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The Half-Life 3 Story and Script That Brings Closure to the Series


Credit: Valve

In 2017, a possible Half-Life 3 story turned up in the personal website of Half-Life writer, Marc Laidlaw, which could be a proposed plot for Half-Life 2: Episode 3. In the post titled Epistle 3, a letter that seems to be a script could be a correspondence between Gordon Freeman and a certain Gertrude Fremont. It appears that such could bring closure to the series as well.

The Half-Life 3 Story and Script That Brings Closure to the Series
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Credit: Valve

Marc Laidlaw was a writer for Valve before he left in 2016 for various reasons, mostly personal, after 18 years of being with the company. With his departure, he shared that he wanted to go back to being a novelist and that he needed a breather from game production. He has credited the sole writer for both Half-Life and Half-Life 2, being the lead writer for Episode Two also.

Epistle 3 details appear to be in consonance with the leaks and rumors surrounding Half-Life 2: Episode Three which is set in the Antarctic where Gordon and Alex are found near a helicopter that crashed. Laidlaw shared on his personal Twitter account that the story is "a genderswapped snapshot of a dream I had many years ago." He also hinted that he was "just planting seeds" as regards the relationship of Alex Vance and G-Man.

Epistle 3 is a letter of Gertrude Fremont addressed to "Playa" which goes around the story of how after the death of Elly Vaunt, Gertrude Fremont and Alex Vance made their way to the Antarctic to look for the ship called the Hyperborea (Borealis), the vessel revealed in Half-Life 2: Episode 2 where research takes place. While in the journey, Gertrude and Alex came across Mrs. X (the G-Man), Disparate (Combine), and Dr. Wanda Bree (the revived version of Dr. Wallace Breen).

The story centers on the search for Hyperborea which is surrounded by Disparate's base. Hyperborea appears and disappears through time and space and whenever it is present, Disparate studies it. Along the way, they meet Dr. Bree, a slug-creature who has the consciousness of a person, who asked Alex and Gertrude to end his life.

Alex and Gertrude also had a prison break to rescue Dr. Jerry Maas from Disparate. Together, they were able to witness an epic moment, the Seven Hour War. Meanwhile, they were trying to figure out what to do with the Hyperborea and they cannot seem to agree with each other as Maas wanted the ship to be handed to the Resistance for further research while Alex wanted to end it as Father Eli wished.

Alex turned against Maas killing her and proceeded to destroy the Hyperborea, the heart of the invasion plot of Disparate. Mrs. X arrives and Alex knows her from when he was young, they both decided to leave reality. That leaves Gertrude who witnesses the Hyperborea approaching its target and the base of Disparate protected with a Dyson sphere, seeing the power of Disparate and the uselessness of the struggles they have been through.

Gertrude witnessed the Hyperborea explode and she was taken by the Ghastlyhaunts. Gertrude ends the letter telling not to expect any correspondence after such and said, "this is my final epistle."

The Half-Life 3 Story and Script That Brings Closure to the Series 1
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Credit: Valve

The whole letter could've been the closure to the series. However, it is still with Valve if they would pursue a Half-Life 3 or even a Half-Life 2: Episode 3. With the emergence of Half-Life: Alyx, there remains hope for either of the two that in the future, at least one of the two would arrive, better if both. Gamers waited for years before Half-Life: Alyx arrived, if any of the two is about to happen, it would surely be worth the wait.

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