What? FF7 was NEVER some realistic possibility.
Square did that FF7 tech demo on PS3 reveal like 10 years ago, and it was requested even before then in the PS2 era.
People were crying in movie theaters when the game got revealed. Man, you guys cant take your bias shades off for more than one minute. They both would have huge huge reaction from fans, what the hell are you even measuring by saying Half-life would bury FF7? Like what?
It would bury it in terms of popularity, and to compare the "possibility" factor - That FF7 tech demo is more than HL3 has ever gotten. The HL fans have kept hype alive for a decade based on absolutely nothing other than a few words and trolls by Gabe Newell and like two pieces of concept art over the course of a decade. By all indications it has never existed, where at least with FF7 people knew Square had thought about it.