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DARK SECRETS: 5 | Vintage Vibes

We learned just how small Valve really is this year, but also how good it is at raking in the cash: It's making more money per employee than Apple

Valve is actually smaller than Larian, but in terms of pure money-making efficiency there's nobody bigger.

PC Gamer

Half-Life 2 testers horsing around with physics props 'to make the 47th playthrough of the game more interesting' probably had no idea it would result in Gabe Newell launching a garden gnome into space 16 years later

Cratebaby lives.

PC Gamer

Gabe Newell says no-one in the industry thought Steam would work as a distribution platform—'I'm not talking about 1 or 2 people, I mean like 99%'

"It was a very weird time."

PC Gamer

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Valve was "pretty close to going bankrupt" until it was saved from a pre-Half-Life 2 lawsuit by a summer intern who happened to major in Korean language studies

Gabe Newell's personal finances were on the line too

GamesRadar

Gabe Newell was diving when a shark tried to bite him 'a couple of times' but 'it didn't really bother me... I just think that's how I'm wired'

"I just seem to not get particularly agitated around risk."

PC Gamer

Valve signed a deal for Counter-Strike 2 in 2003 because they were 'running on fumes', and Gabe Newell was so happy he made a celebratory knife with his own hands

Of course, "it took us a long time to ship Counter-Strike 2."

PC Gamer

A summer intern once saved Valve from a near-fatal lawsuit after a publisher 'decided to go World War 3' on it, and it all hinged on one email

"The company was pretty close to going bankrupt, I was pretty close to going personally bankrupt⁠—we went all in, there was no money left"

PC Gamer

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Steam is 'an unsafe place for teens and young adults': US senator warns Gabe Newell of 'more intense scrutiny' from the government if Valve doesn't take action against extremist content

US Senator Mark Warner comes less than a week after an ADL report accusing Steam of "normalizing hate and extremism in the gaming community."

PC Gamer

Half-Life 2: Episode 3 never happened because Valve lead Gabe Newell thought just “pushing the story forward” wasn’t a good enough reason to make a game

“We could’ve shipped it, it wouldn’t have been that hard”

GamesRadar

20 Years Later, One Notoriously Troubled Game Still Feels Revolutionary

Today, 'Half-Life 2' is remembered as one of the best shooters ever, but in the chaotic lead-up to its launch, it was easy to imagine the game was doomed.

Inverse

Half-Life 2: Episode 3 would've included an ice gun with 'kind of like a Silver Surfer mode,' and Valve just released footage

Also: "hoppy blobs." Here's our best glimpse at the cancelled Episode 3 yet.

PC Gamer

'My personal failure was being stumped': Gabe Newell says finishing Half-Life 2: Episode 3 just to conclude the story would've been 'copping out of [Valve's] obligation to gamers'

Half-Life 2: Episode 3 never happened because Newell "couldn't figure out why doing Episode 3 was pushing anything forward."

PC Gamer

Gabe Newell ponders the future in new Half-Life 2 documentary: 'I think that Half-Life represents a tool we have and promises made to customers'

Newell wants Valve to "capitalize on innovation and opportunities to build game experiences that haven't been involved previously."

PC Gamer

The most promising Disco Elysium successor studio says workers must unite to topple Valve's 'digital fiefdom' of Steam

So comrades, come rally.

PC Gamer

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Tom’s Guide

Steam now confirms you're buying a license, not a game — here’s why that sucks

Recently passed U.S. law has finally forced Valve's hand on its approach to digital ownership rights on Steam.

PC Gamer

'There's an alternate universe where Half-Life disappeared after release': Valve's first marketing strategist Monica Harrington says she helped navigate its way out of early disaster

Publisher woes almost doomed Valve from the start.

Tom’s Guide

Is Half-Life 3 actually going to happen?! New rumors suggest it finally could

A leaked actor’s profile page detailed a Valve title named ‘Project White Sands’ and some believe it could be the mythical Half-Life 3.

GamesRadar

Make memeified versions of Hideo Kojima and Gabe Newell fight in this bonkers Steam Next Fest roguelike

Meme Mayhem is an auto-battling roguelike with some familiar faces

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PC Gamer

The PC Gaming Show turns 10: Looking back at the biggest moments from each show

Head back in time to the year 2015 as we celebrate the history of the PC Gaming Show.

GamesRadar

"You mad bro?": Lawsuit emails reveal Valve's internal response to Epic CEO's "you assholes" rant about Steam revenue cuts

The newly uncovered interactions date back to 2018

PC Gamer

Tim Sweeney emailed Gabe Newell calling Valve 'you assholes' over Steam policies, to which Valve's COO replied internally 'you mad bro?'

Newell remained magisterially above the fray.

PC Gamer

Elon Musk's Neuralink has stuck a device in someone's brain and he's already talking up its theoretical uses: 'Imagine if Stephen Hawking could communicate faster than a speed typist'

Transhumanism can wait. For now, Neuralink's first human patient is "recovering well".

PC Gamer

Absurdly rare Team Fortress 2 hat called 'The Crone's Dome' sells for a record-setting $18,000 worth of keys because 'it's one of a kind and will not ever be unboxed again'

The Crone's Dome is a one-of-a-kind hat, and one player was willing to pay through the nose for it.

PC Gamer

Valve lures thousands of Dota cheaters into bans with fake Christmas presents as it declares 'this year is gonna be a bloodbath'

Call it the smurfs' Christmas special.

PC Gamer

Court rules Gabe Newell must appear in person to testify in Steam anti-trust lawsuit

Newell had requested a remote deposition in the Wolfire v. Valve case because of concerns about contracting Covid-19.

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