Half Life 2 source code thieves nabbed?

[Paul Adams]

http://www.half-life2.org.uk/
http://www.planethalflife.com/
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2004/06...ife_2_arrests/

Ish...

Ironically, the announcements of the arrests comes a week after it emerged that the game might not be finished this year after all. Half-Life 2's does not appear on Vivendi Universal's mid-year release timetable - a list that includes a number of other titles earmarked for the company's Christmas line-up.

[Romanov]

you wonder what the real story is though?? I think they over hyped and realised that it wasnt going to half as good as they said.

[Bindibadgi]

This is what confuses me - before the leak everyone was saying it was the best thing since sliced bread, since, now hl2 is yesterdays news and some people on here have probably downloaded the compiled version, they think its crap.

Yes, of course it is overhyped, but i think itll still be a good game worth playing - read between the lines.

[Steve]

This is what confuses me - before the leak everyone was saying it was the best thing since sliced bread, since, now hl2 is yesterdays news and some people on here have probably downloaded the compiled version, they think its crap.

The problem is twofold:

1. Company's make promises to deliver a product, then don't meet it.
2. People judge a product before they can even buy it.

Neither of these should occur, yet they do.

[Pete]

yes finally those idiots have been jailed...hopefully
now please valve finish the damn game and release it!
if it isnt going to be released this year then it is going to be so much different from april last years screenshots and videos
vavle want this project to change history and theyll jsut keep changing it till it is something thatll make poeple sotp and think
all im interested in is good game being released!
Pete

[Agent]

if it isnt going to be released this year then it is going to be so much different from april last years screenshots and videos

They are probably still getting the game into a state where it is playable.
I remember watching the E3 video of it last year and the bloke saying "none of the AI is scripted", and everyone wowing.
Then when the leak appeared, it appeared it clearly was scripted !

It makes you wonder about how much they have been lieing about. If anyone hasnt seen the Planet Half life post by the ex director, go and read it.

infact, herea a link : http://www.halflifesource.com/forums...=&postid=18704

[Jonny M]

Cheers Agent, that's very interesting.

Seems Valve were just spouting a load of BS to get interest high.

[Pete]

They are probably still getting the game into a state where it is playable.
I remember watching the E3 video of it last year and the bloke saying "none of the AI is scripted", and everyone wowing.
Then when the leak appeared, it appeared it clearly was scripted !

It makes you wonder about how much they have been lieing about. If anyone hasnt seen the Planet Half life post by the ex director, go and read it.

infact, herea a link : http://www.halflifesource.com/forums...=&postid=18704

hmmm im not sure if they were lying all that much about the scripting, i no alot of people on these forums argue that the bit in the video when the carbine guy kicks the door in cause u block it with a table is complete scripting but playing the alpha its obvious that its not scripted.

it may be a little ok...
but
if u have or have ever had a go on the alpha try not putting the table across the door...and just closing it, the trooper will just open the door and not try and kick it in or attempt to open it first...
or...you can put one of the strangely placed washing machines infront of it and the guy cant get through at all because the weight of the machine is too heavy (you cant lift it with the anti gravity thingy)

ok ill admit that the door does kinda open a bit which is supposed to be the guy trying to get through, so it is tiny scripted. but im sure they will make it so that sort of thing isnt going to happen in the actual game

i dont think they were lying to us really that much the video was jsut to show off what the finshed product willl be like they proably didnt have time to make it so it wasnt scripted and they didnt expect the leak, valve are a good company in my eyes still

[RoGuE|SaBeR]

Half Life 2 will be good, it will be very good infact but for me it has lost some of its luster since the whole delay / leak episode has come about.

If the game had shipped on 30th September that would have been 8 1/2 months ago. In that time there have been some pretty big moves in the gaming industry and HL2 isn't the shining star which it once was. Granted it is going to be excellent and the game will be exceptional in its field but now bigger and better things are in the works.

Unreal 3 Engine anyone?

If HL2 had shipped when it was supposed to it would have been possibly the biggest game ever. Nothing was close to it in terms of graphics and probably gameplay at that time and it would have blown pretty much everything else outta the water. Now Farcry has been on retail for sometime and it moved the genre a few steps forward. Don't get me wrong HL2 will also advance the FPS genre but it won't be by as great a margin than at first thought.

That letter from the PHL guy was extremely interesting. I always made the assumption vavle supported the community quite well due to the success of many of the HL mods but their success way have just been down to hard work on the modders part. Doom 3 might just be t3h w1nn0r out of this whole situation.

I upgraded my damn system for these games last summer and now I'm having to consider it again! Raddy 9600 Pro was a hooooge step up from a GeForce 2 MX 400 and last summer it cost me £140. Could easily get a 9800 Pro for that price now....

[Agent]

Unreal 3 Engine anyone?

Half life 2 ?
Whats Half life 2 ?

[RVF500]

To be honest I'm fed up of the constant garbage being spouted about this game. It's ready...oh no it's not. If it comes out in Q4 of this year it will be released amongst a raft of other very good games which I personally will buy and play before I bother with this one.

It seems that Valve have behaved with a considerable lack of professionalism regarding their product. ATI have been left with egg on their face having marketed the 9800XT bundled with Half-life 2. Wonder if they will be keen to associate themselves with a Valve product again on future projects? Anyway, from a consumer perspective I'm not going to hold my breath and wait with increasing frustration for it. After all, it's only a game and there are plenty of other games.

[Pete]

unreal 3 is amazing and i cant wait to play it only gonna cost me about 500 quid to pay for the amazing system itll run on
hl2 is going to look sh**e against all the games coming out and it probably will be pants but im still going to play it and probably love it! thats just how i am if i have a game which is really just a pile of poo ill play it anyway becasue i want my moneys worth and im not going to be one of those people who say 'hl2 will be a waste of money', im buying it! mabye just to say i have hl2 or something i dont know what it is but i just feel i must have this game, mabye thats what valve was thinking of when it fooked us all!?

[OwenTMoL]

I'll most likely get some kind of flaming for this but I guess my opinion on thise subject is important too me.
I'm a firm believer in free software (Free as in Linux free. Pay for or Free Distribution and open source.) I firmly believe that if ALL software inclusive of game was "free" in the Linux sense all software would be greatly improved. Therefore morally i had no objection to the theft of the HL2 osurce code except that Valve used it to lie to the gamers.
The thieves were caught because experience gamers and net junkies tracked them down and turned them over. I almost consider that treason against your own kind. I also firmly believe that the only reason Valve were upset was because it clearly shows all the hype about half life before the leak was. . . Well crap.
A good case for comparison would be to compare Valve's rection to the Doom3 Alpha leak reaction.
I didn't see any gamers tracking down the Doom thieves but because Valve said that meant they'd have to hold up the game a little more they tured the users against them.

[Steve]

Fair enough OwenTMol, but the code was still stolen, which is illegal. There's no argument against that.

[OwenTMoL]

True, Legal and Illegal are undebatable but I feel there are far to many threads along the line of "HL2 hackers have wrecked the game, I hate them I hate them" When the hackers had no effect on the game.

[Steve]

I see what you mean.

I, however, absolutely love the original Half-Life, and am not going to pass judgement until they (finally) release it (if ever.) The longer I wait though, the more skeptical I become.

Maybe then I'll be able to get a HL2 T-Shirt to replace my ageing Half-Life T-Shirt, hehe.