L
leon4112
Guest
I don't usually engage in total speculation here (total stupidity, maybe, but not total speculation), but this Half-Life 2 soap opera has really gotten my attention. Valve, as of today, still says there has been no slippage from the September 30 release date. Vivendi has told everyone in the world that the game is pushed back to November (or December, depending on who you're talking to). To further muck up the works, ATI is going to bundle Half-Life 2 (possibly a special edition with an exclusive level) with the Radeon 9800 XT, which is supposed to launch on September 30 as well.
I've been thinking about it today and it appears that these are the possible scenarios.
1. Valve announces that they've been unnecessarily jerking our chain and the game is indeed delayed until the end of the year. 9800 XT's are launched at the end of September with white slips of paper in them good for a copy of Half-Life 2. This scenario blows chunks, obviously. I'm also hoping that it's unlikely. Why would Valve so stubbornly refuse to make an announcement about the delay unless they had something up their sleeve?
2. Valve releases something on September 30, but it's not the full game. Maybe it's a two level demo with one multiplayer map. That would build anticipation to a fever pitch. ATI could ship that CD and also include a coupon for the full version when available. Again, though, if this was the plan, it could have been announced weeks ago.
3. The grassy knoll, X-Files, green men from outer space conspiracy theory. This is my favorite. Now before I even mention this, let me say explicitly that I have absolutely no inside information to indicate that any of what I'm about to say is true. However, this scenario would resolve many seemingly contradictory pieces of information.
Let's say that after the Blizzard founders left Vivendi (which probably reduced the asking price for their games division by several hundred million dollars), someone from Valve went to Vivendi and said that they were leaving as well--unless Vivendi allowed them to release Half-Life 2 via Steam without it being tied to the retail package release date. Vivendi, desperate to sell off the games unit and even more desperate to not have the price lowered any further, agrees. Plus Vivendi is thinking "How many copies could people buy through Steam, anyway? Ha!"
That 'Ha' was with a French accent, by the way. And the answer to that question is 'a freaking huge number of copies.'
If Half-Life 2 is available via Steam on September 30, and ATI bundles its special edition on September 30, but the retail store version isn't available until November, then everyone has been telling the truth. I know, it's terribly naive of me to think that everyone (or anyone) is telling the truth, but this scenario would accommodate everyone.
Plus we wouldn't have to wait two more months to play the game!
www.gonegold.com
:bounce:
I've been thinking about it today and it appears that these are the possible scenarios.
1. Valve announces that they've been unnecessarily jerking our chain and the game is indeed delayed until the end of the year. 9800 XT's are launched at the end of September with white slips of paper in them good for a copy of Half-Life 2. This scenario blows chunks, obviously. I'm also hoping that it's unlikely. Why would Valve so stubbornly refuse to make an announcement about the delay unless they had something up their sleeve?
2. Valve releases something on September 30, but it's not the full game. Maybe it's a two level demo with one multiplayer map. That would build anticipation to a fever pitch. ATI could ship that CD and also include a coupon for the full version when available. Again, though, if this was the plan, it could have been announced weeks ago.
3. The grassy knoll, X-Files, green men from outer space conspiracy theory. This is my favorite. Now before I even mention this, let me say explicitly that I have absolutely no inside information to indicate that any of what I'm about to say is true. However, this scenario would resolve many seemingly contradictory pieces of information.
Let's say that after the Blizzard founders left Vivendi (which probably reduced the asking price for their games division by several hundred million dollars), someone from Valve went to Vivendi and said that they were leaving as well--unless Vivendi allowed them to release Half-Life 2 via Steam without it being tied to the retail package release date. Vivendi, desperate to sell off the games unit and even more desperate to not have the price lowered any further, agrees. Plus Vivendi is thinking "How many copies could people buy through Steam, anyway? Ha!"
That 'Ha' was with a French accent, by the way. And the answer to that question is 'a freaking huge number of copies.'
If Half-Life 2 is available via Steam on September 30, and ATI bundles its special edition on September 30, but the retail store version isn't available until November, then everyone has been telling the truth. I know, it's terribly naive of me to think that everyone (or anyone) is telling the truth, but this scenario would accommodate everyone.
Plus we wouldn't have to wait two more months to play the game!
www.gonegold.com
:bounce:
