Half-Life 2: Episode 3 code in Dota 2?

By Robert Purchese Published 20 September, 2011

G-man.

Code possibly belonging to Half-Life 2: Episode 3 has been spotted in the leaked beta client for Dota 2.

The lines of code are for something called "ep3". Take a leap and transform that to Episode 3, and the code suggests the project lives on.

Not only that, we're also given an insight into some weaponry - an ice gun, a flamethrower and a "weaponizer".

    /src/game/server/ep3/weapon_icegun.cpp /src/game/server/ep3/weaponizer_concrete.cpp /src/game/server/ep3/weaponizer_liquid.cpp /src/game/server/ep3/weaponizer_metal.cpp /src/game/server/ep3/weapon_flamethrower.cpp

Half-Life 2 was released in 2004; Episode 1 in 2006; Episode 2 in 2007.

Four years and many Valve games - Left 4 Dead, Left 4 Dead 2, Portal 2 - have passed since. And now Valve concentrates on Dota 2 and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive.

The absence of Half-Life 2: Episode 3 from Valve press releases, coupled with suggestions that the runaway success of Steam may have impeded Valve's game development, have led many to give up hope.

Has the boat sailed for Episode 3? Should Valve instead concentrate on Half-Life 3?

The Dota 2 beta client link comes from Vietnam. Lambda Generation has rounded up the data mined from the leak.

Half-Life 2: Episode 2.

Picture of Robert.

About Robert Purchese

Bertie is Eurogamer's Senior Staff Writer. When he's not hunting down news stories he's often found playing with his kids or gabbling about fantasy games and strange online worlds. @Clert on Twitter.

Read more articles from Robert by visiting the Robert Purchese archive page.

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Comments (33) Latest comment 5 months ago

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  • TheGuvernor #1 8 months ago



    1st!
    Oh, and Valve, hurry up, for christ's sake!

  • TrentTech #2 8 months ago

    Why is this a shock? They work from a central code base. Even back in the HL2 leak there was code from other their projects in there, such as TF2. The DOTA has Ep3 code in it is hardly "news", it's more like "obvious"

  • Ironlungs76 #3 8 months ago

    I'll believe it when I see it.

  • GamesProgrammer Verified Games Team Programmer, Eutechnyx Ltd. #4 8 months ago

    At best now were looking at 8 years for 4 episodes, 1 word Rubbish.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #5 8 months ago

    All this tells us is that Episode 3 was in development at some point, which stands to reason.

    I'm still holding out hope that Episode 3 (or HL3 concluding the episodes story) will be valve's next major boxed release. Counter strike doesn't look like it's had all that much work done on it, and DOTA is kind of its own thing, so it's not unrealistic to believe that elements of Valve's single-player FPS team have moved on to the next Half-Life after Portal 2.
    Edited by MENTAL1ST at 20/09/11 @ 14:31

  • Goodfella #6 8 months ago

    They have to be either working on ep3 or Half Life 3, they'd be utterly mental not to.

  • MENTAL1ST Verified Senior Software Engineer, Picsel UK Ltd. #7 8 months ago

    At best now were looking at 8 years for 4 episodes, 1 word Rubbish.

    I don't think that's very fair. What would be fair to say is "You can't make an episodic AAA first-person FPS".

  • bf #8 8 months ago

    I thought the episodes where "HL3", might have got that wrong though.

  • StooMonster #9 8 months ago

    @slick_loose

    But it will be perfect.

  • deadstoned #10 8 months ago

    I just hope they release a Half Life 3/ episode 3 soon. The Episode 2 ending was great, I need to know what happens next in the story xD

  • danjfor #11 8 months ago

    It almost feels like Valve's embarrassed by Half-Life now, like a big celebrity ashamed of his older work. Everybody's clamouring for them to go back to their roots, and they're all like "No, we don't DO that shit anymore! It's arty puzzle games now! F2P and RTS! I mean, a game where you just shoot baddies in levels? Psh!" It's like Alan Partridge and A-HA!

  • geeza2020 #12 8 months ago

    I still dont think the great leap in tech has happened yet that will allow Valve to make HL3. They are clearly waiting for something a long the lines of the ground breaking physics engine they brought in for HL2 before they will make HL3 in order for it to stand out from the rest of the FPS crowd.

    Its telling as to how poor the level of innovation in FPS design is that HL2 is still fecking amazing to play today. If Valve were to release HL3 now, I dont think it would have the impact Valve want. Maybe when theres a new console generation (with all the extra processing grunt for Valve to harness and wow us with) they will pull something amazing out of the bag, but until then, I cant see Valve doing anything with the Half-Life universe.

  • Batfink #13 8 months ago

    Given that Valve's management strategy is "if enough staff think it's cool, it gets done" then the status of new Half Life can't really be pinned down. If Valve staff are having more fun making Portal 2, Dota 2, L4D, CS:Go etc. etc. then Half Life doesn't move forward. If I'd been working on Half Life for 10 years, I'd want a break. Maybe when they've got it out of their systems, working on HL again will be cool again and the project will move forward. As it is, I doubt it's getting much attention.

  • WAusJackBauer #14 8 months ago

    I can't be bothered reading through all the comments if someone has already pointed this out although I'm not 100% certain about it, but I think Gabe Newell said episode 1 and 2 should of been called HL3 ep 1 and 2. If not, then I know for certain he said episode 3 is infact HL3.

    Anyway based on the fact that we're hearing nothing on it, I think its save to assume Valve are waiting for the PS4 / Next box until they release HL3. They're probably just coming up with story ect atm and then they're gonna wait for next gen to make the source engine nuts.

  • Toothball #15 8 months ago

    I've still not made my way thought Half Life, should really get back to it some day.

  • gruntboy #16 8 months ago

    Does anyone even "1st!" on comments pages anymore? Thought that went out with the ark.

  • username84 #17 8 months ago

    I'm happy to wait. As long as the longer I wait the better it gets.

  • username84 #18 8 months ago

    Anyone know where I can get some Ugg boots for $50?

  • WAusJackBauer #19 8 months ago

    The amount of time between HL1 and HL2 was 6 years, its the same thing here basically. Sure the wait is annoying, but long development time will mean it will be a really fresh experience like HL2 was when it came out.

  • th3duckst3r #20 8 months ago

    re-do half life with all the bells and whistles.

  • Mr_Wizard #21 8 months ago

    Is the formatting completely broken on this page for anyone else using IE9?

  • Acrid #22 8 months ago

    @TheGuvernor

    23rd!

  • Inmediasress #23 8 months ago

    Somehow Valve is like Bioware recently.
    I agree they are somehow ashamed of HL and don't want to continue it.
    The same as Bioware with DA basically they try to forget that it even existed and concentrate entirely on their "new" action immersion whatever gameplay and pretend like they never done anything else.

  • Cadence #24 8 months ago

    Yeah formatting is fuxxored.

  • FogHeart #25 8 months ago

    I always thought I'd see the end of Half Life during the first half of my life...

  • shadowdogg #26 8 months ago

    Its a trick like the cake

  • octavedoctor #27 8 months ago

    A Nice HD remake of the first game on console would be nice in the meantime...

    Wasn't someone doing a source based mod around it?

  • Zaiz #28 8 months ago

    @Octave

    There's a mod. The mod's team is a bunch of unprofessional drama queens by the sound of it, or they just hate their fans that much.

  • GooseUK #29 8 months ago

    "Has the boat sailed for Episode 3? Should Valve instead concentrate on Half-Life 3"

    Although Valve themselves consider EP1, EP2, and EP3 to 'be' Half-Life 3 .

    When will people realise this ffs, sick of hearing blah blah HL3 , why are they making EP3. Deal with it.

  • HolyJebus #30 8 months ago

    Of course Valve aren't embarrassed by HL, they're up there with the greatest games ever.

    They are the anti Acti/EA and will release it when it is a step above everything else that is out there, perhaps waiting for improvements in tech as previously mentioned.

    I'm quite happy to wait as I don't want a new HL every two years or so, we'd all be sick of it by now if they had done that.

    There will definitely be another HL so just be patient and play the old ones again if you fancy. Everyone's a winner.

  • orakio #31 8 months ago

    Don't forget that portal 2 is/was a half-life game, more or less. So it's not like they're abandoning the HL universe, suffice to say they're embracing it.

  • TheGuvernor #32 8 months ago

    38th! Awesome!

    38th is the new 1st

  • akusteel #33 5 months ago

    @GooseUK

    "Although Valve themselves consider EP1, EP2, and EP3 to 'be' Half-Life 3 ."

    In what time exactly have you seen Valve publishing Half-Life 2: Episode 3 ? .. because if they did, i must have missed it all together.