Half-Life 2 System Requirements | Can My PC Run It?

update Catalogue updated: November 16, 2004

Requirements status: Verified. Published PC requirements reviewed against the cited source

memory

Quick Hardware Summary

Half-Life 2 requires at least 1.7 Ghz CPU, DirectX 8.1 level Graphics Card (requires support for SSE) GPU, and 512 MB RAM. For recommended settings, aim for Not confirmed CPU and Not confirmed GPU.

Half-Life 2 game cover

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About Half-Life 2

Gordon Freeman became the most popular nameless and voiceless protagonist in gaming history. He is painted as the most famous scientist and a hero within the world of Half-Life, and for a good reason. In the first game he saved the planet from alien invasion, this time, when the invasion is already begun, the world needs his help one more time. And you, as a player, will help this world to survive. This time Gordon arrives in City 17, ravaged and occupied by Combines, where he meets his old Black Mesa friends.
What is different, aside from the overall design quality, is the use of Valve’s Source engine that not only expands on the fluidity of character model animations and movement but allows players to interact with a myriad of objects with the advanced and realistic (to an extent) physics. Classic Headcrab Zombies are revamped and have new variants that provide players with different threats. For a story-driven FPS, Half-Life 2 is unique in its plot delivery, and making in-game mechanics feel natural, be it platforming or driving.

Game features and tags

Singleplayer · Steam Achievements · Steam Cloud · Atmospheric · Story Rich · First-Person · Sci-fi · Great Soundtrack · Horror · Multiplayer · FPS · Captions available · Partial Controller Support · Dystopian · Physics


Score 96
Released November 16, 2004
Genres
Publisher
Platforms
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Half-Life 2 System Requirements

Minimum

OS:
Windows 7, Vista, XP
CPU:
1.7 Ghz
GPU:
DirectX 8.1 level Graphics Card (requires support for SSE)
RAM:
512 MB
Storage Required:
6500 MB available space

Recommended

OS:
Not confirmed
CPU:
Not confirmed
GPU:
Not confirmed
RAM:
Not verified

Requirements source and version

Half-Life 2 — Windows PC store specifications; snapshot 2026-10-19

Official Steam store listing

Published specifications for this exact store edition. Missing recommended fields remain unknown. Store release dates may differ by region and from the first PC release. Steam client OS support can differ from a historical game OS listing. Compatibility estimates are not measured FPS. Source checked: October 19, 2026.

PC store release date: Nov 16, 2004 (store listing; may differ from the first PC release).

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