Gunman Contracts Mod vs Stand Alone: What Carries Over?
The short answer
Gunman Contracts - Stand Alone is a new game, not a commercial repackaging of the Half-Life: Alyx Workshop chapters. Steam describes it as a completely new, from-the-ground-up single-player experience. It runs as its own Steam product, is developed in Unity, and supports both VR and non-VR play.
You do not need Half-Life: Alyx to play the standalone game. Owning or finishing the old mods is useful background, not a technical or story requirement announced for the new release.
Side-by-side comparison
| Question | Alyx Workshop mods | Stand Alone |
|---|---|---|
| Base software | Requires Half-Life: Alyx and Workshop content | Separate Steam game |
| Engine/context | Built inside Alyx mod tools | New Unity project |
| Play modes | VR through Half-Life: Alyx | VR and non-VR, including Steam Deck support |
| Main released missions | Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 | Three connected Early Access contracts |
| Home base | Alyx-level structure | Dedicated Hive with training and weapon systems |
| Weapons/progression | Constrained by the mod format | 18 unlockable weapons, attachments, bow and knives announced |
| Competition | No shared standalone progression | Steam leaderboards for contracts, challenges and skill games, split by VR/non-VR |
| Current routes/controls | Valid only for the mod chapter/version | Must be learned in the standalone build |
What actually carries over
The strongest continuity is tone: cinematic hitman action, room-clearing pressure and the fantasy of entering an underworld contract as the Gunman. The creator, ANB_Seth, built both projects, so old footage can help you decide whether the overall style interests you.
Old footage also reveals useful questions to ask in the new game:
- How does the current objective communicate the next step?
- What causes a checkpoint or restart?
- Can you prepare or conceal a weapon before an encounter?
- How do escort, rescue or interaction objectives change target priority?
- Which controls need to become automatic before a scored run?
Those questions carry over. The old answers do not.
What does not carry over safely
Treat these as invalid until the standalone build confirms them:
- Exact door, keycard and objective locations.
- Enemy counts and room-by-room routes.
- Alyx-specific holster, glove or inventory behavior.
- Left-handed settings and controller bindings.
- Checkpoint placement and death penalties.
- Weapon balance or ammunition assumptions inherited from Alyx.
- Chapter 1/2 extraction triggers and escort behavior.
If a video says “turn left after the office and pick up the orange card,” it is a mod walkthrough, not a safe standalone instruction.
What “Stand Alone” means here
The title describes a game that stands apart from the Half-Life: Alyx mod. It does not mean the game is a native standalone-headset release.
The confirmed launch paths are Windows non-VR, Steam Deck and PCVR through OpenXR. A Quest headset may be used as part of a PCVR setup if your PC connection/runtime works, but that is different from installing a native Quest build. No current official page confirms a native Quest, PlayStation or Xbox release.
What is new in the 2026 game
The launch package adds systems that did not exist as one persistent product in the two Alyx chapters:
- The Hive home base with multiple training stations.
- A gun wall and gun bench for unlocks and customization.
- Eighteen weapons with per-weapon attachments, plus bow and knives.
- Five challenge maps using Takedown and Last Stand.
- Steam achievements and separate VR/non-VR leaderboards.
- A smartphone feature for playing custom MP3 files.
- Unlockable cheats and an optional low-violence mode.
- Three connected story contracts about the Collectors, with more free contracts planned during Early Access.
These systems make standalone advice more about preparation, loadout testing and repeatable performance than copying one linear Workshop route.
Can you play the old mods first?
Yes, if you already own Half-Life: Alyx and want to sample the creator’s earlier work. Play them for atmosphere and design history. Do not play them as a tutorial for current controls or mission logic.
If you only care about the 2026 release, start in the Hive, learn one loadout and follow the live objective in the first contract. That is faster than memorizing a route that belongs to another game.
How to judge an old guide or video
Use this traffic-light rule:
- Green: creator background, cinematic tone, broad themes and why the mods became popular.
- Amber: general habits such as checking objectives, keeping a recovery route or protecting a rescue target. Useful ideas, but not proven mechanics.
- Red: exact controls, keys, doors, checkpoints, enemy placement, weapon values and extraction steps.
The more specific the instruction, the more it needs standalone-version proof.
Buying and installation checklist
Before buying, verify that you are looking at Steam App 2421750 and the title includes “Stand Alone.” Choose whether you will play flat, Steam Deck or PCVR. For VR, confirm that your headset and OpenXR runtime already work on the same PC. Do not install Alyx Workshop files into the standalone directory or assume old saves/progression transfer.
What still needs live-build confirmation
Exact save behavior, difficulty options, final control maps, progression economy and any direct narrative references to the old chapters may differ in the released build. The safe assumption is continuity of creator and tone, not continuity of mission state.