The official Half-Life demo (1999) — 3 unique levels not found in the full game, set in Black Mesa's underground labs. Real-time storytelling with no cutscenes, no chapter breaks — just you, Gordon Freeman, and a crowbar.
About
Released February 12, 1999 as a standalone demo for Valve's Half-Life (1998). Unlike most game demos, Uplink features levels and a scenario that do not appear in the full game — the chapters were cut during Half-Life's development and heavily revised for the demo. Fight through Black Mesa's underground labs in the aftermath of the resonance cascade, encountering headcrabs, zombies, and military soldiers.
Originally distributed as a free standalone disc in retail outlets. In November 2023, Uplink was bundled with Half-Life as part of the 25th Anniversary Update, making it officially available on Steam for the first time. This runs on Xash3D-FWGS (GoldSource reimplementation) compiled to WebAssembly.
Controls
- W / ↑ — Move forward
- S / ↓ — Move backward
- A — Strafe left
- D — Strafe right
- Mouse — Aim / look
- Left Click — Primary fire
- Right Click — Secondary / alt-fire
- E — Interact
- Space — Jump
- Shift — Crouch
- R — Reload
- 1–5 — Weapon category
- Q — Last weapon
- F — Flashlight
- Esc — Menu
Gameplay Tips
- Secondary fire is key — Weapons have alt-fire modes. The shotgun's double-barrel blast is devastating up close.
- Use the flashlight — Dark areas hide enemies and items. Toggle with F.
- Crowbar headcrabs — Headcrabs are weak to melee. Save bullets for tougher enemies.
- Crouch-jump for height — Hold crouch while jumping to reach higher ledges. Essential for navigation.
- Listen to scientists — NPCs give hints about what's ahead. Pay attention to their dialogue.
Did You Know?
- Half-Life: Uplink contains 3 levels that don't appear in the full game — they were designed exclusively for the demo from cut chapters.
- Half-Life was almost cancelled when Valve showed it to Sierra in 1997 — the publisher thought it wasn't fun enough. Valve scrapped 12 months of work and started over.
- In November 2023, Uplink was bundled with Half-Life as part of the 25th Anniversary Update, making it officially available on Steam for the first time after 24 years.
See Also
Half-Life (Arcade) · Wolfenstein 3D · DOOM: Knee-Deep in the Dead · Quake: Dimension of the Doomed