It's become one of the more annoying running jokes of the internet. A site posts a teaser for an unknown game, or someone reports that a developer is tweeting out cryptic hints. Then, like clockwork, someone comments "Half-Life 3 confirmed". Or comes up with some crazy equation that eventually equals "Half-Life 3". But as annoying as the running joke is, their is a reason it exists.
October 10, 2007. Half-Life 2: Episode 2 is released, after some delays. The game receives lots of praise, and immediately people began to wonder when will we get some info about the next episode. Those people, including myself, continue to wait. What makes the wait worse is that it seemed like Episode 3 wasn't too far away. Developer commentary in Episode 2 talked about Episode 3, and how some elements from that game found there way into the 2nd episode.Then in 2008 Doug Lombardi was talking about how Valve would probably have information about the game "later that year". Later that year came and went, with no info from Valve.
Some concept art leaked not long after that, and there were even some talks of a non-Valve Episode 4, but then in late 2009-early 2010, all info stopped. Valve stopped talking about Episode 3. Gabe Newell before every interview started saying "No questions about Half-Life 3". He knows how desperate people are for information. So why are people so desperate for this game?
I can't speak for others, but I can explain why I am still SO excited to play more Half-Life. For starters lets talk about how Half-Life 2 Episode 2 ends. Spoiler warning, for those who haven't played Episode 2 yet.
That is the definition of a cliffhanger. But, after that emotional gut punch fans were left with waiting...and are still waiting. A big reason I want Half Life 3 is because I want to see what happens after that cliffhanger, to continue or even end Gordon Freeman's long journey. Sure, he will probably save the world, but how that happens is still a very intriguing question that I would love to have answered. Besides, I don't want the final moments of the Half-Life series to be the death of Eli, that's sad. It feels like a horrible way to end this series.
But besides wrapping up the story, I also want a Half-Life 3 because I want to see what Valve does next. People seem to forget how influential and innovative Half-Life 2 was when it was released. Going back to Half-Life 2 after playing games for the last 10 years, it truly shows you how important Half-Life 2 is not just for shooters, but for games in general. Sure, if you didn't play it when the game was originally released in 2004, you might not get what all the fuss is about.
But at the time, that game blew my mind. Graphically it made Half-Life 1 look like a broken N64 game. The environments and the atmosphere were at times haunting. Other times they were lonely. Driving up the coastal Highway 17 is still one of my favorite moments in gaming. Sound design and level design combine to create an amazing experience. It felt like I was all alone on a desolate, long road. Sometimes I would drive by a house sitting on the edge of a cliff. I'd pull my buggy over and walk around the house, find a dead man, a tire swing with actual physics, a locked cellar with a headcrab zombie inside. Did the man outside, the dead man, know this person? Why were they here? For me at least, Half-Life 2 is FILLED with Stories and moments like that. But it also was filled with action and satisfying gun-play.
Then there's the engine that Half-Life 2 was built in. Source. It powers so many great games like the Left 4 Dead series, Portal, DoTA2 and even the upcoming Titanfall. Its a flexible and powerful engine that for the last decade has made Valve lots of money. But it's also allowed smaller studios or single developers to create tons of fun and well made mods, like Insurgency, Dear Esther, The Stanely Parable, Gmod and more all use the Source engine. And lets not forget that one of the most played PC games of all time, Counter-Strike, started as a mod based on the original Half-Life.
Point is that when it comes to moving games forward or giving creative people the tools to make amazing games, Valve is one of the best companies out there. So imagine what Source 2 could do. What Valve could do now that consoles are more powerful. Remember the Source engine is 10 years old, and in those 10 years look at how much more powerful and easy to use PC gaming has become. Hell, look at how tablets and smartphones have become powerful mini computers that we carry with us everywhere. I'm excited to see what Valve could do with more powerful hardware and more experience making games. I'm excited to see what Half-Life 3 looks like in this day and age.
I know, 7 years of waiting and rumors is not good. Look at Duke Nukem Forever, or actually maybe don't look at it. Whenever games take this long to make it usually leads to a shitty game or a canceled game. But there have been a few times when long, delayed development led to amazing games. The two that come to my mind is Half-Life 2's 5 1/2 year development and Team Fortress 2's nearly 8 year development cycle. Both, as you probably know, were developed by Valve and both were released to praise both from fans and critics. Valve has a track record of making people wait, Valve time as its usually referred to. But they also have a near perfect record of making great games.
So, I'll wait. And I know I'm not alone in waiting. Waiting for that day that Valve finally brings us more Half-Life. Will the next game have Oculus Rift support, or maybe it will finally just combine the Portal and Half-Life series, seeing as they exist in the same universe. Who knows what Valve has planned, they seem to being going in so many directions these days. From Steam box to SteamOS, DoTA 2 and TF2, free to play, that rumored space game, the Steam Controller, Steam itself and more, Valve is a busy company these days.
I just hope that deep inside that studio, someone is animating a Source 2 crowbar swing. That maybe Gabe Newell is playing an alpha build of Half Life 3, giving some notes to some designers. That Laidlaw is emailing them his latest script. I just hope that Valve hasn't forgotten about old Gordon Freeman. I know I haven't, and if the jokes on the internet are any indication, it seems no one else has either.
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