Sequels. You gotta love them. In the next 6 months we can look forward to everything from Bioshock 2 to Gran Turismo 5 to God of War 3, Crackdown 2 and even the thirteenth instalment of the Final Fantasy franchise. And yet one sequel seems to be getting pushed more and more into the shadows, not because we don’t want it, but because we literally know very little if anything at all about it. I’m speaking about Half Life 2: Episode 3.

Details are incredibly scarce at the moment regarding the third and final episode and Valve seem to be holding their secrets extremely close to their chests. For a while one could have assumed that this episode was shelved or put on the back burner by the developers. Episode 2 was released towards the end of 2007 after all. As we approach 2010 one can be forgiven for thinking that Episode 3 is missing in action.

Described by Valve’s marketing director Doug Lombardi as a ‘high ambitious’ project, what we do know is that Episode 3 is defiantly being worked on as we speak. This point was reiterated by Valve’s outspoken Gabe Newel in August. Other than these fleeting references and a few scraps of concept artwork, Valve have literally given us nothing to work with. If you played Episode 2 and got to ‘that ending’, then the sooner we get info on Episode 3, the better. Based on the artwork we can assume that icy and snow lined terrains will be introduced into the title in some way. We can also safely assume that the Borealis, the ship which mysteriously vanished during experiments similar to the Resonance Cascade which featured so prominently in the first Half Life, will play a major role. What exactly the Borealis is is an area for intense speculation and contention. Portal provides a clue, suggesting that the Borealis and Aperture Science laboratories have something of a reciprocal relationship. What the ship represents or contains is a mystery but it can be assumed that it contains a powerful secret which holds a particular pertinence in the Half Life universe. We know that the Borealis now lies in an Arctic location and the word “B-EALIS” can be seen in the released concept art. The O and the R appear to be covered by what we can only assume is some kind of Combine construction or technology. Other than that it would appear that Episode 3 will include a deaf character in some way put no other information regarding for example, gameplay dynamics or aesthetic have been released by Valve.

So therefore, I ask the question, why so hush hush Valve? What exactly are you working on? Is the delay off putting for Half Life fans? In the last two and a half years since Episode 2, the gaming landscape and what people have come to expect of their games has changed considerably and titles such as Metal Gear Solid 4, Uncharted 2 and Bioshock have raised the stakes and have since become household gaming names. It would appear that Half Life hasn’t been forgotten by any stretch of the imagination but this wait is becoming unbearable. Definitely a case of out of sight but not out of mind.

Valve has one of the most proven and celebrated developer track records and I have no doubt that Episode 3 will be an exceptional game upon its release. But with a games market becoming more and more saturated with revolutionary and beautiful looking next generation titles, is Episode 3 just going to roll with the big boys or beat them at their own game, the way Half Life titles always have?