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.
General information
- GitHub Issue Tracker for Half-Life 2: Episode Two and other Source-based games
- Steam Community Discussions
Availability[edit]
| Source |
DRM |
Notes |
Keys |
OS |
| Retail |
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| Steam |
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DRM-free when launched directly from the executable with -game ep2 command line argument.[citation needed] |
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- All versions require Steam DRM.
- Soundtrack is available for free with purchase here.
Essential improvements[edit]
Peixoto's patch[edit]
Peixoto's patch forced resolution allows in high resolution without shrinking the HUD\menus. Super sampling anti-aliasing is also possible
Low draw distance[edit]
- Default draw distance is too low resulting in noticeable pop-ins of vegetation during the driving sections.
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Use console commands[1]
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- Download hiquality.cfg and put it in
<path-to-game>\ep2\cfg
- Enable console commands, open console using ~ button and type in
bind "F11" "exec hiquality" and press ↵ Enter
- When a new map loads, press F11 to switch to high quality configuration.
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Skip intro videos[edit]
- Textures for all NPCs, some weapons, some items, some crates, and some vehicles, upscaled with Topaz A.I. Gigapixel.
- Upscaled textures are faithful to the original textures.
- Large download at over 8.5 GB, including patches. Around 20.1 GB once extracted.
Game data[edit]
Configuration file(s) location[edit]
| System |
Location |
| Steam |
<Steam-folder>/SteamApps/common/Half-Life 2/ep2/cfg/ |
- This game does not follow the XDG Base Directory Specification on Linux.
Save game data location[edit]
| System |
Location |
| Steam |
<Steam-folder>/SteamApps/common/Half-Life 2/ep2/save/ |
| System |
Native |
Notes |
| Steam Cloud |
|
Approx. 100 MB available.
Syncs save games and settings. |
In-game general video settings.
In-game advanced video settings.
- HBAO available with flag
0x0000002C.
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-window -noborder[2]
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- Find Half-Life 2: Episode Two in your Steam Library
- Right-click the game name
- Select
Properties
- Select
Set Launch Options...
- Input
-window -noborder
- Press
OK
- Launch the game
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In-game key map settings.
In-game mouse/gamepad settings.
| Audio feature |
State |
Notes |
| Separate volume controls |
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Over-all game volume and separate music slider. |
| Surround sound |
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7.1, 5.1 surround sound, 4 speaker surround.[5] 7.1 output may require DirectSound3D restoration software. |
| Subtitles |
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| Closed captions |
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| Mute on focus lost |
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"Silence the audio while the game window is in the background" check box. |
| EAX support |
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Set snd_legacy_surround 1 in console, 4 speakers in options, and use DSOAL for binaural HRTF mixing. |
Localizations
| Language |
UI |
Audio |
Sub |
Notes |
| English |
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| Simplified Chinese |
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| Traditional Chinese |
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| Czech |
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| Danish |
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| Dutch |
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| Finnish |
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| French |
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| German |
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| Italian |
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| Japanese |
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| Korean |
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| Norwegian |
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| Polish |
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| Portuguese |
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| Russian |
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After the "SteamPipe" update, errors appeared in the localization, such as the effect of broken phrases. Therefore, it is recommended to download the patch, made by guys from the "hl-inside" forum. |
| Spanish |
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| Swedish |
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Network[edit]
Multiplayer types
Connection types
VR support[edit]
- By default VR mode will run full screen, to switch back to a borderless windowed set the
vr_force_windowed convar.
Issues fixed[edit]
Purple and black broken textures[edit]
- A generic fix for this issue can be found on our Source engine page.
Pickup Icons cut off at the bottom[edit]
- Misaligned HUD causing pickup icons to appear cut at the bottom in certain resolutions.
Other information[edit]
| Technical specs |
Supported |
Notes |
| Direct3D |
6, 7, 8, 8.1, 9 |
|
| OpenGL |
2.1 |
OS X and Linux only. |
| Shader Model support |
2, 3 |
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| Executable |
32-bit |
64-bit |
Notes |
| Windows |
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| macOS (OS X) |
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[citation needed] |
| Linux |
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[citation needed] |
Middleware[edit]
|
Middleware |
Notes |
| Physics |
Havok |
Heavily modified variant. |
| Audio |
Miles Sound System |
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| Cutscenes |
Bink Video |
Used for startup videos and in-game movies. |
Console commands[edit]
- Games running on the Source engine can utilize Source Engine Console Commands for various tasks.
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Enabling the console in Source games[2]
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- Launch the game
- From the main menu select
Options
- Select the
Keyboard tab
- Click the
Advanced button
- Check the box next to
Enable developer console (~)
- Click Apply
Notes
- Press ~ to open the console.
- Some commands may first require you enabling sv_cheats. You can do so with
sv_cheats 1.
- Users without a US keyboard could experience some problems.
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Launch options[edit]
- View this Steam Support Article regarding launch options as well as the relevant Valve Developer wiki page for further information and a list of useful Source engine launch options.
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Enabling a launch parameter[2]
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- Find the game in your Steam Library
- Right-click the game name
- Select
Properties
- Select
Set Launch Options...
- Input your selected launch options and separate each command with a space
- Press
OK
- Launch the game
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- For popular mods, see Mod DB's "Half-Life 2: Episode Two Mods" section.
Research and Development[edit]
- Research and Development is a Source Mod that requires Episode Two, download it from Mod DB.
System requirements[edit]
| Windows |
|
Minimum |
Recommended |
| Operating system (OS) |
XP, Vista, 7 | |
| Processor (CPU) |
1.7 GHz
| Intel Pentium 4 3.0 GHz |
| System memory (RAM) |
512 MB |
1 GB |
| Hard disk drive (HDD) |
4.6 GB | |
| Video card (GPU) |
Nvidia GeForce FX 5700
ATI Radeon 9500
128 MB of VRAM
| Nvidia GeForce 6800
ATI Radeon X800 |
- Windows 2000 was previously supported, but as future updates for this game and Steam occurred; the support was dropped, even with retail copies.
- Must be run without Steam to play on XP and Vista.
| macOS (OS X) |
|
Minimum |
| Operating system (OS) |
10.5.8, 10.6.3 |
| Processor (CPU) |
1.7 GHz |
| System memory (RAM) |
1 GB |
| Hard disk drive (HDD) |
4.6 GB |
| Video card (GPU) |
Nvidia GeForce 8
ATI Radeon X1600
Intel HD 3000 |
References
