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The Final Hours of Half-Life: Alyx - At least 5 Half-Life projects were cancelled before Alyx, including Half-Life 3

IbizaPocholo

NeoGAFs Kent Brockman

Half-Life: Alyx – Final Hours, Geoff Keighley's "multimedia experience" on the making of Valve's big VR shooter, is now live on Steam. The documentary promises "an unprecedented and unvarnished look at the past decade inside Valve," including a look at multiple cancelled projects—one of them actually named Half-Life 3—plus concept art from Alyx and interactive features including a "Valve Time" timeline and a headcrab SFX mixer.

The big eye-catcher is that a full-on Half-Life 3 was in development, briefly, between 2013-14. Valve wanted to blend procedural generation with "crafted experience" to make it more replayable, an idea inspired in part by Left 4 Dead. It was ultimately halted, though, because the Source 2 engine it was initially created in wasn't finished.

A couple of Half-Life-themed VR projects, including one that sounds rather like the Episode 3 synopsis that former Valve writer Marc Laidlaw shared a few years ago, were also toyed with but ultimately cancelled, according to an IGN report on the documentary, which says that at least five Half-Life projects were proposed and dropped between Episde 2 and Alyx.

Other cancelled projects include an open-world go at Left 4 Dead 3, an Elder Scrolls/Dark Souls-inspired RPG codenamed "RPG," a Minecraft-style voxel game, and "Vader," Valve's original VR headset design, which the developers estimated would have sold for around $5000 each.

Most of the team wants to make a new, full Half-Life, but there's some doubt about whether Valve wants to take on a project of that magnitude, or if it's going to continue to focus on VR for the forseeable future. But the possibility is at least on the table. "The ice has been broken, now we're hoping to smash through the ice completely," Valve's Phil Co says. "We're not afraid of Half-Life no more."



 

Stuart360

Member
f3a700ba0cb17944-rage-gif-on-gifer-by-vuzil.gif
 
lol they had to cancel them and go spend some of that cash they been piling up. Atleast we got confirmation that they 'thought about it' and hopefully they got something coming since Alyx was dope

I can dream still..I can dream
 

TheContact

Member
I figured HL3 was in development but got cancelled. There is no other reason for it not to have been released.
0:23 is that a very young Pope?
 

AV

We ain't outta here in ten minutes, we won't need no rocket to fly through space
£7.19 for an explanation on why fans have had absolutely zero communication on a beloved franchise for what, 13 years? Fuck off Geoff.
 

FireFly

Member
£7.19 for an explanation on why fans have had absolutely zero communication on a beloved franchise for what, 13 years? Fuck off Geoff.
I think it's intended as a documentary of HL:A's development, rather than a justification of Valve's silence. The early reviews look pretty positive.
 

AV

We ain't outta here in ten minutes, we won't need no rocket to fly through space
I think it's intended as a documentary of HL:A's development, rather than a justification of Valve's silence. The early reviews look pretty positive.

Intention is all well and good, but I'd be very willing to bet that more people are more interested in what happened to Half-Life as a franchise than they are interested in the final VR result. One story could be told without the other and the paywall is frankly kind of absurd. No thanks.
 
Honest question. How did Keighley become so imbedded in the games industry. He has some how created this “ echelon” and always has access to some pretty heavy hitters. Everyone respects the guy, yet hes only ever shows face at his own events. No hate what so ever. I just have noticed it. The guy has done really well for himself.
 

supernova8

Banned
Honest question. How did Keighley become so imbedded in the games industry. He has some how created this “ echelon” and always has access to some pretty heavy hitters. Everyone respects the guy, yet hes only ever shows face at his own events. No hate what so ever. I just have noticed it. The guy has done really well for himself.

He must just be good at networking. I personally think he's one of the most boring games journalists/presenters of all time.
 

MiguelItUp

Member
Man, some of the cancellations did not sound the greatest. So I think it worked out. I wanted and still want a proper Half Life 3. But one with procedural generated components doesn't sound appealing at all. Gimme a proper campaign and multiplayer and I'm golden.

Edit: I swear to god my phone's autocorrect will be the death of me, lmao.
 
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Blond

Banned
Honest question. How did Keighley become so imbedded in the games industry. He has some how created this “ echelon” and always has access to some pretty heavy hitters. Everyone respects the guy, yet hes only ever shows face at his own events. No hate what so ever. I just have noticed it. The guy has done really well for himself.

Geoff was a big player in the early 2000s, between the freelance journalism, gametrailers and G4TV the guy was doing everything he could to make a name for himself, almost to a fault because the dude on many occasions has been accused of being "in bed" with game companies. And it sounds dumb, but him arranging the game awards and giving companies all that free advertisement probably helped and YOU KNOW he got paid $$$$$ for them.

I like the part where they concede that communism in Valve didn't work and they returned to hierarchical structure to finish Alyx.

Yeah, Valves structure of "do what you want when you want" is exactly how 3D Realms ended up having to sell Duke Nukem to survive, even when they were offered huge bonuses to complete the damn thing. Being lackadaisical just ends up fucking you in the end.
 
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