Quote:
Half-Life 2 leaked... again!
Web posted on 17/8/04
Although this time it's only the script, and the chances of you downloading it or buying it on a Russian market are fairly slim.
You might think us gamers are being given a bum deal waiting for Half-Life 2 to arrive, but right now, we're guessing the guys at Valve want to see it in shops even more than you do. After finally getting to grips with the source code leak last year and managing to contain any harmful effects such a breach may have had on the finished game, Valve have suffered yet another setback in Half-Life 2's completion, namely the leak of all of the game's dialogue.
No sneaky hacks involved here though: this particular mishap must rest firmly on the shoulders of Valve themselves. While uploading beta versions of Counter-Strike: Source via their online distribution system Steam to testers, it seems a .gcf file was included by accident that, once opened using suitably shady techniques, revealed all spoken dialogue found in Half-Life 2. The file format isn't designed to be opened by your average customer, which may explain how it managed to slip through the net unnoticed, but quite what such a file was doing in the CS: Source upload is another matter.
The dialogue, which contains every word spoken in the game, obviously contains some rather massive spoilers including the super-secret ending to the game, and it's yet another blow to developers Valve - some people it seems will do anything and everything to try and ruin the game for themselves. However, don't expect to see the script plastered across the internet tonight - thanks to Steam, Valve are able to track down every last copy of the Source beta and will no doubt be working around the clock, Jack Bauer style, to contain the latest breach. Because the Source beta was only uploaded to Valve's own Cyber Café subscribers and selected members of the press, it shouldn't be too widespread a leak.
Hopefully, all of this Keystone Cop-esque beheaviour won't affect Half-Life 2's proposed release date of late September, although judging by Valve's luck at the moment, they might want to protect their offices from meteor showers and Godzilla attacks.
So the plot, including the ending, is out there already. Dumb move on Valve's part, but I won't be looking for it. Why spoil it?