This is EXCELENT news!
-Here`s what IGN has to say on it:
#June 10, 2004 - Several arrests related to the Half-Life 2 source code theft have now been made in various countries, according to a release sent out today by Valve Software.
The arrests come after thousands of tips were received, most of them from the gaming community. A core group were able to use these clues to track down likely perpetrators. Valve has also been working with national authorities to prepare for and follow through on the arrests.
"Within a few days of the announcement of the break-in, the online gaming community had tracked down those involved," said Gabe Newell, Valve's CEO. "It was extraordinary to watch how quickly and how cleverly gamers were able to unravel what are traditionally unsolvable problems for law enforcement related to this kind of cyber-crime."
The arrests are the latest in the ongoing drama of Half-Life 2's development and release, a story began in October 2003 when Valve confirmed that the company's security had been breached and the game's source code stolen, leading to much-lamented delays in the game's expected release.
Valve did not release details on the names or number of people arrested, nor just where the arrests took place.
We contacted the FBI's Northwest Cyber Crime Task Force, one of the agencies involved in the arrests, but at the time of this writing were unable to reach a representative for further comment.
We will, however, provide updates to this story as soon as new details emerge. Watch this space. "