I did say we weren’t going to touch on that so-called “ARG”, that so many people were convinced existed inside the Wheatley nomination short from the 2011 VGA’s, but I did add “for now” to the end of that sentence. Well, guess what? We’re already ragging on it, except this time we know for sure that there is no Half-Life 3 ARG. How? Read on to find out!
This is a brief e-mail exchange between Marc Laidlaw, the writer behind the Half-Life franchise, and Leveraged, the administrator of ValveARG.com:
As you can see, Marc is crystal clear on this: there is no ARG. Wheatley’s Character of the Year nomination short is just that: a non-canon, unimportant short. It means absolutely nothing. The constellations in the background mean nothing, the name of the satellite means nothing, the numbers on the side mean nothing, and so on and so forth. Really, guys: Valve isn’t always out to secretly announce Half-Life 3. And not every announcement Valve makes from now on will be in ARG form - in fact, I very seriously doubt the possibility of a Half-Life 3 ARG… ever. It’ll probably be just a surprise announcement. No need to make things needlessly complex with an unnecessary ARG.
But hey, we did hear that a voice actor had done work on a new Half-Life game. And we did hear that a Valve dev had worn a T-shirt to a game expo. And E3 2012 will mark 4 and a half years since the last time we saw Half-Life. Just as E3 2003 marked 4 and a half years since Half-Life 1′s release.
Of course, let’s not forget that Half-Life 2 was officially announced months before E3 2003. Back in… April. So, hang in there, fellow Half-Life fans.
22 Responses to “Marc Laidlaw Confirms That There Is No Half-Life 3 ARG”
:O
http://www.facepunch.com/threads/1148401
Can anyone tell Gabe about this? http://www.black-aperture.com/
I mean, to tell him obuat the unauthorized use of the valve logo. No one wants to be in another false hype again.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymMrwlsbtrI&feature=g-u&context=G24b32edFUAAAAAAAAAA
Here we go again…
Why haven’t you posted an article in the past week? If you’re taking the holidays off, you can say so. Not a peep about the new TF2 updates, or the huge Steam Winter Sale.
Hey, chill out there. Remember – for the time being, I’m pretty much the only regular writer. As it turns out, not all of the time I spend during my days can be devoted near-exclusively to writing for the website. We’re a small fansite, not a corporate giant like IGN or something. New articles are on their way.
Honestly, Half-Life 3 has to wait until after CS:GO. There’s only so much publicity Valve can handle. That’s why Portal 2 was released before the DOTA 2 championships. Unfortunately Valve is to small to get big at this paticular time with all the new innovations the other game companies are making. The Source Engine has to compete with the graphics of major titles.
I’m a dedicated HL fan, and I see a possible positive side in ever rumor and such, but this whole ARG thing of Wheatly’s video at VGA felt preposterous.
And now even after Marc clarified it, people still believe there is something in that video….
Although I have to admit the “1…1…1…” was kinda suspicious.
I hope it comes out before TF3 as I want a Halflife 3 pre order hat.
There’s no TF3, only hats.
Just because it’s not an ARG does not mean the hints and clues are still hints and clues.
I mean, does not mean the hints and clues aren’t still hints and clues*. My bad.
All this lack of Episode3/HL3 news or info is getting us all confused!
There’s no Half-Life 3 ARG because there’s no Half-Life 3.
A slight tease in a video itself doesn’t constitute an ARG.
I crunched the numbers over at the steam forums, and look:
http://forums.steampowered.com/forums/showpost.php?p=26895126&postcount=3712
I don’t think it was announced on the 26th of February. If I recall correctly, it was somewhere in April when it was first announced.
All the sources I’ve consulted say just before March, and I recall the 26th. I might be off by a few days, but the principle remains the same.
What sources do you have?
OK, just rechecked with The Final Hours, it says it was March 21st, the same day as the Iraq War began. I’ll redo the math when I can (posting this from a phone).
Good call. Much more reasonable.
I sense overhype.
Let them sit in silence for another 5 years if they want to… They will have to pay a heavy toll for it.
The “1…1…1…” may be a dig at the fans, or just a ‘Meet the Spy’ reference. Either way, they’re having fun with our expectations, I think.
No surprise to me