[UPDATE] The SDK for the eagerly awaited title will ship out in the next "few weeks."

Gamers looking for a positive sign in the ongoing Half-Life 2 saga may be in luck. A recent Halflife2.net post features an e-mail attributed to Valve engineer Rick Ellis which says the software developer kit for the mega-anticipated sequel "will be released soon." The impending SDK released was confirmed Valve PR head Doug Lombardi. "We will be releasing v.1 of that in the coming weeks," he told GameSpot. Presumably, the game's release would be not far behind.





Ellis' e-mail also says a "legal hang-up" was the last hurdle Valve had to overcome before releasing the SDK. This revelation caused some speculation that physics-engine-creator Havok may have possibly sued Valve over the now-infamous code leak. However, Lombardi denied that was the case. "The 'legal hangup ... was simply in reference to us finalizing some paperwork involved with the distribution of the code in the SDK." As for the Havok lawsuit rumor, "to the best of our knowledge it is nothing more than a rumor," said Lombardi.