The Game Census
Half-Life 2 cover art

Half-Life 2

Valve · 2004-11-16

Steam

Action

Franchise: Half-Life · Modes: Single player

Releases: May 12, 2014 (Android), Oct 10, 2007 (Xbox 360), Dec 14, 2007 (PlayStation 3), Nov 16, 2004 (PC (Microsoft Windows)), May 09, 2013 (Linux), May 26, 2010 (Mac)

Reawakened from stasis in the occupied metropolis of City 17, Gordon Freeman is joined by Alyx Vance as he leads a desperate human resistance. Experience the landmark first-person shooter packed with immersive world-building, boundary-pushing physics, and exhilarating combat.

1,353
playing now
98%
positive of 279k reviews
Overwhelmingly Positive
steam rating
10,000,000–20,000,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
29
twitch viewers (latest)
79/100
critic score (7 outlets, IGDB)
90/100
IGDB user rating (3428 ratings)
14h
to beat · rushed 8.8h · completionist 20h
platinum
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
$9.99
steam price (US)

1,353 players in-game as of 2026-08-30 00:00 UTC (census sample)

Half-Life 2 is a 2004 first-person shooter (FPS) game developed and published by Valve Corporation. It was published for Windows on Valve's digital distribution service, Steam. Like the original Half-Life (1998), Half-Life 2 is played from a first-person perspective, combining combat, puzzles, and storytelling. It adds features such as vehicles and physics-based gameplay. The player controls Gordon Freeman, who joins a resistance effort to liberate Earth from the alien Combine empire.

Trailer

Half-Life 2 trailer thumbnail

Half-Life 2 Trailer - May 2004

≈1,000,000 YouTube results for this game's trailer search

Health check

Healthy
  • · 1,353 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 15,861 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~1,983/week).
  • · Review velocity up 19% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Top 1% of 10,710 Action games in the census by review count.

Health tier since 2026-08-29

Estimated sales: 11M–22M copies

Review-multiple estimate from 278,536 total reviews — how this is computed.

All-time low: $0.99 at Steam (2017-06-23)via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $9.99 · on sale 5 of 10 observed days (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
9.5k9.5k20182026Week of 2018-01-01: 1,217 positiveWeek of 2018-01-01: 54 negativeWeek of 2018-02-01: 794 positiveWeek of 2018-02-01: 30 negativeWeek of 2018-03-01: 676 positiveWeek of 2018-03-01: 24 negativeWeek of 2018-04-01: 495 positiveWeek of 2018-04-01: 25 negativeWeek of 2018-05-01: 489 positiveWeek of 2018-05-01: 20 negativeWeek of 2018-06-01: 685 positiveWeek of 2018-06-01: 37 negativeWeek of 2018-07-01: 860 positiveWeek of 2018-07-01: 45 negativeWeek of 2018-08-01: 476 positiveWeek of 2018-08-01: 19 negativeWeek of 2018-09-01: 366 positiveWeek of 2018-09-01: 16 negativeWeek of 2018-10-01: 329 positiveWeek of 2018-10-01: 13 negativeWeek of 2018-11-01: 2,021 positiveWeek of 2018-11-01: 35 negativeWeek of 2018-12-01: 696 positiveWeek of 2018-12-01: 24 negativeWeek of 2019-01-01: 697 positiveWeek of 2019-01-01: 26 negativeWeek of 2019-02-01: 557 positiveWeek of 2019-02-01: 21 negativeWeek of 2019-03-01: 446 positiveWeek of 2019-03-01: 17 negativeWeek of 2019-04-01: 341 positiveWeek of 2019-04-01: 14 negativeWeek of 2019-05-01: 395 positiveWeek of 2019-05-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2019-06-01: 1,896 positiveWeek of 2019-06-01: 30 negativeWeek of 2019-07-01: 2,179 positiveWeek of 2019-07-01: 46 negativeWeek of 2019-08-01: 399 positiveWeek of 2019-08-01: 21 negativeWeek of 2019-09-01: 362 positiveWeek of 2019-09-01: 17 negativeWeek of 2019-10-01: 549 positiveWeek of 2019-10-01: 11 negativeWeek of 2019-11-01: 3,398 positiveWeek of 2019-11-01: 38 negativeWeek of 2019-12-01: 3,104 positiveWeek of 2019-12-01: 42 negativeWeek of 2020-01-01: 2,283 positiveWeek of 2020-01-01: 41 negativeWeek of 2020-02-01: 1,192 positiveWeek of 2020-02-01: 32 negativeWeek of 2020-03-01: 2,186 positiveWeek of 2020-03-01: 41 negativeWeek of 2020-04-01: 2,750 positiveWeek of 2020-04-01: 45 negativeWeek of 2020-05-01: 1,565 positiveWeek of 2020-05-01: 33 negativeWeek of 2020-06-01: 1,612 positiveWeek of 2020-06-01: 35 negativeWeek of 2020-07-01: 2,466 positiveWeek of 2020-07-01: 42 negativeWeek of 2020-08-01: 1,334 positiveWeek of 2020-08-01: 27 negativeWeek of 2020-09-01: 1,045 positiveWeek of 2020-09-01: 30 negativeWeek of 2020-10-01: 1,146 positiveWeek of 2020-10-01: 28 negativeWeek of 2020-11-01: 2,652 positiveWeek of 2020-11-01: 33 negativeWeek of 2020-12-01: 2,480 positiveWeek of 2020-12-01: 60 negativeWeek of 2021-01-01: 2,551 positiveWeek of 2021-01-01: 64 negativeWeek of 2021-02-01: 1,618 positiveWeek of 2021-02-01: 36 negativeWeek of 2021-03-01: 1,560 positiveWeek of 2021-03-01: 30 negativeWeek of 2021-04-01: 1,400 positiveWeek of 2021-04-01: 39 negativeWeek of 2021-05-01: 1,390 positiveWeek of 2021-05-01: 38 negativeWeek of 2021-06-01: 1,642 positiveWeek of 2021-06-01: 39 negativeWeek of 2021-07-01: 2,507 positiveWeek of 2021-07-01: 75 negativeWeek of 2021-08-01: 1,860 positiveWeek of 2021-08-01: 43 negativeWeek of 2021-09-01: 1,169 positiveWeek of 2021-09-01: 31 negativeWeek of 2021-10-01: 1,175 positiveWeek of 2021-10-01: 34 negativeWeek of 2021-11-01: 2,047 positiveWeek of 2021-11-01: 41 negativeWeek of 2021-12-01: 2,134 positiveWeek of 2021-12-01: 47 negativeWeek of 2022-01-01: 2,321 positiveWeek of 2022-01-01: 52 negativeWeek of 2022-02-01: 1,863 positiveWeek of 2022-02-01: 40 negativeWeek of 2022-03-01: 1,417 positiveWeek of 2022-03-01: 41 negativeWeek of 2022-04-01: 1,200 positiveWeek of 2022-04-01: 27 negativeWeek of 2022-05-01: 1,059 positiveWeek of 2022-05-01: 26 negativeWeek of 2022-06-01: 1,368 positiveWeek of 2022-06-01: 41 negativeWeek of 2022-07-01: 2,154 positiveWeek of 2022-07-01: 44 negativeWeek of 2022-08-01: 1,543 positiveWeek of 2022-08-01: 51 negativeWeek of 2022-09-01: 1,152 positiveWeek of 2022-09-01: 30 negativeWeek of 2022-10-01: 1,129 positiveWeek of 2022-10-01: 28 negativeWeek of 2022-11-01: 2,475 positiveWeek of 2022-11-01: 40 negativeWeek of 2022-12-01: 2,752 positiveWeek of 2022-12-01: 63 negativeWeek of 2023-01-01: 2,754 positiveWeek of 2023-01-01: 66 negativeWeek of 2023-02-01: 1,495 positiveWeek of 2023-02-01: 46 negativeWeek of 2023-03-01: 2,194 positiveWeek of 2023-03-01: 53 negativeWeek of 2023-04-01: 1,687 positiveWeek of 2023-04-01: 39 negativeWeek of 2023-05-01: 1,311 positiveWeek of 2023-05-01: 52 negativeWeek of 2023-06-01: 1,393 positiveWeek of 2023-06-01: 45 negativeWeek of 2023-07-01: 3,160 positiveWeek of 2023-07-01: 70 negativeWeek of 2023-08-01: 1,770 positiveWeek of 2023-08-01: 39 negativeWeek of 2023-09-01: 2,492 positiveWeek of 2023-09-01: 59 negativeWeek of 2023-10-01: 1,703 positiveWeek of 2023-10-01: 55 negativeWeek of 2023-11-01: 4,032 positiveWeek of 2023-11-01: 91 negativeWeek of 2023-12-01: 3,333 positiveWeek of 2023-12-01: 79 negativeWeek of 2024-01-01: 2,942 positiveWeek of 2024-01-01: 78 negativeWeek of 2024-02-01: 1,725 positiveWeek of 2024-02-01: 41 negativeWeek of 2024-03-01: 2,587 positiveWeek of 2024-03-01: 56 negativeWeek of 2024-04-01: 1,836 positiveWeek of 2024-04-01: 50 negativeWeek of 2024-05-01: 1,473 positiveWeek of 2024-05-01: 50 negativeWeek of 2024-06-01: 1,872 positiveWeek of 2024-06-01: 110 negativeWeek of 2024-07-01: 2,937 positiveWeek of 2024-07-01: 78 negativeWeek of 2024-08-01: 2,100 positiveWeek of 2024-08-01: 65 negativeWeek of 2024-09-01: 1,332 positiveWeek of 2024-09-01: 42 negativeWeek of 2024-10-01: 1,268 positiveWeek of 2024-10-01: 39 negativeWeek of 2024-11-01: 9,544 positiveWeek of 2024-11-01: 255 negativeWeek of 2024-12-01: 4,024 positiveWeek of 2024-12-01: 104 negativeWeek of 2025-01-01: 2,542 positiveWeek of 2025-01-01: 60 negativeWeek of 2025-02-01: 1,633 positiveWeek of 2025-02-01: 60 negativeWeek of 2025-03-01: 1,979 positiveWeek of 2025-03-01: 52 negativeWeek of 2025-04-01: 1,396 positiveWeek of 2025-04-01: 44 negativeWeek of 2025-05-01: 1,454 positiveWeek of 2025-05-01: 51 negativeWeek of 2025-06-01: 1,591 positiveWeek of 2025-06-01: 52 negativeWeek of 2025-07-01: 1,999 positiveWeek of 2025-07-01: 48 negativeWeek of 2025-08-01: 1,466 positiveWeek of 2025-08-01: 52 negativeWeek of 2025-09-01: 1,124 positiveWeek of 2025-09-01: 37 negativeWeek of 2025-10-01: 1,535 positiveWeek of 2025-10-01: 46 negativeWeek of 2025-11-01: 2,393 positiveWeek of 2025-11-01: 70 negativeWeek of 2025-12-01: 2,581 positiveWeek of 2025-12-01: 86 negativeWeek of 2026-01-01: 2,560 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 58 negativeWeek of 2026-02-01: 1,646 positiveWeek of 2026-02-01: 53 negativeWeek of 2026-03-01: 1,837 positiveWeek of 2026-03-01: 49 negativeWeek of 2026-04-01: 1,668 positiveWeek of 2026-04-01: 48 negativeWeek of 2026-05-01: 1,481 positiveWeek of 2026-05-01: 46 negativeWeek of 2026-06-01: 1,468 positiveWeek of 2026-06-01: 51 negativeWeek of 2026-07-01: 2,164 positiveWeek of 2026-07-01: 65 negativeWeek of 2026-08-01: 1,372 positiveWeek of 2026-08-01: 49 negative
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

2.2k8352026-08-06 21:00 — 1,700 players2026-08-07 05:00 — 990 players2026-08-07 13:00 — 1,635 players2026-08-07 21:00 — 1,802 players2026-08-08 05:00 — 1,045 players2026-08-08 13:00 — 1,691 players2026-08-08 21:00 — 1,881 players2026-08-09 05:00 — 1,114 players2026-08-09 13:00 — 1,865 players2026-08-09 21:00 — 1,995 players2026-08-10 05:00 — 929 players2026-08-10 13:00 — 1,678 players2026-08-10 21:00 — 1,697 players2026-08-11 05:00 — 870 players2026-08-11 13:00 — 1,558 players2026-08-12 21:00 — 1,568 players2026-08-14 04:00 — 918 players2026-08-15 12:00 — 1,626 players2026-08-16 20:00 — 2,178 players2026-08-18 03:00 — 992 players2026-08-19 11:00 — 1,424 players2026-08-20 18:00 — 1,870 players2026-08-22 02:00 — 1,170 players2026-08-23 09:00 — 1,481 players2026-08-24 17:00 — 2,021 players2026-08-26 01:00 — 1,147 players2026-08-27 09:00 — 1,276 players2026-08-28 17:00 — 1,897 players2026-08-30 00:00 — 1,353 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).

Price history

$9.99$0.002015-01-012026-07-092015-01-01 — best price $4.992015-06-01 — best price $4.992015-06-11 — best price $2.492015-07-12 — best price $9.992015-08-31 — best price $4.992015-11-16 — best price $9.992015-11-29 — best price $9.992016-01-04 — best price $9.992016-03-22 — best price $3.392016-04-01 — best price $9.992016-07-28 — best price $2.292016-10-23 — best price $9.992016-12-22 — best price $1.992017-07-05 — best price $9.992017-12-21 — best price $0.992018-02-19 — best price $9.992018-11-21 — best price $1.992019-01-03 — best price $9.992019-06-25 — best price $0.992019-11-01 — best price $9.992019-12-19 — best price $0.992020-07-09 — best price $9.992020-11-25 — best price $1.992021-01-05 — best price $9.992021-11-24 — best price $1.992022-01-05 — best price $9.992022-06-23 — best price $1.992022-11-29 — best price $9.992023-03-16 — best price $0.992023-07-13 — best price $9.992023-11-17 — best price $0.992024-01-04 — best price $9.992024-06-27 — best price $0.992024-11-22 — best price $9.992024-12-19 — best price $1.992025-03-20 — best price $9.992025-09-29 — best price $1.992025-11-03 — best price $9.992026-03-19 — best price $1.992026-07-09 — best price $9.99
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Twitch viewers

1.0k02026-08-29 02:34 — 28 viewers2026-08-29 03:34 — 33 viewers2026-08-29 04:34 — 16 viewers2026-08-29 05:34 — 53 viewers2026-08-29 06:34 — 137 viewers2026-08-29 07:34 — 136 viewers2026-08-29 08:34 — 7 viewers2026-08-29 09:34 — 9 viewers2026-08-29 10:34 — 14 viewers2026-08-29 11:34 — 12 viewers2026-08-29 12:35 — 19 viewers2026-08-29 13:34 — 7 viewers2026-08-29 14:34 — 88 viewers2026-08-29 15:34 — 102 viewers2026-08-29 16:34 — 107 viewers2026-08-29 17:34 — 328 viewers2026-08-29 18:34 — 580 viewers2026-08-29 19:35 — 529 viewers2026-08-29 20:34 — 593 viewers2026-08-29 21:34 — 628 viewers2026-08-29 22:34 — 1,023 viewers2026-08-29 23:34 — 697 viewers2026-08-30 00:34 — 48 viewers2026-08-30 01:34 — 47 viewers2026-08-30 02:34 — 47 viewers2026-08-30 03:34 — 38 viewers2026-08-30 04:34 — 27 viewers2026-08-30 05:34 — 21 viewers2026-08-30 06:34 — 26 viewers2026-08-30 07:34 — 0 viewers2026-08-30 08:34 — 18 viewers2026-08-30 09:34 — 22 viewers2026-08-30 10:34 — 26 viewers2026-08-30 11:34 — 23 viewers2026-08-30 12:34 — 55 viewers2026-08-30 13:34 — 54 viewers2026-08-30 14:34 — 49 viewers2026-08-30 15:34 — 29 viewers
Hourly Twitch viewers (census snapshots).

Completion

60+
achievements tracked
70.6%
earned "Malcontent"
7.5%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsLinuxFull controller supportSingle-playerSteam AchievementsFull controller supportSteam Trading CardsCaptions availableSteam WorkshopCamera ComfortCustom Volume ControlsAdjustable DifficultyPlayable without Timed Input1 DLC

26 supported languages: English, French, German, Italian, Korean, Spanish - Spain, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Dutch, Danish, Finnish…

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Steam (Steam)178,7003%69

Players tracked by Exophase (achievement/trophy trackers) — a sample of the player base, not total sales.

Where its players are

Share of Steam reviews by language (top languages measured) — a proxy for where the player base lives.

Player tags

FPSActionAliensSci-fiClassicPhysicsShooterZombiesAdventureDystopian

Census log

Computed from census-recorded observations only — dates are observation dates.

Players also track

Half-LifeGET EVENImmortal: UnchainedZombotronDOOM EternalWolfenstein: YoungbloodCyberpunk 2077

Similarity via IGDB.

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