Half-Life 3 is not dead as Valve employees talk hopes for non-VR sequel

(Image credit: Valve)

Half-Life: Alyx was not only one of the best VR experiences we've ever had the pleasure to enjoy, but it also gave hope that the Half-Life franchise wasn't dead. Now, there's new, renewed potential for a full Half-Life 3 game.

As revealed in Geoff Keighley's interactive "storybook" about the making of Alyx, it seems the desire at Valve for a new non-VR Half-Life game is high.

"Privately, most of the team hopes that the next big thing will indeed be a full-scale Half-Life game built not for VR," writes Keighley, "but as a game accessible across all traditional gaming platforms."

A new project

"We're not afraid of Half-Life no more," says Valve designer Phil Co.

"Going from [Half-Life: Alyx] to a new big thing, which will be even bigger, is pretty exciting," adds designer and programmer Tejeev Kohli.

Valve claims to work on a flat hierarchy, where a majority decision becomes the company's next focus project. Were that true, we may see a new Half-Life game before long – but undoubtedly the decision making process is more complicated than that.  

Still, another flicker of hope comes at the end of Keighley's report – a small team at Valve started work on a "top-secret" project at the beginning of 2018. Let the eternal Half-Life 3 memes forever roll on.

Gerald Lynch

Gerald is Editor-in-Chief of iMore.com. Previously he was the Executive Editor for TechRadar, taking care of the site's home cinema, gaming, smart home, entertainment and audio output. He loves gaming, but don't expect him to play with you unless your console is hooked up to a 4K HDR screen and a 7.1 surround system. Before TechRadar, Gerald was Editor of Gizmodo UK. He is also the author of 'Get Technology: Upgrade Your Future', published by Aurum Press.