Shacknews Best PC Game of 2020 - Half-Life: Alyx

This year was full of some amazing PC video game releases, but there was one title that rose above the rest to achieve the title of Shacknews Best PC Game of 2020. That game is Half-Life: Alyx. Congratulations to Valve!

This isn't the first Shacknews Award to be bestowed upon this fine video game, and while some people may argue that it is a VR game, we would point out that you can only play this on PC. It remains one of the highest rated games on Steam for the year 2020, and it captured the hearts and minds of many Shackers as well as our staff. Half-Life: Alyx is the combination of amazing storytelling with innovative, breakthrough gameplay. The result is the best VR experience ever created, but the game also lays the groundwork for the entire video game industry going forward. There are best practices implemented in the game that can extend beyond virtual reality to flatscreen video game experiences. The attention to detail in the environmental design of Half-Life: Alyx was unparalleled this year, as players were able to interact with damn near everything in the game. The amount of time dedicated to making a random hallway look amazing did not go unnoticed here at Shacknews. 

This was another banner year for video games released on PC, and while not everyone could experience Half-Life: Alyx due to it being a VR game, it does not take away from Valve's amazing achievement of shipping a new game in the franchise. If you haven't had a chance to play Half-Life: Alyx, you missed out on one of the most important PC games to be released in many years, not just 2020. We hope that more players will be able to experience this game over time as VR HMD adoption grows. Beat Saber might be VR's Tetris, and Half-Life: Alyx appears to be a system seller on par with The Legend of Zelda on the NES. 

Half-Life: Alyx will push game development forward on PC with its innovative combination of best practices, storytelling, and puzzle gameplay, while also driving VR adoption. It is undoubtedly the most important game to be released on PC this year, and we are proud to proclaim it the Shacknews Best PC Game of 2020.

Check out the other winners from The Shacknews Awards 2020 in our Year of the Games: 2020 article.

Asif Khan

CEO/EIC/EIEIO

Asif Khan is the CEO, EIC, and majority shareholder of Shacknews. He began his career in video game journalism as a freelancer in 2001 for Tendobox.com. Asif is a CPA and was formerly an investment adviser representative. After much success in his own personal investments, he retired from his day job in financial services and is currently focused on new private investments. His favorite PC game of all time is Duke Nukem 3D, and he is an unapologetic fan of most things Nintendo. Asif first frequented the Shack when it was sCary's Shugashack to find all things Quake. When he is not immersed in investments or gaming he is a purveyor of fine electronic music. Asif also has an irrational love of Cleveland sports.