While this isn't Half-Life 3, it is interesting that one of Valve’s most well-known games, the original Half-Life, is still receiving updates 19 years after being released in 1998.

The update contains fixes for multiple bugs reported by gamers still playing the classic shooter, all of which are personally thanked next to the fix. Half-Life: Opposing Force and Half-Life: Blue Shift have also been patched in a similar fashion, for gamers still blasting through the halls of Black Mesa.

While not the most breathtaking update, the fix still has some players buzzing, even fantasizing that this could lead to the announcement of the greatest of all gaming white whales— Half-Life 3. The update addresses problems related to lines in the game code, crashes dealing with consumable weapons being switched too quickly, and some other odds and ends that deal with custom content that gamers have been using to spice up Gordon Freeman’s flagship adventure. The updates for Opposing Force and Blue Shift are identical, so the game crashing glitches that have affected all three games should be resolved for those still batting head crabs around with their trusty crowbar.

Via: kotaku.co.uk

While not the news that 98% of the gaming community was hoping to receive in regards to the Half-Life series, it’s refreshing to see a developer still patching player reported problems for a game that’s 19-years-old. It shows Valve’s commitment to the community when they’ve been getting a bad wrap for Steam and its somewhat lackluster customer service.

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Does this mean that Half-Life 3 is confirmed? No, it does not. At least, not yet—no one has taken the time to put together a cryptic hidden message buried in the update notes, although that’ll surely pop up at some point. The fact that an update to a 19-year-old title has caused this much of a buzz in the gaming community should be a glaringly bright sign to Valve that gamers still worship their genre defining Half-Life series, and are hungry for more. Maybe this will rouse Valve's co-founder Gabe Newell from his slumber and he’ll pull the gold gilded lever that releases Half-Life 3.