It was only last year when Half-Life fans were treated to a long-awaited bombshell from former Valve writer Marc Laidlaw, who seemingly published a synopsis for the infinitely-delayed Half-Life 3. The thinly-veiled fan fiction told the story of “Gertie Fremont” and her compelling sci-fi adventure titled “Epistle 3,” revealing the trilogy-ending tale Laidlaw originally had in mind for protagonist Gordon Freeman.

This sort-of unveiling was a complete surprise for many who gave up on learning the games’ outcome, and someone who was equally taken aback was fellow Half-Life 2 writer Chet Faliszek. Speaking with GamesRadar, the creative discloses his surprise that the decision was made to publicly share Episode 3 details.

“I’ll let Marc speak for that,” Faliszek said. “I… I was surprised by it coming out. I’ll let Marc speak for that.”

Explaining his lack of knowledge on Laidlaw’s reveal, Faliszek clarified that he never felt compelled to pursue story information regarding Half-Life 3. During his former employment at Valve, Faliszek came to the conclusion that the game-making process as more of a team effort rather than a spearheading by a single individual. It’s for this group-fueled reasoning he feels no one person should be seen as a project’s sole spokesman.

I think one of the things when you’re working in a company [like Valve] is the realisation that there’s a whole bunch of people working on things,” says Faliszek, “and sometimes people would falsely equate me [as a spokesman] since I was out doing press or something and that’s BS.

“There’s a whole bunch of people working on it, and it’s their group ownership of it that keeps it going. A million people with names you don’t know, that are more instrumental on that game that made it better, funnier, more interesting. At this point, I’m a fan, and waiting to see what’s going to come out of it.”

While Valve’s creative fires are currently burning everywhere except Half-Life, fans are adamant to continue the flame themselves, starting up their own adaptation of Marc Laidlaw’s extensive story outline. The latest on “Project Borealis” was unveiled just a few months ago, showcasing some pretty impressive progress on what could serve as our only faithful closure to the Half-Life series.

What do you think? Were you surprised by Laidlaw’s reveal of Half-Life 3 as well, or was that bit of fan-fiction your first dive into the universe? Let us know in the comments below and be sure to follow Don’t Feed the Gamers on Twitter and Facebook to be informed of the latest gaming and entertainment news 24 hours a day! For more from the realm of Valve, check out these next few news stories:

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