12 Things You Didn't Know About Half-Life 2

12. A Series Marred By Delays

For many years, you couldn’t escape the inevitable “Half-Life 3 Confirmed” jokes that came with any major gaming news. Having seen Half-Life 2: Episode 3 face delays to the point where fans just gave up on it, many were surprised that Half-Life Alyx stuck to its initial confirmed release window.

Historically though, it’s a series notable for delays. Half-Life 1 was initially scheduled for a November 1997 release but Valve was unsatisfied with it, so completely reworked the game and released it a year later instead.

Half-Life 2 faced similar issues, though this received much greater public attention. Aiming to be finished by the end of 2003, it became increasingly apparent within Valve that this deadline wouldn’t be met and a playable build was leaked, confirming this.

Working through high-levels of crunch after Christmas, Half-Life 2 finally released in October 2004.