How long will Valve stick to the Source-engine?

[Lordmarkus]

Well, the headline are quite self-explanatory, how long will Valve stick to the Source-engine?

It's still great and it's very mod friendly but compared to other engines it's starting to age, after all, it's 5 years old. Will Valve keep updating it or will/are they building a new game-engine soon? What's your thoughts?

 

[Doug]

Well, assuming Episode 3 doesn't include a massive overhaul of the software, I'm guessing episode 3 will be the last use of the engine - or at least, nearly the last use. Of course, the could just overhaul and improve it alot.

 

[Woodsey]

After Episode 3 is my bet. It still looks great though, and Episode 2 was easily on par with anything else on its release.

 

[Good morning blues]

Source was designed from the ground up to be modular, meaning that it is easy to make fundamental extensions and changes to. This means that it can keep being updated well into the foreseeable future and remain relevant and contemporary. It doesn't matter how many years the engine has been used for - Left 4 Dead 2 still looks and functions like any other game engine.

 

[brainless906]

Well first off the actual Engine itself, though showing age, can actually be upgraded quite a bit within itself.

At first it was bumpmaps, phong, HDR, and i'm guessing with the right tweaking the Source-Engine can even look better. in fact i've played CSS maps that look almost comparable to far-cry 2's maps.

If they do make a new engine it'll be quite compare-able to the source engine in the fact that it will most likely be mod friendly.

though i doubt the source engine will be deemed "old/useless" any time soon.
near any computer can run it at some level, and its not bad looking.
its a well developed engine that i think will continue going for quite a while now.

 

[brainless906]

Source was designed from the ground up to be modular, meaning that it is easy to make fundamental extensions and changes to. This means that it can keep being updated well into the foreseeable future and remain relevant and contemporary. It doesn't matter how many years the engine has been used for - Left 4 Dead 2 still looks and functions like any other game engine.

quite true, if they do decide to pump out a new engine i wouldn't be surprised if they took the source engine and just built on it. its only one of the mod-friendly engines out there.

 

[Godhead]

For awhile it's still a great engine and even if it's starting to age they can upgrade it and would you rather have a newer more lifelike enginge, or one that can hurtle something into the size of a human 200 feet in the air?

 

[Zaksav91]

I'm thinking it will probably be after Episode 3. But I'm thinking that they'll probably still use the source engine for some other games, while at the same time, working on releasing a new engine.

 

[TheSeventhLoneWolf]

If it works and you're happy with it, i don't see a reason why to fix what isn't broken, though you can only discover what is 'broken' when you compare to a more favourable engine.

 

[dark_taint92]

no point changing something that isnt broke. the source engine look really good, its modder friendly its easily updatable i think i will be used for quite awhile in to the foreseeable future

 

[KissofKetchup]

Something tells me they might be using it for maybe as long as another generation

 

[Lazy Kitty]

in fact i've played CSS maps that look almost comparable to far-cry 2's maps.

That's not the engine, that's level-design, with possible use of modelling and photoshop skills (for custom textures).
The engine does rendering(just putting the art on the screen, shaders and calculating light), physics and a.i..

 

[Ambitious Sloth]

They could use it forever if they wanted to. The engine is easy to mod and if they needed drastic improvements they could just add them on.

The only problem is if you use the source engine to make all of your games and then you quite Valve or something, when you go to get a new job the only software you've used is five years old and by most standards out of date with newer more powerful engines.

 

[Signa]

I think we are going to need to see another huge shift in gaming visuals before Source becomes outdated. I just love looking at the survivors in L4D while waiting for my brother to connect. Each one looks so real with all the details the game allows you to see. Honestly, I'd be happy with graphics like those for the rest of time. Until tools become really easy and really cheap to produce a game that looks better, there is no reason to waste the effort in making better looking games.

 

[brainless906]

in fact i've played CSS maps that look almost comparable to far-cry 2's maps.

That's not the engine, that's level-design, with possible use of modelling and photoshop skills (for custom textures).
The engine does rendering(just putting the art on the screen, shaders and calculating light), physics and a.i..

ignorance i say!
i request you dont talk to me like i know not what i'm talking about.
I being a CSS level Designer am in fact not incompetent.

I this is part level design however without the engine's ability to pull it off all the design in the world would be useless.

that basically saying the cry engine doesnt look good...just the level design was good...

i mean no offence to you, just saying.

 

[GamingAwesome1]

As long as it takes for them to make a better engine. I mean, Source still works completely fine and is better and more mod-freindly than engines made this year, why fix what ain't broke?

 

[GoldenCondor]

Until Bethesda buys out Valve (It's what i've been hearing)
unless you want Elder Scrolls V: Source.

 

[similar.squirrel]

They're probably keep updating, or build a new engine on similar lines. I'm quite interested in this new CryEngine I keep hearing about..Could it oust Unreal 3?

 

[Lordmarkus]

Myself, I'm not all that certain that they build a new engine for HL3, even if it sounds reasonable. The source engine still has a lot of potential but I guess that a new engine would be the right step, even if it takes some years.

I can't really picture myself playing HL3 sometime in the future with, in general, the same interface and graphics as in HL2.

 

[guardian001]

Valve doesn't really seem to build new engines, they just keep adding new stuff to the old one. I mean, the Source engine is just a very heavily modified Quake engine.