Marc Laidlaw penned 400 Boys in 1981 at the age of 21—years before he became Valve’s lead writer and a central creative force behind the Half-Life series. The short story first appeared in Omni magazine in 1983, later gaining broader recognition when included in Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology. Today, it remains one of his most widely read works, even surpassing some of his more recent contributions, including Dota 2 promotional material.

Set in a post-apocalyptic city where rival gangs operate under a bushido-like code, 400 Boys follows the emergence of a new gang that forces unity among its enemies. The story blends intense visuals with gritty storytelling, brought to life by Canadian director Robert Valley, known for his Emmy-winning Love, Death + Robots episode “Ice.”

Laidlaw recalls the inspiration behind the piece being surprisingly simple: “I lived in Eugene, Oregon, and there were always flyers on phone poles advertising local bands. I loved all the cool band names and wanted to create something similar—but with gangs. That was actually one of the driving forces behind the story: just coming up with awesome gang names.”

Marc Laidlaw has moved on from Half-Life, but not from storytelling. Photo credit: Mimi Raver.

Now, over four decades after its initial publication, 400 Boys has found new life as an episode in Season 4 of Netflix’s acclaimed Love, Death + Robots. Directed by Robert Valley (Zima Blue, Ice) and written by Tim Miller, the episode features voice work from John Boyega (Star Wars: The Force Awakens). It’s a surreal moment for Laidlaw, who never imagined his early work would reach such a wide audience.

“The story kind of faded out, but cyberpunk kept going, and I didn’t really think about it much,” Laidlaw shared during a recent video call. He explained how the project almost got off the ground around 15 years ago through Blur Studio, only to fall apart amid studio shifts. Then came the rise of Love, Death + Robots in 2019—a show known for its edgy, adult animation and genre-defying stories. Marc quickly noticed Tim Miller’s involvement and felt a spark of hope.

400 Boys is now part of Netflix’s Love, Death + Robots. Image credit: Netflix.

After relocating to Los Angeles in 2020, Laidlaw met Miller a few times socially. Though he never pushed the idea, he quietly hoped the Love, Death + Robots team might revisit his old story. A year later, the email finally arrived: “Would you be interested in us optioning 400 Boys?” And just like that, it was happening.

Laidlaw collaborated minimally with the production team, offering background materials and pointing them to his audiobook narration of the story. But overall, he chose to step back and enjoy the process. “It was fun to sit back and not have to be involved in the trenches for once,” he says. “I just wanted to see what they made of it.”

He admits being impressed with the final product: “John Boyega, the accents, the setting—it all feels so cool. They made the story visually engaging in a way I could never have imagined.”

Reflecting on the original text, Laidlaw describes it as a creation from “a different me from lifetimes ago.” After all, he wrote it before gaming, before Valve, and long before Half-Life changed everything. “And then there was a long time of not much happening,” he adds, referring to the years before he joined Valve in 1997.

Instead, he’s turned to music, and even found a new audience after releasing rare Half-Life 2 development footage following the game’s anniversary documentary. “I'm like, I'm in the wrong business!” he laughs. “I should just be leaking information about my old employer.”

Looking back at Half-Life for the documentary was both nostalgic and therapeutic. “It was good to process and put a bow on that stuff,” he explains. “I hadn’t seen a lot of those people in a long time. It was fun to reconnect, talk things over, and reflect.”

With Half-Life and Half-Life 2 now commemorated, the only remaining Valve title tied to him is Dota 2, which recently celebrated its 12th anniversary. Whether Valve will revisit it in eight years remains to be seen. “I could speak to Dota,” Laidlaw says. “That's the only thing left.” Unless, of course, they want to discuss Alien Swarm, where he had a small hand in development.

When asked if he’d ever write for another game, he replies thoughtfully: “I’m generally still open to writing for a video game. Hideo Kojima probably should’ve called me when working on Death Stranding.” He jokes that he wouldn’t have ruined the script—just polished it into something actors could deliver more naturally.

Still, Laidlaw acknowledges that stepping away so completely from the industry may have caused people to forget he’s still available. “When I see the Miyazaki stuff from FromSoftware, of course you go to George R.R. Martin first if you can. Nobody needs my name to sell copies. But that kind of project excites me.”

Surprisingly, the offers that did come post-Valve weren’t quite aligned with his background. “I got asked to write a synopsis for a mobile laser tag game,” he reveals. “I'm like, ‘I don't know that I have much to offer you guys.’ But I don’t like saying no to stuff.”

Ultimately, nothing truly compelling came his way. “People think of me as someone who can come in and write a bunch of dialogue. But do you notice how little writing there was in Half-Life? The point was, I hated reading in games.”

“I would not do that,” he answers plainly. “Even when I was there, I started feeling like I was becoming the old guy shooting down ideas. At some point, you need to let the new generation—the fans and creators inspired by your work—take the reins. We need fresh ideas.”

He also notes that he hasn’t played Half-Life: Alyx, making it harder to contribute meaningfully. “It’s not really my place anymore. God knows what it takes creatively to surprise people today. You have to be right on the edge of what you can do—and I’m not there anymore. Plus, I’m older, and that kind of work is exhausting. I prefer doing things on my own schedule.”

So, while Half-Life may be behind him, Marc Laidlaw’s influence continues to ripple outward. Just look at 400 Boys—a story written in his youth, now adapted decades later for a global streaming audience. Perhaps one day, someone will knock on Valve’s door, proposing a Half-Life adaptation. And when that happens, maybe Marc Laidlaw will get to relive this entire journey all over again.

“The fact that I got into cyberpunk before it had a name, and then helped build a fledgling company that created Half-Life… I’ve been lucky to be part of things that became cultural phenomena.”