Gabe Newell, the head of Valve and Steam, is incredibly popular among many gamers. This is currently reflected in a lighthearted discussion in the community about a 14-year-old picture.
What is the picture about? ChiefLeef22 recently posted it on Reddit. The shot shows Valve and Steam head Gabe Newell, who joins 2 fans lounging in front of the headquarters in Bellevue, Washington.
One fan holds a piece of cardboard with the inscription “Canada is for the release of Half-Life 3”, while his companion subtly asks: “Half-Life 3 … is it Left 4 Dead?” The latter is a reference to the popular co-op shooter that had great success on Steam in 2008.
The two players were then demonstrating for the 3rd part of the Half-Life series, of which there has been no trace four years after the release of Half-Life 2: Episode Two, despite the frustratingly open ending. See for yourself:
Half-Life 3 … still a title that moves in 2025
The picture could have been taken today: Because even in 2025, there is no official announcement for a Half-Life 3 or an Episode 3 of Half-Life 2. Instead, a (very good) virtual reality spin-off called Half-Life: Alyx was released in March 2020. Would the two dudes have headed to the Valve headquarters with this knowledge back then?
Yet, although so much time has passed, not a year goes by without rumors and supposed leaks about Half-Life 3. In January 2025, we reported that according to an insider, the game is supposed to be far advanced. There may even be an announcement this year, so the report goes. Well, there isn’t much time left when we look at the calendar.
How does the community react to the picture? With over 35,000 (!) thumbs up and more than 420 comments. This shows, on the one hand, that Half-Life 3 still matters in 2025 (even if many have lost hope for an announcement), and on the other hand, how popular Valve head Gabe Newell is among many gamers.
- StraightsJacket writes on Reddit: “In another 20 years, no one will understand the Half-Life references of old folks like me. However, I respect Gabe’s decision not to make Half Life 3.”
- ExpressoLiberry reports on Reddit with a wink from back then: “As a former intern at Valve during that time, I can confirm that they were invited for a tour. Unfortunately, this was just a pretext to get them to upload their consciousness into Valve’s system so it could be used exclusively for testing Half Life 3. As far as I know, they are still there to fix bugs, provide feedback on new versions of carpet colors, etc.”
- Raytheon_Nublinski is quite sure on Reddit: “I’m beginning to believe the protest didn’t work.”
- TENTAKL1 shares important info on Reddit: “They say they’re still sitting there today.”
- 0rganicMach1ne adds on Reddit: “All of Canada wants this, Gabe.”
Why are Gabe Newell and Valve so popular? Firstly, the people behind Steam often act unusually generous and helpful when it comes to community requests, or they meaningfully improve their services. Some examples:
- A player falls for a scam when buying a Steam Deck, help comes from an unexpected source: “The fraudster takes it, Gabe gives it.”
- Steam receives a long-awaited, huge update with UI scaling, players thank Steam head: “Thank you very much, Lord GabeN.”
- For his birthday, Gabe Newell gifts players a feature for the Steam Deck that they have been asking for 3 years.
Secondly, Valve still remains a private company led by Gabe Newell after all these years, which is not publicly traded and thus does not have to justify itself to shareholders. And thirdly, Newell himself keeps popping up with sympathetic actions, here just one of many examples: Gabe Newell tells a YouTuber with 19 subscribers how the head of Valve lives and works on a boat 7 days a week.
