You can do things like throw bottles to distract it. One sequence involves a nasty monster that will kill you as soon as it comes into contact with you. Others are based on your environment, like figuring out how to get power to an lift and then dislodge it from a a giant pipe stuck in its supports. Sometimes you’re hacking into electronics by connecting nodes in a holographic display (which you can rotate with one hand).
It’s a great incentive to have you exploring every corner and nook of every room. You’ll be turning over buckets, looking into the rafters, and opening drawers trying to find as much resin as possible.
These upgrades cost resin, which are scattered around the game. For example, you can add a laser sight to your pistol, extra ammo storage for your assault rifle, or even a grenade launcher for your shotgun. You have just a few guns in Half-Life: Alyx, but you can improve all of them with special stations throughout the game.