How to Play Half Life Alyx on Meta Quest?

How to Play Half Life Alyx on Meta Quest? Half Life Alyx, one of the most immersive VR games to date, has captured the attention of gamers worldwide. However, if you own a Meta Quest 2 (formerly Oculus Quest 2) and want to experience this masterpiece, you’ll need a little guidance. In this tutorial, we’ll provide a detailed step-by-step guide on how to play Half Life Alyx on your Meta Quest 2, and we’ll also compare two methods for connecting it to your PC: Oculus Air Link and Virtual Desktop.

Table of Contents

How to Play Half Life Alyx on Meta Quest?

Step 1: Ensure You Have a VR Ready PC

Before embarking on your Half Life Alyx journey, you must verify that your PC is VR-ready. If you haven’t already, download Steam and create an account. From the Steam store, locate and install SteamVR Performance Test. This tool will evaluate your PC’s ability to handle VR.

For reference, we used an MSI Alpha 15 laptop, featuring an AMD Ryzen 7, 16GB of DDR4 RAM, and a Radeon RX5500M graphics card with 4GB of video GDDR6 memory. Despite not being top-of-the-line, it handled Half Life Alyx well.

Step 2: Choose Between Wired and Wireless Play

The next decision you’ll need to make is whether you want to play with a wired or wireless setup. While we’ll explain both options, a wireless connection offers a more immersive experience, though it does come with a $20 cost for Virtual Desktop Streamer.

For a wired connection, you can purchase the Oculus Link Cable for $79, a 16-foot cable. Keep in mind that only specific high-speed USB-C cables are compatible. To save some money, consult a list of supported cables on Reddit. We used the 10ft Anker USB C Cable, priced at $22 on Amazon, along with an Angle Adapter for $9.

If you find the 10ft cable too short, consider acquiring an extension cord.

To test your USB-C cable’s compatibility, access the Oculus client on your computer, navigate to Devices, add your headset, and click on the Quest. You can then proceed to the USB Test, which will determine whether your cable is suitable or if you need to purchase a new one from Amazon.

Step 3: Download the Required Software

Regardless of whether you want to play Half Life Alyx or other SteamVR games on your Meta Quest 2, you’ll need to install specific software on your PC:

SteamVR
Oculus PC Client
Virtual Desktop PC Streamer ($20, for wireless play)

Once you have a compatible cable, plug it in, and you’ll receive a prompt on your Quest to enable Oculus Link. Ensure you have Steam VR installed in your apps, launch it, and you’re ready to go!

Conclusion

Now that you’ve successfully set up Half Life Alyx on your Meta Quest 2, you can dive into this thrilling VR adventure without breaking the bank. Enjoy your immersive gaming experience!