March Mayhem Round 3 Review - Great Eight Begins

[Zabriskie Point]

This competition got predictably boring fast.

All the original and creative developers got their arses kicked while the usual big names end up fighting for the top spot.

Yeah man, Valve is so unoriginal and uncreative.

I'd say developers like Quantic Dream, Double Fine, Media Molecule, Plantinum games etc. are more original and creative than Valve.

Valve just uses the same engine for everything, sure they have some interesting mechanics but at the end of the day they are another one of these big, highly funded companies.

Besides what have they actually put out recently? Sure Portal 2 is coming out but for the last year or so there has been nothing of note. Hence this is just a fanboy vote for people who still cream themselves over the unspectacular Half-life 2.

They use the same engine for everything because it's their fucking engine. It's not like they don't update it every time they release a new game, because they do. Your knocking them because they're big and have a lot of money? Could you get any more hipster?

http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/half-life-2/critic-reviews

Yeah, Half-Life 2 is so unspectacular with its 81 positive reviews and 0 negative reviews.

How dare Valve not be obscure, how DARE them.

Steam

Well there's your first mistake.

With Portal, a small team was making it, and Valve loved the idea. they hired that small team to work with Valve to make Portal. Team Fortress was originally a Quake mod, but Valve definitely made Team Fortress 2. There is no disputing this, it's fact.

Valve has done anything in years?
2007 - TF2, Portal, Episode 2
2008 - Left 4 Dead (One of the best zombie games ever made)
2009 - Left 4 Dead 2
2010 - Massive amount of updates to Left 4 Dead 1 & 2, Team Fortress 2, Counter-Strike: Source.

This brings up another point. Releasing games isn't the only job of developers. Valve continues to update their games, which keeps people playing them. CSS was released in 2004 and is still the most played game on Steam. TF2 was released in 2007 and still has thousand of people playing it.

Just because they didn't release a game in 2010 doesn't mean they weren't hard at work. Unlike Call of Duty, it takes more than a year to develop a game. They've been working on Portal 2 for a long time now, while updating the games they've already released.

You think it was an accident that I called "valve" steam?

ROFLMAO.

Left 4 dead?

You ever heard of turtle rock studios?

Turtle Rock started Left 4 Dead, and Valve took over in January. Valve made a lot more of the game then Turtle Rock did. I'm not knocking Turtle Rock, they had a great idea, but you keep on insisting that valve doesn't make their own games. That's just silly, stop it.

 

[Zabriskie Point]

Turtle rock started developement in 2005. Steam bought them out in 2008. The game was essentially "done" 4-5 months after the purchase. the last several momths of a games dev cycle is just playtesting/bug squashing.

Steam... er.. valve did nothing but throw some money at people.

Turtle Rock announced Left 4 dead in late 2006.

Another thing, the game was developed on the Source engine, which was made by Valve. I just thought that was worth stating.

 

[Zabriskie Point]

Turtle rock started developement in 2005. Steam bought them out in 2008. The game was essentially "done" 4-5 months after the purchase. the last several momths of a games dev cycle is just playtesting/bug squashing.

Steam... er.. valve did nothing but throw some money at people.

Turtle Rock announced Left 4 dead in late 2006.

Another thing, the game was developed on the Source engine, which was made by Valve. I just thought that was worth stating.

And are you suggesting L4D couldn't be done on any other engine? Heh. Whatever, dude.

I didn't suggest that at all.

Very little influence? Give me a break. If it wasn't for Valve, Left 4 Dead wouldn't be nearly as popular as it is today.

 

[Zabriskie Point]

Turtle rock started developement in 2005. Steam bought them out in 2008. The game was essentially "done" 4-5 months after the purchase. the last several momths of a games dev cycle is just playtesting/bug squashing.

Steam... er.. valve did nothing but throw some money at people.

Turtle Rock announced Left 4 dead in late 2006.

Another thing, the game was developed on the Source engine, which was made by Valve. I just thought that was worth stating.

And are you suggesting L4D couldn't be done on any other engine? Heh. Whatever, dude.

I didn't suggest that at all.

Very little influence? Give me a break. If it wasn't for Valve, Left 4 Dead wouldn't be nearly[i/] as popular as it is today.

Like notoriety had anything to do with a game being good or not. You will make a great politician some day.

Once again, I didn't say or even imply this at all. Would Left 4 Dead been a good game without Valve? Yeah, probably. But would it have been played by millions of people? Hell no.

 

[Zabriskie Point]

Turtle rock started developement in 2005. Steam bought them out in 2008. The game was essentially "done" 4-5 months after the purchase. the last several momths of a games dev cycle is just playtesting/bug squashing.

Steam... er.. valve did nothing but throw some money at people.

Turtle Rock announced Left 4 dead in late 2006.

Another thing, the game was developed on the Source engine, which was made by Valve. I just thought that was worth stating.

And are you suggesting L4D couldn't be done on any other engine? Heh. Whatever, dude.

I didn't suggest that at all.

Very little influence? Give me a break. If it wasn't for Valve, Left 4 Dead wouldn't be nearly[i/] as popular as it is today.

Like notoriety had anything to do with a game being good or not. You will make a great politician some day.

Once again, I didn't say or even imply this at all. Would Left 4 Dead been a good game without Valve? Yeah, probably. But would it have been played by millions of people? Hell no.

Who gives a damn how many people play it? It doesn't change if its a good game or not. Are you really this slow or are you jsut trolling here?

It's about who is the best developer, not the best advertiser.

There could be a game that's better than any other game ever made, but if nobody plays it, then it doesn't do anything for the industry. I'm not saying that without valve Left 4 Dead would have been a bad game. I've stated this already, i don't know why you keep coming back to it.

This argument has gone far past Valve's developing skill, and this tournament. Don't try to pull that bullshit on me.

 

[Ubermetalhed]

This competition got predictably boring fast.

All the original and creative developers got their arses kicked while the usual big names end up fighting for the top spot.

Yeah man, Valve is so unoriginal and uncreative.

I'd say developers like Quantic Dream, Double Fine, Media Molecule, Plantinum games etc. are more original and creative than Valve.

Valve just uses the same engine for everything, sure they have some interesting mechanics but at the end of the day they are another one of these big, highly funded companies.

Besides what have they actually put out recently? Sure Portal 2 is coming out but for the last year or so there has been nothing of note. Hence this is just a fanboy vote for people who still cream themselves over the unspectacular Half-life 2.

They use the same engine for everything because it's their fucking engine. It's not like they don't update it every time they release a new game, because they do. Your knocking them because they're big and have a lot of money? Could you get any more hipster?

http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/half-life-2/critic-reviews

Yeah, Half-Life 2 is so unspectacular with its 81 positive reviews and 0 negative reviews.

How dare Valve not be obscure, how DARE them.

I'm knocking the fact that fanboy kids like you, who weren't around when Valve were actually new and innovative, (you were 4 years old when Half-life came out) vote in these competitions for the most well known developer (arguably the 'trendiest' developer which is now Valve) and in this case a developer who hasn't done anything of merit for a long while. This contest is based on reputation not on the quality of recent work.

Wait, I'm a fanboy? No really, you just called me a fanboy? Please point out to me anywhere in this forum where I showed signs of being a fanboy. Just because I like a certain developer doesn't mean I'm a fanboy. Are you a Double Fine fanboy? Ya know, cuz, you were saying that you think they're innovative. That means you must be a fanboy.

Good to see you've already stooped low enough to throw the fact that I'm only 15 into this argument, even though it's completely irrelevant. I think your superiority complex is clouding your judgment, a common symptom in most hipsters nowadays.

Well frankly the fact you've ignored my main point that Valve haven't made anything of merit for a long period of time and yet are winning a best developer contest shows how much of an ignorant fanboy you are. Although Vendur has done the job for me, as he puts it you come across as a 'PR employee for Valve/Steam'.

You even in your debate with Vendur admit that it is hugely important for a game to be popular and well marketed. And because Valve has the cash to do so you therefore suggest that that makes Valve one brilliant developer and indeed a better and more deserving developer of praise than the smaller devs.
I have no idea what this 'hipster' stuff is about but if it means for someone to follow a trend or be 'hip with the times' then a Valve fanboy like you surely meets all those criteria.

Also age strangely means alot in a discussion about Valve, they've been around for a long time now. Different generations of fans think and remember different things, like remembering when valve were as small as devs like double fine etc. But I mean if this was 1999 and we were discussing a developer showdown I'm very sure you'd be telling me that Konami or Square Enix were alot better than Valve.

 

[Zabriskie Point]

This competition got predictably boring fast.

All the original and creative developers got their arses kicked while the usual big names end up fighting for the top spot.

Yeah man, Valve is so unoriginal and uncreative.

I'd say developers like Quantic Dream, Double Fine, Media Molecule, Plantinum games etc. are more original and creative than Valve.

Valve just uses the same engine for everything, sure they have some interesting mechanics but at the end of the day they are another one of these big, highly funded companies.

Besides what have they actually put out recently? Sure Portal 2 is coming out but for the last year or so there has been nothing of note. Hence this is just a fanboy vote for people who still cream themselves over the unspectacular Half-life 2.

They use the same engine for everything because it's their fucking engine. It's not like they don't update it every time they release a new game, because they do. Your knocking them because they're big and have a lot of money? Could you get any more hipster?

http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/half-life-2/critic-reviews

Yeah, Half-Life 2 is so unspectacular with its 81 positive reviews and 0 negative reviews.

How dare Valve not be obscure, how DARE them.

I'm knocking the fact that fanboy kids like you, who weren't around when Valve were actually new and innovative, (you were 4 years old when Half-life came out) vote in these competitions for the most well known developer (arguably the 'trendiest' developer which is now Valve) and in this case a developer who hasn't done anything of merit for a long while. This contest is based on reputation not on the quality of recent work.

Wait, I'm a fanboy? No really, you just called me a fanboy? Please point out to me anywhere in this forum where I showed signs of being a fanboy. Just because I like a certain developer doesn't mean I'm a fanboy. Are you a Double Fine fanboy? Ya know, cuz, you were saying that you think they're innovative. That means you must be a fanboy.

Good to see you've already stooped low enough to throw the fact that I'm only 15 into this argument, even though it's completely irrelevant. I think your superiority complex is clouding your judgment, a common symptom in most hipsters nowadays.

Well frankly the fact you've ignored my main point that Valve haven't made anything of merit for a long period of time and yet are winning a best developer contest shows how much of an ignorant fanboy you are. Although Vendur has done the job for me, as he puts it you come across as a 'PR employee for Valve/Steam'.

You even in your debate with Vendur admit that it is hugely important for a game to be popular and well marketed. And because Valve has the cash to do so you therefore suggest that that makes Valve one brilliant developer and indeed a better and more deserving developer of praise than the smaller devs.
I have no idea what this 'hipster' stuff is about but if it means for someone to follow a trend or be 'hip with the times' then a Valve fanboy like you surely meets all those criteria.

Also age strangely means alot in a discussion about Valve, they've been around for a long time now. Different generations of fans think and remember different things, like remembering when valve were as small as devs like double fine etc. But I mean if this was 1999 and we were discussing a developer showdown I'm very sure you'd be telling me that Konami or Square Enix were alot better than Valve.

I can see how someone who isn't a fan of Valve may be under the impression that they haven't done anything recently. But it's simply not true. they continuously update their games, which keeps players playing. Counter-Strike: Source peaked at 70,000 at one time today, and it was released in 2004. Also, they've been working on Portal 2 for a long time now. I'm not ignoring your point at all. I've spoken directly on it several times now.

Just because they haven't released a game in 2010 doesn't mean they should be excluded.

What you're saying is, in 1999, Square Enix and Konami were better than Valve? Okay. But how is that relevant? It's not 1999.

It doesn't matter what you say, in my opinion Valve has released nothing but quality content. Weather that be a full game, free DLC, or just large updates, it's still commitment to fans, and I appreciate that. This is what makes Valve one of my favorite developers. They continuously support their games with high quality updates.

 

[Hong Meiling]

Yay finally a definitive poll showing that mojang, even with just one game in beta is one of the most innovative and well liked devs on the planet at the moment!

Go Sweden! All my money on minecraft!

 

[Ubermetalhed]

This competition got predictably boring fast.

All the original and creative developers got their arses kicked while the usual big names end up fighting for the top spot.

Yeah man, Valve is so unoriginal and uncreative.

I'd say developers like Quantic Dream, Double Fine, Media Molecule, Plantinum games etc. are more original and creative than Valve.

Valve just uses the same engine for everything, sure they have some interesting mechanics but at the end of the day they are another one of these big, highly funded companies.

Besides what have they actually put out recently? Sure Portal 2 is coming out but for the last year or so there has been nothing of note. Hence this is just a fanboy vote for people who still cream themselves over the unspectacular Half-life 2.

They use the same engine for everything because it's their fucking engine. It's not like they don't update it every time they release a new game, because they do. Your knocking them because they're big and have a lot of money? Could you get any more hipster?

http://www.metacritic.com/game/pc/half-life-2/critic-reviews

Yeah, Half-Life 2 is so unspectacular with its 81 positive reviews and 0 negative reviews.

How dare Valve not be obscure, how DARE them.

I'm knocking the fact that fanboy kids like you, who weren't around when Valve were actually new and innovative, (you were 4 years old when Half-life came out) vote in these competitions for the most well known developer (arguably the 'trendiest' developer which is now Valve) and in this case a developer who hasn't done anything of merit for a long while. This contest is based on reputation not on the quality of recent work.

Wait, I'm a fanboy? No really, you just called me a fanboy? Please point out to me anywhere in this forum where I showed signs of being a fanboy. Just because I like a certain developer doesn't mean I'm a fanboy. Are you a Double Fine fanboy? Ya know, cuz, you were saying that you think they're innovative. That means you must be a fanboy.

Good to see you've already stooped low enough to throw the fact that I'm only 15 into this argument, even though it's completely irrelevant. I think your superiority complex is clouding your judgment, a common symptom in most hipsters nowadays.

Well frankly the fact you've ignored my main point that Valve haven't made anything of merit for a long period of time and yet are winning a best developer contest shows how much of an ignorant fanboy you are. Although Vendur has done the job for me, as he puts it you come across as a 'PR employee for Valve/Steam'.

You even in your debate with Vendur admit that it is hugely important for a game to be popular and well marketed. And because Valve has the cash to do so you therefore suggest that that makes Valve one brilliant developer and indeed a better and more deserving developer of praise than the smaller devs.
I have no idea what this 'hipster' stuff is about but if it means for someone to follow a trend or be 'hip with the times' then a Valve fanboy like you surely meets all those criteria.

Also age strangely means alot in a discussion about Valve, they've been around for a long time now. Different generations of fans think and remember different things, like remembering when valve were as small as devs like double fine etc. But I mean if this was 1999 and we were discussing a developer showdown I'm very sure you'd be telling me that Konami or Square Enix were alot better than Valve.

I can see how someone who isn't a fan of Valve may be under the impression that they haven't done anything recently. But it's simply not true. they continuously update their games, which keeps players playing. Counter-Strike: Source peaked at 70,000 at one time today, and it was released in 2004. Also, they've been working on Portal 2 for a long time now. I'm not ignoring your point at all. I've spoken directly on it several times now.

Just because they haven't released a game in 2010 doesn't mean they should be excluded.

What you're saying is, in 1999, Square Enix and Konami were better than Valve? Okay. But how is that relevant? It's not 1999.

It doesn't matter what you say, in my opinion Valve has released nothing but quality content. Weather that be a full game, free DLC, or just large updates, it's still commitment to fans, and I appreciate that. This is what makes Valve one of my favorite developers. They continuously support their games with high quality updates.

I am actually a fan of Valve. Half-life is one of my favourite games of all time, you should play it. The problem still stands in the fact they really haven't done anything new and original for along while, regardless of updates and so hence don't deserve to be winning in a competition like this. Next years competition they have every right to do well if Portal 2 lives up to expectation, but as of now they don't deserve to be beating alot of these recently active devs.

The 1999 hypothetical march mayhem is to do with when Valve were the equivalent of a small company. I was making the point that by your current logic you would say Square Enix or Konami were better as they were the better marketers and more popular companies at the time regardless of how creative and groundbreaking Valve were being at the time.

 

[Hong Meiling]

Edit: I was drunk and made a bad post.