For those who couldn't enjoy Half-Life Alyx due to the VR exclusivity, there is a new experience to enjoy set within the universe Valve built. This fan-created graphic novel is officially licensed and has just released a new chapter for fans to enjoy over on Steam. The seventh chapter, called The Dark Between Stars, is available now right here. 

The Half-Life adaptation is called A Place in the West and was first published back in September of 2016. Created by a talented team of five, this adventure takes fans of the iconic Valve franchise on a wild new ride following Albert Kempinski. Scientist Leyla Poirier is also a main feature of this new tale alongside the beloved alien Vortigaunt, a warrior named Dreyfus.

“We’re so excited by this seventh chapter,” said writer and co-creator Ross Joseph Gardner. “It officially marks the halfway point in our story, and sees the comic’s setting, New Franklin, descend into civil war. The art team has done an incredible job.”

For those curious about jumping in, we've got a free preview at some of the new pages of the latest chapter, which you can see below:

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Though this is not a comic series that Valve itself had a direct hand in, Half-Life: A Place in the West is officially licensed by the company to use the Half-Life IP. Interested but not quite ready to make the jump? Been there before! You can scope out the first chapter, completely for free, right here. 

Thoughts on this fan-created Half-Life adventure? What other games that seem to have come to a standstill would you like to see fans take into their own hands? Shout out with your hottest of hot takes in the comment section below! 

Phoenix Point, the tactical strategy game from X-COM creator Julian Gollop, gets a big chunk of content today. The Festering Skies DLC package includes new missions, new types of missions, additions to the story, an air-combat minigame, and more. They had me at air-combat minigame, but this third major DLC kit looks like an add-on that has a number of interesting experiences for those that have already conquered what Phoenix Point has to offer. The update is out on PC platforms via Steam, Epic Games Store, and the Microsoft Store today. Check out the trailer below.

The Festering Skies DLC tasks players with taking on the biggest and baddest challenges to hit Phoenix Point, including an aerial Pandoran threat. Players battle on the ground as usual, but new foibles in air combat open up new conflicts. The Behemoth is the ultimate opponent, ready to annihilate mankind forever if left unopposed. While that all sounds pretty traditional for narrative motivation, there’s a whole new storyline and cinematics to go along with it. On the gameplay end, Festering Skies comes with some other new features.

New mission types and an air-combat minigame get players right into battling the Pandorans. You can research and upgrade your air-combat arsenal to lay siege to the skies.

If you’re pretty sure you’re going to want the next several content packs, Festering Skies is available as part of an expansion pass bundle that contains Festering Skies and two yet-to-be-released DLC campaigns. There’s a handy roadmap to see what’s on the horizon for Phoenix Point located here.

The core game tasks players with turn-based strategy, basebuilding and advancement, and more, with a multitude of missions and procedurally generated encounters. Is Festering Skies something that you are looking forward to? Let us know in the comments!