Chikubi Ninja wasn't the only decent game to see a release over the weekend, as I've also been told to let you all know about Jhonnystorm's new game for the ZX Spectrum called 'Pulplife'. An underwater adventure, whereby you play as a little octopus on his journey to find and rescue all his little siblings before they are devoured by the numerous predators in the vast ocean. If this sounds like
Half-Life 3 fever might be hotter right now than it has been in years. With the announcement of the new Valve Steam Machine and Steam Frame VR headset, desperate fans have convinced themselves that this is finally the time where the tale of Gordon Freeman and company makes its long-awaited comeback. There's even a small part of me that believes them. But what I do know is that there's a new Half-Life game that's just launched a demo on Steam, albeit one without Valve's direct involvement. This is Half-Life: Element 64, and you can try it today.
The entire gaming industry is merely a farce: a place where people gather not to play games but to hope for new ones. It's the ultimate assembly of tinfoil hatters, who predict, decrypt, and huff and puff the hopium. And this time, it's the HL and GoW fans doing it together.
After Geoff Keighley, the host of The Game Awards, shared two cryptic images portraying some sort of demonic portal and a desert in the middle of nowhere, fans were quick to conjure up hype. For what? No one seems to know, but some think it's a new God of War game that is to be announced at the upcoming TGA.
There's a lot to back this up: the portal has various fantasy creatures that are reminiscent of the last two games, and a chest plate on it is strikingly similar to one Kratos wears in God of War: Ragnarok. The portal is in more ways than one borne out of the fantasy genre, which is hard to connect with Half-Life. But that hasn't stopped its eager fans.
Jumping on the second image shared by Geoff, the one showing just a desert in California (that curiously contains the name of the road running through it, Yucca Mesa Road) Half-Life fans are convinced this is red hot desert proof that HLX is going to be announced at The Game Awards. I mean, Half-Life starts in a desert and a facility called Black Mesa, so this is as clear cut as it gets? Right? Maybe. Probably not, though.
Geoff Keighley is known for sharing images that are oddly similar to various games, usually done to generate hype and excitement for annual events like the Summer Games Fest or The Game Awards. Sometimes these are actual teases of what is to come, but usually end up being something completely different to what fans imagined.
HL fans are extra eager to believe anything and grasp at any straws they can reach for, given how much hype was generated for Half-Life 3 in previous weeks. This hypothetical final game in the 27-year-old series hasn't been talked about more ever since HL2 Episode 2 came out, so I can understand the fans who are desperate to get closure on one of the biggest cliffhangers in the industry's history.
The Game Awards is going to give us a ton of good announcements, that much is sure, as it does every year. Whether or not that'll end up being a new God of War or Half-Life (or even both) is anyone's guess. But I think it's safe to say that no, Geoff did not just reveal these two games to us.
The Internet is reeling from how Valve was totally going to announce Half-Life 3 on November 19, then on the 20th, then anytime now, but it hasn’t, and chances are it won't for who knows how long. And you know what? Good.
If you're out of the loop, worry not. Valve did in no capacity even hint at an HL3 reveal, but the rumors of an impending HL3 reveal are at an all-time high, and the Internet is, now more than ever, flooded with nonsense. At best, this is just tiresome. At worst, this hurts everyone.
Image via Reddit
In the attention economy we currently live in, it's absolutely ludicrous to hope that everyone will know better than to spy on a company in the silliest ways possible to retrieve whatever sort of evidence that they're working on something. Still, how can fans defend looking so ill-advisedly into a company that has been so significantly harmed by similar behavior in the past?
Steam's policies towards what is ostensibly gambling are very damaging to the entire community, and I'm totally fine with people looking into that. Trying to spoil the existence of games, however, just greatly dampens the fun for everyone. Such behavior poisons the hype with the inevitable crash that comes every time we realize we'd fallen prey to false hope. Either that or, well, we become the gaming equivalent of QAnon believers who'll keep seeing definite clues everywhere in the hopes of avoiding coming to terms with a harsher truth.
Game reveals can be just the best thing
I'll never forget opening Gamespot to find out Valve had done a mega gameplay presentation of Half-Life 2 at E3 2003.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ddJ1OKV63Q&t=1s
It remains my favorite presentation in gaming history. We could even hear the live "aaaw"s and "oooh"s of those in attendance. Valve released a high-res version of the demo for the 20th anniversary of Half-Life 2, if you want to witness its full glory.
That unmistakable awe forever imprinted on that video was made possible because, even though Half-Life 2 was expected, nobody knew exactly what shape it would take, and its reality was way beyond anyone's dreams. Sadly, this fantastic presentation would get overshadowed as Half-Life 2's source code would end up leaked, causing the game's development and promotional efforts to retreat temporarily and rethink the strategy for a year.
A more recent case was that of GTA 6, which also suffered a huge code leakage that got so many people to witness the game in a severely unfinished state, prompting many to claim the game would suck. That was a bizarre claim, but something you can understand from consumers who aren't well-versed in what the process of game development looks like.
GTA 6 certainly won't suck, but the gross leak certainly had killed part of the surprise by the time its fantastic first trailer hit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xNI727-D6SM
One of the best parts of gaming might be over forever, and few have noticed
The press conferences from E3 2015 are known as some of the best in the event's history. That's because they revealed, among many others, Final Fantasy VII Remake and Shenmue 3.FFVII's case was similar to that of Half-Life 3, a game whose reveal had been heavily speculated about every year prior to 2007. People still cared for it because it was Final Fantasy VII, but by 2015, the greatest catalyst for joy in everyone's minds was knowing that they hadn't just been bamboozled once again. Shenmue 3, however, a game that many wanted, but that only a few really believed would be making a comeback, elicited this reaction:
https://youtu.be/IsS0fWIo9FY
Shenmue 3 ended up falling short of expectations, so that reveal was the best we ever got out of it; a moment when you could believe Shenmue 3 was the game to outdo everything that had come before.
E3's death fragmentation into many smaller events might prevent a reveal from ever reaching the same heights. Still, even worse is learning about the continuation of your favorite franchise via low-res—and sometimes straight-up fake—screenshots and dubious quotes from nameless devs. It sucks even harder when people who should know better also feed the problem on purpose. On the 21st, Geoff Keighley posted this on Twitter:
While a layman might just see the random image of a game-y generator, that's clearly a nod to an iconic contraption from the original Half-Life, right when fans are at their weakest. So, one last time, we must ask: Does that mean Half-Life 3 will be confirmed at this year's Game Awards? No, because that’s actually a still from f*cking Fortnite.
… damning given the fact that Ricky says he is most like Tony than any of his previous characters. He is being honest; I recognise Tony, even dating back to the XFM days…. “After Life” is a show that teeters on the edge of reality, presenting a distorted reflection of life that is both intriguing ... Read more
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I think this has been coming for a long time. But I have to admit something: I’m going to stop focusing on my video game blog for now. The truth is, I don’t get the same enjoyment out of the hobby anymore. In this article, I’ll explain what’s happening and what this means for the blog. I’ve been feeling burned out on writing about games, and at the same time I’ve fallen in love with other creative hobbies. This wasn’t the easiest article to write, but I’d rather set the record straight than leave things hanging. So—thank you for reading, and let’s dive into something a bit more personal for a change. As always, feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below.
Creative hobbies and their curse
Ever since I first got internet access, I’ve been creating content online. From old-school websites and goofy YouTube videos, to small amateur games and drag-and-drop music projects—I loved making things. And I loved playing video games.
Fifteen years ago, I decided to start a personal blog. At the time, my family was small, but we had a big circle of family friends, and I was tired of repeating the same stories over and over. Facebook was just starting to take off in my area, so I began posting my life experiences there. Eventually, my gaming articles started to get traction, and when I felt comfortable, I switched over to English. That was back in 2013.
I loved writing the blog. I met a lot of people, discovered unique games, and even got to know developers while learning about the ins and outs of game creation, release, and translation. But around the summer of last year, something shifted in me. At first I thought it was just burnout—but it went deeper than that.
The thing about creative hobbies is that they’re wonderful, but they carry a risk: what once felt like fun can start to feel like an obligation. That’s exactly what happened to me. Instead of enjoying the games I played, I kept thinking, “How can I review this?” That mindset started to dominate everything.
I even felt guilty replaying games I had already reviewed—games I genuinely wanted to return to—because I told myself I “needed a new article.” I planned to write two articles a week this summer to get back into the groove, but since June I’ve struggled to write anything or fully enjoy the games I play.
And then there’s the plagiarism issue. Over the years, I’ve had my content stolen and copy-pasted onto other blogs—sometimes just for ad revenue, other times with no credit at all. I’ve filed over 150 complaints, and now I’m even seeing sites translate my work and claim it as their own. Honestly, it wears on you. I bet this very article will be copy-pasted somewhere too.
I’m not quitting
Here’s the thing: I still love writing about games. And I do want to return to it. But right now, it feels too forced.
So instead, I’ve been slowly rediscovering gaming for myself again—playing just to play. And you know what? I’m enjoying it. I’m finally breaking out of the mindset of “I need to review this game” or “I need to play this for my readers.” That mindset drained the fun out of everything. I was skipping tutorials, fast-forwarding past slower parts, and dropping games too early just because they didn’t seem review-friendly.
Meanwhile, I’ve been juggling a full-time job and other hobbies I really enjoy: translating open-source software into Dutch, streaming with my buddy Klamath, working on a theater group’s website, and most recently—creating AI roleplay chatbots.
That last one, honestly, has been my biggest passion this year. Since February 2025, when I made my first serious bot on Moescape.AI, I’ve been hooked. I’ve always loved writing stories and exploring twists on existing ideas, and bots have given me a whole new outlet for that creativity. It’s taught me a lot about pacing, dialogue, and storytelling from different angles. It’s also made me appreciate the art of writing even more.
But I’ll stop myself here, otherwise I’ll ramble about that forever.
The future
So am I quitting writing gaming articles? Yes… and no.
I’m putting the blog on the back burner. That means there’ll be long gaps between articles. I won’t stick to a schedule or force myself to publish twice a month. If I play a game and feel like writing about it, I will. If not, that’s okay too.
My goal is to rediscover what drew me into this in the first place. Maybe I’ll return to regular writing someday, or maybe I’ll wrap this journey up with a bow. Right now, I’m leaning toward the former—but we’ll see.
In the meantime, I want to give space to all the other things I enjoy—streaming, AI art and chatbots, translation, and creative projects outside of gaming articles. Exploring more has helped me appreciate the process of creating again. And honestly, I feel more fulfilled that way.
Writing this article feels bittersweet. I had big plans for celebrating 15 years of blogging, but the enjoyment wasn’t there anymore. Instead, I’ll focus on what excites me now. Maybe new gaming articles will pop up here and there—but they won’t be the main focus anymore.
Thank you all so much for the support over the years. This journey has been unforgettable, and I’m grateful to everyone who’s read, commented, and encouraged me along the way. I hope to find a better balance moving forward, and I’ll keep you posted.
And with that, I’m going to wrap up this article and thank you for reading it. I hope you understand where I’m coming from, and I hope you enjoyed reading it, too. I hope to be able to welcome you in another article, but until then, have a great rest of your day and take care.
Video Game News – Destructoid
KABALYERO • Gamer, Streamer, Blogger, Husband and Father!
