'Half-Life 3' release date: Fake advertisement shown at Gamescom

Half-Life 2 main characters Alyx Vance and Dr. Gordon FreemanValve

One of the most highly anticipated video games that might never see the light of day is "Half-Life 3," a first-person shooter (FPS) that Valve may or may not be working on. As if to troll fans still waiting for the game to come out despite Valve never giving any update, a fake banner for the game was put up during this year's Gamescom event.

As reported by Kotaku, the banner does not specifically read "Half-Life 3" but is properly read as "Half-Life: 3 Editors Who Played It Back Then" followed by the logos of German websites Spieletipps and Giga Games. The report points out that the banner does not actually advertise "Half-Life 3" but is a parody of the franchise as a whole.

This has notably drawn attention, however, and fans are once again riled up for any official news concerning the possible release of "Half-Life 3" particularly given that it has been nearly a decade since the release of "Half-Life 2: Episode Two." There was meant to be a third episode for "Half-Life 2" but this was eventually canceled and Valve has been silent about the franchise ever since.

In a report from IGN, it is noted that the only official word surrounding the franchise came back in January when Valve employee Mark Laidlaw, who is known as the primary writer for the "Half-Life" games, officially left the company to pursue personal interests. A "Half-Life 3" code was also hidden in "DOTA 2" back in 2015 although it may just be an elaborate Easter egg more than proof of the game's development.

Valve is speculated to be more focused on their other revenues at the time being such as their partnership for the HTC Vive to take advantage of VR gaming and the company is profiting from the success of Steam and their other digital games such as "DOTA 2" and "Team Fortress 2."