Sierra On-Line to Release Half-Life

Sierra On-Line and Valve have signed an agreement where Sierra will publish Half-Life, Valve's debut release. The first-person action game, which uses id Software's Quake technology, encourages strategy and exploration and features a multiplayer option for up to 32 gamers.

Half-Life's storyline puts the player in the midst of a decommissioned underground missile base where a few bad moves combined with an amazing breakthrough result in dead colleagues and a need to fight alien monsters. Once the player returns to the surface of the planet, he finds a war has erupted between invaders and government troops, none of whom really want the player to survive. The player must go to the aliens' world, foil their plan, and make peace with humanity, too.

Half-Life is hoped to be available this holiday season.