HL2: EP3/HL3??

[[CW]Aresye]

Seriously, wth?  Orange Box came out nearly 3-4 years ago, and since then, it's been silent.  The entire Half-Life saga has to be one of the most epic game series, so I highly doubt they abandoned the project.  I ended up replaying HL1 all the way through HL2: EP2, just to re-experience it, and hopefully catch some more hints at the storyline (there are none).

So, what do you think Valve has up their sleeve?  Maybe they decided HL2: EP3 was too immense plot-wise to tie into a last episode, and just decided they were going to make it HL3.  Maybe there was never supposed to be a HL2: EP3, and there's hints of that secret agenda buried in their games (j/k).

All I want to do is find out who the G-Man is!  FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!

[(TLL)Siilk]

 ^This

[Flyingdebris]

the great irony is that "episodic content" was supposed to lead to faster turn around times on development

also, frankly i've been very underwhelmed by the episodes so far.

ep 1 was super short and the endboss in it was literally just some striders that could shove crates around, woop tee doo.

ep 2 boasted about the improved combine AI, of which you only fight a handful.  Boasted about being more open, which only applied to the end

the only gameplay improvements made so far have been shoving crates apart with the grav gun instead of having to pick them up.  and having the flashlight have its own battery.  There have been no new weapons other than some new things for the grav gun to throw.  And compared to other game engines, source has been showing its age for a long ass time now.

Step up your game valve, please.

[[CW]Aresye]

I thought Ep1 was so-so.  You're definitely right in which it was too short, plus on replay, the whole underground with zombies is a level I would gladly pass up, every time.

Ep2 was pretty good in regards to advancing the story.  The Strider fight at the end was a little bit different, but felt fresh because you couldn't kill them by normal means, and the antlion guard chase got my blood pumping pretty good.

I'm wondering what the big hold up for Ep3 is.  Either they didn't have a set storyline before HL2, and are stuck in writer's block, or they're building a new engine for the sake of keeping up with technological gains.  The longer it keeps getting, the more I believe they just decided to move on to HL3, with a brand new engine and everything.

[~SJ~KorbinWimmer]

Well whatever their plan is, be it HL:3 or HL:2Ep3, we are sure to know when they make the first press release in 6 more years.

[(TLL)Siilk]

I'm wondering what the big hold up for Ep3 is.  Either they didn't have a set storyline before HL2, and are stuck in writer's block, or they're building a new engine for the sake of keeping up with technological gains.  The longer it keeps getting, the more I believe they just decided to move on to HL3, with a brand new engine and everything.

 Actually I feel that, with TF2 still rocking the sells, they are simply content with current income levels and don't feel like making one more "big game" right now. They can delay HL2E3 for a lot more time and when it would be out it would be a hit nevertheless. So, why bother with doing it faster?

[Bill]

I believe Ep3 will include hats.

Although tbh, have you all forgotten how long HL2 took to come out, and how long Ep1 took to come out?

Valve is like this, I'm just going to play Shogun 2 instead.

[Askis]

Maybe they thought better of combining HL and Portal and need to start from scratch

[Bill]

I personally hope not, whilst I enjoyed Portal a great deal I don't think the portal gun belongs in the Freeman story. At least not in his hands.

It's all supposition I know and i see where you're getting it from (the ship with Aperture on it etc), but I personally like it as it stands.

[[CW]Aresye]

I agree.  In fact, when rumors surfaced that the "thing" on the ship may be the portal gun, I was a bit disappointed.  Worked great in portal, but I can't see how they would implement it in Half-Life without being overly corny.

[SquareSphere }12thVR{]

It would have to be HL3 at this point.  Value is sitting on a ton of money due to Steam being the market leader in digital game sales, and their micro transactions being a huge hit in TF2.

Since they're not a public company they have no pressure from stockholders to keep pump and dumping games like EA/Activation.

Right now they have the SC2 dilemma, do they push the envelope and do something radical, or do they just "finish" the story.

[Leeko]

It would have to be HL3 at this point.

I don't get why people assume they're just skipping over episode 3.

In any case, here's my opinions (VERY short versions) on the episodes. EP1 was short and kinda just more of the same (but with much-improved graphics). I enjoyed the hell out of Half-Life 2 though, so they definitely could have done worse. However, I think EP2 is their magnum opus. The pacing is pitch-perfect, it had some INCREDIBLY tense moments (getting chased by the glowy ant lion guard, holding out for the Vortigaunts with those two guys and the turrets) and has some of my all-time favorite storytelling.
[spoiler=In case you haven't played EP2]
The GMan's little... heart-to-heart. It blew me away. And then there was the ending. Dear god, the ending. I sat with my jaw open all through the credits. It was so charged, so masterfully done, so emotional. A crowning moment in interactive storytelling.
[/spoiler]

The only thing I'd readily criticize it for is spending too much time in the ant lion tunnels.

[[CW]Aresye]

The Half-Life saga is simply incredible for the storyline, plus the mix of physics into the mix, both in puzzles, and technology.

[spoiler]Half-Life 2 blew me completely away.  The level of immersion it put you in, really made you feel as if you were fighting for something, going from near helpless cause at the beginning, to eventually starting to see the light in the climatic finish of the street fight.

All the city insurrection levels at the end = GIANT WIN![/spoiler]

[Bill]

It would have to be HL3 at this point.

I don't agree, Ep3 current engine, HL3 new engine that's essentially the matrix and the convert us all into Gordon Freemans and we possessed, tear down our own governments and install Gabe as God Emperor. He keeps the population under control with the melange, but a select view will recognise the false god and take to the desert. There they will live a harsh existence that will harden their bodies and souls and when their return on the backs of the earthly titans, the Shai-Hulud none shall stand before them. The true voice of mankind will ring out again to all corners of the earth, so finally mankind will taste the fruits of their own labour and remember the faces of their fathers.

Well that was fun, but you get my point.

[[CW]Aresye]

So what you're saying is, "You don't know what kind of engine we will run with HL3, but HL4 we will run with the titans?"