Orange Box pre-load begins

By Tom Bramwell Published 4 October, 2007

Portal and Episode Two files.

Valve has started to pump up the volume along with the stereo and pre-load files for Half-Life 2: Episode Two and Portal.

If you have pre-ordered The Orange Box on Steam, next time you restart Steam you will discover that secret files are being downloaded, ready to activate on 10th October when the game goes on sale.

Those are files for Episode Two, the latest instalment in the Half-Life episodic trilogy, and Portal, the excellent new first-person puzzle game, with the other Orange Box title, Team Fortress 2, already available as a beta release for pre-ordering types.

Valve currently flogs Orange Box at USD 49.95 on Steam with a 10 percent discount because they love you.

Retail releases of the PC and Xbox 360 versions of The Orange Box, which also includes Half-Life 2 and Half-Life 2: Episode One as bonuses, are planned for 12th October in Europe - a date reconfirmed to us by Valve's Doug Lombardi earlier this week after distributor EA's press website erroneously listed it as 19th October.

For more on The Orange Box, check out our PC and Xbox 360 gamepages. A PS3 version is due out in the near future.

Picture of Tom.

About Tom Bramwell

Tom is Operations director of Eurogamer Network and Editor-at-Large of Eurogamer.net. He joined the company in February 2000.

Read more articles from Tom by visiting the Tom Bramwell archive page.

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Comments (37) Latest comment 4 years ago

Comments threads automatically close after 30 days, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • L42yB #1 4 years ago

    I want this *sooo* badly :S

    Oh, and FIRST! ;p
    Edited by 1 at 04/10/07 @ 09:39

  • dolphan #2 4 years ago

    You're telling me - and I have to wait till flipping December, since the laptop I use at uni hasn't got a cat in hell's chance of running it.

  • NOSAVIOUR #3 4 years ago

    Oct 12th in europe. Did I read that right?!

  • J.C #4 4 years ago

    A PS3 version is due out in the near future. oh dear.

  • neuroniky #5 4 years ago

    Still undecided on which version to get, the PC version has better controls for sure, but my PC is not *that much* up to date, so I may be missing too many details from Episode 2...

  • DonnieDarko333 #6 4 years ago

    12th October in Europe?!!!!!!!!!!!!

    YEAH!

  • kevwinter #7 4 years ago

    I'm considering getting the orange box on 360 but am concerned what will happen when episode 3 is released. I hope they won't release another box set with all the current stuff as well as the added episode. I imagine the part exchange value on the orange box would have dropped significantly by then.

  • robg #8 4 years ago

    Any chance of the original promised deal (Episode 2 for the same price as Episode 1 and also TF2 and Portal)? To be honest, being told I'll be able to give away HL2 and Episode 1 to my friends does not fill me with joy - anyone I know who remotely wants to play first person shooters already has HL2 - it more fills me with the feeling that I'm being ripped off and assured that it's a good thing. You know, spend a bit more because it's for charity, that sort of feeling.

    But instead of the profits being passed on to a good cause, they're just funding people who pay a tiny amount per MB to upload their game to me and so wouldn't lose out in any way by bundling the original deal. I assume Valve are counting on enough people to pay for the full Orange Box, but who will only download TF2, Portal and Ep2, keeping their bandwidth bill the same whilst boosting profits.

    Now I know everyone loves Valve (I do too) and so I'm going to get flamed for being tight or whatever - fair enough, it's still an ok deal. But Valve seem to want us to treat it as though it's as good a deal as it was when it was originally announced, when it's nowhere near that. It's worth paying for, yes, but please - a) don't think this is some sort of awesome deal for people who already have HL2 and Ep1 - it isn't and b) Valve - just release the original deal. Ep1 came out for about £20ish, I think I might have got it for £15 or something, I forget. That's the amount you said we'd be paying, and that is an awesome deal.

    In other news: Fortress Forever's rather fun :)

  • CargoCult #9 4 years ago

    You'll be able to buy Episode Two on its own on Steam for $30 (or something like that) - it does cost more than Episode One, but it's also much much longer. With lots more additional content. I played it through back in June, and was very impressed.

    But if you're a cheapskate, own Episode One and are still looking for some Half-Lifey goodness, there's always my free MINERVA mod. Third (and fourth) chapter thingies just released! Enjoy this blatant, non-commercial plug! ;-)

  • neilka #10 4 years ago

    HL2 and Ep1 are freebies when you buy the Orange Box. You'll be able to buy Ep2 on its own when it's released.

  • UncleLou #11 4 years ago

    Any chance of the original promised deal (Episode 2 for the same price as Episode 1 and also TF2 and Portal)?

    Um, that deal was never "promised". What was promised was the black box which has been canned, which doesn't matter as the orange box costs as much as the black box was supposed to cost.

    I can't quite believe some people were seriously expecting to get Ep 2, TF2 and Portal for the price of one addon. O_O

  • Crea #12 4 years ago

    Fecking Steam *still* doesn't accept Maestro. And fecking PayPal is seriously damaging my calm.

    Feck.

  • DDevil #13 4 years ago

    October 12th? The day after my birthday :-)

  • mkreku #14 4 years ago

    I don't like Valve's version of episodic games. It's like trying to follow a TV-series where they show one episode per year. Impossible to remember what the hell was going on in the last episode!

  • paulf #15 4 years ago

    remember that the steam option is not neccesarily the cheapest - even with the weak dollar, after they add sales tax etc it can work out more expensive than buying from your favourite online retailer, as I found out with my last steam purchase :(

  • DonnieDarko333 #16 4 years ago

    Can we have some confirmation that it is October 12th 2007 for Europe please Eurogamer!

    Literally everywhere is stating October 19th 2007.

  • Mechstra #17 4 years ago

    "I can't quite believe some people were seriously expecting to get Ep 2, TF2 and Portal for the price of one addon. O_O"
    I dunno, with the exchange rates the way they are, I got the Orange Box (which includes 5 games, 2 of which I already own and now have two copies of, as well as Peggle Extreme) for 22 quid.

    Which I think is pretty damn cheap.

  • skillian #18 4 years ago

    But if you're a cheapskate, own Episode One and are still looking for some Half-Lifey goodness, there's always my free MINERVA mod. Third (and fourth) chapter thingies just released! Enjoy this blatant, non-commercial plug! ;-)

    W00t, new Minerva out now and Ep2 in a week or two!

    EG, a new Minerva episode deserves at least a little news story. I know it's "just" a mod, but it's the best single player HL2 mod released so far. You even reviewed it as part of a mod round-up recently.

  • Artemus #19 4 years ago

    So Ep 2 is finally coming out. Hasn't it been like 18 months since the first?

  • Rash' #20 4 years ago

    "A PS3 version is due out in the near future. oh dear."

    If Valve had the balls not to out source the PS3 version maybe there wouldn't be all this uncertainty around it. Personnally, though, I'm not too fussed. It will come this year, and the company won't short change their consumers with an inferior version, regardless of Gabe's views on PS3...
    Edited by 1 at 04/10/07 @ 11:29

  • FooAtari #21 4 years ago

    I do think Valve are kind of missing the point of "episodic" content, like mkreku said. I've yet to play EP1, so that and EP2 should be fun.

    However I'd rather they dropped the episode stuff and spent the next few years working on HL3

  • Freek #22 4 years ago

    "I can't quite believe some people were seriously expecting to get Ep 2, TF2 and Portal for the price of one addon. O_O"

    Because that's what Valve originally announced as the Black Box, 30 bucks.
    Orange Box was 60 but it came with HL2 and Episode One aswell.

    Later they axed that retail version of the Black Box with everybody assuming you could still get it over Steam, if you can't that would be a pretty shitty situation.

    Namely becuase they aren't 5 full games to begin with.
    HL 2 is, the rest are add ons. And that's not a bad thing, Valve wanted to do more smaller more experimental projects. But it's still bullshit to jack the price up after you anounced it and then go "But you can give away the games you already have".
    Edited by 1 at 04/10/07 @ 12:10

  • neilka #23 4 years ago

    "Valve currently flogs Orange Box at USD 49.95 on Steam with a 10 percent discount because they love you."

    And then 17.5% VAT added on because the government hates you.

  • bigbadbeasty #24 4 years ago

    TF2 for £25 is worth it, by itself!

  • Apologie #25 4 years ago

    I will buy it, half life is one of the best, if not the best fps to date.... just not sure about to buy it for my 360 or Ps3.

  • Schiraman #26 4 years ago

    @skillian

    I really agree, the 3rd and 4th chapters of Minverva: Metastasis being released really deserved a news article. It's a lot more news-worthy than most of the crap that EG reports.

    Fantastic stuff BTW, many thanks to CargoCult for producing an amazing mod!

    As for the Orange Box - it's odd that they cancelled the Black Box bundle, but OTOH the Orange Box is still a fantastic deal. Can't wait to play Ep2 :)

  • Daymare #27 4 years ago

    Hm, I wonder how many achievement will Orange Box for Xbox 360 have?

  • UncleLou #28 4 years ago

    Because that's what Valve originally announced as the Black Box, 30 bucks.
    Orange Box was 60 but it came with HL2 and Episode One aswell.

    No, they didn't - the black box was supposed to cost between 40 and 50 bucks, not 30 - in other words, what or only negligibly less than what the orange box costs now. Never have they said, nor raised the expectation, that you'd get Epsiode 2, Team Fortess 2 and Portal for 30 bucks.

  • JonFE #29 4 years ago

    Is it sad that I have both PC (through Steam) and x360 versions on order?
    Oct. 12th can't come soon enough...

  • ZuluHero #30 4 years ago

    how come everywhere says its on sale the 19th though? :S

  • muftak #31 4 years ago

    out on the 10th if you pre order on steam im all preloaded and losing sleep over TF2 what an amazing game Multiplayer GOTY

  • kevwinter #32 4 years ago

    @Daymare
    99 if this page is correct
    http://ww w.xbox360achievements.org/achie...

  • Triggerhappytel #33 4 years ago

    "I'm considering getting the orange box on 360 but am concerned what will happen when episode 3 is released. I hope they won't release another box set with all the current stuff as well as the added episode. I imagine the part exchange value on the orange box would have dropped significantly by then."

    Ofcourse it will have - it'll be another 18 to 24 months before Episode 3 is ready for release!!

  • Freek #34 4 years ago

    No, they didn't - the black box was supposed to cost between 40 and 50 bucks, not 30 - in other words, what or only negligibly less than what the orange box costs now. Never have they said, nor raised the expectation, that you'd get Epsiode 2, Team Fortess 2 and Portal for 30 bucks.

    Splitting hairs, point is they orignally anounced the cheap version and the expensive version, then canned one. Wich got people annoyed.

  • JavaJawaUK #35 4 years ago

    Awesome deal! My cheapskate mate will finally be able to get into HL2 and EP1 with the spare keys that I get.

  • kevwinter #36 4 years ago

    @triggerhappytel
    I know, thats what i was getting at. I already have HL2 and ep 1 on PC but want them on 360 to have fun getting the achievements but it would be frustrating if when episode 3 comes out if the only option is to buy yet another box set with everything they've made so far in.

    Thats why there's no way I'm buying the orange box until i know how they intended to release episode 3 for 360, I don't want to have to buy HL2 3 times in total.

  • Mechstra #37 4 years ago

    I very much doubt they'd make people buy everything that went before two times over. However Episode 3 is released, I'd be very surprised to see it bundled with HL2 and Ep 1+2 with no option for purchase without those.