Marc Laidlaw isn't a name that many people know of, but millions have experienced his work. He is one of the original writers at Valve, with experience writing the story and even working on the level design of the original Half-Life. He would later work on expansions for the title, and later played a big role in Half-Life 2's creation.
He's now 56 years old, and feels he's "too old" to continue working at Valve. He announced his departure in unorthodox fashion after receiving an emotional e-mail from a die-hard Half-Life fan who has been wondering where Half-Life 3 is. Marc Laidlaw replied with an elaborate answer, which included him confirming his identity, stating that he has fully departed from Valve, and that he has no information on Half-Life 3.
That last note is one that bears the greatest importance to many gamers. Half-Life 3 is a game that has been anticipated for more than a decade, as both of its predecessors are among the most critically acclaimed and celebrated games of all-time. Sadly, the franchise has stood at a standstill since October 2007 when Half-Life 2: Episode 2 debuted.
Since that time, Valve has become preoccupied with Steam, Dota 2, Portal 2, HTC Vive and several other projects as Half-Life 3 has continued to become an even greater question in the minds of gamers while falling farther from reality.
Many suggest that Valve hasn't found enough advancement in technology to make Half-Life 3 as impactfully innovative as previous games. While virtual reality has been brought up as something that could push the series to the next level, its high cost of entry will guarantee it has a limited install base, or at least in the short-term future. That will certainly be a factor if and when Valve considers constructing its most anticipated game of all-time around the device.
