Valve is Working On 3 VR Games Right Now

[Steven Bogos]

Valve is Working On 3 VR Games Right Now

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Gabe Newell specifically stated the studio was working on "3" VR titles. Half-Life 3 confirmed for VR?

As part of a press briefing at Valve's office in Seattle today, head honcho Gabe Newell has announced that the company is working on three new games. The bad news, or good news if you are a VR enthusiast, is that all three of these games are VR specific titles. He talked a little bit about the company's VR stratgey, but for those of you hoping for info on more "traditional" titles like a certain long-awaited sequel to a beloved franchise, it certainly looks like Valve is no longer moving in that direction, opting to focus on software that enhances its hardware.

"So one of the questions you might ask us is 'Why in the world are we making hardware?' So right now, we're building 3 VR games. And what we can do now is to be designing hardware at the same time that we're designing software. This is something that Miyamoto has always had, right?" said Newell.

"[Miyamoto] has had the ability to think about what the input devices & the design of systems should be like while he's trying to design games. Our sense is that that's going to allow us to actually build much better entertainment experiences for people."

"So the idea isn't like oh - we suddenly thought we could make more money by building hardware - because hardware's actually traditionally been a lousy low-margin business."

He confirmed that The Lab [http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/291222/Newell_Valve_in_development_on_3_new_VR_games.php] but actual, fully-fledged titles. Could we see Half-Life revived as a VR game? Only time will tell.

Source: Gamasutra [http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/291222/Newell_Valve_in_development_on_3_new_VR_games.php]

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[90sgamer]

This is why I like Valve. It does not lose sight of what matters, and the marriage of hardware and software has often been overlooked by everyone but Nintendo.

One of thoes games is Onward, the likely VR successor to Counter-Strike. Valve hired the developer in January.

 

[Fox12]

Brand next technology? 3 new games? The planets are in alignment?

Half Life 3 confirmed.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

This is why I like Valve. It does not lose sight of what matters.

cough Half Life. cough

 

[The Rogue Wolf]

Brand next technology? 3 new games? The planets are in alignment?

Half Life 3 confirmed.

Not to mention that there were THREE comments when I read this article!

 

[Saelune]

This is why I like Valve. It does not lose sight of what matters, and the marriage of hardware and software has often been overlooked by everyone but Nintendo.

One of thoes games is Onward, the likely VR successor to Counter-Strike. Valve hired the developer in January.

Nintendo and Valve should make a deal "We will stop milking the same IPs over and over if you start actually getting a third game out there".

 

[dragongit]

So will there be any... non VR games that the rest of the world who doesn't want to invest 800-2000 dollars in? hmmmm?

 

[Zhukov]

Portal VR, calling it now.

I think it fits.

Don't have any particular feelings or opinions on the matter otherwise. I still haven't seen anything from VR that would justify the cost. Hell, I doubt I could afford it anyway. I've seen things that looked like the beginnings of something that might be awesome ten years from now, but nothing to make me think, "Damn, I wish I could afford a VR setup to play that!"

 

[Sonicron]

God, it would be absolute hilarity if one of those titles were actually a Half Life game. xD

On another note, if there's a Portal game among these I predict massive amounts of people blowing chunks over their upholstery. The more I try imagining it the more I just see 'Motion Sickness: The Game'.

 

[Arnoxthe1]

So will there be any... non VR games that the rest of the world who doesn't want to invest 800-2000 dollars in? hmmmm?

Fucking this. I wish VR as it is would just die already. Call me back when you guys have NerveGear or equivalent.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

Portal VR, calling it now.

I think it fits.

It does. And so does Half-Life 3. I don't need an official confirmation from Valve to know what they're thinking. It's been my theory ever since Vive was announced that Valve won't release HL3 until it's VR ready because they're trying to make the first AAA VR game. And there's no better way to sell your latest gaming device than to release not one but two of your most critically acclaimed titles for it. Third game I hope is a new IP.

 

[Laughing Man]

Is Valve stupid enough to go out of it's way to create ANOTHER public back lash against it. We have already had the paid mods and Greenlight sagas. I doubt even Valve would be stupid enough to bring one of it's big IPs out on VR exclusively. Maybe 5 or 6 years ago when just about everyone thought Valve was still the second coming of Christ they could have gotten away with it but now when everyone is just fed up with their endless stream of bullshit?

On the flipside Valve is the only developer who I believe could give us a title that not only works well in VR but also worked well if you didn't have a VR setup, of course that begs the question if you can play the game just as well without VR, why would you want to invest in the large expense just to try out the VR game mode?

 

[Bedinsis]

Don't be absurd, Valve cannot count to three.

More seriously... eh. I get motion sick from regular first-person games, which is why VR is of no interest to me. But for the very same reason Valve's titles are of no interest to me either, so my opinion is neutral either way.

Although if anyone could give VR its killer app I believe Valve could be the one entity given how their titles have been received.

 

[Imperioratorex Caprae]

I'd say this was decent or even good news but VR is so overpriced and a handful of non-tech demo games are not enough to justify the cost. I don't see how the hardware can continue to be on the market long enough for enough games to be released for it, and if the pricing doesn't drop, it won't matter how many "killer app" games exist, people won't buy it.

 

[distortedreality]

I've always thought that Valve were planning something special for HL3, but to me, the VR angle just doesn't fit.

I'd be more inclined to think it's one of two things - Portal VR or a TF/new IP MP VR experience, which hasn't been done yet as far as I know. Admittedly, hardware may be a bit of a barrier to the second option, but I think it fits more than HL3 does.

 

[Rednog]

It's been my theory ever since Vive was announced that Valve won't release HL3 until it's VR ready because they're trying to make the first AAA VR game.

Didn't Capcom technically beat them to the punch with Resident Evil 7?
Even then if they started within the last year they're going to be late to the party.

 

[Zulnam]

I don't think it's HL related, but if Valve do release Half-Life 3 as a VR exclusive there will be rioting in the streets. I am not rearranging my living room and buying 760? worth of hardware for one game, even if it is HL3.

It's good that they're working on big titles for the VR, but they better not play us like that. The fact that they'll be Vive exclusive is bad enough ("what we can do now is to be designing hardware at the same time that we're designing software." sounds a lot like "SRY OR USERS TROLOLOLOLO")

 

[Neurotic Void Melody]

Makes perfect sense. Half-Life needs a new technology to showcase as it has done before, and games don't really have much else left for wowing other than graphical improvements. If VR is really the future, then what better way to convince us than a Half-Life vehicle to lead the way. Consoles are mostly VR ready, but even if a Vive exclusive, I'd just be happy to see it exist. Eventually I'll experience it one way or another, not impatient with these entertainments.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

It's been my theory ever since Vive was announced that Valve won't release HL3 until it's VR ready because they're trying to make the first AAA VR game.

Didn't Capcom technically beat them to the punch with Resident Evil 7?
Even then if they started within the last year they're going to be late to the party.

Or Sega with Alien: Isolation for that matter.

 

[Adam Jensen_v1legacy]

It's been my theory ever since Vive was announced that Valve won't release HL3 until it's VR ready because they're trying to make the first AAA VR game.

Didn't Capcom technically beat them to the punch with Resident Evil 7?
Even then if they started within the last year they're going to be late to the party.

Or Sega with Alien: Isolation for that matter.

Not really. Those games work on VR, but at their core they're still just regular games. I think Valve is trying to come to some kind of VR game design breakthrough like when first Doom was released and introduced FPS genre, when GTA3 was released and revolutionized open world games or when Resident Evil 4 was announced and it changed the nature of 3rd person action games etc. Valve is betting big on VR and they're trying to revolutionize it.