It seems an ex-Valve writer has written up a blog post detailing what could have been the story for Half-Life 2: Episode 3. The writer, Marc Laidlaw, joined Valve in 1997 where he helped write and design Half-Life, Half-Life 2 and the episodes that continue after.
The blog post can be found here, but the site has been annihilated by eager fans wanting a read, so see this archived link.
The actual post doesn't name Half-Life directly, but the title is "Epistle 3" and it features characters such as "Gertie Fremont", so it's quite obvious really. It's worth noting though that Marc tweeted this out:
My website's down for now. I guess fanfic is popular, even a genderswapped snapshot of a dream I had many years ago.
— Marc Laidlaw (@marc_laidlaw) August 25, 2017
So this could be something he had written quite a while ago and he's simply adjusted a few things. It's sad really, as it's likely we will never get to see an Episode 3.
I have still yet to finish Episode 2, but I've also come to appreciate the story.
I'm pretty sure Laidlaw (still) knows the state of this game.
Why would he release this, if HL3 is coming?
Quoting: subHmm, I wonder if this hints that HL3 will probably never see the light of day.Because it's a story he wanted to write, and he knows won't appear in a game? If HL3 ever materializes, I doubt it would be based on any plans that might have existed for HL2 EP3.
I'm pretty sure Laidlaw (still) knows the state of this game.
Why would he release this, if HL3 is coming?
Leak scenario and imply that is not gonna happen , feed the hunger of fans but also kill the expectations.
Under that scheme , if you release HL3 after killing the hype ; that can cause a massive hype even bigger than before.
I hate stories that don't end properly. It's why I avoided playing HL2 episodes at all.
Quoting: axredneckrazing32 You can play it but don't go to helicopter after "the firework"
Episode 2 ?
I hope some fans will turn this third epistle playable :)
As a side note, it looks like the hyperborea name was part of the early prototype.
And I could have sworn seeing
Spoiler, click me
Mohandevir Aug 25, 2017
I read that HL3 never happened because Lord Gaben wasn't convinced... What does it takes?! :)
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