Half-Life 2: Episode 3 first gameplay appears online

So, I’m gonna lead with the bad news first so you don’t get ahead of yourselves.

Yes, you can watch genuine gameplay from Half-Life 2: Episode 3 right now. It’s not a mod or a fan-made project - this is real footage from a Valve-developed sequel to Half-Life 2: Episode 2.

But here’s the bad news: this doesn’t mean Half-Life 2: Episode 3 is actually coming out, nor will it be playable in any way.

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of Half-Life 2, Valve has been pumping out a whole slew of freebies.

First things first in case you aren’t aware, Half-Life 2, Half-Life 2: Episode One, Half-Life 2: Episode Two, and Half-Life 2: Lost Coast are all now free on Steam until 6 pm today.

If you’re curious how to claim all four games and all the new extra content added alongside them, check out our write-up about it here.

Now, on to the Half-Life 2: Episode 3 details.

To commemorate Half-Life 2 turning 20, Valve recently uploaded the “Half-Life 2: 20th Anniversary Documentary” on YouTube.

It’s over two hours long and it is absolutely packed with little tidbits and info regarding the development of the game and its sequels, and I highly suggest giving the whole thing a watch.

However, if you don’t have two hours spare, the point in the documentary where they get to the juicy details regarding Half-Life 2: Episode 3 is right here at 1:53:03.

The team behind Half-Life 2 and even Gabe Newell himself offer up a bunch of info regarding Episode 3’s conception and eventual cancellation.

They also include some concept art for the unreleased game, alongside some gameplay footage of its prototype. The gameplay footage shows off a new enemy type, a brand new ice gun, and a few details regarding its setting.

So, what happened? Why did Valve not finish Episode 3, even though it was supposedly (according to one of its developers) “six months” into development?

That’s unfortunately pretty simple to explain. Valve was busy, and Gabe Newell says that he didn’t want to push a half-baked project out the door and cop out on their “obligation to gamers”.

Then by the time the team was ready to tackle Episode 3, after work on their previous title Left 4 Dead had concluded, they all agreed that the game was now too overdue.

Valve believed it was too late to finish the game when the engine they’d used to develop the prototype was now outdated.

Sad, yes, but ultimately… it sounds like it was the right decision.