Valve to announce Half-Life 3, new VR headset and controllers THIS WEEK says super hot rumor

Valve could be preparing to launch its next-gen Steam Frame VR headset alongside its new Steam Controller, with what could be the biggest announcement in years: Half-Life 3 dropping this week.

In some super-hot rumors posted from a reliable source for Valve-related hardware and display leaks, posted on X and on the "GamingLeaksAndRumors" subreddit, which states that comments were made on Brad Lynch's Discord, where he reportedly said: "I'm just going to flat out say it. I was told by a few sources, across a few weeks, to keep an eye out for this week. More specifically, Wednesday".

He continued: "and it doesn't seem to be out of the question for Valve to choose that day to just **announce** it. I have no idea but I get the impression they will need a week or two to explain the device to people before opening orders anyway".

• Read more: Half-Life 3 optimization going well, Valve rumor: launch announcement in a tweet SOON
• Read more: Steam Controller 2 leaked details: fresh design, hand distance detection, launch
• Read more: Valve's Steam Frame is an all-in-one VR headset close to being released

It's expected that Valve's new Steam Frame (codenamed "Deckard") would be the focus of the announcement, with a totally new way to interact with the VR environment with "Frames", hence the Steam Frame VR headset naming. Valve's new Steam Frame is going to reportedly be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chip, with a JDI-provided display with 2160 x 2160 @ 120Hz, SLAM tracking, eye tracking, and more.

The new Steam Controller features a funky new design that reportedly detects how far users' hands are from the handles, using a simple "Capsense" technology.

They're reportedly similar to the Valve Index controllers, but not full finger tracking on the grips. For anyone who's had the pleasure of using the Index controllers and playing Half-Life: Alyx, you'll know how incredible that was, and that the new Steam Controller will be much closer to that than competing controllers.

• Read more: Half-Life 3 to push boundaries of game physics, destruction, NPC AI behavior in fresh leaks

With a brand-new next-gen VR headset and a massively improved controller, Steam Frame needs a new killer app... which is where Half-Life 3 comes into play. The game has been rumored for years and years now, but reports from the last few months suggest that the game is playable from end-to-end, and Valve is in the optimization process, with a reveal of Half-Life 3 to come from a surprise tweet "soon".

Valve's new Steam Frame VR headset reportedly entered mass production last month in October, with the company allegedly expecting to ship up to 600,000 headsets per year. Reports suggest that Valve could charge up to $1200 for the Steam Frame VR headset.

According to the leaks, the new Steam Frame VR headset will introduce Valve's new "Frames", which are visual elements like floating windows that provide users with new ways to interact with applications, similar to how Apple's immersive OS is on the Vision Pro headset.

Maybe we'll get the Steam Frame VR headset and new Steam Controller announcement, detailing the new headset with its waves of orders, teasing Half-Life 3 for when gamers start receiving their new VR headsets and controllers from Valve. But this is a super, super-hot rumor, and if it happens... we are in the best timeline, even with GTA 6 delayed.