“This Isn’t Their First Try”: Valve Artist Lets Slip Up About Half-Life 3 Development

While Valve has been carefully (and unsuccessfully) trying to hide the fact that it’s developing a follow-up to the iconic Half-Life shooter series, an artist at the studio has nonchalantly confirmed the existence of Half-Life 3 in a recent podcast.

Image source: Steam (kittyco1190)

Reddit user PManPlays44 pointed out that concept artist and illustrator Evgeny Evstratiy, who has been working at Valve since February 2023, mentioned Half-Life 3 on the CG Voices podcast last week.

«I don’t know if I can say it or not, but I was in the room where Half-Life 3 is being made. I didn’t see the development itself. I saw the office, computers, boards. As far as I understand, what they are doing Half-Life is not their first attempt,” Evstratiy said.

The artist noted that Valve has its own internal standards, and if the game does not meet them, it may well be frozen or cancelled: “Therefore, what they are doing now, it is not a fact that they will finish.”

Image Source: Valve

It was previously reported that Valve’s game codenamed hlx (presumably Half-Life 3) had successfully passed the intensive testing phase and had not even undergone any major changes.

According to the dataminers’ findings, hlx is a single-player first-person shooter with an emphasis on interactivity and simulation, as well as advanced AI. Development is “very, very far along” and an announcement could be made in 2025.

It is assumed that hlx takes the place of Half-Life 3 in the series chronology, will put a fat point in the adventures of the silent theoretical physicist Gordon Freeman and for many developers will become a “farewell gift” to the community.