Valve is attending E3 2012

[-smash-]

Valve's name has been added to the official list of E3 2012 exhibitors. They'll be located in PMR501B which is a private room where an appointment is required to enter.


Ok folks, I know I'm singing the same old song here, but could this be the year we catch a glimpse of Valve's next Half-Life?


There's been an influx in chatter and rumors since 2011 about the next HL game. It kicked off with this tweet showing a Valve employee trolling around in a Half-Life 3 shirt at a local game developers meetup. And then to add some fuel to the fire, we heard from OXM that a US-based voice actor was recording some lines for "Half-Life: Episode 3"... But before all of that, PC Gamer's "Spy" also suggested that we might be seeing Gordon Freeman again soon.


Some will suggest that Valve is attending E3 2012 to show off Dota 2 and/or CS:GO. But would Valve really have a private meeting room to showcase two games that are very much in a public beta? I certainly don't think so. And E3 is an expensive venue for exhibitors, so for them to book a room to only show some Portal 2 DLC or L4D DLC seems very unlikely as well.


And then the last possibility of what we could see is an entirely new IP from Valve, something that's been rumored for awhile now. Last year, a game journalist was given information at EA's Spring Conference about how Valve was developing a new IP. Around that same time, a gamer by the name of PoliticalGamer took a tour of Valve's offices and found some unseen & unknown concept art on the walls. Then a few months later, references to an unknown game were found in Dota 2's code. Lastly, some of this concept art was found on Peter Konig's portfolio website - [concise album], linking the "SOB" file references with the mysterious concept art.


So what do you think? What is Valve going to show us at E3? GDC 2012 also starts this coming Monday, and it appears that Valve will have a rather large presence at that event as well, so maybe we'll get an early taste of things to come.


As always, stay tuned!

 

[Mogi67]

IF ITS NOT HALF-LIFE 3 IM GONNA CUT MY DICK OFF

 

[crazydog]

IF ITS NOT HALF-LIFE 3 IM GONNA CUT MY DICK OFF

If it's not Half-Life 3 I'm gonna cut his dick off.

 

[SpotEnemyBoats]

Watch, it will be a Day of Defeat remake.

 

[crazydog]

Watch, it will be a Day of Defeat remake.

Day Of Defeat: Global Offensive, you say?

 

[rjthrog]

I would gladly take a new DOD game. But I think I'm one of the few gamers that still enjoys WW2 games.

 

[Higlac]

It's going to be a kart based spin off game.

 

[ríomhaire]

I think it would be silly of Valve to announce any new games right now when they should be building hype for the two they already have coming out. There's even a name for it, the Osborne effect.

More than likely it'll just be big picture mode and some for info about CSGO/Dota 2.

 

[Tagaziel]

Uh, this wouldn't qualify for the Osborne Effect rims, because HL3 isn't going to damage the sales of CS:GO and DOTA2, as they are products aimed at different audiences. One is a competitive shooter, the other a, well, DOTA game, while HL3 is a predominantly singleplayer title.

Personally, I think this'd be the optimal time to announce HL3, since interest in it has been revived lately.

 

[ríomhaire]

True the products won't directly compete with each other but people only have so much attention. They're going to want to generate hype and announcing a new game could definitely overshadow the other two, even if they are fundamentally different there will be overlap of interest and would distract from the current two things they're trying to promote.

 

[<RJMC>]

left4dead 3

 

[Insano]

I would love L4D3. Then again, I'm a sucker for everything Valve produces.

 

[sixteenth]

Half-Life 2: Episode 2: The Shepard Chronicles: Part 1

 

[FrostedxB]

Portal 3 or Ricochet 2.

 

[SpotEnemyBoats]

I think it would be silly of Valve to announce any new games right now when they should be building hype for the two they already have coming out. There's even a name for it, the Osborne effect.

More than likely it'll just be big picture mode and some for info about CSGO/Dota 2.

I'm pretty sure CS:GO will be old news, and E3 isn't the right venue for Dota 2. Why would they set a private room for those games that already in public beta's?

 

[Tollbooth Willie]

Ricochet 2.

This is the only good thing Valve could ever make happen.




MAKE IT HAPPEN GAY BEN

 

[Mr Stabby]

Day of defeat: modern warfare.

 

[tabernumse]

Valve introducing: Left4Dead HATS!

No, but seriously, it's gotta be HL3.. I mean, imagine the fan rage if it is not!

 

[Cunni]

I'm hoping it's a full on Half Life sequel!! None of this episodic stuff, especially after such a long time! ~20 hours of gameplay! *starts stuffing cash into mattress for a new computer*

 

[Shem]

IF ITS NOT HALF-LIFE 3 IM GONNA CUT MY DICK OFF

As if you even have one.

 

[BabyHeadCrab]

Watch, it will be a Day of Defeat remake.

...that would be sweet! With SP and shit. Hell yeah.

 

[<RJMC>]

gunman chronicles 2

 

[ríomhaire]

Prospero.

 

[MFL]

Descent 4.

 

[Cogen]

I'll be happy with either HL3 or the new space-themed IP.

I've been longing for a great space game ever since I fell in love with Freelancer nearly a decade ago. I'd be over the moon if it was something like that. The only popular alternative I'm currently aware of is Eve Online, and I refuse to pay monthly for a game.

 

[Azax]

If it's not Half-Life 3 I'm gonna cut his dick off.

if its not a half life / portal merger game (all the signs point to this) ill cut all our dicks off.....

 

[Ennui]

Maybe it's... a Valve-designed CONSOLE called the Steam Box that can play PC games?

http://www.theverge.com/2012/3/2/2840932/exclusive-valve-steam-box-gaming-console

Dunno how credible that article is but if that rumor is true then hawt damn that's what E3 is about.

 

[BabyHeadCrab]

I hope it's not called the "Steam Box" if this is true, that would be a rather unfortunate name.

 

[SpotEnemyBoats]

...that would be sweet! With SP and shit. Hell yeah.

I wouldn't mind this, an updated version of the engine that Portal 2 and Dear Ether used, new weapons, remake of old maps? Shit would be so cash.

Maybe it's... a Valve-designed CONSOLE called the Steam Box that can play PC games?

http://www.theverge.com/2012/3/2/2840932/exclusive-valve-steam-box-gaming-console

Dunno how credible that article is but if that rumor is true then hawt damn that's what E3 is about.

I agree with BHC, that would be a terrible name. And I'm building a new PC soon, so I couldn't care less. :/

EDIT: Then again, I could hook that baby up to my 56" LCD LG TV.

 

[DEATHMASTER]

Already have the Steam box. It's called a pc.

 

[YouKnow]

...portal merger game (all the signs point to this)...

http://gamerant.com/portal-2-interview-half-life-3-jw-75106/

GR: From the design standpoint of Portal 2, were you are thinking in your mind, “if we were going to make a Half-Life 3, how would Portal 2 tie into that main story line?”

EW: Yes, to a certain extent, you don’t want to do something that is going to screw up Half-Life 3. So I can tell you that Chell is not going to blow up the Earth by the end of Portal 2. You want to leave something there. But having said that, we do the linkage and do some references but we kind of considered, at least Portal writers do, [that] if you think of it as the X-Files, Half-Life is the ongoing serious story with the characters of X-Files. Then X-Files would have these absurd one-off episodes. Portal is a self-contained thing and that’s the Aperture Funhouse of Science, you know?

http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/04/28/valve-on-portal-2-spoiler-interview-part-two/

RPS: Talking of Left 4 Dead, I’m so keen to start spreading the rumour that GLaDOS created the corpses in L4D. That line in the game, where she says she’s going to start reanimating corpses.

Jay: You conspiracy theorist.

Chet: There’s enough Half-Life concerns and tie-ins.

RPS: But don’t you think it’s interesting, that desire, that Stephen King-style idea that at a certain point all these worlds come together, people love that. It adds a weird tangibility to your fiction. You can see why people chase it.

Chet: Yeah, that’s always a cool thing. But equally handcuffing yourself to provide that isn’t necessarily an intelligent choice.

RPS: But at the same time, people are so desperate for, say, portal guns in Episode 3. People are craving for the crossovers. Is it not tempting to meet those cravings?

Jay: I think it’s more fun to see the creativity of the fanbase. If you go onto deviantART or something like that, the character that they’ve turned Chell into… As we said earlier, Chell is an avatar, but what they’ve turned her into and reflected onto her – that’s one of the most heartwarming things to see?

Chet: It’s heartwarming?

Jay: Well, not heartwarming. What’s the word that’s less silly?

Chet: But, “heartwarming”?

Jay: Encouraging? Inspiring?

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-03-10-portal-2-how-valve-opened-up-portal-2

Eurogamer: There's crossover between the Portal and Half-Life universes, isn't there?

Erik Wolpaw: They both take place in the same universe, although we think of Portal as taking place in Aperture Science, which is this absurd bubble buried in the ground where anything goes, to a certain extent.

Internally we think of it it, if it's the X-Files, Half-Life is the meta, ongoing story and Portal games are the self-contained, funny, absurd episodes.

Doesn't seem like it to me, but who knows? Maybe they've changed their minds.

 

[Azax]

http://gamerant.com/portal-2-interview-half-life-3-jw-75106/



http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2011/04/28/valve-on-portal-2-spoiler-interview-part-two/



http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2011-03-10-portal-2-how-valve-opened-up-portal-2



Doesn't seem like it to me, but who knows? Maybe they've changed their minds.

Fingers crossed they have, if done well it would be insane

 

[dogboy73]

This could be any number of thigns from Valve. What about this rumoured console featured in the story posted after this one? The Half Life 3 t-shirt gives me hope. But is that for real or a possible fake? If it is real then it obviously means the long awaited Episode 3 has gone out the window (as I predicted it had, in favour of Half Life 3, a couple of years ago).

 

[Azax]

This could be any number of thigns from Valve. What about this rumoured console featured in the story posted after this one? The Half Life 3 t-shirt gives me hope. But is that for real or a possible fake? If it is real then it obviously means the long awaited Episode 3 has gone out the window (as I predicted it had, in favour of Half Life 3, a couple of years ago).

I agree with this that episode 3 is probably "out of the window" as it has been so long, I also think that the ending to EP2 was the perfect place to leave half life 2 as it was an amazing cliff hanger with them now in-rout to an aperture science vessel (the borealis) kind of supports the idea that the two games may have a common sequel. That may be why they choose not to do episode 3 and instead flesh out the portal back-story ready for the two games to "meet"

In summery I don’t think episode 3 is going to happen, it will either be half life 3 or some new title that is a merger of the two... maybe black aperture haha

 

[DEATH eVADER]

Day Of Defeat: Global Offensive, you say?

Day of Defeat: Pacific Offensive. I always thought the DoD franchise was lacking in island hopping gameplay

Its very hard to give a console a name with a theme based around Valves and Pipes, perhaps they would go with the Half-Life theme? The Reactor or Dark Core springs to mind. The chassis could look sciency or high tech, unlike the Xbox 360s sleek-contemporary and Playstation 3's George Forman designs.

But then, they may of just decided to produce new controllers for X360/PS3/PC to accomodate players that prefer controllers over mouse/keyboard, but which has a trackball for precision aiming in no aiming-assist games. I'm guessing CS:GO is one of those games.

 

[sharkyshu]

Oh well here comes that time of the year again ..... Now seriously , I think that Valve needs to generate some hype again . I don't think that CS:GO or DOTA2 are enough. Sooooooo HL is my guess but then again it was my guess for some time now . Personally I think that we are pretty much done with Portal games for now , so I don't thnik that Portal 3 is going to be at E3. Either it is the next HL or a completly new game.

 

[Tagaziel]

True the products won't directly compete with each other but people only have so much attention. They're going to want to generate hype and announcing a new game could definitely overshadow the other two, even if they are fundamentally different there will be overlap of interest and would distract from the current two things they're trying to promote.

Sell it as Orange Box 2 then.

 

[tomemozok]

It would be nice to see them make prospero a reality,since it was the sister game for HL.
But i guess it's HL3(yes,not an episode,but a full sequel),because if it isn't,the HL franchise will suffer from the rage of the fans (including myself here).

 

[Danny_ZQ]

Half-Life 2: Episode 2: Episode 1

 

[John1986]

i really really really really really hope's it's a new Half-Life 2 but will also not be upset if it's left 4 dead 3 etiher but still