Half-Life: Source — System Requirements, FPS Estimate & House Rules
2004 · Action · Valve Software · ESRB Mature
Official system requirements
Publisher-published Minimum / Recommended values via RAWG, retrieved 2026-08-21. Real-world performance varies with drivers, resolution and your full build.
| Spec | Minimum | Recommended |
|---|---|---|
| OS | Minimum: 1.2 GHz Processor, 256MB RAM, DirectX 7 level graphics card, Windows XP, Mouse, Keyboard, Internet Connection | — |
| Processor | Recommended: 2.4 GHz Processor, 512MB RAM, DirectX 9 level graphics card, Windows XP, Mouse, Keyboard, Internet Connection | — |
| Memory | — | — |
| Graphics | — | — |
Multi-GPU FPS estimate
Estimated average FPS by GPU at 1080p / 1440p / 4K, derived from Half-Life: Source's demand tier (tier 2, Light (entry discrete GPU)) and published TechPowerUp-style relative-performance indices (RTX 4090 = 100), retrieved 2026-08-29. Planning estimates, not benchmarks.
| GPU | 1080p | 1440p | 4K |
|---|---|---|---|
| RTX 4090 | 392 | 259 | 149 |
| RTX 4080 Super | 351 | 232 | 134 |
| RTX 4080 | 338 | 223 | 128 |
| RX 7900 XTX | 375 | 248 | 143 |
| RX 7900 XT | 351 | 232 | 134 |
| RTX 4070 Ti Super | 300 | 198 | 114 |
| RX 7800 XT | 300 | 198 | 114 |
| RTX 4070 Super | 282 | 186 | 107 |
| RTX 4070 | 264 | 175 | 101 |
| RX 7700 XT | 272 | 179 | 103 |
| RTX 3070 | 247 | 163 | 94 |
| RX 6800 XT | 296 | 196 | 113 |
| RTX 4060 Ti | 217 | 143 | 83 |
| RX 6700 XT | 264 | 175 | 101 |
| RTX 3060 | 199 | 131 | 76 |
| RX 6600 XT | 225 | 148 | 85 |
| RTX 2060 | 180 | 119 | 68 |
| GTX 1660 Super | 149 | 98 | 57 |
| RX 580 | 172 | 114 | 65 |
| GTX 1060 6GB | 141 | 93 | 53 |
| GTX 1650 | 112 | 74 | 43 |
| Intel Arc A770 | 228 | 151 | 87 |
| UHD 770 (integrated) | 46 | 30 | 17 |
Method: a game's demand tier maps to a “GPU index needed for ~60 FPS at 1080p”; each GPU's relative index produces an estimate via a diminishing-returns curve, then scaled for resolution. Source: TechPowerUp GPU database (relative performance), 2026-08-29.
For the full hardware spec sheet and a deeper performance breakdown, see Full specs & performance data on GameFigs.
Age rating & regional compliance
GameRulePro pairs each title with its ESRB age rating and, where documented, real regulatory notes on loot boxes, skin gambling and randomized monetization. Every line is source-linked and labeled with its retrieval date. This is an educational reference, not legal advice — verify the specifics that apply to your jurisdiction.
| Field | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Age rating | ESRB Mature | ESRB rating via RAWG.io, retrieved 2026-08-21. |
Similar games you may tune or rule next
Grand Theft Auto VI
2026 · Action, Adventure
Open profile →Marvel's Wolverine
2026 · Action, Adventure
Open profile →God of War: Laufey
2027 · Action, Adventure
Open profile →Fable
2027 · Action, RPG
Open profile →Grand Theft Auto V
2013 · Action
Open profile →The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt
2015 · Action, RPG
Open profile →Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis
2027 · Action, Adventure
Open profile →Stranger Than Heaven
2027 · Action, Adventure
Open profile →Rules, fair-play & tournament formats
AI search can summarize what Half-Life: Source is — it can't turn your group size, time limits and house-rule preferences into a printable rules book, or generate a tournament bracket with tiebreaks. Run the generators below to build yours. Everything runs in your browser.
Build your house rules
Community-style house rules — not an official rulebook.
Half-Life: Source — House Rules
- Players: 4 (adjust the rule set for odd numbers)
- Every round or session runs on a 40-minute timer; when it expires, the current objective or score decides the round.
- Respawns are unlimited at checkpoints; dying costs progress to the last checkpoint only.
- Disputes go to the session host; a 60-second discussion cap, then a vote. Ties favor the current objective leader.
- These are community house rules for casual play — they replace nothing in any official rulebook.
Game reference
- Half-Life: Source (2004) — Action.
- Structural outline based on Action-genre play patterns; adapt to your group.
Generated at GameRulePro · 2026-09-09
How to make house rules for Half-Life: Source
- Open the generator. Use the house-rules or tournament-format generator on this page for Half-Life: Source.
- Set group size and options. Enter player count and toggle a session time limit or permadeath/sit-out rules.
- Pick a tournament format. Choose single elimination, double elimination, or Swiss, then set match length and tiebreak order.
- Add custom rules. Type any house-specific rule into the custom field.
- Print your sheet. Click “Print my rules sheet” for a printable book or bracket.
Typical Action play structure
Community-style reference by genre — not an official rulebook.
Common formats
- Arcade-style score attack with set lives/timer
- Campaign co-op with shared checkpoint rules
- Versus modes standardize round and timer settings
Release, patch & rule-change notes
Official release date: 2004-06-01. Ongoing patches and version history are published by the developer — for the latest patch notes, see the official store or support page. GameRulePro summarizes the official release only and does not invent patch dates. When a developer ships a rule-affecting update (balance pass, mode change, or ranked-reset), re-run the generator above to keep your house rules in sync.
About Half-Life: Source
Half-life: Source is a reissue of the 1998 Half-Life game based on a more modern "Source" game engine with many innovations in graphics performance and gameplay.
The game's plot is entirely consistent with the plot of the original Half-Life and tells us the story of the research centre "Black Mesa", which is located in the USA, New Mexico.
You play as a young researcher Gordon Freeman, who works in the laboratory of unusual materials. In case of having a low level of tolerance, the scientist does not know the risks posed by the work to be undertaken. One morning Gordon was sent to a test chamber to perform a standard analysis of the crystal. The consequences of the experiment, however, are catastrophic.
Sources & attribution
- Game data (release year, genres, platforms, system requirements, description, cover art) via RAWG.io, retrieved 2026-08-21.
- GPU relative-performance indices via TechPowerUp GPU database (relative performance), retrieved 2026-08-29.
- FPS estimates on this page are GameRulePro planning estimates from the demand-tier + GPU-index model — not benchmark results.
- House rules and tournament formats are community-style templates for casual play, not official rulebooks.
- Pre-launch intelligence (release windows, settings, editions, pricing, beta dates) is compiled from each title's official publisher / studio announcements and is source-linked per item with its retrieval date (2026-09-09). Where a detail is from reporting rather than a primary source, the item's source line states so. This is preview material, not an official specification.
- Per-game age-rating & regional compliance reference (ESRB rating via RAWG; curated regulatory notes) from the GameRulePro game-rules dataset, retrieved 2026-08-29.
How the Half-Life: Source FPS estimate and rules generator are computed
Each game is scored on a 0–9 demand tier from its published PC requirements (and a year/genre fallback when requirements are absent). The FPS estimate compares your selected GPU's relative-performance index against the tier's required index using a diminishing-returns curve, then scales for resolution. The rules and tournament builder is a community-style template engine: it formats your group size, match format and tiebreaks into a printable sheet. All outputs are planning guides — verify in-game and agree house rules with your group before play.