and fully appreciate what a game changer VR can in terms of new experiences.
I finished it a few days back and will play through again someday, just because it feels soooo good.
Vavle never said it was impossible. They said they fully expected it and hope people realised, once they played, that they were wishing for something that doesn’t exist.
Why not just drop in the Alyx model from HL2 and adjust that instead?
Someone is already working on that, and on top of that he using an early prototype of the gravity gun, as an alternative version it sounds very cool. Can’t wait.
Bravo.
Excellent news. They just needs to tweak it a little bit, cut the fat of VR in order to have a maybe decent FPS.
They’ll have to add more enemies (better yet, make some new areas for them too) and change their AI for it to even reach a 6/10.
Just play through for the story and the chance to be back in the HL world, don’t expect even an average k&m shooter.
ohhh hell….they are improving the algorithm, it is evolving….
En: Currently available only for Patreon Early Access subscribers – https://www.patreon.com/r57
ok
“iT’s ImPoSsIbLe tO pOrT a vR gAmE To fLaT”
https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/9056de0726b085c13f12f1dd9f40211f5270926816d8b6d9532c0ae8c0497c14.png
….did you ever tried it ?
It’s not VR exclusive, it’s a VR game…it is, in itself, a different genre even if it looks like a fps on the surface. Trust me.
It’s like saying, Outlast is a ‘horror’ exclusive and there is obviously a way to make it a great shooter but the devs are just being arses.
People have said it before…..it’s not the same difference as between a 2D and 3D movie.