If this is actually Half Life 3... it kinda makes sense they waited for all the hype to die down, for it to fall out of meme culture, before releasing it. Even five years ago, the expectations for this game were astronomical. There was absolutely no way a game made by mere mortals could ever live up to that kind of hype. Now, people have chilled to the point they can actually appreciate Half Life 3 on its own merits.
Which is a long-winded way to say my bet is Half Life 3's been done for at least 5 years now. Valve's just waiting on the right moment to pull the trigger.
With the ending of Alyx, I don’t think HL3 is that unlikely anymore.
…but I also doubt that’s what this is. The multiplayer game they were working on was (afaik) a VR thing, and I think they’ve abandoned VR too in favor of the steam deck.
It appears the romans may have sent a wooden rocket too the moon. It appears that Jimmy Carter may have been the son of God. It appears something may have occured.