Valve Lead Writer Openly Declaring Half Life 3 Won’t Happen is a Good Thing

It’s quite hard to believe, but Half Life 2: Episode 2 debuted almost 17 years ago, and that’s a long time for fans to wait for a Half-Life 3 title in this legendary series. Even though Half-Life: Alyx was an incredible return to the series’ world, the fact that it was limited to VR led to a split within the community.

So, for the most, it’s been nearly two decades without the once-most-hyped sequel of all time. At this point, players would be better off moving to another series as Valve itself doesn’t have any intentions of crafting a third entry in the franchise, which could prove to be a positive thing in the long run when you think about it.

Valve Doesn’t Want to Make Half Life 3 and That’s Good

If you’re a fan of the Half Life franchise, you probably know about the series’ co-creator writer Marc Laidlaw. He’s the one responsible for bringing the first two entries into the franchise.

However, he quietly retired from his position at Valve back in 2016. The chaos of the gaming industry was too much for him, and he wanted to work on more self-directed writing projects.

In an interview with Arcade Attack, Laidlaw opened up about the glory days of the franchise and his thoughts on the future of Half Life. When asked whether or not the long-awaited Half Life 3 would ever hit the shelves, the series writer stated that he doesn’t know and wouldn’t return to the studio either to work on the game.

No idea. And I have no interest in going back. I had ideas for Episode 3. They were all supposed to take the series to a point where I could step away from it and leave it to the next generation.

Laidlaw explains that he had multiple ideas for a third entry in the franchise, and they were going to take it to a point where he could leave it to the next generation. However, it seems like his ideas never came to fruition as Valve hasn’t bothered touching the IP in years, and that’s arguably for a good reason.

We all love the Half Life franchise because it brought something new to the table and left a mark on the gaming culture. If Valve tries to tie up the loose ends at this point, it could prove to be a disaster as the game simply wouldn’t be able to match the astronomical player expectations set by its previous entries.

Going back to the franchise after such a long silence could end up harming it, especially if Valve can’t innovate or produce something similar again. Valve itself has a weak track record in the last couple of years. Counter-Strike 2 still lacks the major update it needs, and the studio has outright abandoned Team Fortress 2.

Who knows if Valve can really even make a quality Half Life 3 anymore? Just like some classic books and films that are remembered for knowing when to conclude, the Half Life franchise might be better off by remaining a masterpiece than a disaster.

Laidlaw Regrets Publishing Half Life Episode 3 Story

If you’re out of the loop, back in 2017, Laidlaw decided to put the “Epistle 3” story on his own website. The unofficial tale came right around Episode 2’s anniversary and was told by someone called “Gertie Freemont” with casual references to “Alex Vaunt,” which were alleged references to Gordon Freeman and Alyx Vance.

In an interview, Laidlaw stated that he shouldn’t have hit the publish button for this story ever. Even after the writer opened up about his passion and regrets over the Half Life series, he believes that the decision might have caused trouble for his colleagues over at Valve.

I was living on an island, totally cut off from my friends and creative community of the last couple decades, I was completely out of touch and had nobody to talk me out of it. It just seemed like a fun thing to do, until I did it.

In the end, Half Life continued in some form with 2020 release of Half Life Alyx, though it wasn’t the Episode 3 or another full-fledged entry that players were chasing.

With that said, do you think Valve needs to make Half Life 3? Let us know in the comments below.