Jake

Nah.

I think there is zero chance this was intended to be Half Life 3. When I see people saying that I think they must just forget that Half Life 2 Episode 3 was something that was intended to exist. Not only would the story as outlined here be too small for a full length Half Life game, but his blog refers to it as "epistle 3" (which is clearly just a word swap for Episode 3, the same as many other name swaps throughout his post), and we know that Half Life 2 Episode 3 was in at least preproduction for a while, and included a bunch of the elements he mentions. Also the way that writeup ends, implies pretty strongly that if they had produced and shipped this version of Episode 3, it was setting up Alyx to be the protagonist of a hypothetical Half Life 3 (she's the one who leaves with the G Man at the end, not Gordon). This is a super interesting document in part because it surely shows just one person's version of what Half Life 2 Episode 3 might have been, at one point in production. It's just one iteration of one possible (or probable?) direction the final product could have taken. Valve always seemed to adapt and shift their stories and setpieces around as they stayed in production, so it's unlikely we would have seen the game as described here, had they shipped Episode 3. Also this is a document presumably written by Laidlaw almost a decade after production was at its most fervent, so this is his version of the story, from probably his preferred time in production before things went fallow, with almost a decade of time to sit and percolate in his mind before he put pen to paper. I'm not saying that to discount it or something -- it was a fantastic and surprisingly cathartic read -- but more to point out that it is not actually "half life 3's story" or "half life episode 3's story" or anything as specific and tangible as that.

I thought "15 leads to bad coop, and for some reason that will be bad or wont work, and Naido somehow knew that, so she sent him through 3" (or alternatively "15 leads to bad coop and naido knew that, and is for some reason in cahoots with mr c, so she tricked/distracted cooper until the socket was the one that led to dougie"). Neither of those answers is fully developed enough to mean anything, but it's the way my brain made sense of it.

Doug Lombardi didn't lie in 2008. http://www.marclaidlaw.com/epistle-3/ https://pastebin.com/q9DMFa7c

Important If True 15: Sexual Sneezing Your questions, advised definitively. This week: Would you forego the need to eat if it meant you couldn't reproduce? Can a person like sneezing too much? Like, WAY too much? Is the Law & Order theme song actually a dog? And finally, were we—technically—not totally hoisted by a story in last week’s show? Let's take a closer look. Send us email at [email protected]. If you enjoyed this and would like to subscribe to an ad-free feed, please consider supporting Idle Thumbs by backing our Patreon. Discussed: being a lame adult, Chris' dumb Snopes hoax, terrible tattoos, an excellent tattoo, how to podcast, self-revelation, Second Life bunny genocide, dogs howling at Law & Order, photic sneezing, snatiation, sexually induced sneezing Nick's Endorsement: The "Shreds" music video series by StSanders Chris' Endorsement: A Dark Room for iOS Jake's Endorsement: Kamenstein Perfect Tear Paper Towel Holder Sponsored by: Quip electric toothbrushes, our Twin Peaks Rewatch podcast Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes

Important If True 25: The Fresno Experiment Our weekly attempt to decipher greater truths from the bustle and hum of the world gets sidetracked, by the loudest hum ever heard. As we listen to what sounds like the hum of a tens of thousands of tiny wings amplify with urgency, we ask ourselves these questions: Why would scientists release tens of thousands of mosquitoes into the town of Fresno, California? Why did economists flood Fresno with the world's first credit cards sixty years before they filled it with mosquitos? What is Fresno hiding (besides a lot of debt and itchy skin)? What did Fresno do to deserve this? Is it related to the Canadian priest and his giant robot spider? We'll do our best to figure it all out, and you can help by listening along. Discussed: Good Time, Robert Pattinson, Robert Pattinson's online nano-controlled adoration swarm, Google-released mosquitoes, Catholic priest's online nano-controlled mosquito swarm, Fresno, credit cards in Fresno, Archbishop-released giant robot cathedral spider, shitty cyberpunk priest duel, mosquitoes vs. robot spider, Jurassic Park but with transubstantiation, Superman producer's giant spider obsession (Wikipedia summary, Kevin Smith video explanation), Jeopardy of the Internet, Twitch Plays Jeopardy, Big Moon!!!, the Moon illusion (not harvest moon), the size of the sun, Dr. Sbaitso, Mr. Sbaitso, 20 million mosquitoes Voltronning into Dr. Sbaitso, meme-resistance CRISPR gene therapy serum delivered by mosquito, the phrase "meme", the truth about putting your phone in rice, the truth about Amazon fulfillment errors, San Francisco fancy-ass pickle bullshit Send us your questions at [email protected]. If you enjoyed this and would like to subscribe to an ad-free feed, please consider supporting Idle Thumbs by backing our Patreon. Chris' Endorsement: 23andMe DNA research service (or use my referral URL if you want!) Nick's Endorsement: Bubbies pickles that will explode your mouth and tickle your tongue Jake's Endorsement: Mac, DOS, early Windows, arcade, and classic console emulation in-browser at the Internet Archive Sponsored By: Quip electric toothbrushes Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes

Twin Peaks Rewatch 38: The Return, Part 4 After a wild and wide-reaching start to the season, Twin Peaks is finally starting to center itself. Or, at least we think it might be. Let's talk about the home life of Dougie Jones, the FBI's run-in with a very different man than they were expecting, the overwhelming delight of Agent Cooper's first sip of coffee in 25 years, and of course, Wally Brando. If you have a question for us or thoughts to share on the new season of Twin Peaks, write us at [email protected]. Looking for a place to discuss the season with fellow viewers? We recommend the Twin Peaks Rewatch forum. Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes

I haven't commented but I'm enjoying reading your notes as you drop them. Please continue

Twin Peaks Rewatch 37: The Return, Part 3 Twin Peaks: The Return is broadening out, getting funnier, sadder, and somehow even stranger than it was before. Agent Cooper completes his difficult journey out of the Black Lodge only to land in an unexpected pair of shoes: those of a slot machine mega-jackpot champion named Dougie. Hold onto your shoes and follow us through the unknown, as we discuss The Return, Part 3. If you have a question for us or thoughts to share on the new season of Twin Peaks, write us at [email protected]. Looking for a place to discuss the season with fellow viewers? We recommend the Twin Peaks Rewatch forum. Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes

Important If True 13: "Veggie" Panino and the Nightmare Puzzler If you come across a stranger on a dark, empty road in the middle of the night, and they tell you they can answer any question you ask, we hope you pick one of these: Does somewhere exist because you've dreamed about it over and over? Why does Lightning McQueen always keep his doors locked? Has anyone ever made a recipe from the back of a Triscuit box, and if so was their name Tristan? If you never encounter that stranger, but still want those answers, listen to this podcast instead. Send us email at [email protected]. If you enjoyed this and would like to subscribe to an ad-free feed, please consider supporting Idle Thumbs by backing our Patreon. Discussed Triscuit cracker recipes, implicit egotism and major life decisions, being chased by maniacs while lost, the interior life of Cars, medically-induced nightmares Jake's Endorsement: Twin Peaks Rewatch Podcast, Twin Peaks TV series (Amazon, iTunes, Netflix) Chris' Endorsement: Photic sneezing Nick's Endorsement: Poo-Pourri poo spray Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes

New thread is up sorry!

What if Dougie gets shot though. That's the shadow fanfic universe I will read if someone legitimately writes it when the seasons over.

Twin Peaks Rewatch 46: The Return, Part 11 Twin Peaks is firing on all cylinders this week, as the tonal hallmarks of The Return mesh with some absolute standout moments from longtime series regulars and newcomers alike. We had a great time watching and considering this episode, and we hope you did too. If you have a question for us or thoughts to share on the new season of Twin Peaks, write us at [email protected]. Looking for a place to discuss the season with fellow viewers? We recommend the Twin Peaks Rewatch forum. Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes

Mooon

Twin Peaks Rewatch 47: The Return, Part 12 Though the map is both figuratively and literally starting to center on Twin Peaks, this week we're all over the place. After some fantastic moments with the FBI, Ben Horne, Sheriff Truman, and Sarah Palmer, Audrey makes her long-awaited return, seemingly to bombard us with names and relationships we can barely grasp. Who is Tina and what did she say? Where's Billy? Is Chuck Richard? These questions and more will remain unanswered for now despite everyone's best efforts, but that's probably the point. If you have a question for us or thoughts to share on the new season of Twin Peaks, write us at [email protected]. Looking for a place to discuss the season with fellow viewers? We recommend the Twin Peaks Rewatch forum. Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes This week for sure, we'll get answers to the threads we REALLY care about... Really though, let's talk about The Return, Part 12!

RIP Big Moon another cool thing killed by science and rational thought. Ugh. When will they bring back the real Big Moon I remember from my childhood when the moon was actually bigger? Does anyone else remember that?

Idle Weekend June 11, 2017: Off to the Races This weekend, we're all about going really fast in pretty places. We discuss our favorite racing games, spurned on by a couple of recent humdingers, Dirt 4 and Wipeout Omega Collection, and Rob's love of F1. Discussed: Wipeout Omega Collection, Dirt 4, Codemasters' Formula 1 series, Dirt 2, Dirt 3, Split/Second, Road Redemption, Mario Kart, Diddy Kong Racing, Sonic and Sega All Stars Racing, Rad Racer, Side Effects, LadyKiller in a Bind, Anna Anthropy's Triad, Lip Service, The Hunger, American Gods, Michael Chabon, Farscape, The Americans, The Good Wife, Turn, Wonder Woman. Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes

It ended up turning into "seg'" eventually, despite whatever origin it had, and Steve enjoyed it very much. I think you can hear him say it in the episode XI-2 intro audio collage.

This is canon for me until proven otherwise.

Idle Weekend July 27, 2017: The Little Engine That Could This weekend, we wade into the game engine kerfuffle with opinions, context, and that characteristic Idle Weekend spice. Then, we go hard into a discussion of weekend projects, with action movies, professional wrestling, and combat sports. Like you do on a gaming podcast! Discussed: game engines, Mass Effect Andromeda, Ultimate General: Civil War, John Wick 2, Kingsman: the secret service, GLOW, Game of Thrones, WWE, Lucha Underground, Japan Pro Listen on the Episode Page Listen on Soundcloud Listen in iTunes

This is a bold claim! Are you interested in attempting to make that argument? (I don't think I agree off the top of my head but would love to hear your take on it.)

Holy shit is right. That's an incredible thing for them to mess up.

you played this wrong my friend

Well, it is MY private echo chamber, and you're not offering any constructive DISCUSSION. Coming in here and insulting everyone else's intelligence while insisting your read on things is obvious is completely tiring. It's not a discussion, it's you gawping and feeling smug about it. Also, calling people snowflakes and any of that. What is the point of that? Think for yourself, don't use that garbage. Please leave.

Maybe the secret history book takes place after the show?