Ever since Half-Life: Alyx's release in March, players have been eagerly awaiting the release of the workshop tools for the game, which have now finally released in beta.
Valve announced the release of the tools in a Steam news post .
The workshop tools include Hammer, the latest version of the Source 2 level editor; Source Filmmaker, the Source 2 cinematic renderer and animator; ModelDoc, a tool for modifying models with animation and collision; and a collection of editors including the Material Editor, Particle Editor, and Subrect Editor.
Included in the beta release are sample maps used to demonstrate enemy encounters and showcase aspects of Half-Life: Alyx's level art mechanics.
These tools allow users to create new levels, models, textures, and animations for Half-Life: Alyx, and using Steam Workshop you can browse and play everything the community has uploaded.
This is a big deal for the Source 2 community as it enables direct, officially supported access to the tools needed to develop mods and games in Source 2. For instance, Garry Newman, the creator of popular Half-Life 2 mod Garry's Mod, is eyeing up the workshop tools to create a possible sequel to the mod.
Documentation for the workstop tools can be found on the Valve Developer Wiki