Last year, when rumors about Half-Life 3 were heating up and everyone was convinced the game would be announced soon, Geoff Keighley posted a photo of his Steam account that said: one Added to your game wishlist. The fact that it's Steam, coupled with reports from several high-profile leakers that the game could be announced at any time, has everyone convinced that it's Half-Life 3.
This has happened a lot. Keighley later posted a photo of a structure that looked vaguely like the Citadel from Half-Life 2. So fans got themselves excited, thinking it was proof that Gabe Newell was coming out of the yacht, walking onto the stage, pulling back the curtains, and finally finishing the count to three after 20 years. It was a Fortnite event.
Now, ahead of Summer Game Fest, Keighley has posted another cryptic clue. Here are some steamy GIFs: The train of thought running through fans' heads is that 'Steam' is a hint to Valve, and therefore a hint to Half-Life 3. This is an incredibly weak theory, and considering the last couple of times we've all been in a trance thinking that Valve would finally show up at a major Keighley event to announce a game, I'm starting to think you're all drinking water. Don't do it. It makes you forget.
Probably, almost certainly nothing
I won't even guess what this GIF is teasing. Some people think it's the Steam Machine, others think Rockstar lifted the lid on GTA 6, but it could also be an entirely new game from an upstart developer. What we can say is that insiders have repeatedly reiterated that it's unlikely Valve will announce anything at the major event. For example, Half-Life: Alyx was revealed through a random tweet. It's better to enable push notifications for Valve than to bet on the new E3 showcase round.
But that doesn't mean Half-Life 3 is dead in the water. Dataminers continue to find evidence of development and appear to be in an optimization and refinement phase. But exactly when it will be announced is anyone's guess. At least Valve didn't kill it like they did with other iterations of Half-Life 3 over the years. This is a positive sign. Especially after Alyx, where the team is no longer afraid to explore the series and has shown an openness to wanting to push forward with new games.
- released
-
November 16, 2004
- ESRB
-
M (Mature): Blood and gore, intense violence.
- engine
-
source, confusion
