Half-Life 2 Almost Done
COMMUNITY NEWS posted on 11 AUG 2004 by Chris Abele
Valve Software has revealed plans to begin releasing its FPS.
In a series of posts to Half-Life 2 fansites, Valve Software's head honcho Game Newell offered new information regarding the impending release of its sci-fi shooter sequel. According to the posts, both Counter-Strike: Source and Half-Life 2 will begin pre-loading across Valve's Steam Network next week. Counter-Strike: Source is the revamped version of Counter-Strike (review), a complete overhaul of the popular FPS mod-turned-official game which was first released in 1999. The new "Source" version of Counter-Strike includes the art, graphics, and new game engine that also powers Half-Life 2.
In fitting with Valve's plans to offer alternative purchasing solutions for its games, Half-Life 2 and Counter-Strike: Source will be released through the Steam Network. The Steam service allows subscribers to download Valve's games as a direct download. According to the new release schedule, owners of Counter-Strike: Condition Zero or those who had received a coupon from graphics card maker ATI for Half-Life 2 will receive early access to Counter-Strike: Source beginning on Wednesday, August 18th. The base textures, audio files, and similar static files will be pre-loaded across the Steam Network, an action which should ease the popular game's release through Steam.
On Tuesday, August 17th all Steam subscribers will be able to pre-load Half-Life 2 onto their systems. While pre-loading will not give access to the full game quiet yet, it does seem to indicate that the game is nearly complete and a "gone gold" announcement should not be far behind. According to various Internet rumors, Valve has in fact passed the final version of its code off for review to Vivendi Universal, its retail market publisher. Both the Steam Network version of Half-Life 2 and its retail counterpart should be available sometime in September. It is not currently known if Steam users will receive Half-Life 2 before the retail release.
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