Like for many other people, Valve single player experiences were one of my favorite of all time growing up. I considered both Half-Life and Portal to be masterpieces. It's true they've always been distracted with multiplayer games as well, things like Counter-Strike or Team Fortress and I did play them for sure, because I was a kid and I had all the time in the world.

These days I'm not a kid anymore and so when I game I tend to look more for memorable experiences instead of mindless grinding. Obviously I remember Valve as the experts in creating memorable experiences and I would like them to keep fully exploring those talents. They don't have that many employees, but they do have all the money in the world, no external pressure, no publisher to shit on them, it's just their developers and artists and a vision. But then they use all that and create this. An Overwatch looking moba shooter, really? I'm sure people will like and play it, but is this the results of the vision and ambition of a company like Valve?

It doesn't have to be Half-Life. I remember them saying that they dont want to do another one in the series because they are looking to innovate and make something truly original. My body is ready, give me anything. I can't imagine a moba shooter really fits with this description. I'm wondering how such a low hanging concept even becomes a real product at a company as ambitious as Valve.

I hear people are having fun with the new game and I'm happy for them. I am no longer the target audience and I wish them good luck with it. In the mean time let me hear your thoughts on it. Would you like to see another single player experience from Valve?

top 50 comments

sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] 74 points 2 years ago (2 children)

I'd love to get another singleplayer game as well, but I've accepted that Valve is just unpredictable. I'm sure they haven't given up on Singleplayer and we'll get another singleplayer game... at some point. Their previous game was the fantastic Half-life Alyx after all.

  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 58 points 2 years ago

    Valve is not a normal company. As far as I know they still have their fluid work structure in place where projects are dictated by what the devs themselves feel like doing and are inspired by.

    Icefrog (who was the lead developer of Dota 2 - and Dota 1 for many years before that) is lead developing Deadlock as I understand it. It has his fingerprints all over it, at least. It seems enough other people at Valve liked his idea of a twist on the MOBA concept to turn it into a full project.

    I feel your frustration but there isn't really any opportunity cost lost here. It's not that they decided to make "a game" and chose this one out of all available options. If they felt like they had enough ideas to make Half-Life 3 (or any other single player game) then they would have. It's just that this is the game they want to make right now.

  • source
  • [–] 51 points 2 years ago (3 children)

    For what it's worth, Robin Walker and his team are working on the next half life after Alyx. Will that ever come out? I have no idea and I'm not expecting anything. Deadlock however is a game designed by one of the grandfathers of the moba genre, and has had over 20k concurrent players at any given time, and it wasn't even announced with it's existence only known through word of mouth. That's insanely impressive and shows how huge the moba genre really is and how those players are thirsty for a new game from a big company. It sucks and I wish we had more sp valve games but I'm content with the work they've done on proton, steamos, the steam deck, steam itself, and half life alyx. They haven't been sitting on their hands not doing anything, they've been putting their focus on more technical areas versus making games and that's ok.

  • source
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • [–] 9 points 2 years ago* (2 children)

    For what it's worth, Robin Walker and his team are working on the next half life after Alyx.

    Got a source for that? I'm genuinely interested in reading more, but I don't remember seeing anything about it in my usual places.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 41 points 2 years ago (6 children)

    I wish for more fun and casual multiplayer with strong competive side like TF, none of this matchmaking toxic shit no-fun allowed with elo

  • source
  • hideshow 6 child comments
  • [–] 4 points 2 years ago (5 children)

    TF2 has matchmaking even in casual

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 5 child comments
  • [–] 21 points 2 years ago (3 children)

    Back in the golden days of community servers, it sure as heck didn't.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • load more comments (1 reply)
  • [–] 37 points 2 years ago (16 children)

    "An overwatch looking moba shooter"

    No, it plays like Battleborn and Monday Night Combat, a third person shooter with moba elements. It's not overwatch, it's not Dota.

  • source
  • hideshow 16 child comments
  • load more comments (10 replies)
    [+] 30 points 2 years ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (20 children)
  • [–] 46 points 2 years ago (14 children)

    "Single player games have taken a backseat". Okay. We're just going to state that as a truth? And also just stating kids as being the main video games audience still?

    I mean if single player games have taken such a backseat, why are big companies pouring so much money into games such as Horizon, Dragon Age, Assassin's Creed, Anno or Dark Souls? Why are indie games, thousands and tens of thousands of them, so overwhelmingly single player? Why is Zelda still not a MOBA? Just does not really hold water as an argument IMO. If anything it seems the opposite is happening and after the height of MOBAs in ˜2015, the market is slowly creeping back.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 14 child comments
  • load more comments (14 replies)
  • [–] 18 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (4 children)

    It's not a question of demand, it's a question of profit. Multiplayer games stand to make a lot more money than singleplayer. Nobody will spend real world dollars on cosmetic items in a singleplayer game.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 4 child comments
  • load more comments (2 replies)
  • [–] 24 points 2 years ago (2 children)

    I'd much rather have a game like deadlock developed out of love and passion than some suits dictating to the devs to make games they don't want to. That's how we get Avengers, Redfall, Gotham Knights, etc...

  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • load more comments (2 replies)
    [–] 21 points 2 years ago

    but they do have all the money in the world, no external pressure, no publisher to shit on them, it’s just their developers and artists and a vision.

    I think that's part of the issue. Supposedly they do have multiple games in development and a large percentage of their employees are working on them. But they are content to let the creative and technical processes play out, without announcing too-ambitious release dates which inevitably get pushed back and still have a buggy game released. And sometimes they even cut their losses if a long term project just isn't working out.

  • source
  • [–] 20 points 2 years ago (2 children)

    I'd like them to do an RPG, something completely off the wall, like the TF2 crew playing D&D.

  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • [–] 19 points 2 years ago (12 children)

    Why does this billion dollar company not do exaxtly what I expect them to😡 They made great games because those are the ones I like and now they make shitty games because I dont like them.

  • source
  • hideshow 12 child comments
  • load more comments (12 replies)
    [–] 14 points 2 years ago (6 children)

    +100, my feelings exactly.

    I am now 45. I tried Deadlock, was overwhelmed, some other player told me to "fuck off" through the vocal chat because I was in the wrong lane, I uninstalled.

    Generally, I don't have time anymore to play online games that are about grind and skill. I don't want to play only one sort of game. I want a game with an end so that I can move to another one.

    MOBAs were cool at the time of warcraft 3. Let's move on.

  • source
  • hideshow 6 child comments
  • [–] 23 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    MOBAs were cool at the time of warcraft 3. Let's move on.

    What kind of statement is this? MOBAs are still insanely popular. And "move on"? as if there's no reason to iterate or improve on a genre?

    I don't even play MOBAs but I've heard this same sentiment on arena shooters and it makes as much sense there as it does here.

  • source
  • parent
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • load more comments (3 replies)
    [–] 13 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    I’m stoked about Deadlock. I used to play Super Monday Night Combat constantly, until it shut down.

    I’ve been waiting like 10 years to get a decent game that fills that void, and Deadlock seems to finally be it! I personally couldn’t be happier with their choice hah.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 12 points 2 years ago (2 children)

    I miss Super Monday Night Combat. (This is utterly unrelated to the post other than being a shooter/moba.)

  • source
  • hideshow 2 child comments
  • load more comments (2 replies)
    [+] 11 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)
    [–] 9 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago) (1 child)

    Don't they supposedly have a couple other games in the works, too? What are the chances they're working on three new MOBAs?

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 9 points 2 years ago

    I wish they'd at least do some fun story driven coop stuff instead of only pvp stuff. But, I miss the single player days.

  • source
  • [–] 9 points 2 years ago (3 children)

    Dude, where have you been? Look how little good single player games rockstar is putting out.

    It’s just harder and less profitable.

    I rather have one great red dead 2 than 5 forgettable ones; looking at your assassins creed, used to be one of my favourites and I haven’t played anything after black flag.

    If I ever get VR stuff, I would want to play Alyx but if they had 5 okayish games instead, it would be a nope from me.

    I still haven’t even played black mesa even though i bought it, I like fewer but better choices especially since I’m more busy in this stage of life.

  • source
  • hideshow 3 child comments
  • load more comments (3 replies)
    [–] 8 points 2 years ago

    Valve doesn't want to make a buy to play game unless it's something that pushes the medium forward somehow, which is the only reason Alyx was made. A PvP moba can be a source of continued revenue like all the other games they still support (and one they don't).

  • source
  • [–] 7 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Isnt Icefrog one of the lead devs? I guess he likes this style of game. How many Total Wars, 4x and CoDs were released while Valve made one more Dota-like. Valve has some cool people working, vut O don't see a Suda51, a Raphael, Swery or Co, who has the focus to develope such a single player experience. If the flat structure with 'at will' project focus is still a thing, than sp games have probably a problem getting devs.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • load more comments (1 reply)
    [–] 5 points 2 years ago (1 child)

    Weren't there just credible leaks on a sequel to Half Life Alyx that may or may not be Half Life 3.

  • source
  • hideshow 1 child comment
  • load more comments (1 reply)
    load more comments
    view more: next ›