Haha. Yeah, I know. “Half-Life 3”. The long-fabled, often-rumored, still non-existent third numbered entry in the Half-Life series that fans have craved but never heard a credible whisper of. It’s been a pervasive joke in the industry and among fans for years, a stand-in for a thing that doesn’t exist and never would.

And yet, for some reason, a lot of people seem to think it’s being announced soon. Possibly in the next few weeks. Maybe even today.

You might have seen it. The sudden flurry of mentions of Half-Life 3, some humorous, some quite serious. The surge of memes. A handful of people that seem to have lost their dang minds:

So what’s going on? Why do people think Half-Life 3 is imminent, seriously or unseriously? We investigated:

Half-Hope

Half-Life 3 rumors have existed pretty much since Half-Life 2 first released, so that’s nothing new. But the last couple of years have seen a steady trickle of interesting little threads that have lead many to believe that a third entry was actually in development, quietly, at Valve. There were vague nods, such as the Half-Life: Alyx team saying they wanted to make more Half-Life games and a Final Hours documentary that actually confirmed it was in development at one point between 2013 and 2014. We’ve also seen dataminers pulling crumbs from various Valve releases over the last few years of what seems to be an in-development game internally at Valve known only as “HLX”, using Source 2. Dataminers have worked out that it’s a full-fledged, non-VR, Half-Life game of some sort, that’s been in the works since at least 2021, probably earlier. That game is possibly the same one as was accidentally leaked by a voice actor in 2024, who referred to it as “Project White Sands”.

But this year there’s been a marked increase in little breadcrumbs. Right after the new year, G-Man’s voice actor issued a cryptic post teasing “unexpected surprises” in 2025 – it was his first tweet since he congratulated Valve on Half-Life: Alyx in December 2020. Fans proceeded to tear apart the post, delving deep into an album cover image and the number 197 for what they believed were even more hints that something was in the works.

But an already simmering pot of rumors turned into a full boil with the announcement last week of new Valve hardware: the Steam Machine, complete with a new Steam controller, and a VR headset known as the Steam Frame. Notably, there were no software announcements alongside these hardware reveals, which is a bit odd given that Valve tends to release new games alongside new hardware – recall Half-Life: Alyx and the Valve Index headset. Around the same time, a number of Valve and industry insiders began mentioning Half-Life 3, saying confidently that it was planned for a 2025 announcement still. One leaker, who has a good track record of getting Valve stuff right, said back in May that Half-Life 3 was officially “playable, end-to-end.” There’s a massive Miro board floating around that has catalogued every remotely credible recent mention of Half-Life 3, and is worth digging into if you want follow along.

Go, G-Man, Go

There are so many other weird little indicators floating around that are leading to wild speculation. For instance, Valve’s “Upcoming Releases” tab on its own Steam page only lists one game (Deadlock) despite the sidebar indicating that there are two upcoming game releases. A tweet/X post from the official The Game Awards account commemorating Half-Life’s 27th anniversary today has sent everyone into a frenzy, even though it tweets this anniversary every year. There was a weird amount of extra security at Valve during the recent Steam hardware preview events – something noticed by IGN’s own representatives and contrasted with my personal experience there for Half-Life: Alyx years ago, which featured a relatively normal and relaxed amount of security.

And there was an incredibly silly saga where Geoff Keighley posted a screenshot that showed he had one game in his Steam wishlist. When asked what the game was, he responded with an eyes emoji, and then showed the game Dadlympics. Of course, the Half-Life nerds pounced. Keighley then posted a screenshot of his wishlist showing only the game “Dadlympics,” but notably, this was added on 11/18, the same day he posted the screenshot, suggesting he’s hiding something. Is he hiding Half-Life 3? Probably not! It doesn’t have a viewable Steam page! That’s not how Steam works! But that hasn’t stopped Half-Life 3 fans from pouncing. Seriously, the replies are hilarious.

pic.twitter.com/t5L0zHW0Il

— arda (@lornarcoss) November 18, 2025

Whatever you believe is happening here, the reality is that this has resulted in the community going completely bonkers. The Half-Life subreddit is overflowing with Half-Life 3 summoning and hope posts. A quick search for Half-Life on Twitter/X reveals an overflow of discourse, prayers, and memes. It’s kind of nuts, and also really, really fun:

Okay, so let’s say everyone’s right, and we really are getting Half-Life 3 announced soon. When? Well, some think it’s as soon as today. November 19, as The Game Awards posted, is the anniversary of Half-Life – what better time to make an announcement? We’ve already passed the anniversary of Half-Life 2, and the anniversary of Half-Life: Alyx’s announcement, but that particular anniversary is the reason you’re likely seeing so much noise around this today. The other big possibility floated by some is an announcement at The Game Awards, which is coming up on December 11. That would be a little surprising, given that Valve doesn’t need an awards show to command attention with such an announcement. But Valve also has a long history of friendliness with host Geoff Keighley, so maybe it’s not so far-fetched after all.

Whatever the case, one thing is certain: either Half-Life 3 is getting announced before December 31, 2025, or an awful lot of folks are going to have egg on their faces come January 1, 2026. I’m personally hoping for the former, but the community has been hoodwinked before with Half-Life rumors, multiple times even. Keep injecting that Hopium, folks. Perhaps the return of G-man is right around the corner.

Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. You can find her posting on BlueSky @duckvalentine.bsky.social. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.

Mafia: The Old Country’s Free Ride update finally has a release date: November 20. It adds a number of new features, including challenges, a first-person driving camera, classic difficulty, and photo mode.

The major update to Hangar 13’s narrative adventure is a callback to the original Mafia’s Free Ride Extreme and the Free Ride mode in Mafia: Definitive Edition. As explained by Peter Amato, Content Manager at publisher 2K in a post on the PlayStation Blog, Mafia: The Old Country’s Free Ride update is a collection of challenges separate from the main story that give players chances to revisit the world in a “more self-guided way.” Veteran fans of the series will find that Mafia: The Old Country’s Free Ride mode will be slightly different from previous titles as a result.

The repeatable challenges include combat, stealth, and different race types. Completing them earns you the Dinari in-game currency to spend on the new outfits, charms, weapons, and vehicles unlocked by progressing through this content (as well as on items unlocked via the campaign).

“We want players to explore the world in a freeform way, and Free Ride turns it into an expansive hub where you’ll find and access various challenges by travelling around, unlocking Hitching Posts, and meeting contacts,” Amato said. “Challenges are instanced and accessed via these contacts, and doing so will place you into a combat location or special world state.

“These combat encounters reuse mission locations, so once you’ve played the corresponding story chapter and unlocked a Challenge in Free Ride, you’ll get to re-experience areas in new ways. Races happen out in the world and we’ve placed them along less-traveled paths, so it should be fun seeing parts of the map you may have previously passed by.

“Of course, there may be new places to explore too, but that’s something you’ll have to discover for yourself…”

Remember that MTG: Avatar Collector Booster Box I shared yesterday? Well it’s just dropped by nearly $100, so get your preorder in before prices go up. Seeing as you all liked the Final Fantasy Anniversary Collection deal so much, I’ve also included the HD-2D remakes of Dragon Quest I – III on Nintendo Switch. It’s a pixel art kind of week.

TL;DR: Deals for Today

The Prismatic Evolutions Figurine Collection is also dropping from today at potentially four different retailers, so if you missed out on your preorder I have all the inside scoops on where it’ll show up and when. I’ve also got a couple of essential gadget deals for your desk and car too, so let’s get straight into it:

Prismatic Evolution Figurine Collection

Magic: The Gathering | Avatar: The Last Airbender Collector Booster Box

Final Fantasy I-VI Collection Anniversary Edition

Dragon Quest HD-2D Remakes

Dragon Quest I, II and III HD-2D remakes are all out now on Nintendo Switch, with I and II also out on Nintendo Switch 2. Nintendo Switch titles can be played on Nintendo Switch 2 if you want the full game on-cart rather than a game-key card, which requires a sizable content download to play. Of course you’ll miss out on graphical fidelity and other upgrades.

JVSCAM 130,000RPM Cordless Electric Air Duster with Adjustable Tips

AstroAI P10 Car Battery Jump Starter

Up to 50% off Pokémon TCG and Free $60 Gift Card

Imagine getting Pokémon TCG Booster Bundles for free, or paying $20 to $30 for an Elite Trainer Box, cool right? Well it’s a real deal, and here’s how to do it. Start by applying for a Amazon Visa card, then if accepted you’ll get an instant $60 Amazon gift card added to your account, which means free Booster Bundles, Premium Collections and Booster Blisters.

If you’re after something more expensive and want to knock the price down before using the $60 gift voucher, you’ll need an AMEX or Discovery card. By paying $1 on your Pokémon TCG items in your basket, you’ll receive an automatic discount up to 50%. So whatever you need to pay after the gift card is cut in half. That’s not bad when you’re talking Elite Trainer Boxes and Booster Boxes. If this discount doesn’t apply, check the loyalty page on Amazon to see if you’re eligible.

TCGPlayer 10% Cashback Black Friday Event

You read that right, everything is eligibe too. Buy something, get 10% back as in-store credit. With sets like Mega Evolution and Phantasmal Flames finding new floors, this is 100% the best time to fill those gaps in your binder. The sale kicks off on Black Friday, November 28. and ends on Cyber Monday December 1.

Elegoo Saturn 4 Ultra Resin 3D Printer Deals

The Elegoo Saturn 4 Ultra line of Resin printers are perfect for anything that needs intricate detail, especially the 16k model, although the standard ultra does an amazing job too. The Saturn 4 Ultra and Mercury V3.0 wash is a perfect starter kit for anyone wanting to get into the hobby.

Elegoo FDM Printer Deals

What if I said I printed a full sized Stormtrooper helmet on a Neptune 4 Max in one go? It was such a fun project and this printer can handle some insane projects on the large and small side. In fact all of these FDM 3D printers are great for printing anything practical. I’m looking at you cosplayers.

Meta Quest 3S 128GB (Gorilla Tag Bundle)

TMNT: The Last Ronin Box Set

I like to think of the mainline Dragon Quest series sort of like a donut. A donut may have sprinkles on top, be glazed, or maybe tied in a knot, depending on where you get it, but at its heart, you know what to expect when you bite into one. You know you will get a delightful treat of fried dough, sweet, and usually covered with some sort of other goodies, and in Dragon Quest’s case, you know you can expect a grindy turn-based RPG, the distinctive designs of Akira Toriyama, and the vexation that comes with trying to dispatch smiling metallic blobs. That familiarity is comforting and the differences exciting, all at the same time. Dragon Quest is the same way, and even after nearly 40 years, even the latest entries all these years later, feel like a DQ game. After sinking my teeth into the upcoming Dragoon Quest VII Reimagined, slaying slimes and solving mysteries, this latest looks to retain that same DQ goodness.

Dragon Quest VII Reimagined marks the third iteration of Dragon Quest VII, the best-selling entry in Japan, following the original 2001 PlayStation release just before the PS2, and the mid-2010s 3DS remake.

Running around the dreary village of Wetlock, where my demo took place, I got a good look at the new art style of Dragon Quest VII Reimagined in action. Coming off the sprite-based goodness of the HD-2D Erdrick Trilogy remakes of Dragon Quests I & II, seeing this new handcrafted style was quite a spectacle. The use of real-world materials as textures in the clothing and gear of the main characters, thanks to the highly detailed puppets that were made and scanned in, gives this version of DQVII, and Prince Kiefer’s broad chin, a distinct vibe and feeling all of its own.

Speaking to Reimagined’s producer, Takeshi Ichikawa, he explained that this shift in style was done to better capture the unique proportions and style that the characters in Dragon Quest VII have. “They’re drawn shorter than the other mainline Dragon Quest characters. So we kind of wanted to leverage that. We explored a lot of ideas of visual styles that leverage the adorableness and the cuteness of those short characters.”

Taking out my reverence for sprite-based games, the new style of Reimagined is impressive, but at least for me, it took some getting used to, and one that I’m not entirely sold on just yet. As you might expect from a DQ game, the distinctive art of Akira Toriyama is expertly rendered in this new way, but with representations of real-world materials such as the weave that made up the Bag O’ Laughs enemy, or more pronounced scales, felt… odd? It’s hard to describe, but it’s that “off” feeling whenever you see a more realistic version of your favorite cartoon or anime character, like seeing actual hair strands on Goku. Okay, maybe it isn’t that level of odd, but you get my point.

I also noticed that the colors seemed rather muted compared to what I’ve come to expect from these games and Toriyama’s Dragon Quest work. The green of the hero’s little hat and outfit that I am used to being a vibrant spring-time green looked more like the color of a cloak – like what a sneaky elfish ranger may wear when trying to be seen among the brush, for instance. I’m also a bit bummed that we are losing out on party members changing their appearance based on the vocation they have equipped that was featured in the 3DS version, but I imagine making that many outfits for the puppets would have taken a considerable amount of time to do, and then scan in for the game, so I’m willing to forgive that one.

Trimming the Fat

Square previously mentioned that, for Reimagined, the team removed non-critical storylines and other content, including Grondal, El Ciclo, Providence, the Casino, and more, to streamline the experience and make it more approachable. One area that the team has paid special attention to is the opening few hours, which, speaking from experience, really drag on, with your first encounter with a slime not coming until close to three hours in. It was a barrier that caused even Ichikawa-san to give up the game back when he first played it as a child in elementary school. Thankfully, he promises that you will be slaying your first critter within an hour of starting up the game this time.

I realize hearing terms like “streamlining” or “more approachable” – along with the mention of cut content – may be off-putting to hear for some folks, or even causing some to be concerned that Reimagined will be a “diet” version of Dragon Quest VII. Obviously, the small snippet I did get to try out doesn’t give me much insight into how the cut and adjusted narrative content impacts things. At least from a gameplay standpoint, Reimagined feels just like a Dragon Quest game should, with the new mechanics and features feeling right at home.

Get a Second Job

Dragon Quest VII is part of the small and exclusive club of series, alongside the likes of Dragon Quests VI, IX, and III, that features a vocation system that lets you swap around the jobs, and as a result, the abilities of your party members. Reimagined further expands on this with the introduction of Moonlighting, which allows each character to have not just one, but two jobs, with abilities to pick from and level up, giving me flashbacks to Final Fantasy XII: The Zodiac Age. I am a self-admitted job-system sicko, and even though a ton of jobs were still locked and hidden in the snippet I played, I could have easily spent my entire time tinkering around with different combinations of roles and seeing how they played off of each other. I appreciated that Reimagined also clearly shows what the requirements are to unlock new vocations, too, meaning I will be able to really target the ones I want when Reimagined releases!

After fights, I would earn vocation points that act as experience that will level up whatever ones I had equipped. It looks like Reimagined pulls from the 3DS version’s school of vocations, as my characters could only use skills of the jobs they had equipped. Vocations also come with associated “Perks” —special actions they can take when specific criteria are met, essentially a Limit Break of sorts. These can be big attacks, heals, or buffs that will help you turn the tide of particularly nasty boss fights, which Dragon Quest games are never lacking in.

Finding Fragments

The aspect of Reimagined that I was most interested in checking out and seeing how this latest version would handle was the magical fragments, which are, debatably, the most defining mechanic of this seventh installment. These artifacts, which you collect and then stick together like LEGO to reveal new locations to visit, can be a real pain to find. The previous 3DS remake had a special finder on the system’s bottom screen that would alert you when one was nearby, and really eliminated a good bit of the frustration and headache from tracking the suckers down, so I was really curious how this new game would address it.

This time around, fragments simply will show up on your minimap. When you collect them, they will appear greyed out, alongside a support system with the strange Caretaker and adjusted locations for the pesky tablets to make the whole hunt easier. I do hope there is still some challenge in finding fragments in the final release. I don’t need to feel like Indiana Jones uncovering a long-lost and forgotten artifact, but I don’t want to feel like a toddler picking out the square from an assortment of circles and triangles either.

Tweaked for You

There were other handy little tweaks and additions that aided me in my quest to discover missing townsfolk around Wetlock. I stumbled on special Goddess statues that I could save and heal at, which made them far more attractive spots to do some level and job grinding. Reimagined brings over some of the help options from the HD-2D remakes, like being able to toggle fully healing when a character levels up and adjustable difficulty settings, among others, to help bring this tale into the modern era with modern expectations. One unfortunate feature that Ichikawa-san and the team weren’t able to work out was a good way to use the lizard-gecko creature in this new game, never making it past early discussions on how you could utilize this creature. But at least our favorite little critter has made its triumphant return to the character art for the hero after being completely absent from the 3DS release.

When Dragon Quest VII first came to the West in 2001, a year after the PlayStation 2 was released, its dated sprites on 3D backgrounds were competing with the evolutionary leap of the RPG in Final Fantasy X that same year. The 3DS version suffered a similar though not as troublesome, release window in the States, coming to the aging handheld a mere six months before the Switch would begin its campaign to conquer the world with the likes of Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Super Mario Odyssey, and a little game called The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, redefining what was possible with a handheld gaming device. Dragon Quest VII Reimagined marks the first time that this story is being told from a standpoint of being already outdated on arrival in the West.

After my 45 minutes were up, I had successfully solved the mystery of the disappearing citizens of Wetlock, climbed to the top of a tower to avoid a devastating flood, and vanquished the monster behind it. All in all, a typical day in the life of a Dragon Quest hero and his friends. While many aspects of Dragon Quest VII Reimagined are still a mystery, all of those special little qualities and personalities that have kept this series going for almost 40 years are still on display. I am eager to see all that this new version has to offer and just how the removal of some story beats and addition of new ones impacts the overall campaign, along with what the new gameplay mechanics bring to the Dragon Quest DNA. 2026 may just be the year that the rest of the world really sees what has made Dragon Quest VII the best-selling entry over in Japan, giving it the stage to finally shine.