10 Video Game Sequels That Made You Play The Original Again
3. Half-Life: Alyx
It's not like anyone really need to be reminded of how freakin' fantastic the Half-Life games are, but Half-Life: Alyx bloody went and did it anyway, right? Just don't call it Half-Life 3.
The VR-exclusive follow-up to Half-Life 2: Episode Two obviously encouraged players to revisit Half-Life 2 and its episodic spin-offs to swot back up on the ongoing story before diving in, but even once Alyx itself was over, it felt like a prime time to go back to the very beginning.
Even if you feel that the original Half-Life is too dated, there's 2020's brilliant third-party remake Black Mesa, which quite conveniently had its full release out of early access mere weeks before Alyx hit stores.
All the same, going back to the original launch version of Half-Life remains something of a religious experience for many - a staggering reminder that PC gaming reached such an impressively cinematic zenith as early as 1998.
And given that there's no guarantee at all that Valve will ever get around to an Alyx sequel or - gulp - an actual Half-Life 3, keeping yourself entertained by returning to the originals might be the best you're going to get.