Half-Life: Walkthrough & Survival Guide

A chapter-by-chapter guide to Valve's 1998 original: weapons, the harder boss fights, movement tricks, and how to get the best version running today after the 25th Anniversary Update.

Researched September 2026 — current as of the Steam build with the 25th Anniversary Update (November 2023) and its follow-up patches (latest October 2, 2024). Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

Quick Start

• Save often. Quick save is F6 and quick load is F9. Half-Life has instant deaths (falls, crushers, snipers) and autosaves can put you in bad spots.
• Play the Hazard Course from the main menu if you're new. It teaches the ladder, jump, crouch, and swimming controls the game assumes you know.
• Use the chargers. Wall-mounted health chargers restore health and HEV chargers restore suit armor. Hold Use on them.
• Armor absorbs most damage. Keep your HEV suit charged. Armor matters as much as health.
• Crouch-jump (jump, then crouch in mid-air) to reach higher ledges and vents.
• Don't fight everything. Marines (HECU grunts) flank and throw grenades. Retreat around corners and let them come to you.
• The crowbar breaks crates and vents. Supply crates often hold ammo and batteries.
• Flashlight is F. Keep it on in dark areas, since it drains and recharges.

Controls (PC default)

Action | Key

Move | WASD

Jump / crouch | Space / Ctrl

Use (buttons, chargers, scientists and guards) | E

Flashlight | F

Primary / secondary fire | Left / right mouse

Reload | R

Quick save / quick load | F6 / F9

Long jump (after getting the module) | Crouch + jump while moving

Anniversary Update settings worth turning on: Allow widescreen Field of View (fixes the FOV on modern monitors), Enable texture filtering (smooth or crisp textures, your choice), and Lower Input Latency (syncs CPU and GPU to cut input-to-display delay). HUD scaling now works at high resolutions. Controllers are supported in the menus.

Weapons

Weapon | Primary / secondary | When to use

Crowbar | Melee | Crates, vents, headcrabs. Saves ammo.

9mm Pistol | Semi / fast fire | Early game and long-range taps.

.357 Magnum | Heavy revolver | One-shots grunts to the head. Save it for marines.

Submachine Gun (MP5) | Auto / grenade launcher | Main workhorse. The grenade launcher clears groups and turrets.

Shotgun | Single / double blast | Close range, and very strong against marines.

Crossbow | Bolt / zoom | Silent sniper. Kills underwater enemies.

RPG | Laser-guided rocket | Helicopters (Apaches), tanks, Gargantua support.

Tau Cannon | Shot / charged blast | The charged shot goes through thin walls. Charging while looking down launches you ("Gauss jump").

Gluon Gun | Continuous beam | Top damage. Eats uranium ammo fast. Obtained in Lambda Core.

Hivehand | Homing hornets / rapid | Infinite regenerating ammo. Good backup.

Hand Grenade | Throw | Flushes marines out of cover.

Satchel Charge | Throw, then detonate | Remote traps.

Laser Trip Mine | Wall-mounted | Ambushes and defending chokepoints.

Snarks | Throw | Chaotic little biters. Throw them at groups.

Chapter Walkthrough Outline

# | Chapter | Key notes

1 | Black Mesa Inbound | The tram-ride intro. No combat.

2 | Anomalous Materials | Put on the HEV suit (Gordon's locker area) and start the experiment. It goes wrong.

3 | Unforeseen Consequences | Crowbar, headcrabs, zombies. Find the pistol and head for the surface.

4 | Office Complex | Zombies, vents, and houndeyes. Watch for electrified water.

5 | "We've Got Hostiles" | The HECU marines arrive. Tripmine hallways. Use the shotgun and MP5 grenades.

6 | Blast Pit | The tentacle boss. It hunts by sound, so move quietly (walk or crouch) and throw grenades to distract it. Turn on oxygen, fuel, and power, then fire the rocket test engine to burn it.

7 | Power Up | A Gargantua you can't kill with bullets. Restore the generator, then lure it onto the electrified area.

8 | On A Rail | A long tram-rail network. Clear marines, flip track switches, and launch the satellite rocket.

9 | Apprehension | Captured by marines. Watch out for the ichthyosaur in the water. Use the crossbow underwater.

10 | Residue Processing | Waste-processing platforming with conveyors and crushers. Save before every jump.

11 | Questionable Ethics | Labs full of alien specimens and marines. Get the Tau Cannon. Scientists open doors.

12 | Surface Tension | The longest chapter: outdoor fights, an Apache helicopter, tanks, and a Gargantua you take out with an airstrike. Snipers and minefields. Watch where you step.

13 | "Forget About Freeman!" | Marines vs aliens. Let them fight each other.

14 | Lambda Core | Teleporter puzzles and reactor coolant. You get the Gluon Gun and the Long Jump Module.

15 | Xen | Floating islands and low gravity. Master the long jump here.

16 | Gonarch's Lair | The Gonarch (the giant headcrab mother). Stay mobile, use explosives and the Gluon Gun, and follow it down through the arena as it retreats.

17 | Interloper | Alien slave colonies and Controllers. Conserve ammo.

18 | Nihilanth | The final boss (see below).

19 | Endgame | The G-Man's offer.

Nihilanth strategy

• Destroy the three healing crystals around the arena first. Until they're gone, the Nihilanth regenerates.
• Use the jump pads to reach higher levels. Watch out for its teleport orbs, since getting hit can send you to a side area you have to fight back out of.
• When its head opens, shoot inside it. The Gluon Gun, RPG, or Tau Cannon charged shots work best.
• Keep moving. Standing still gets you hit by its energy balls.

Movement Tricks

• Crouch-jump: Jump, then hold crouch in mid-air to reach higher ledges and vents.
• Long jump: With the module (Lambda Core onward), crouch and jump in quick succession while moving forward.
• Ladders: Look up or down while you hold forward. Press jump to let go.
• Gauss (Tau) jump: Charge the Tau Cannon's secondary fire, look straight down, and release to launch upward. Speedrunners use it everywhere.
• Bunny-hopping: Speedrunners chain jumps for speed. How well it works depends on the build and settings, so treat it as an advanced trick rather than something you need.

Enemies Quick Reference

Enemy | Threat & counter

Headcrab | Leaps at your face. Crowbar or pistol.

Zombie | Slow melee. Shotgun or crowbar.

Houndeye | Sonic blast in packs. Kill them before they charge.

Bullsquid | Spits acid. Keep your distance and use the MP5.

Vortigaunt (Alien Slave) | Charged electric bolt. Strafe and shoot during the charge-up.

Alien Grunt | Tanky, fires hornets. Magnum or shotgun.

HECU Marine | Flanks and throws grenades. Hold corners and use the shotgun.

Black Ops assassins | Fast, jumping female assassins. Shotgun at close range.

Controller | Floating psychic enemies in Xen. Use the MP5 or Hivehand.

Gargantua | Near-immune to small arms. Use the environment or heavy explosives.

Running Half-Life Today

• The 25th Anniversary Update (November 2023) added Half-Life: Uplink (the original standalone demo), four new multiplayer maps (contamination, pool_party, disposal, rocket_frenzy), three restored maps (doublecross, rust_mill, xen_dm), Steam Networking for easy invites, Steam Deck verification with the native Linux runtime, widescreen FOV, texture filtering, and a reskinned menu. Most original GoldSrc mods work again.
• Mods not launching? Valve's own advice after the update: if a GoldSrc mod has compatibility problems, switch Half-Life to the steam_legacy beta branch (Steam > Half-Life > Properties > Betas) and switch back afterwards.
• October 2, 2024 patch: fixed HLTV crashes, a memory leak from repeatedly changing brightness/gamma, and enabled large-address-aware memory for heavy mods.
• Difficulty: Easy, Medium, and Hard are chosen when you start a New Game. Medium is the intended first-run experience; Hard makes marines far deadlier.
• Expansions: Opposing Force (Adrian Shephard) and Blue Shift (Barney Calhoun) are separate purchases on Steam.
• Remake: Black Mesa is a full fan-made remake in the Source engine, sold separately on Steam. It's a great second playthrough.
• Achievements: The original Half-Life has none on Steam. Don't hunt for them.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Relying on autosaves. Quick save before every hazard.
• Charging into marines. They flank. Let them come around corners into your shotgun.
• Wasting Magnum and RPG ammo on weak enemies. Save them for marines, Apaches, and Gargantuas.
• Leaving the default FOV on a widescreen monitor. Turn on widescreen FOV.
• Rushing Residue Processing and Xen jumps. Crouch-jump or long jump, and save before every leap.

Advanced Tips

• Let enemies fight each other. In "Forget About Freeman!" and elsewhere, marines and aliens are hostile to each other.
• Throw grenades around corners to flush out entrenched marines.
• Use the MP5 grenade launcher on turrets and marine groups.
• Gauss-jump shortcuts skip whole sections in Surface Tension and Xen.
• Crossbow underwater is the best answer to ichthyosaurs.

FAQ

How long is Half-Life? About 12 hours on a first playthrough.

What's new in the 25th Anniversary Update? Uplink, new and restored multiplayer maps, Steam Networking, widescreen FOV, texture filtering, UI scaling, and Steam Deck support.

Should I play Half-Life or Black Mesa? Play the original for the authentic experience and Black Mesa for a modern remake with a reworked Xen. Both are good.

How do I long jump? Get the Long Jump Module in Lambda Core, then crouch and jump quickly while moving forward.

How do I beat the Nihilanth? Destroy its three healing crystals, then shoot into its head when it opens.

Where is Half-Life: Uplink? It's built into Half-Life since the 25th Anniversary Update. Start it from the New Game menu.

My old mod stopped working after the update. What do I do? Most GoldSrc mods were fixed by late November 2023. If one still fails, select the steam_legacy beta in Half-Life's Steam properties.

Does Half-Life have Steam achievements? No, the original Half-Life has none.

Sources

• Half-Life on Steam
• Half-Life official announcements, including the 25th Anniversary Update (Steam News API)
• Combine OverWiki: Half-Life
• Combine OverWiki: Long Jump Module