Valve: "Valve Time" is a Compliment

[ToastiestZombie]

Let's be honest, if it wasn't for Steam, Valve would have gone bankrupt and shut down years ago with the kind of game development schedule they have at the moment.

Even you must admit you HAVE to be exagerating to prove a point right?
I mean, jokes aside, Orange Box (and then hat sales), L4D, L4D2, Portal 2, F2P TF2 (getting shitloads more money bc of hats), Valve has gotten quite a bit of good games out there, not to count the crazy ammount of free content they offer after every game is released, TF2 Updates, Portal 2 extras, L4D 1 & 2 Free content... Its not like they've been doing absolutely nothing over the span of years.

The longest period of time without a game release has been what? 1 year?

Again as I pointed out wise assly (not a word, I know) in brackets, games like Portal, LFD, and TF2 were mods from their most critically acclaimed game, Half Life. Much easier to do compared to actually making a game from scratch.

But thats besides the point, I didn't say they werent doing nothing, because they obviously are (updates with TF2 with "hats", despite how insignificant they really are in the wide scale of things and how trivial they are compared to actual game development), but the fact that because of Steam, they are able to get away with free TF2 updates, free DLC for LFD2, or whatever.

Lets not act like Valve are the golden boys and are the mother Teresa of gaming. They are able to do this solely because of steam. Otherwise, they will just be like every other developer and "sell their souls to do the devil by having a publisher like EA or Activation to fund their games".

So free updates, DLC and awesome sales are a negative now? Are you from EA or something. That's one of the reasons Valve is considered one of the golden boys, and stuff like Microsoft not letting them do that just proves that point. Steam's an amazing service, and that's the reason why they can do awesome stuff like free updates every few weeks and free whole DLC packs.

 

[ToastiestZombie]

That's been Blizzard's motto for a long time, and look how people felt about Diablo 3. Honestly, I'll laugh my ass off if the same situation happens with Half-life 3.

It won't because Valve is still Valve after all these years. Portal 2 came out in 2010 (Or 11), and since then has had DLC and a map creator that adds endless hours to the game all for FREE! They've been doing that for ages now, every single game they've released has had some sort of free content added or some sort of free content creator or a free beta given to thousands of people. Diablo 3 had always online DRM (even for singleplayer) because of a real money auction house that only serves to give more money to Blizzard, that's the main reason people hate it. Half Life 3 is just taking a long time, it won't end up like Diablo 3 because Valve hasn't changed a bit since Half Life 2 came out.

 

[ToastiestZombie]

As much as I hate Valve time and their terrible business model(make a few games that sell incredibly well and live off extended pay from Steam and TF2), I've gotta admit, they are still the kings when it comes to any fps game.

How is that their business model though? Between Episode 2 and now they've released:

Portal 2
Left 4 Dead
Left 4 Dead 2
Source Filmmaker

And are releasing:
Dota 2
Counter Strike: Global Offensive

That's five games released and a free, professional movie making tool in a five year period, more than most developers make. It's because they're not Half Life that people think "OMG Valve are lazy asses who only get money from Steam and TF2! They don't release games ever!" They also have Steam to run, which by the looks of the summer sale and the constant updates is one hell of a job. And they're also updating TF2, and making CS:Go and Dota 2.

 

[ToastiestZombie]

Let's be honest, if it wasn't for Steam, Valve would have gone bankrupt and shut down years ago with the kind of game development schedule they have at the moment.

I don't really believe Valve actually believes in any of these stuff, they just know they can get away with it because of the money made from Steam. They could wait till they actually release a game of their own (that's not a mod) for another decade and people will still worship them like they were gods.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to hide behind my imaginary Internet flame shield.

I'd have to wholly agree with this. :/ Seems like they're almost entirely coasting on Steam and the fame they got from Half-Life a decade ago.

NO THEY'RE NOT! The original Counter Strike and the original TF2 were mods, AND THAT'S IT! Valve then hired the mod's development teams and put them into their development teams. Valve made Portal, Valve made Left 4 Dead, Valve made Counter Strike Source and Counter Strike GO and Valve is making Dota 2! THEY FUCKING MADE THOSE GAMES, WHY DO YOU NOT GET THAT! Unless you can show me that Team Fortress 2, Counter Strike: Global Offensive and Left 4 Dead are all mods for Half Life 2 (by not just saying they're in the same engine) then I will agree with you. But you won't be able to, because VALVE MADE THOSE GAMES!

 

[ToastiestZombie]

NO THEY'RE NOT! The original Counter Strike and the original TF2 were mods, AND THAT'S IT! Valve then hired the mod's development teams and put them into their development teams. Valve made Portal, Valve made Left 4 Dead, Valve made Counter Strike Source and Counter Strike GO and Valve is making Dota 2! THEY FUCKING MADE THOSE GAMES, WHY DO YOU NOT GET THAT! Unless you can show me that Team Fortress 2, Counter Strike: Global Offensive and Left 4 Dead are all mods for Half Life 2 (by not just saying they're in the same engine) then I will agree with you. But you won't be able to, because VALVE MADE THOSE GAMES!

... Yeah, by all means, scream at people you disagree with. That'll surely win them over.

It just gets fucking annoying, and the fact that you aren't even trying to refute my argument makes me more annoyed. Valve put's a lot of work into what they do, yet because they're trying to make Half Life 3 the best they can they're lazy fuckers who only get money from Steam.

 

[jpoon]

I applaud them for not caving to someones "demands", don't release the game until if fucking kicks ass Valve!

 

[risue]

So i havent read all 4 pages of comments, so if this point has been made before, my apologies. There are a few factors that set valve apart from other game companies that allows them to be able to do the development cycle where other companies cannot. One of which is how Valve, as a company, is funded. Valve is privately owned, meaning valve isn't at the whims of shareholders that are only interested in making as much money as possible regardless of the quality of games. Second, they are their own publisher, meaning they aren't at the whims of some higher company putting demands on to them. Even retail valve does themselves now. 2009 L4D2 was partially done with the help of EA in publishing the game, 2011 Portal 2 was entirely Valve. Between those two points, being privately owned and no higher publisher, that means 100% of the call as to what gets finished when is on valve, very few companies have that luxury. As a result they can focus on quality and craftsmanship over spitting out the next game in a series.

Steam has a lot to do with valve's ability to do all that, but it does come at the cost of valve spending time focusing on steam, and part of me gets the feeling that's where the new Project Green light is coming in, not only as a response to letting the community decide more of what it wants, but also letting valve step back a bit from steam and focus its resources on developing games again.

 

[Lunar Templar]

Let's be honest, if it wasn't for Steam, Valve would have gone bankrupt and shut down years ago with the kind of game development schedule they have at the moment.

I don't really believe Valve actually believes in any of these stuff, they just know they can get away with it because of the money made from Steam. They could wait till they actually release a game of their own (that's not a mod) for another decade and people will still worship them like they were gods.

while all very likely, especially the part about them closing down, i have to wonder "is it a bad thing?" we have a developer/publisher that has built up a ton of good will with they're customers, they aren't actively abusing that trust, unless your waiting for Half Life 2: Ep 3 (Arsenal 1 sorry ... had to) and while infrequently, turn out good games. (though i only really like Portal 1-2)

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going to hide behind my imaginary Internet flame shield.

pff!!

i present to you!! the ultimate in imaginary devices!!!

not only will it protect you from internet flaming, it has tons of other uses as well!

 

[II2]

I know the internet is a skeptical place and it's a given that most companies PR lines are a favorable spin, rather than an omission that something went wrong or off track, but...

Valve are an unusual company. Newell founded it with a huge personal investment of his prior fortune as one of the founding Microsoft employees, out of a desire to attempt what he felt was implausible. Their philosophy has always been (paraphrasing) "a delay is annoying, but an unpolished game will suck forever". Subsequently, their steam success has certainly both distracted from Halflife development and also allowed a more languid process, that is true. Whether that's a deal breaker is down to the fans.

If you don't like Valve, or Halflife, or Steam, or how they do things, that's fine, but they are not hypocrites. They are operating under very different conditions and philosophies than most devs and publishers, though. I think their corporate attitude is closer to Bell Labs or Google than any game contemporary.

My 0.02

 

[II2]

NO THEY'RE NOT! The original Counter Strike and the original TF2 were mods, AND THAT'S IT! Valve then hired the mod's development teams and put them into their development teams. Valve made Portal, Valve made Left 4 Dead, Valve made Counter Strike Source and Counter Strike GO and Valve is making Dota 2! THEY FUCKING MADE THOSE GAMES, WHY DO YOU NOT GET THAT! Unless you can show me that Team Fortress 2, Counter Strike: Global Offensive and Left 4 Dead are all mods for Half Life 2 (by not just saying they're in the same engine) then I will agree with you. But you won't be able to, because VALVE MADE THOSE GAMES!

Actually, Portal had it's roots as an indie game Narbacular Drop. Valve assimilated and funded the developers to make Portal, as they did the the TF and DOTA and Counterstrike crews.

Just sayin, FYI.

 

[Alexander_Anderson]

I really don't mind when games take a while to be made. It's the lack of announcements which really gets to me. I'm not a huge Half Life fan but I appreciate that some are. Can't Valve just stop trolling their fanbase and tell them one way or another if they are ever going to make HL3, if so what are their plans (Build a new engine etc), and what is the expected timeframe?

Its the same thing with Square Enix and Final Fantasy Versus XIII (Which really should just be called XV at this stage). Fans dont care that a game takes a long time in development when the end product is excellent, all we want is some news!

 

[JoesshittyOs]

It's a company that does what they love, and the customer can tell that they care deeply for their product.

There's certain people who think that they are owed something when it comes to their choices in development. Basically, you don't get a say. And they've made it clear that you don't get a say in what they do.

I can respect that.

 

[JoesshittyOs]

I really don't mind when games take a while to be made. It's the lack of announcements which really gets to me. I'm not a huge Half Life fan but I appreciate that some are. Can't Valve just stop trolling their fanbase and tell them one way or another if they are ever going to make HL3, if so what are their plans (Build a new engine etc), and what is the expected timeframe?

They've basically said as much. And for those of us that have read the Valve company handbook, it's clear what happens.

When enough of the people who work there want to come together and start working on a project, it'll happen. There is no such thing as a timeframe for them. It's finished when it's finished. It's how the company operates.

 

[Alexander_Anderson]

Makes sense I guess. It seems Valve can't win either way with some people. The way parts the gaming community criticized them for releasing L4D2 less than a year after the first game was unwarrented, and may be why we dont already have a L4D3.

 

[ThePenguinKnight]

I agree that that Valve would have went bankrupt without Steam. It's like they have so much money that furthering Half Life would just seem more like a hassle rather than a paycheck.

 

[Darth_Payn]

So Valve prefers quality to punctuality? And they take it as a compliment? How... humble of them?