Half-Life: Alyx Soundtrack
From the Combine OverWiki, the original Half-Life and Portal wiki
The Half-Life: Alyx Soundtrack was composed by Mike Morasky. A few tracks from the original Half-Life Soundtrack by Kelly Bailey were reused. Unlike previous Half-Life titles, the music in Alyx is made up of separate audio files that are dynamically pieced and mixed together in-game, akin to Morasky's previous Portal 2 Soundtrack. For the official soundtrack release, the game's music was mixed down to standard individual tracks.
Contents
- 1 Overview
- 2 Chapters
- 2.1 Chapter 1, Entanglement
- 2.2 Chapter 2, Quarantine Zone
- 2.3 Chapter 3, Is Or Will Be
- 2.4 Chapter 4, Superweapon
- 2.5 Chapter 5, The Northern Star
- 2.6 Chapter 6, Arms Race
- 2.7 Chapter 7, Jeff
- 2.8 Chapter 8, Captivity
- 2.9 Chapter 9, Revelations
- 2.10 Chapter 10, Breaking And Entering
- 2.11 Chapter 11, Point Extraction
- 3 Behind the scenes
- 4 Gallery
- 5 References
- 6 External links
Overview[edit]
The soundtrack was released in parts over time going along with the in-game chapters.
- Chapter 1, Entanglement was released on streaming platforms on May 4, 2020 and on Steam the following day.
- Chapter 2, Quarantine Zone was released on streaming platforms on June 3, 2020 and on Steam the following day.
- Chapter 3, Is Or Will Be was released on streaming platforms on September 15, 2020 and on Steam the following day.
- Chapter 4, Superweapon was released on streaming platforms on October 8, 2020 and on Steam the following day.
- Chapter 5, The Northern Star was released on streaming platforms on November 19, 2020 and on Steam the following day.
- Chapter 6, Arms Race was released on streaming platforms on November 30, 2020 and on Steam the following day.
- Chapter 7, Jeff was released on all services on February 12, 2021.
- Chapter 8, Captivity was released on all services on March 30, 2021.
- Chapter 9, Revelations was released on all services on July 19, 2021.
- Chapter 10, Breaking And Entering was released on all services on August 13, 2021.
- Chapter 11, Point Extraction was released on streaming platforms on July 4, 2022 and on Steam the following day.
On January 27, 2026, Ipecac Recordings announced that they would be releasing the soundtrack in various physical formats. Among these editions are the 6 LP vinyl box set and 4 CD foldout digipak case, both of which include all 72 tracks, and the 2 LP vinyl which features 21 "best of" pieces chosen by listeners, available in three retailer-exclusive color variants. These items released on April 24.[1]
The album artwork was created by Valve artist Olly Moss.[2]
This is the first soundtrack in the Half-Life series to be composed by Mike Morasky, who previously co-composed the Portal Soundtrack with Kelly Bailey as well as the majority of the Portal 2 Soundtrack. In The Final Hours of Half-Life: Alyx, it is stated that Morasky "spent months" trying to "imagine what Half-Life would have sounded like" in the time between the release of the original game and Half-Life 2. He listened to "big beat music, drum and bass, electronica, ambient and industrial music" for inspiration, with songs "...like Nine Inch Nails' Leaving Hope, The Prodigy's Shoot Down and Skinny Puppy's Ghostman" being seen as evocative of the era.[3]
Chapters[edit]
Chapter 1, Entanglement[edit]
* = not present in a given soundtrack.
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | * | Exposing Hostile | * | 2:33 | Does not appear in the retail game. | Trailer music used in the Half-Life: Alyx Announcement Trailer. This track is a remix of Jungle Drums from Half-Life. |
| 02 | 01 | Valve: Alyx | music/places/bellevue/hlvr_valve_logo_l.mp3hlvr_valve_logo_ls.mp3hlvr_valve_logo_r.mp3hlvr_valve_logo_rs.mp3
|
0:15 | Plays over Valve logo before the main menu. | This track is an edited version of the Valve Software theme music played during the Valve logo movie in all Valve games. In-game, four mixed versions of the Valve theme are played simultaneously at different points, creating an echo, similar to the version heard in The Lab's Valve intro. The full length version of the original track originally appeared in Half-Life as Valve Theme (long version). |
| 03 | 02 | Coetaneous Entanglement | music/places/c17/hlvr_intro_titlecrawl_l.mp3hlvr_intro_titlecrawl_ls.mp3hlvr_intro_titlecrawl_r.mp3hlvr_intro_titlecrawl_rs.mp3hlvr_intro_reveal.mp3hlvr_intro_radio_channel.mp3
|
8:22 | Entanglement: Over the introduction titles and opening segment of the game. | |
| 04 | 03 | Construction Strider | music/places/intro/a1_intro_strider.mp3
|
0:27 | Entanglement: Plays when the Construction Strider appears near Alyx's Hideout's second balcony. | |
| 05 | 04 | Engage. Quell. Inquire. | music/places/intro/a1_intro_trek.mp3a1_intro_trek2.mp3a1_intro_trek3.mp3a1_intro_hallway.mp3
|
3:18 | Entanglement: When a Civil Protection city sweep begins and forces Alyx Vance and Olga to flee. | |
| 06 | 05 | Insubordinate Relocation | music/places/intro/a1_intro_world_2.mp3
|
2:08 | Entanglement: Starts playing when Alyx exits the Combine Prisoner Transport. | |
| 07 | 06 | City 17 Strider | music/places/intro/a1_intro_strider2.mp3
|
0:27 | Entanglement: Played during the Strider scene that starts after Alyx climbs to the balcony neighboring Russell's Lab. | |
| 08 | 07 | Thirty Seven After Six | music/places/c17/a1_intro_apt_radio.mp3 |
2:27 | Entanglement: Played in the apartment room holding the secret entrance to Russell's Lab. | Undistorted version of the track a1_intro_apt_radio.mp3 that is played in-game. Seemingly named after a clock model seen in the first floor staff kitchen in the Northern Star, as well as the Central Zoo and in the apartment building lobby inside the Vault, frozen at 6:37.
|
| 09 | 08 | From Here to There in Under a Second | ambient/abstract/beepboop/amb_russel_lab_beepboop_01.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_02.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_03.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_04.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_05.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_06.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_07.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_08.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_09.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_10.vsnd_camb_russel_lab_beepboop_11.vsnd_c
|
1:25 | Entanglement: While inside Russell's Lab. | Named after the title of Dr. Kleiner's book. The track seems to be a mix of several "beepboops" that play repeatedly at various locations in Russell's lab. The soundfiles don't use the .mp3 format like the others and can't be opened conventionally. A method to open them is to use Audacity's raw data import. Start offset should be 720. For files 02 04 05 06 09 10, Encoding should be Signed 16-Bit PCM and 2 channels. For the rest (01 03 07 08 11), Encoding should be Signed 32-Bit PCM and 1 channel. |
Chapter 2, Quarantine Zone[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 09 | Quaranta Giorni | music/places/trains
|
6:15 | The Quarantine Zone: Upon exiting the train and first witnessing the entrance to the Quarantine Zone. | |
| 11 | 10 | Xombies | music/places/trains
|
3:15 | The Quarantine Zone: Played at the various locations where Zombies are encountered in the old subway. | |
| 12 | 11 | Only One | music/places/trains
|
2:36 | The Quarantine Zone: Shortly after the zombie encounter. | |
| 13 | 12 | Matter of Perspective | music/places/hideout
|
5:18 | The Quarantine Zone: During the floating cardboard puzzle section. | |
| 14 | 13 | Severed from the Vortessence | music/places/hideout
|
5:11 | The Quarantine Zone: Tunnel leading to Vortigaunt Hideout. | |
| 15 | 14 | Is Or Will Be? | music/places/hideout
|
5:05 | The Quarantine Zone: Inside the Vortigaunt Hideout. | Same name as the following chapter, Is Or Will Be. |
Chapter 3, Is Or Will Be[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | 15 | What Did it Taste Like? | music/places/headcrabs_tunnel/
|
2:23 | Is Or Will Be: While being introduced to and fighting the Armored Headcrabs. | |
| 17 | 16 | I Love This Gun | music/places/headcrabs_tunnel/
|
7:13 | Is Or Will Be: The puzzle where Alyx acquires the Shotgun. | |
| 18 | 17 | Extra-Dimensional Darkness | music/places/headcrabs_tunnel/
|
6:54 | Is Or Will Be: Plays while navigating the dark hallways of the Drainage Tunnels. | |
| 19 | 18 | Quantum Cubicles | music/places/headcrabs_tunnel/
|
4:42 | Is Or Will Be: While fighting through the Zombies in the maze-like area at the end of the Drainage Tunnels. | |
| 20 | 19 | Infestation Control | music/places/drainage/
|
0:44 | Is Or Will Be: While walking between the Combine strung up by Barnacles. | |
| 21 | 20 | Deployed and Designated to Prosecute | music/places/drainage/
|
2:36 | Is Or Will Be: During the fight with Manhacks outside the drainage tunnels. | |
| 22 | 21 | B3PbIBONACHOCTb | music/places/drainage/
|
3:41 | Is Or Will Be: Inside the explosive-filled basement of the industrial plant. | Track title is written in faux cyrillic. The real name of it should be "ВЗРЫВООПАСНОСТЬ" (Vzryvoopasnost'), which can be translated from Russian as "EXPLOSIVE" or "EXPLOSION HAZARD". |
| 23 | 22 | Anti-Citizen | music/places/trains/
|
3:07 | Is Or Will Be: During the combat with Combine Grunts outside Fairview Junction. | Is used as the menu track from the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive music kit, Half-Life: Alyx, Anti-Citizen. This was exclusively made available to anyone who purchased a Valve Index VR headset prior to Half-Life: Alyx's release. |
| 24 | 23 | Tri-Vector Pre-Reverberation | music/places/trains/
|
1:36 | Is Or Will Be: While exploring the back areas of the junction control room, looking for a spare tank for the Combine Interface there. | Appears in Half-Life as "Space Ocean," and Half-Life 2 as "Echoes of a Resonance Cascade." |
| 25 | 24 | Harsh Industrial Train Crash | music/places/trains/
|
3:09 | Is Or Will Be: Plays when the junction's console begins malfunctioning, prompting Alyx to switch the tracks manually and crash the Razor Train carrying Eli. | |
| 26 | 25 | The Advisors | music/places/trains/ |
3:59 | Is Or Will Be: While exploring the crashed train, observing the now-deceased Advisors inside. | |
| 27 | 26 | Prisoner Pod | music/places/trains/
|
2:10 | Is Or Will Be: The sequence where Alyx tries to rescue Eli from his precarious position. |
Chapter 4, Superweapon[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 28 | 27 | Charger | music/places/hotel/
|
0:31 | Superweapon: Plays during the first ambush by this Combine subtype. | |
| 29 | 28 | Scanning Hostile Biodats | music/places/trains/
|
2:33 | Superweapon: During the Combine battle in the subway. | |
| 30 | 29 | Substation | music/places/vault/
|
3:08 | Superweapon: Plays in the street in front of the Northern Star. |
Chapter 5, The Northern Star[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 31 | 30 | Alien Flora | music/places/hotel/
|
3:42 | The Northern Star: When Xen matter is encountered in the Northern Star. | |
| 32 | 31 | Alien Fauna | music/places/hotel/
|
2:05 | The Northern Star: Plays intermittently before and during the first Lightning Dog battle. The music sting by itself appears several times when it is seen. | |
| 33 | 32 | Requiem Vortessence | music/places/vault/
|
1:56 | The Northern Star: Diegetic music, heard throughout the game from captive Vortigaunts. | |
| 34 | 33 | Lightning Dog | music/places/hotel/
|
3:12 | The Northern Star: During the second battle with the Lightning Dog. | |
| 35 | 34 | Arachnophobia | music/places/hotel/
|
6:15 | The Northern Star: Within the poison headcrab nest and journey upwards past the Combine barricade. | |
| 36 | 35 | Rabid Lightning | music/places/hotel/
|
3:12 | The Northern Star: Plays during the third Lightning Dog battle, when two are faced at once. | |
| 37 | 36 | Extract. Resonate. Isolate. | music/places/vault/
|
3:23 | The Northern Star: During the dismantling of the first substation. | |
| 38 | 37 | Level-5 Anti-Civil Activities | music/places/hotel/
|
3:06 | The Northern Star: Plays during the Combine battle on the street in front of the Northern Star. | This track is named "Level 5, Anti-Civil Activities" (note the comma) on streaming platforms. |
Chapter 6, Arms Race[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 39 | 38 | Vortessence Lux | music/places/vault/
|
1:58 | Arms Race: Redo of Requiem Vortessence with backing music. | |
| 40 | 39 | Hacking | world/hacking/
|
0:55 | Arms Race: Music that plays during hacking. | |
| 41 | 40 | Outbreak is Uncontained | music/places/c17/
|
4:03 | Arms Race: During the fight in front of the distillery. | |
| 42 | 41 | Processing Tripmines | music/places/c17/
|
1:55 | Arms Race: Plays when traversing the minefielded room | Appears in Half-Life as "Steam in the Pipes," and Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode One as "Negative Pressure." |
Chapter 7, Jeff[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43 | 42 | Xenfestation Control | music/places/distillery
|
2:40 | Jeff: Upon entry to the distillery. | |
| 44 | 43 | Sunset Vault | music/places/distillery
|
1:59 | Jeff: Plays anytime the Vault is visible during Chapter 7. | |
| 45 | 44 | Ear Like Mozart | music/places/distillery
|
5:26 | Jeff: When Jeff is first introduced to the player from the catwalk. | |
| 46 | 45 | Jeff | music/places/distillery
|
1:32 | Jeff: Plays when the player first encounters Jeff on the ground, when the garage door is rolled open. | |
| 47 | 46 | Elevatormuzik | music/places/distillery
|
5:29 | Jeff: Plays when the lights are shut off, and the player must release Jeff from the freezer | |
| 48 | 47 | Trash Compactor Waltz | music/places/distillery
|
1:52 | Jeff: Diegetic, plays on the elevator's speakers during the ride with Jeff and the trash compactor room. | |
| 49 | 48 | Quantum Antlion Tunnel | music/places/distillery
|
1:20 | Jeff: Plays when the tunnel to the zoo is opened. |
Chapter 8, Captivity[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 50 | 49 | Cats | music/places/c17
|
2:37 | Captivity: Inside The Food Chain exhibit at the beginning of the Zoo. | This track includes snippets of the exhibit voiceover dialogue randomly played ingame. |
| 51 | 50 | Beasts of Prey | music/places/c17/a4_tanker_antlion_zoo_combat.mp3a4_tanker_antlion_zoo_combat_close.mp3
|
2:43 | Captivity: Played when Antlions are first encountered in the Tiger Pen exhibit. | |
| 52 | 51 | Insects and Reptiles | music/places/c17/
|
1:32 | Captivity: Inside the Reptile House exhibit found after the first Antlion fight, and also inside the aquatic SeaFishes exhibit visited after the large greenhouse. |
Chapter 9, Revelations[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53 | 52 | The Last Substation | music/places/vault/
|
1:18 | Revelations: While the last substation is taken down, and the vault is caught by the emergency backup system on top of the water tower in the Tanker Yard. | |
| 54 | 53 | Trans-Human Crossfire | music/places/c17/
|
4:46 | Revelations: During combat with the Combine and Antlions in the first alleyway area. | This track is a remix of Beasts of Prey. |
| 55 | 54 | Let Me Talk To Your Super-Advisor | music/places/c17/
|
1:05 | Revelations: During the conversation between an unknown woman and a Combine Advisor. | The title is a play on words between the woman's proclamation that she is her own supervisor, and Advisors. |
| 56 | 55 | Terin #6 | music/places/c17/
|
7:02 | Revelations: During the extended combat sequence between the tankers in the train yard. | The title of this track references the large red 'TERIN' sign seen in the Tanker Yard. |
Chapter 10, Breaking And Entering[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 57 | 56 | Infestation Ambience | music/places/c17/
|
1:39 | Breaking and Entering: Plays during the underground pipe puzzle. | Appears in Half-Life as "Cavern Ambience" and Half-Life 2 as "Zero Point Energy Field." |
| 58 | 57 | A Gentle Docking | music/places/vault/
|
2:33 | Breaking and Entering: Plays during the (ironically not gentle) attempt to bring the Vault in. | This track uses the same percussive-like sounds as Harsh Industrial Train Crash, in order to have the Vault crash mirror the train crashing scene. The ending of the track also sounds noticeably similar to The Last Substation (presumably some kind of Vault falling leitmotif). |
| 59 | 58 | Overload Protocol | music/places/garage
|
2:13 | Breaking and Entering: When Alyx wakes up in the rubble. | |
| 60 | 59 | Cauterizer | music/places/garage/
|
4:45 | Breaking and Entering: Plays when the damaged Strider wakes up. | This track contains subtle hints of Anti-Citizen. |
| 61 | 60 | P1 | music/places/garage/
|
5:24 | Breaking and Entering: Plays during the battle in the parking garage. | This track reuses the motif from Charger. |
| 62 | 61 | Gravity Perforation Detail | music/places/garage/
|
5:07 | Breaking and Entering: Plays during the final rush to the Vault and when the Strider is being shot. | This track has notable similarities to Cauterizer, most likely since it is being used as the Strider's motif. The track also subtly foreshadows music from the Vault; notably, the synths heard throughout Chapter 11 in tracks such as Icosahedron and Ekpyrosis are repeated throughout the song, and Reality Disruption Pulse's piano can be heard around the 1:55 mark and again at 4:52. |
Chapter 11, Point Extraction[edit]
| OST # | Game # | Track title | Filename(s) | Time | Level location | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 63 | 62 | Reality Disruption Pulse | music/places/vault/
|
3:27 | Point Extraction: Plays during the first few rooms before seeing the icosahedron. | |
| 64 | 63 | Icosahedron | music/places/vault/
|
4:36 | Point Extraction: Plays when the icosahedron is in view. | |
| 65 | 64 | Supersymmetry Dilation | music/places/vault/
|
8:20 | Point Extraction: Plays in the sideways room. | |
| 66 | 65 | Stringularity | music/places/vault/
|
2:06 | Point Extraction: Plays in the upside down kitchen. | |
| 67 | 66 | Ekpyrosis | music/places/vault/
|
2:08 | Point Extraction: Plays when entering the mirror hallway. | |
| 68 | 67 | Alice Matter | music/places/vault/
|
8:24 | Point Extraction: Plays in the mirror room | |
| 69 | 68 | Gravity Grenade Conflict | music/places/vault/
|
2:55 | Point Extraction: Plays when fighting the combine soldiers. | |
| 70 | 69 | Superimposition | music/places/vault/
|
2:42 | Point Extraction: Plays inside the icosahedron. | |
| 71 | 70 | Consequences | music/places/ending/
|
3:31 | Point Extraction: Plays during the cutscene with the G-Man. | This track contains parts of Dark Interval from the Half-Life 2: Episode Two soundtrack. |
| 72 | 71 | HIRE | music/places/ending/
|
2:58 | Point Extraction: Plays over the end credits. | This track can be divided in 3 sections: an atmospheric synthesizer intro, then a piano section, ending on a guitar and drum section. This final segment is notably similar in style to tracks from the Half-Life 2: Episode Two soundtrack such as Vortal Combat and Hunting Party. |
Behind the scenes[edit]
In the post-credits sequence, the use of a musical cue was considered for the moment the Crowbar is picked up by the player. However, the idea was scrapped before a track was ever composed, in favor of the sound effect heard in the final game.[4] The output to play this hypothetical cue, "Music.a5_ending.crowbar", is still active; however, the file it is pointing to doesn't exist.
Gallery[edit]
Album artwork[edit]
Streaming service artwork for Chapter 1: Entanglement.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 1: Entanglement.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 2: Quarantine Zone.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 3: Is Or Will Be.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 4: Superweapon.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 5: The Northern Star.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 6: Arms Race.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 7: Jeff.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 8: Captivity.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 9: Revelations.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 10: Breaking and Entering.
Steam album artwork for Chapter 11: Point Extraction.
Physical releases[edit]
Promotional art.
6LP Box Set.
2LP Standard Black with Orange Splatter.
2LP Ipecac Store Limited Clear with Orange & Black Splatter.
2LP Indie Exclusive Orange with Black Splatter.
4CD Foldout Digipak.
References[edit]
- ↑ Half-Life: Alyx Original Soundtrack coming to vinyl and CD on Steam (January 27, 2026)
- ↑
Post: "Thanks. Amazing album art by @ollymoss" @MikeMorasky on X (June 4, 2020)
- ↑ The Final Hours of Half-Life: Alyx, Chapter 13: The 13-Year Wait
- ↑ Post: "I often put in stubs for intended or potential use just as an efficiency measure and/or before things lock down .. and the layout of the ending was changing up to the last minute. Ultimately the sound that David Feise implemented was perfect so I called it done no cue was written" @MikeMorasky on X (December 27, 2022)
External links[edit]
Half-Life: Alyx Soundtrack on Steam- Half-Life Music Soundtracks on the official Half-Life website
Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 1 on YouTube- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 2 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 3 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 4 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 5 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 6 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 7 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 8 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 9 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 10 on YouTube
- Half-Life: Alyx soundtrack chapter 11 on YouTube
