Last Updated on August 23, 2023
You have never seen City 17 looking as good as it does in the Half-Life 2 ray-traced environment of NVIDIA RTX!
A whole new look for Half-Life 2 is in development thanks to the game’s passionate community and the NVIDIA RTX Remix modding platform. A free modding platform that allows you to create and share mods for classic games, NVIDIA RTX Remix offers with enhanced materials, full ray tracing, NVIDIA DLSS, NVIDIA RTX IO, and NVIDIA Reflex.
The platform is built on NVIDIA Omniverse, a real-time collaboration and simulation platform. This allows modders to work together on mods in real time, and to access a wide range of assets and tools.
NVIDIA RTX Remix has already been used to create a mod for Portal, Portal with RTX. Meanwhile, the Half-Life 2 mod, called Half-Life 2 RTX: An RTX Remix Project, is being developed by four of Half-Life 2‘s top mod teams.
Half-Life 2 was released in 2004 with some amazing graphics. While a little flat in places, the Source Engine was then the perfect tool to present realistic lighting, textures, and of course, physics. And while Half-Life 2 remains utterly playable, times have changed, which is why a ray-tracing mod is such an attractive prospect.
Here are some specific examples of the improvements that RTX Remix can bring to classic games:
- Enhanced materials: RTX Remix allows modders to create materials with PBR properties, which means that they will look more realistic and reflective.
- Full ray tracing: RTX Remix can be used to add full ray tracing to classic games. This can make the games look even more realistic, with accurate reflections, shadows, and ambient occlusion.
- NVIDIA DLSS: NVIDIA DLSS is a technology that can improve the performance of ray tracing games. This means that you can play RTX Remix mods at higher resolutions and frame rates.
- NVIDIA RTX IO: NVIDIA RTX IO is a technology that can reduce the loading times of RTX Remix mods. This means that you can get into the game faster.
- NVIDIA Reflex: NVIDIA Reflex is a technology that can reduce the input latency of RTX Remix mods. This means that you can react to enemies and objects more quickly.
The mods created with RTX Remix are truly impressive. The enhanced materials make the games look more realistic, and the ray tracing adds a new level of detail and immersion. DLSS improves performance, RTX IO reduces loading times, and Reflex reduces input latency.
At this time, there is no confirmation as to when this ray-traced Half-Life 2 mod will be available. But it’s a great way to celebrate the game’s 20th anniversary, which comes around in November 2024.
If you’re interested in learning more about RTX Remix, you can visit the NVIDIA website where you’ll find some amazing comparisons between the orignal and ray-traced versions.
