Half-Life 3 rumours are – at times – tenuous at best, but this one might actually have some legs, even if they’re really short and not capable of running very far. According to community-led rumour site ValveTime, an internal mailing list archive typed by an actual human at Valve acknowledges the game’s existence by name.

The site posted this water-marked image which allegedly shows Valve’s internal bug-tracking and management platform ‘Jira’. You can see reference to Half-Life 3, Left 4 Dead 3, Steambox, Source 2 and more intersting names in this gallery of screen grabs.

This could all be place-holder, so run your tongue over that block of salt-lick for now and swallow deep. The has slung all 791 listed project names on Pastebin for all to see, if you’re interested.

Earlier this year I wrote a blog about the possibilities of Source 2, after the new engine was rumoured, and how a big leap in tech would be quite awesome for Valve.

Valve’s Chet Faliszek has also suggested that Left 4 Dead 3 could happen at some point down the line.

What do you make of the above? Total bollocks, or is Valve setting up its framework for more Gordon Freeman stories?

Thanks OXM.