The original Half-Life launched all the way back in 1998 as the debut title from Valve. It was well-received in its time, going on to live a long life thanks in part to the modding community. Since then, the franchise has expanded to include 2004’s Half-Life 2, a few episodic semi-sequels, and the VR Half-Life: Alyx. But it’s been a while since we’ve heard anything new for the Half-Life series. Despite multiple rumors suggesting Valve was gearing up to finally confirm that Half-Life 3 is in the works, no such announcement has emerged. With The Game Awards behind us, it seems pretty unlikely that news is headed our way in 2025. But a new rumor could shed some light on why that is.
Videos by ComicBook.com
Half-Life 2 came out over 20 years ago at this point, and the episodic Chapter 1 and Chapter 2 follow-ups ended with a cliffhanger in 2007. We did the VR game in 2020, but otherwise, the franchise has been largely dormant. In fact, Valve has had little to say about the potential for Half-Life 3 in the past several years. Rumors have intensified over the last year, leading many fans to hope Half-Life 3 would finally be unveiled at the 2025 Game Awards. But it wasn’t. And according to recent comments from insider Mike Straw, there’s a good reason for that.
Valve Could Be Planning Half-Life 3 As a Steam Machine Launch Title
In a recent episode of Insider Gaming‘s Insider Gaming Weekly podcast, Mike Straw shared some insight about Valve’s plans for Half-Life 3. Though Straw does not reveal his exact sources, he claims to have spoken with folks with insider information regarding Valve’s intentions for Half-Life 3. And according to him, “everybody I’ve talked to are still adamant this is a game that will be a launch title with the Steam Machine.” If that’s the case, Valve could be waiting to announce Half-Life 3 when it reveals the exact release date for the Steam Machine.
After revealing its plans to bring back a new and improved Steam Machine, Valve hasn’t shared much else about the new gaming cube. This includes details about the price for the PC/console hybrid, which many fear is going to be significantly higher than current-gen consoles. In fact, Straw suggests that Valve’s concerns about setting a Steam Machine price could be part of the delay.
Given the current market, many of the components that would go into making something like a Steam Machine are quite pricey. This could mean Valve is feeling pressure to give its new console a higher price tag than consumers are likely to feel comfortable with. And until it has a price, Valve isn’t likely to nail down an exact release date for the Steam Machine. So if Half-Life 3 will indeed be a launch title, they may be holding off revealing it until it can be part and parcel of the hype cycle for the Steam Machine itself.
Straw himself notes that he’s not entirely confident his information is still accurate with so many questions still up in the air. However, he did share that the window he was given by his unnamed source suggests a Spring 2026 release for the Steam Machine and Half-Life 3 along with it. Given that Valve itself suggested an “early 2026” release window for the Steam Machine, this does seem likely to be the plan at least where the console is concerned. As for Half-Life 3, we’ll have to wait and see when and if Valve is ready to make an announcement.
Would Half-Life 3 dropping make you more likely to buy a Steam Machine? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!
Most Viewed
-
Image courtesy of Netflix -
A Nintendo 64 console over a collage of game box art from the system's library.
