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Half-Life 2

Catalogue entry · not reviewed · store data read 30 August 2026

Reawakened from stasis in the occupied metropolis of City 17, Gordon Freeman is joined by Alyx Vance as he leads a desperate human resistance. Experience the landmark first-person shooter packed with immersive world-building, boundary-pushing physics, and exhilarating combat.

First-Person ShooterHorror

Player score
9.8/10
278,618 reviews
Released
2004
Developer
Not recorded
Platforms
7 systems
Critics
96
Steam Deck
verified
Download
6.35 GB
We have not written a full review of this game.This is a catalogue entry: everything below comes from a source we can link, checked on a stated date. There is no score and no verdict here, because we only publish those after a reviewer has played the game and written it up properly. Our team may well have played this one. Until someone writes the review, we are not going to imply a verdict we have not put our name to.

What is Half-Life 2?

Reawakened from stasis in the occupied metropolis of City 17, Gordon Freeman is joined by Alyx Vance as he leads a desperate human resistance. Experience the landmark first-person shooter packed with immersive world-building, boundary-pushing physics, and exhilarating combat.

Description as published by the developer on its own store page, read 30 August 2026. It is marketing copy, not our assessment.

The record

Catalogue facts
First released16 November 2004
DeveloperNot recorded
PublisherNot recorded
PlatformsAndroid, Android Tablet, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, Steam Deck
GenresFirst-Person Shooter, Horror
Languages27 supported

Source. Catalogue facts from Wikidata Q193581, seeded 30 August 2026. Store data from Steam, read 30 August 2026.

How was Half-Life 2 received?

Players98%positive of 278,618 · Overwhelmingly Positive
Metacritic96critic aggregate, PC
Achievements69on Steam

Method. Player figures are Steam's own totals for the PC version, read 30 August 2026. The Metacritic score is the one Steam publishes on its store page and can lag the site itself. Metacritic page. Neither is our opinion. We have not published a review of this game.

Accessibility

9 declared features

Seeing

  • Subtitle Options
  • Camera Comfort

Hearing

  • Custom Volume Controls
  • Stereo Sound
  • Surround Sound

Input

  • Full controller support
  • Playable without Timed Input

Difficulty

  • Adjustable Difficulty
  • Save Anytime

Method. Features the publisher declared on its own store page. A declaration is a floor, not a review.

What does it support?

Technical support
CapabilitySupport
Controllerfull support
Cloud savesYes
Cross-platform playNo
Mod supportSteam Workshop
Online playSingle-player only
In-game purchasesNo
Steam Deckverified
Download size6.35 GB
Add-on content1 DLC listed
Age gateNone

Content descriptors

  • Frequent violence or gore
  • General mature content

Method. Read from the publisher's Steam listing on 30 August 2026. Describes the PC version. Console versions differ.

What does it cost?

$9.99

Steam price in US dollars, read 30 August 2026. Prices move hourly and vary by region. Check the current price.

Problems players report

We read the 299 most recent negative Steam reviews of Half-Life 2 on 30 August 2026 and counted what they mention. These are complaints, not confirmed defects: we have not reproduced any of them, and a review describes one person's machine. What the counts tell you is which problems more than one person ran into.

  1. Crashes and freezes12 of 299 (4%)

    Missing textures, frequent crashes, missing audio that requires you to muck-about in the terminal a little bit to get it running.

    Steam review, 5 January 2026 · 8 hours played · 12 readers marked it helpful

    Game crashes on loading a level.

    Steam review, 5 June 2026 · 16 hours played · 6 readers marked it helpful

A further 9 reviews call the game buggy or broken without saying how, which is why they are counted separately rather than assigned to a theme. Counted by keyword across review text, so a review discussing two problems is counted under both. Read the reviews yourself.

Games like Half-Life 2

24 games overlap with Half-Life 2 on the tags Steam players applied to it, on genre, and on theme. The closest are Half-Life: Blue Shift, Half-Life: Source and Black Mesa.

All 24 games like Half-Life 2

Common questions about Half-Life 2

What platforms is Half-Life 2 on?

Half-Life 2 is available on Android, Android Tablet, PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox, Xbox 360, Steam Deck. It first released in 2004.

How much does Half-Life 2 cost?

$9.99 on Steam in the United States, read on 30 August 2026. Prices move often and vary by region, so check the store before buying.

Do players recommend Half-Life 2?

98% of 278,618 Steam reviews are positive, which Steam rates Overwhelmingly Positive. That is players rating it, not our review. We have not published a review of this game.

What is the Metacritic score for Half-Life 2?

96 out of 100 for the PC version, as published on the game's own Steam store page. Steam can lag Metacritic by a few points.

Does Half-Life 2 work on Steam Deck?

Valve rates Half-Life 2 as verified on the Steam Deck, from its own testing. That means it works out of the box with no configuration.

How big is the Half-Life 2 download?

6.35 GB on PC, from the storage requirement on its Steam listing. Console versions differ.