Half-Life 3 Speculations Spark Again as Risk of Rain Original Devs Join Valve's Game Dev Team

The acclaimed Risk of Rain developers, Hopoo Games, have made a significant move, with key personnel, including co-founders Duncan Drummond and Paul Morse, joining Valve's game development team.

Hopoo Games' Transition to Valve

Projects Paused, "Snail" on Hold

Hopoo Games announced on Twitter (now X) that several team members, including its co-founders, are transitioning to Valve. This has resulted in a temporary suspension of Hopoo Games' current projects, notably the unannounced title "Snail." While the nature of this move remains unclear – whether temporary or permanent – Drummond and Morse's LinkedIn profiles still list them as Hopoo Games co-founders. The studio expressed gratitude for its decade-long partnership with Valve and excitement about contributing to Valve's upcoming projects. However, the statement concluded with "sleep tight, Hopoo Games," signaling a halt to "Snail's" development.

Established in 2012 by Drummond and Morse, Hopoo Games gained recognition with the original Risk of Rain, a highly successful roguelike. Its sequel, Risk of Rain 2, followed in 2019. In 2022, Hopoo Games sold the Risk of Rain IP to Gearbox Software, which continues to develop the franchise, recently releasing the Risk of Rain 2: Seekers of the Storm DLC. Despite some criticism of the DLC, Drummond voiced confidence in Gearbox's future direction for the series.

Valve's "Deadlock" and the Half-Life 3 Speculation

Neither Valve nor Hopoo Games has revealed the specifics of the collaboration. Valve's current major project, the hero shooter Deadlock, remains in early access. However, the news has fueled renewed speculation about a potential Half-Life 3.

This speculation intensified after a voice actor briefly listed a mysterious "Project White Sands" linked to Valve on their portfolio. Although quickly removed, this sparked fan theories connecting "White Sands" to Half-Life 3, drawing parallels between "White Sands" (a park in New Mexico) and Black Mesa (the setting of Half-Life and its fan remake). As reported by Eurogamer, these fan theories have gained significant traction.