Original Half-Life 2 vs. RTX: A Comparison

Digital Foundry's YouTube channel has released an extensive hour-long video that dives into a detailed comparison between the iconic Half-Life 2 from 2004 and the upcoming Half-Life 2 RTX remaster, developed using NVIDIA’s advanced tools. The project, spearheaded by Orbifold Studios, a group of seasoned modders, aims to deliver significant visual enhancements. These include upgraded lighting, new assets, cutting-edge ray tracing, and the integration of DLSS 4 technology. Excitingly, this remaster will be available for free to anyone who already owns the original Half-Life 2 on Steam, although the exact release date is yet to be announced.

Starting March 18, gamers can get a taste of the remaster through a free demo, which will feature two of the game's most memorable settings: the eerie, abandoned city of Ravenholm and the formidable Nova Prospekt prison. A recently released trailer gave fans a glimpse of the remaster's impressive ray tracing and DLSS 4 capabilities, promising a significant boost in FPS performance.

The video from Digital Foundry stretches to a record-breaking 75 minutes, where experts thoroughly analyze gameplay footage from both Ravenholm and Nova Prospekt. They provide side-by-side comparisons of the remastered visuals against the original, showcasing the dramatic improvements achieved by Orbifold Studios.

Orbifold Studios is putting in the work to enhance Half-Life 2 RTX with high-resolution textures, advanced lighting, ray tracing, and DLSS 4. While Digital Foundry's experts were impressed with the overall transformation, they did mention occasional frame rate drops in some areas. Nevertheless, the remaster breathes new life into this legendary game, making it a highly anticipated release for fans and newcomers alike.