Crystal ball: Hype surrounding the likelihood that Valve was placing the ending touches on Half-Life 3 reached a fever pitch final yr earlier than fading. A contemporary batch of data-mining outcomes and feedback from Valve this week has reignited anticipation, nevertheless. Whereas it stays unclear what exactly the corporate is engaged on, it seems to be utterly in contrast to its present secure of live-service video games.
Valve hasn’t provided substantial particulars a few new Half-Life challenge since launching Half-Life: Alyx in 2020, however a fast name-drop has revived debate over whether or not Half-Life 3 is in superior improvement. Code not too long ago added to Impasse and different Valve video games additionally sheds extra mild on the sport’s options, if it certainly exists.
The codename HLX has appeared within the firm’s code since early 2024, however Valve didn’t point out it publicly till a Q&A session at GameSoundCon 2026 on Wednesday. Composer and sound designer Mike Morasky confirmed that Impasse and HLX every have customized HDR implementations.
– Tyler “Hype Service provider” McVicker (@Tyler_McV) October 22, 2026
Fellow sound designer David Feise, seated subsequent to him, could possibly be heard whispering “good work,” and later quipped that Morasky had solely mentioned HLX as soon as, suggesting the point out wasn’t meant to be public. This is not the primary time Morasky has referenced future Half-Life tasks.
Then, on Thursday, well-known Valve information miner Tyler McVicker launched his newest video describing how current Supply 2 engine updates for Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, and Impasse would possibly relate to HLX.
Counter-Strike 2, Dota 2, and Impasse are multiplayer video games, however a number of experiences from McVicker final yr outlined parts of code mentioning techniques usually related to single-player shooters, equivalent to AI-controlled enemies and ideas from prior Half-Life video games.
Different options that appear distinctive to HLX embody procedural degree alteration, ray tracing, and AMD FSR assist. On this week’s video, McVicker additionally described options associated to the Mix gunship and different enemies, in addition to dynamic rain audio and new cut-scene animation expertise.
The information miner has additionally been monitoring Valve’s commit price, which spiked after the current Supply 2 updates. Whereas some observers would possibly suspect AI coding instruments are behind the uptick, prior experiences lead McVicker to imagine the corporate has been utilizing AI instruments since not less than 2024. The character and extent of AI use inside Valve stays unclear, nevertheless it’s attainable that HLX or one thing else is behind the elevated exercise.
