Ah, Half-Life 3 and rumors. It's kind of the game's schtick for nearly 10 years, isn't it? Valve has said before that they are intentionally not saying anything about Half-Life 3, but it hasn't stopped the latest leak from explaining why Half-Life 3 has been taking so long.
According to a French Journaldugamer report, which cites an anonymous source who is "close to Valve," Half-Life 3 has been built, torn down, and rebuilt several times, each taking on a different form of gameplay. The first was allegedly a "pure shooter", and then it transformed into a more open world with gravitational puzzles.
The source claims that Valve has decided that the final product will be completely open world that includs NPCs and quests like a good little RPG. Open-world RPG shooters are kind of becoming the "in" thing these days, but this seems like a huge divergence from the traditional Half-Life formula, and we know how much fans like change.
The report also claims that Half-Life 3 will be released "after 2013," suggesting a 2014-2015 release on next-generation consoles.
If this report is true, then what say you, Half-Life fans?
[Source]