The prospect of Half-Life 3 would not appear too robust, however even nonetheless, there’s plenty of nice methods for Valve to complete off the spectacular story that was arrange in Half-Life 2 approach again when in 2007.
On tenth October 2007, Valve launched Half-Life 2: Episode 2, the continuation of Gordon Freeman’s story as he and his buddies fought to free the human race from the oppression of the alien Mix. The ending offered little or no in the way in which of closure, establishing various plot factors for Half-Life 3. However 13 years later, a sequel has nonetheless by no means arrived.
2020’s Half-Life: Alyx, a prequel completely for digital actuality, marked the primary kick within the franchise for a very long time. However it’s not a full sequel in the way in which that followers have been hoping for. Luckily, in a latest interview (opens in new tab), Valve’s Robin Walker stated that the franchise nonetheless has a future, stating: “we completely see Half-Life: Alyx as our return to this world, not the top of it.”
Whereas this is not a affirmation of particular plans for Half-Life 3, it is sufficient to present followers renewed hope that this long-dormant sequence goes to proceed in a single type or one other. Here is every thing we all know of and hope for in one other fully-fledged Half-Life recreation.
Minimize to the chase
- What’s it? The long-awaited, and long-absent, continuation of the Half-Life saga
- When can I play it? With nothing formally introduced, it will not be anytime quickly
- What can I play it on? Solely time will inform
Half Life 3 launch date and platforms
Again when Valve introduced Half Life 2 could be getting episodic sequels, it revealed that there have been plans to launch three of them over the course of the following couple of years. They might collectively type what was primarily a 3rd Half Life recreation. The concept was that improvement on an episode wouldn’t take so long as a full sequel, so followers might proceed Gordon Freeman’s journey sooner – albeit in smaller portions.
Half Life 2: Episode 3 was by no means launched, and over time individuals ultimately simply began referring to it as Half-Life 3 – assuming that Valve was engaged on a fully-fledged sequel fairly than a model new episode.
In a 2020 interview with IGN (opens in new tab), Valve defined why Half-Life 3 by no means emerged as its personal launch or a shorter episode.
After a troublesome six-year interval which noticed Valve growing Half-Life 2 and its Supply recreation engine concurrently, stage designer Dario Casali stated that the workforce did not need to repeat this, stating that “I believe our principal take away from that’s ‘get some steady expertise after which construct a recreation on high of it.”
As a substitute, the workforce determined to work on smaller, episodic releases, with Episode 1 releasing in 2006, adopted by the notorious Episode 2 in 2007. When it got here to Episode 3, nevertheless, Casali defined that “We discovered ourselves creeping ever ahead towards ‘Nicely, let’s simply maintaining placing increasingly, and extra, and extra stuff on this recreation as a result of we need to make it nearly as good as we are able to, after which we realized these episodes are turning extra into sequels.”
In one other IGN (opens in new tab) interview with Valve’s co-founder Gabe Newell who stated that “Half-Life video games are supposed to unravel attention-grabbing issues“ and that the studio would not simply need to launch Half-Life video games with the intention to “make the quarterly numbers.” In terms of a brand new Half-Life recreation, then, Casali says that Valve is “searching for what’s going to make that subsequent large influence.” Making a big effect would, subsequently, require thrilling new expertise or a brand new engine.
Half Life 3 story and setting
Though Valve by no means launched its third episode or a sequel, some info has spilled out through the years. How a lot of it’s nonetheless related is unclear, however Gabe Newell did affirm that players would retain control of action hero physicist Gordon Freeman. The top of Half-Life: Alyx actually means that it will nonetheless be true of the following launch. Newell later acknowledged that Gordon would go unchanged in Episode 3, because it was then identified, so he would “largely stay an arm and a crowbar”. Newell additionally confirmed that he won’t ever communicate, since his companions are a “extra fruitful avenue to discover”.
Doug Lombardi, Valve’s VP of promoting, also confirmed that the story wouldn’t return to Metropolis 17 and that the builders had put plenty of work into “making a pure progress of topography and local weather”.
Newell additionally confirmed that Episode 3, because it was then identified, would end the story arc that started in Half Life 2. Whereas he spoke of the potential of a fourth episodic instalment, he confirmed that it will be stand-alone and developed exterior of Valve. It was later revealed to have been in improvement at Dishonored builders Arkane Studios and titled Return to Ravenholme. Sadly, it was cancelled.
Former franchise author Marc Laidlaw additionally confirmed to PC Gamer that Episode 3 wouldn’t have had a particular conclusion, very like Half Life and Half Life 2. The plot summary that he later launched appeared to verify this.
Half Life 3 gameplay
Half-Life: Alyx is a VR-exclusive launch and has rapidly change into a “watershed second” for the platform, displaying its true potential.
If one other Half-Life title was to be launched, then wouldn’t it be on VR? Nicely, that continues to be unclear, and Valve stays non-committal. In an interview with PCGamer, Dario Casali stated, “At this level, we do not actually know what [another Half-Life game] could be—we do not know if it is going to be one other VR title. We do not know if it is going to be a non-VR title.”
With the discharge of Half-Life: Alyx being so latest (although the sport appears to be taking place very properly), the workforce is biding its time: “The perfect factor we are able to do at this level is to gauge the response to this product. How are individuals capable of get pleasure from it? How many individuals can we get into the VR platform? [Are] individuals saying that VR is now this important a part of Half-Life? We actually do not know these solutions till we put the sport out and we begin listening.”
Actually, for the time being, VR is a extra restricted platform by way of its consumer base, and if a fully-fledged Half-Life 3 have been to be launched, it is doable Valve would need to make it obtainable to as large and viewers as doable. This all stays hypothesis, nevertheless, and we cannot know for certain what the longer term holds for the sequence till Valve confirms its intentions.
Half Life 3 information
Leaked idea artwork
Even though Valve has seldom spoken about Half-Life 3, not to mention launched gameplay materials, we’ve had a good bit of idea artwork hit the online over the previous 13 years. Whereas it’s not fairly the identical as in-game renders of a trailer, it’s nonetheless one thing. Usually it’d give us some hints at what to anticipate, however given the period of time for the reason that artwork first floor, the character of the sport is prone to have drastically modified.
The primary items arrived on-line in 2007 and 2008, showcasing a few of the doable settings:
Some extra idea artwork arrived in 2012, and if legit reveals off all kinds of environments the gamers can discover.Valve has but to touch upon its validity, and because it’s normally fairly fast to dismiss fakes this has led some to invest that that is the actual deal.
Counter Strike co-creator Minh Lee has additionally admitted to seeing some idea artwork himself.
“I do not assume I can discuss that, to be sincere,” he stated. “I believe it is type of public data that folks know that it’s being labored on. And so if I have been to say that, yeah, I’ve seen some photos, like some idea artwork of it, that would not be large information to be sincere. I suppose I might say that I did see one thing that appeared kinda like within the Half-Life universe.
And I imply it would not shock anybody if I stated they’re doing it, they’re engaged on it, yeah. So to exit on a limb I would say I did some idea artwork for Half-Life 3.”
March 2008 additionally noticed the discharge of what seems to be Alyx Vance idea artwork on the Picasa web page belonging to Valve illustrator Andrea Wicklund. The photographs have been rapidly eliminated, however not earlier than being saved and redistributed elsewhere.
Reddit AMA
In January 2017 Gabe Newell went onto Reddit to participate in an AMA (Ask Me Something), which followers naturally used to ask some questions on the way forward for the Half Life/Portal universe. He did reply a number of of them, although he didn’t reveal an entire lot.
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