Difference between revisions of "Half-Life"
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Scottvordem (talk | contribs) (→Issues fixed: Added an entry to fix Logo movies playing inconsistently for Retail Half-Life.) |
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===Missing Decals in Direct3D (retail version)=== | ===Missing Decals in Direct3D (retail version)=== | ||
{{Fixbox|description=Use {{code|gl_polyoffset -0.01}} in the console|ref={{cn|date=April 2018}}|fix= | {{Fixbox|description=Use {{code|gl_polyoffset -0.01}} in the console|ref={{cn|date=April 2018}}|fix= | ||
+ | }} | ||
+ | |||
+ | ===Logo Movies At Startup Play Inconsistently (retail version)=== | ||
+ | {{Fixbox|description=Run with administrator privileges|ref=<ref>{{Refcheck|user=Scottvordem|date=2023-1-1|comment=Tested this several times by starting the game over and over again and the movies played every time.}}</ref>|fix= | ||
+ | # Navigate to {{P|game}} | ||
+ | # Right click on {{code|hl.exe}} and click {{code|properties}} | ||
+ | # Click on the compatibility tab | ||
+ | # Check the box that says {{code| Run this program as an administrator}} | ||
}} | }} | ||
Revision as of 06:25, 1 January 2023
This page is for the original game. For the Source engine port, see Half-Life: Source. For the unofficial remake, see Black Mesa.
Developers | |
---|---|
Valve Corporation | |
Publishers | |
1998-2005 | Sierra On-Line |
2005-present | Valve Corporation |
Engines | |
GoldSrc | |
Release dates | |
Windows | November 19, 1998 |
macOS (OS X) | January 25, 2013 |
Linux | January 25, 2013 |
Reception | |
Metacritic | 96 |
Taxonomy | |
Monetization | One-time game purchase |
Microtransactions | None |
Modes | Singleplayer, Multiplayer |
Pacing | Real-time |
Perspectives | First-person |
Controls | Direct control |
Genres | FPS |
Art styles | Realistic |
Themes | Sci-fi, North America |
Series | Half-Life |
⤏ Go to series page | |
Half-Life mods and fangames (series) | |
Half-Life | 1998 |
Half-Life: Opposing Force | 1999 |
Half-Life: Blue Shift | 2001 |
Codename: Gordon | 2004 |
Half-Life: Source | 2004 |
Half-Life 2 | 2004 |
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch | 2004 |
Half-Life 2: Lost Coast | 2005 |
Half-Life Deathmatch: Source | 2006 |
Half-Life 2: Episode One | 2006 |
Half-Life 2: Episode Two | 2007 |
Portal (series) | |
Half-Life: Decay (unofficial port) | 2008 |
Half-Life: Alyx | 2020 |
Warnings
- The macOS (OS X) version of this game does not work on macOS Catalina (version 10.15) or later due to the removal of support for 32-bit-only apps.
Half-Life is a singleplayer and multiplayer first-person FPS game in the Half-Life series.
The retail release was published by Sierra Entertainment up until the publisher lost all publishing rights to Valve's titles in 2005. The macOS X and Linux versions were released in 2013.
Like most of Valve's library, the game still receives bug fixes and general maintenance updates. It also enjoys a large community base, and various mods are released regularly.
General information
- GitHub Issue Tracker for Half-Life and other GoldSrc-based games
- Steam Community Discussions
Availability
Source | DRM | Notes | Keys | OS |
---|---|---|---|---|
Retail | The original release of the game uses a simple disc check and key authentication. | |||
Retail | The "Game of the Year" edition and later patches remove the authentication and disc check. The disc is only required for the Redbook-based soundtrack. | |||
Retail | Half-Life 1 Anthology, and 2005 Jewel-case. | |||
Steam |
- All non-Steam releases can be redeemed on Steam.
- Soundtrack is available for free here. FLAC files are also available if "Download high-quality audio files" is checked in Steam's music settings.
Demos
Half-Life: Uplink
- The official public demo that includes an exclusive chapter (and the training level) with content not found in the full release. It can be downloaded here.
- The demo uses an older version of GoldSrc, which may have compatibility issues with modern systems. For full compatibility with the Steam version, the HL!UL!SL mod reworks the demo as a Half-Life mod.
Half-Life: Day One
- A pre-release demo exclusive to OEMs. It contains the chapters from the full release up to and including "We've Got Hostiles" (5 chapters and the training level). It can be downloaded here.
- Note that the demo uses an older version of GoldSrc, which may have compatibility issues with modern systems.
Version differences
- Half-Life: Game of the Year Edition comes with both the base game and Team Fortress Classic.
- Half-Life: Dreamcast is an unreleased port of Half-Life to the Sega Dreamcast. It includes various differences from the PC release (ex. modified levels, new models, adjusted difficulty, etc.). A mod that ports the Dreamcast version as a Half-Life mod is available on Mod DB.
Essential improvements
Official retail patches
- These are not needed for the Steam version as that already contains the latest version.
An archive of all official patches for Half-Life and its expansions can be found here
Peixoto's patch
Peixoto's patch forced resolution allows high resolution without shrinking the HUD\menus. Super sampling anti aliasing is also possible
Disable texture resizing for the retail version
- Steam release was updated to disable texture resizing entirely.[1]
By default, the game resizes textures to the nearest power of 2. This behavior can be disabled on hardware that supports non-power-of-two textures (most modern GPUs released within the past 15 years support them) by setting gl_round_down
to 0
in the configuration files.
Skip intro videos for the retail version
- Steam release has no videos.
Use the -console command-line argument.[2]
|
---|
Running in 24 or 32-bit colour depth (retail version)
- The retail version of the game defaults to 16-bit color depth, with no option to adjust in-game.
Run game with -32bpp argument[citation needed]
|
---|
Game data
Configuration file(s) location
System | Location |
---|---|
Windows | HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Valve\Half-Life\ |
Steam | <path-to-game>/valve/ |
-
*.cfg
files store the configuration.
- This game does not follow the XDG Base Directory Specification on Linux.
Save game data location
System | Location |
---|---|
Windows | <path-to-game>\valve\SAVE\[Note 1] |
macOS (OS X) | <path-to-game>/valve/SAVE |
Linux | <path-to-game>/valve/SAVE/ |
The file names follow the pattern:
- autosave.sav
- half-life-000.sav
- half-life-001.sav
- ...
The magic number (the file signature at the beginning of the file, consisting of two or more hexadecimal values) is JSAV
in ISO 8859-1 encoding (4A53 4156
in hexadecimal).
Save game cloud syncing
System | Native | Notes |
---|---|---|
Steam Cloud |
Video
Graphics feature | State | WSGF | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Widescreen resolution | Game is Vert-; see Field of view (FOV) for a workaround. Use Half-Life WON Resolution FOV MP3 Patch for non-Steam versions |
||
Multi-monitor | |||
Ultra-widescreen | Vert-. Increase FOV to compensate. See Field of view (FOV). | ||
4K Ultra HD | Both in-game and menu UI may become too small on displays with a high pixel density, see 4K Ultra HD for various fixes. | ||
Field of view (FOV) | 90 by default. See Field of view (FOV). | ||
Windowed | |||
Borderless fullscreen windowed | Use -window -noborder . |
||
Anisotropic filtering (AF) | 16 samples by default in Steam version. Use gl_ansio X [sic] in the console, with X as number of samples. See OpenGL texture filtering to disable texture filtering altogether. |
||
Anti-aliasing (AA) | 4x MSAA by default in Steam version. Use -nomsaa to force off. Enhanceable to HSAA on Nvidia systems.[Note 2] |
||
Vertical sync (Vsync) | Always on for the retail version. | ||
60 FPS | |||
120+ FPS | Capped at 100 FPS (72 FPS in retail version) by default. See High frame rate. | ||
High dynamic range display (HDR) | See OpenGL overbright lighting to increase the rendering dynamic range. | ||
Ray tracing (RT) | WIP.[3] |
- For a list of console commands, see here.
4K Ultra HD
- Assets are designed for 640x480, and UI may be too small at higher resolutions.
Increase font sizes[4][5] |
---|
|
Field of view (FOV)
- FOV adjustment may be necessary at widescreen resolutions.
Field of view[6] |
---|
Notes
|
High frame rate
Use +developer 1 +fps_override 1 +fps_max ### [7]
|
---|
OpenGL texture filtering
- By default the filtering is enabled (except in Software rendering mode).
Disable OpenGL texture filtering[9] |
---|
Notes
|
OpenGL overbright lighting
- Overbright lighting increases the rendering dynamic range, resulting brighter and more colorful visuals.
- Overbright lighting normally only works on the Direct3D and software renderers.[10][11]
Nvidia GPUs: Enable the GL extension limiter[12] |
---|
Notes
|
Intel/AMD GPUs: Use this GLIntercept config[13] |
---|
Note
|
Use this Python script[14] |
---|
Note
|
AMD and Intel GPUs on Linux: Disable GL_ARB_multitexture extension with environment variable[15]
|
---|
Notes
|
Input
Keyboard and mouse, touch | State | Notes |
---|---|---|
Remapping | ||
Mouse acceleration | ||
Mouse sensitivity | ||
Mouse input in menus | ||
Mouse Y-axis inversion | ||
Touchscreen optimised | See Xash3D. | |
Controller | ||
Controller support | Intended for single sticks like a flight stick; controllers like an Xbox 360 Controller will only use the left stick. | |
Full controller support | ||
Controller remapping | ||
Controller sensitivity | ||
Controller Y-axis inversion |
Controller types |
---|
XInput-compatible controllers |
---|
PlayStation controllers |
---|
Tracked motion controllers | Supports Razer Hydra. | |
---|---|---|
Button/gesture prompts |
Generic/other controllers | ||
---|---|---|
Button prompts |
Additional information | ||
---|---|---|
Button prompts | ||
Controller hotplugging | ||
Haptic feedback | See Xash3D. | |
Digital movement supported | ||
Simultaneous controller+KB/M |
Steam Input | ||
---|---|---|
Steam Input API support | ||
Hook input (legacy mode) | ||
Steam Controller button prompts |
Audio
Audio feature | State | Notes |
---|---|---|
Separate volume controls | ||
Surround sound | Lost with Linux update.[16] Can be restored in retail version with DirectSound 3D restoration software (Creative Alchemy or dsoal). | |
Subtitles | Use Half-Life: Subtitles mod | |
Closed captions | ||
Mute on focus lost | ||
EAX support | A3D 2.0[17][18] and EAX were supported. Both have been removed during the transition to SteamPipe.[19] See MetaAudio for Steam version. |
|
Royalty free audio | ||
Red Book CD audio | Deprecated with MP3 playback since 1.1.0.9. Current release still supports reading from CD when available. |
Localizations
Language | UI | Audio | Sub | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
English | subtitles mod | |||
Simplified Chinese | ||||
Traditional Chinese | ||||
French | ||||
German | Censored (enemy soldiers replaced with robots, gore removed). An uncut DLC was released after BPjM cleared the game, but it has since gone. Players can still play in English, edit their registry, or ask the Steam Support to remove all Low-Violence tags from their GoldSource games.[20][21] | |||
Italian | ||||
Korean | ||||
Spanish | ||||
Polish | Fan translation from subtitles mod | |||
Brazilian Portuguese | Fan translation, download. | |||
Russian | Fan translation from subtitles mod, also available an Audio Translation created from various unofficial voice-overs | |||
Turkish | Fan translation from subtitles mod | |||
Ukrainian | Fan translation by TSF, download. |
Network
- For more information, see the "Half-Life Dedicated Server" section of our GoldSrc article.
- Steam version is actively supported via Steamworks with a small but dedicated community.
Multiplayer types
Type | Native | Players | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Local play | Versus, Co-op Use Universal Split Screen |
|||
LAN play | 32 | Versus, Co-op Use Sven Co-op for co-op (see the FAQ). |
||
Online play | 32 | Versus, Co-op Use Sven Co-op for co-op (see the FAQ). |
Connection types
Type | Native | Notes |
---|---|---|
Matchmaking | ||
Peer-to-peer | ||
Dedicated | Servers are hosted using a separate "hlds.exe," which can be downloaded with SteamCMD. | |
Self-hosting | Only LAN, by default. Use sv_lan 0 in the main menu and, if you have port forwarding set up, others can connect with the connect "ip address" command. |
|
Direct IP | Open the console (~) and use connect followed by the IP and port. |
Ports
Protocol | Port(s) and/or port range(s) |
---|---|
UDP | 6003, 7002, 27010, 27015, 27025 |
- Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.
VR support
3D modes | State | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|
vorpX | G3D User created game profile, (openGL) see vorpx forum profile introduction. Note The profile also works with Half Life Opposing Force, Half Life Blueshift, Half Life Counterstrike (taken from Half Life - Generations). |
Headsets | |||
---|---|---|---|
SteamVR | See Half-Life: VR | ||
Oculus VR (LibOVR) | See Half-Life: VR. | ||
Windows Mixed Reality | See Half-Life: VR. | ||
OSVR |
Devices | |||
---|---|---|---|
Tracked motion controllers | Supports Razer Hydra. See Input for details. |
||
Traditional controller | See Input for details. | ||
Keyboard/Mouse | |||
Novint Falcon | The official game-specific 3D Touch Add On is required. |
Play area | |||
---|---|---|---|
Seated | |||
Standing | |||
Room-scale |
Issues fixed
Run the game at screen refresh rate (retail version)
- The retail version of the game defaults to 60 Hz when running with Direct3D renderer in full-screen mode.
Use the -freq <rate> command line argument[22]
|
---|
|
Input Lag in Direct3D (retail version)
- On certain graphics cards, using the D3D renderer can result in severe input lag, even with disabled VSync.
Set gl_d3dflip 1 in the console[23]
|
---|
Missing Decals in Direct3D (retail version)
Use gl_polyoffset -0.01 in the console[citation needed]
|
---|
Logo Movies At Startup Play Inconsistently (retail version)
Run with administrator privileges[24] |
---|
|
Missing Blood & Gore on Steam version
- There is an issue with the current Steam release of Half-Life, put short you can end up downloading a few of the censored content from the German version regardless of your location.
Download this file to restore the lost gore[citation needed] |
---|
Fatal Error - Available memory less than 15MB
Run the game in compatibility mode for Windows XP [citation needed]
|
---|
Windows 7/Vista Performance Fix
- In Windows 7 or Vista with modern hardware, some users may experience extremely low frame rates during gameplay.
Set HL.exe to high priority[citation needed] |
---|
|
Missing Voice and Multiplayer Tabs under Options
Replace the liblist.gam file[25] |
---|
|
No music playback in the retail version
Switch from CD playback to MP3[26] |
---|
Put the MP3 soundtrack of Half-Life Steam version (see here) into
|
Black screen on startup (Steam version)
Disable FBO rendering[27] |
---|
|
Performance issues with dynamic lights on Intel graphics (OpenGL)
- Dynamic light sources being present, such as the flashlight or flickering lights, causes significant frame rate drops and lag spikes on Intel graphics.
Use this GLIntercept config[28] |
---|
Note
|
Other information
API
Technical specs | Supported | Notes |
---|---|---|
Direct3D | 6 | Lost with Linux update.[16] |
OpenGL | 2.1 | 3DFX MiniGL included in retail version. |
Software renderer |
Middleware
Middleware | Notes | |
---|---|---|
Audio | Miles Sound System | |
Input | SDL | |
Multiplayer | World Opponent Network, Steamworks | WON for retail, Steamworks for Steam. WON has been shut down on July 31, 2004; fans have since recreated the network as WON2.[31] |
Mods
Xash3D
- Xash3D FWGS is a custom open-source Half-Life-compatible engine, made to overcome the limit of the GoldSrc engine, fixing compatibility issues for the original non-Steam versions too[32]
- It also includes quality of life options fit for modern systems, including HUD scaling.
MetaAudio
- Alternative audio pipeline for GoldSrc. Re-implements 3D audio without replacing entire rendering pipeline. Combines A3D’s HRTF and Occlusion with EAX’s reverb.[33]
- Not compatible with software renderer.[34]
- Do not use on VAC secured server.
Higher definition models
- Included in the Steam release.
- The High Definition Pack replaces most weapon and player/enemy models with higher polygon versions that resemble the PS2 models. For other options follow this guide.
- The option to enable the pack in-game is in the options menu, and the game must be restarted for it to take effect.
- The effect changes the art style dramatically, and whether or not it's desirable is up to personal preference.
Restoring Original Menu
- Half-Life's main menu was changed with the game's transition from the WON (World Opponent Network) system to Steam. This mod restores the look of the original menus and adds the PlayStation 2 version of the menu music. An alternate GameBanana download link can be found here.
- Menus are 4:3 by default and cannot be stretched to fullscreen. In-game is untouched.
Crosshair
- See Half-Life Crosshair Changer to customize the crosshairs.
HD Half-Life Crosshairs
- Upscales crosshairs to make them more visible when using Full HD or 4K resolutions.
- Optionally changes color of the crosshairs for Blue Shift to better match add-on aesthetics.
Enabling developer mode
- Enabling developer mode will allow use of in-game cheats and various console commands.
Use the developer 1 in console[citation needed]
|
---|
Notes
|
Console commands
- Games running on the GoldSrc engine can utilize GoldSrc Engine Console Commands for various tasks.
- The console is enabled by default in GoldSrc games, press ~ to open it.
System requirements
Retail ("WON") version
Windows | ||
---|---|---|
Minimum | Recommended | |
Operating system (OS) | 95, 98, NT 4.0 | 98, NT |
Processor (CPU) | Intel Pentium 133 MHz | Intel Pentium 166 MHz |
System memory (RAM) | 24 MB | 32 MB |
Hard disk drive (HDD) | 400 MB | |
Video card (GPU) | SVGA, high color (16-bit) compatible display (software mode) | OpenGL or Direct3D compatible 3D accelerator (OpenGL/Direct3D 7 mode) |
Steam version
Windows | ||
---|---|---|
Minimum | Recommended | |
Operating system (OS) | XP | |
Processor (CPU) | 500 MHz | 800 MHz |
System memory (RAM) | 96 MB | 128 MB |
Hard disk drive (HDD) | 4 GB | |
Video card (GPU) | 16 MB of VRAM | 32 MB of VRAM |
macOS (OS X) | ||
---|---|---|
Minimum | ||
Operating system (OS) | 10.6.3 | |
Processor (CPU) | Intel Core 2 Duo | |
System memory (RAM) | 1 GB | |
Hard disk drive (HDD) | 4 GB | |
Video card (GPU) | Nvidia GeForce 8xxx series ATI Radeon X1600 Intel HD Graphics 3000 |
Linux | ||
---|---|---|
Minimum | ||
Operating system (OS) | Ubuntu 12.04 | |
Processor (CPU) | 2.8 GHz Dual Core | |
System memory (RAM) | 1 GB | |
Hard disk drive (HDD) | 4 GB | |
Video card (GPU) | Nvidia GeForce 8600/9600 GT ATI/AMD Radeon HD 2600/3600 OpenGL 2.1 compatible |
|
Sound (audio device) | OpenAL compatible | |
Other | Graphic Drivers: Nvidia 310, AMD 12.11 |
Notes
- ↑ When running this game without elevated privileges (Run as administrator option), write operations against a location below
%PROGRAMFILES%
,%PROGRAMDATA%
, or%WINDIR%
might be redirected to%LOCALAPPDATA%\VirtualStore
on Windows Vista and later (more details). - ↑ SGSSAA is also technically possible, but a GPU driver bug results in affine textures becoming extremely blurry in OpenGL games such as this title, especially noticable when texture filtering is disabled.
References
- ↑ Half-Life update released
- ↑ Verified by User:Tecc on 2021-04-10
- Intro files will be skipped by using this command-line argument. (only for the retail version)
- ↑ "Half-Life%3A%20Ray%20Traced,visual%20effects%20with%20interactive%20framerates."
- ↑ Increased Fonts For HL1 addon - Half-Life - Mod DB
- ↑ Verified by User:SirYodaJedi on 2020-03-04
- Figured out more vanilla-esque settings
- ↑ https://steamcommunity.com/app/70/discussions/0/620713633859376599/ Is there anyway to change the default F.O.V.? :: Half Life General Discussions
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 How to get 144hz/fps?
- ↑ Steam Community :: Half-Life :: Events
- ↑ How to remove texture filtering in OpenGL
- ↑ VOGONS • View topic - Half-Life overbright compatibility
- ↑ gl_overbright & OpenGL · Issue #230 · ValveSoftware/halflife
- ↑ Half-Life with OpenAL (EFX, Surround Sound, and HRTF!) : HalfLife
- ↑ [citation needed]
- ↑ [citation needed]
- ↑ [citation needed]
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Steam HL1 5.1 sound - Steam discussions forums.
- ↑ Tech help: Half-Life - Vortex of Sound (retrieved)
- ↑ Half Life Aureal A3D Fix - Aureal A3D Central
- ↑ Half-Life 1 updated.
- ↑ Half-Life goes uncensored in Germany, two decades after original release - Polygon
- ↑ German version uncensored now? :: Steam Community Discussions
- ↑ Command Line Options - Valve Developer Community
- ↑ [1]
- ↑ Verified by User:Scottvordem on 2023-1-1
- Tested this several times by starting the game over and over again and the movies played every time.
- ↑ "IF you are Missing Voice and Multiplayer Tabs under Options" Steam Users' Forum Thread (retrieved)
- ↑ https://steamcommunity.com/app/70/discussions/0/527274088387899010/ Half-Life WON (CD) does not have music :: Half-Life General Discussions
- ↑ https://steamcommunity.com/app/70/discussions/0/864959809942784569/
- ↑ [citation needed]
- ↑ Verified by User:Vetle on 2016-10-22
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 Verified by User:Faalagorn on 2019-11-09
- ↑ WON2 Server Network
- ↑ https://twitter.com/JikissGamer/status/1210634519637876738
- ↑ Half-Life w/ EAX and 3D spatial sound in MetaAudio (OpenAL Soft HRTF) - YouTube
- ↑ Half-Life - 3D spatial sound comparison: Stereo, CMSS-3D, DSOAL, MetaAudio HRTF - YouTube