Half-Life 2: Ep. 2 delayed 'til summer '07?

  • By thorsen-ink, GameSpot
  • Posted Nov 11, 2006 12:36 am GMT

Source: UK game-news Web site Computer & Video Games. What we heard: Back in July, Valve Software CEO Gabe Newell made a surprise appearance at Electronic Arts' Summer Showcase. He was there to help unveil several new games that EA would distribute: the dimension-hopping shooter Portal, the...

Source: UK game-news Web site Computer & Video Games.

What we heard: Back in July, Valve Software CEO Gabe Newell made a surprise appearance at Electronic Arts' Summer Showcase. He was there to help unveil several new games that EA would distribute: the dimension-hopping shooter Portal, the resurrected Team Fortress 2, and the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 versions of Half-Life 2: Episode Two.

At the time, Valve said all the new games would go on sale alongside the PC version of Half-Life 2: Episode Two in the fourth quarter of 2006. That didn't last long, though. Just over a month later, Valve's director of marketing, Doug Lombardi, revealed that all versions of Episode Two would now launch in the first quarter of 2007. "It's just sort of classic Valve being overly aggressive on our dates," Lombardi told the Eurogamer Web site, a delay that he later confirmed himself.

Now, it appears that the game's release has slipped yet again. According to Computer & Video Games, Lombardi now says Valve is "now targeting summer 2007" for the release of Episode Two, which comes with Team Fortress 2 and Portal. (The PS3 and 360 versions of the game also include the original Half-Life 2 and Episode One.) No reason was given for the delay, but knowing Valve's perfectionism--and history of missing deadlines--it wasn't entirely unexpected.

The official story: Lombardi, who seems to spend a lot of time in Europe these days, proved too elusive to be asked for comment.

Bogus or not bogus?: C&VG is usually pretty solid, so this looks not bogus. Also, don't be surprised if Episode Two ends up on many gamers' 2007 holiday shopping lists.

245 Comments

  • jesus_knight

    Posted Jul 14, 2007 10:04 am GMT

    very bad new for people who havent played half life 2 and are planning on buying the 360 version, that includes me!

  • Bogdanx

    Posted Jun 21, 2007 6:25 am GMT

    Hal-life 2 epidode 2 will apear with the new Diamond Multimedia Radeon HD 2900 XT Video Card (512MB, PCI Express x16, Dual DVI, VIVO - MPN: 2900XT512PE) .Price Range: $399.99 - $486.99 from 12 Sellers .With this card u olso get a Black Box dvd featuring Half-Life 2 episode 2 and the modes Portal & Team Fortres.And for all you Portal mode lovers if you realy want to experment it there is a alpha mode of it released,but f you are not satified and you have by chance Unreal Tournament 2004 instaled..they olso made a portal mode thats uber nice.Anyway I await bouth the game and video card cuz they are bouth uber nice!

  • costin16

    Posted Jun 7, 2007 1:34 am GMT

    i can't wait !

  • elmecca

    Posted Feb 21, 2007 7:06 pm GMT

    Seriously wut the **** . wasnt all the episode thing meant to release the game faster???its all bull$hyt ,and WHYY are they bringing the game to the next gen consoles?? tht just keeps slowing down the release!!!

  • CPUPO

    Posted Jan 26, 2007 12:11 am GMT

    If this delay is for asure quality I can wait.

  • _Half_Life_

    Posted Jan 25, 2007 5:33 pm GMT

    It'll be worth it.

  • BernardBrook

    Posted Jan 21, 2007 6:05 am GMT

    Seems to me that one of the reasons for moving to an episodic mode was that gamers get access to new HL2 content more often. So whats happening, was it just a ruse to get us to pay even more for less content?

    Time moves on and if they are not carefull people will loose interest in what is now a fairly old game.

  • its_toby

    Posted Jan 20, 2007 12:38 pm GMT

    aw hell...im sick of WAITING!!!

  • jamesgc

    Posted Jan 14, 2007 3:08 am GMT

    With Half - Life 2: Episode 2, Team Fortress 2, Portal, Half - Life 2 for X - Box 360 and Playstation 3 as well as l4d. Maybe Valve is taking on more then they can handle. I think they should focus on one thing at a time or maybe hire more people to make sure deadlines are meat when they say they will come out. or they could just shut there mouths until they can be certain when they will know when the games will be finished.

  • vBONESv

    Posted Jan 10, 2007 2:47 am GMT

    I think they should get the next gen versions of HL2 out and hold the episodes back for later downloads if they need more time - the content is generous enough already with TF2 and Portal included.

  • ldiego08

    Posted Jan 9, 2007 11:12 am GMT

    Well... it would gimme time to buy a new graph card.. LOL!

  • GentleSenator

    Posted Jan 4, 2007 5:37 pm GMT

    seriously, by the time "episode 3" comes along, this game will be ridiculously outdated. man alive

  • Fixer38

    Posted Jan 3, 2007 6:10 pm GMT

    Its sad news but Valve has not disapointed us yet in theyr games so lets just enjoy what valve gave us for now. And trust me,time will go so fast that summer will come in no time.

  • redfop

    Posted Dec 25, 2006 4:30 pm GMT

    god i want these games so much 4 my 360 becouse i have a mac (and no an intel on just a regular G5) so i have no other way to play it except at gamefrog ( a north carolina thing suckas its 5 bux fro an hour to play like any game) so yea its pretty gay it better b **** good

  • daprdann

    Posted Dec 25, 2006 1:57 pm GMT

    If there is going to be a half life 3 it will be in the far ,far future.
    I believe Valve will keep improving their current engine,such as refineing facial expressions,improving the lighting and physics.
    Episodic gaming is here to stay,and Valve has a good head start on the rest of the gaming industry.They [Valve] aren't going to give that up to create a new game engine.
    They should however ,hire more people to get this thing to its full potential.

  • GamerErman2001

    Posted Dec 24, 2006 4:22 pm GMT

    Hey, Valve's acting like Nintendo now. Remember when Twilight Princess was supposed to be out at Xmas '05?

  • lantus

    Posted Dec 15, 2006 11:27 am GMT

    It will be worth it in the long run, I have yet to be disappointed with anything I have bought from them.

  • iliasark

    Posted Dec 13, 2006 8:40 am GMT

    can't believe this. First disappointment i got was from from Call Of Duty 3 sad news, now this.And if this delay is due to the console ''alignment'' they are try to make, then it's really unfair. PC MUST BE IN 1st PRIORITY, at least for HL. Cannot turn their backs to the PC gamers just because people are getting crazy for the PS3 or whatever...I could morally accept such a long term to wait only if they would be preparing a HL3 supporting DX10 or with totally renewed engine or something.... Well, cant do nothing about it. Hope to remember who is Gordon Freeman when the game will be released. :-D

  • GrrrboyMC

    Posted Dec 7, 2006 1:16 pm GMT

    I agree with simboes and the others that have said it. Why should the pc fans who have supported Valve be kept waiting for the consoles? Is there definitely gonna be a HL3? If there is, will it be before 2020?

  • Joe24x7

    Posted Nov 17, 2006 3:07 am GMT

    hah it's the tf2 curse

  • simboes

    Posted Nov 16, 2006 10:15 pm GMT

    they should release the PC version first, to find the bugs and stuff, then release the PS3 and xbox versions. its unfair to make the pc people wait for a game that is already finished *

  • Trooperdx3117

    Posted Nov 15, 2006 8:03 am GMT

    Why, why, why, why,why did you do this to us valve why, why, why.

  • DiaMAtrix

    Posted Nov 14, 2006 7:43 am GMT

    This really annoys me. EVERY time theres a delay given from Valve. Sort the flippin release dates out instead of giving us these delays, Valve are just bein really pathetic about they're release dates.

    SORT IT OUT

  • KreepLX

    Posted Nov 14, 2006 1:25 am GMT

    That was a real SHOCKER when I heard it. It was a real SHOCKER when every game Valve released was late too. You guys think they are getting lazy after all of the HL2 success?

  • holenjd

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 9:10 pm GMT

    This is not what I consider episodic content.
    If they are going to push it back that far, it
    better have at least 10 hours of gameplay
    for Half Life 2 alone.

  • chocabloc

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 8:09 pm GMT

    Awww man, first COD3 now this

  • GrimGravy

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 6:01 pm GMT

    please no i want my TF 2

  • capthunt

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 5:13 pm GMT

    AWWWW Noooooo.... figures

  • Toadstool1969

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 4:48 pm GMT

    Bummer.

  • lord-azrael

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 3:46 pm GMT

    they call this news?everyone knows Valve cant stick to a date,they perfectionists,apart from HL2DM which they have killed over the years,they dont even tell you when they change the game,alot of my friedns stopped playing as they changed weapon values and it screwed magnum up so it wouldnt hit someone straffing,then when they fixed it they didnt say on updates so the people who left game still havent come back

  • trj156

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 12:17 pm GMT

    razor86 its not all about who supported who first, its how can they make a lot of hype over this game? release it a billion times at once on all the platforms. business is business, get used to it, the world is not "fair."

  • jcloverboy

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 12:16 pm GMT

    I have plenty on Xbox 360 to occupy my time with - but I would love this to be a summer release - when nothing usually comes out.

  • gamerdude27

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 11:10 am GMT

    It's kind of pathetic that we have to wait even longer for a 2 1/2 year old game to be released. Plus, getting an expansion of a two year old game isn't that exciting anymore. Don't get me wrong, I absoutely love Half Life 2, but I'm not sure I'll be picking this one up. Instead of working on all these expansions and ports, Valve needs to shift gears and focus on Half Life 3.

  • SCPsyWarrior

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 10:58 am GMT

    Aww... I want more HL2 dammit!

    Still, Ep1 was amazing and I'm prepared to wait for the next installment. I'd rather have a polished game than one which is rushed out.

    To all those people who are disputing the episodic approach: HL2 started pre-production in 1998. If you're willing to wait 5 years for the next installment rather than 1.5, then... you're just mad.

    -PsyW

  • remaynard

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 10:39 am GMT

    Isn't it a bit rich to look at the hurdles faced by the pioneers of an industry initiative in its infancy, and declare the whole pursuit a failure? Valve has been improving the Source engine with each release. It's not simply a matter of delivering episodic content, but the evolution of a modular graphics engine that grows alongside the hardware. Because it's done this way, it'll be easier for Valve to catch up to the cutting edge without having to build another engine from scratch.

    Delays are always cringe-inducing, but if Valve is determined to catch a slice of the console industry, that's their right. What are you gonna do.. not buy their exquisite products? Cry like a little baby? That's what I thought.

  • ionstormn

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 9:41 am GMT

    It would rather have a great game that was delayed a few times other than a good game that was rushed.

    Its best for a company to delay the game if they see it best to do so. When a company rushes the game its not going to be as good as it would have been if they spend a little more time on it.

  • paradyme777

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 9:35 am GMT

    This delay is horrible but as long as it's polished I don't care.

  • DeusExMathias

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 9:10 am GMT

    Oh, my gosh! Valve is delaying a game's release? Totally unexpected! What, oh, what is the world coming to?! ;P

  • armenti8

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 9:03 am GMT

    they delay EVERYTHING, wow.
    what's funny is that when it does finally get released, it takes like 6 hours for me to finish.

    stupid valve

  • onthe_dl

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 9:02 am GMT

    working with the ps3 is just asking for delayed release dates.

  • piecake

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 8:49 am GMT

    i really want it for my pc and 360 this is a real shame as i was looking forward to great pc games on my 360 ahhh well as long as it still comes out i will be well happy!

  • kaziechameleon

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 7:51 am GMT

    where did my post go?

  • kaziechameleon

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 7:50 am GMT

    i think that my expectations as to when i would see this game were dashed when the original delay happened. and now this. i feel two things, firstly i feel like valve is pushing this release back to late 2007 because of the multiplatform release. gosh nothing frustrates a fanbase more. secondly, i feel valve is missing the piont of their self proclamed episodic content, while guild wars is getting better at releaseing games every six months, valve seems to be getting worse at it. i can't believe that episode one took so long considering the retred feel it had, i can only attribute that to the polish that went into alexis character. but this "episode" is really pushing the boundries of rediculous, i understand they are incorporating both teamfortress two and portal. but still. darn you valve, if you made bad games like EA then i'd have the right to hate you. i think it's funny the only reason we care so much about these games release dates is because we are loving every sample of HL2 we get. also i would like to say that HL2 engine is gonna need a real overhall to compete in the next gen, i just played through GOW three times, once for every difficulty. and i can say they're visual presentation, though good, and very polished, is falling behind. GOW is beautiful, games have no buissness looking that good. the good thing about GOW is that now every game for the next gen will be benchmarked agianst it. for example if you think that GOW is great, well for bungie to make halo3 compete they are gonna have to over shoot GOW by alot to get the sales they want. any way this is probably gonna be one of those games i'll get for my 360 even thoug i already own it for pc. also the delay could be due to the fact that valve is rebuilding the source engine to be a multi threaded/multi core engine, kinda like unreal engine three. this will allow then better preformance on the ps3 and 360, and will also give me a reason to go multi core when i update.

  • Sanguis_Malus

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 7:45 am GMT

    Looking forward to playing this on the 360 or PS3, should be looking very sharp and hopefully no frame rate issues.

    I don't mind the wait, there is so much good fps on the 360 this month.
    When it does come out it should be well polished !

  • calebhawkins

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 7:37 am GMT

    Episodic content will never take off unless companies like Valve can actually deliver them EPISODICALLY. A year to a year and a half is not an episode. That is enough time for some companies to develop an entirely new game.

  • Terdog

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 7:13 am GMT

    NO!!!! I was so looking forward to Episode 2 and Portal... Why Valve Why??

  • maddog123

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 7:03 am GMT

    delay = better game. I'm used to them saying that half life will be delayed, its a given. I don't care, i'm still gonna get it when it comes out, I really wanna play portal, it looks madd fun!!!!

  • DELTAsnake

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 6:08 am GMT

    Episodic content? I get a new Battlestar Galctica every week, that is episodic, not once every year or two.

  • The_Weekend

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 5:50 am GMT

    Why should we be so surprised that a delay would occur? Anyone knows games often get delayed ... even consoles too!

  • Humorguy_basic

    Posted Nov 13, 2006 5:49 am GMT

    With this delay, can we put to bed that this is 'episodic gaming'?! It is just a way to get more money for the same or lesser amount of gameplay! With the original HL2 you got a good 35 hours plus for your $50/£35. With Half Life 2 Episode One we got around 6 hours gameplay for our $20/£20, we're likely to get another 10-15 hours from Episode 2 for our next $20/£20+. So with the 2 episodes combined we're up at around 20 hours gameplay for $40/£40+. It seems to me, that if we buy into this Half Life 2 'Episodic' scam, we can expect a lot more of the same from other publishers. Buy into this and don't be surprised if every PC game with more than 10-15 hours of gameplay gets broken down into 'episodes' in order to make more money in a declining PC games market. If the PC games market lasts that long, I can expect the next Elder Scrolls RPG to have the Imperial City, the Countryside and all the caves for $60/£40, with the other 10-12 cities/towns being $20/£20 each, and each Ayelid ruin $5/£5. Oh, and the Construction Set will be an additional $50/£35 and any mods written with it will need to be compiled by Bethesda and sold by them with the modder getting 5% of whatever Bethesda thinks the mod's worth. Or even if they want to release it (it may compete with an official mod!) You think it won't happen? Well, 5 years ago, if I had told you that in 5 years time games with 12 hours gameplay would sell for $50/£35, that expansions with 6 hours gameplay would sell for $20/£20, that mods that just had armour for your horse would cost money. That console games were being written where you had to 'buy' later levels, or to unlock new race tracks, etc. If you told them games were likely to be sponsered and have advertising in the game but still cost more. If you told them that there was talk of the Halo 3 demo being sold rather than given away. If you told them there was talk of selling patches if they also have game content. If you told them games would have an average of 12.5 hours gameplay as opposed to the 40 of 5 years ago, how would they react? They would tell you you were crazy!!

    And yet look at where we are now... Games with 6 hours gameplay for $20/£20 getting 85% reviews. Games like Dreamfall: The Longest Journey with almost no gameplay and around 12 hours gameplay for your $50/$35. Generally, PC games having sub 20 hours gameplay (expecially FPS's)

    Gamers are their own worse enemy. In any other hobby where game costs were doubling (same price, half the gameplay) there would be an outcry. We really must have more money than sense.

    Half Life 2 was a great game. A classic. No doubt about it. But what has come after, with Valve and HL2 Ep1, etc is a joke. It's totally a rip off. And we are lapping it up.

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