The prospects for Half-Life 3’s eventual release are not great. Meanwhile, CD Projekt Red is showcasing lengthy gameplay demos of its own upcoming mega-blockbuster, Cyberpunk 2077. You might be wondering why I’m connecting these two points. It turns out that the Cyberpunk gameplay demo contains a subtle dig at the continuing no-show of Gordon Freeman.
When V heads to the ripperdoc to pick up some new upgrades, Victor is watching a televised fight at his desk. In the background, there are a couple of posters. One of them features a person in an HEV-esque suit, under the title “No Life 3.”
It’s not quite a Full-Life Consequences-level pun, but it is a fun little dig at the continued absence of Half-Life 3. Or Episode 3, or whatever form that game would end up taking.
We still haven’t gotten a proper Cyberpunk 2077 release date, but you can be certain it’ll be here before Half-Life 3. Probably. I don’t know, Valve is making games again, and it would be just that company’s style to launch out of nowhere with zero fanfare. At this point, there’s no way to build anticipation for Half-Life 3 beyond its already insane levels.
You can see the reference for yourself at 19:00 in the gameplay demo below.
It wasn’t the only hidden message in the Cyberpunk 2077 gameplay, with a statement from CD Projekt explaining why the studio waited so long to release the footage to the public.