Valve’s constantly-memed Half-Life 3 is coming back into the spotlight as series voice actor John Lowrie returns the the developer’s studio.
Lowrie, who voices numerous background characters in Valve games, revealed on Twitter that he is back at the studio to record new voice lines. Of course, fans instantly jumped to the far-fetched Half-Life 3 conclusion.
The Twitter post shows the voice actor inside Valve’s recording studio talking into two microphones. Lowrie then told fans to keep their expectations in check for the actor’s ongoing project.
“Ok, you have to promise to stay calm,” Lowrie said. “Thought this pic would be more neutral. Back out at Valve today and, like all voice actors, can’t say anything specific. You’re the greatest fans in the world. Thanks for hanging with me.”
Lowrie has worked on a large number of Valve games over the years. Since voicing Odessa Cubbage and numerous civilians in Half-Life 2, the voice actor has popped up in myriad different games.
For example, Lowrie’s voice graces the Sniper in Team Fortress 2, Houseboat Radio in Left 4 Dead and a large number of characters in both Dota 2 and Artifact.
Fans of Valve games have expressed their excitement at Lowrie’s return to the company’s recording booth. Despite being asked to stay calm, a number of fans expressed deep elation at the actor’s return.
“Hmm, 3 hearts huh?” one fan commented. “Half Life 3 and Team Fortress 3 CONFIRMED!”
Outside of Half-Life 3 rumours, many fans believe that Lowrie’s return means Valve is working on a new Team Fortress. However, as the voice actor replied many times, he cannot say what project he’s working on at the company.
Valve has started to rapidly increase its game production over the past few years. After years of inactivity, the massive games company has released Artifact, Dota Underlords and Half-Life: Alyx. The studio is also hard at work on Counter-Strike 2.
With the release of its dedicated Steam Deck hardware, Valve’s games production could increase dramatically. The portable gaming PC handheld has already resulted in sweeping changes to Steam after years of slow major updates.
It doesn’t seem likely that Valve would be working on Half-Life 3. However, there have been countless rumours over the years of a third entry to many of the studio’s games. Our money is on something entirely new, though.