Valve is synonymous with PC gaming at this point. The company controls Steam, which is the largest PC gaming storefront, and it recently released its own portable PC, the Steam Deck, to massive success. Valve initially rose to fame for creating numerous stellar games in franchises like Half-Life, Portal, and Team Fortress. However, the last decade or so has been a frustratingly empty time for players who were holding on to the hope Valve would create new games. Thankfully, the studio released the critically acclaimed Half-Life: Alyx in 2020, and it isn’t done with game development just yet.
In a recent interview with Famitsu, a Valve employee stated that it has numerous new games in development. Greg Coomer, a Valve product designer, says: “We’re not stopping making games at all. Valve has a lot of games in development. We will continue to release games. Game development is very important to Valve. I don’t know the exact numbers, but the percentage of employees involved in game development is high. A lot of people are involved.”
The message by Coomer reiterates what he said of the company back in March. In an interview with Axios, Coomer mentioned Valve was tinkering away on some super secret plans. While he didn’t have any major reveals, Coomer did say the projects Valve was working on looked “pretty exciting.”
A future for Half-Life
The new interview with Coomer did, however, cover some more specific details, specifically with a nod to Valve’s most famous property. When it comes to more Half-Life, Coomer said Valve isn’t quite done with that franchise just yet..
“The short answer is yes, there’s more to say about the Half-Life world,” he said. “Alyx is a sign that Valve has more to say about the world.”
It’s not just Half-Life that was mentioned in this interview. Coomer went on to say that Portal is a franchise that deserves “further exploration” with new entries, but he stopped short of confirming that any new games were in development.
Valve’s most recent major release, Half-Life: Alyx, is currently available on most VR headsets that are compatible with PC. The developer also recently released Aperture Desk Job, a Steam Deck tech demo set in the Portal universe.
Published: Sep 6, 2022 11:00 am