Valve Corporation
Valve Corporation is a company that makes video games
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Half-Life ~ Counter-Strike ~ Team Fortress ~ Day of Defeat ~ Portal ~ Left 4 Dead
Valve Software was founded in Bellevue, Washington in 1996. They quickly made their mark on PC gaming history with their debut title, Half-Life; a game which went on to receive numerous "Game of the Year" awards and is still regarded as one of the genre-defining FPS games. Half-Life went on to spawn multiple expansion packs and several multiplayer mods, including Counter-Strike, which to this day is still one of the most played online shooters.
After the success of Half-Life, Valve laid fairly quiet for a number of years making tweaks and improvements to their ever-popular Counter-Strike. Then, in 2004, Valve once again shocked PC gamers with the critically acclaimed sequel to Half-Life, simply titled Half-Life 2. The game quickly became known for its incredible story, smooth gameplay, and infinitely fun physics system that could be easily manipulated via the Gravity Gun. Released alongside Half-Life 2 was the follow-up to their popular online shooter Counter-Strike, titled Counter-Strike: Source. Both Half-Life 2 and Counter-Strike: Source were the first games to make use of Valve's new, in-house Source Engine.
Valve planned episodic releases for the Half-Life 2 storyline, and they released the first of these in 2006, titled Half-Life 2: Episode One. Following the release of Episode One, Valve began work on The Orange Box. The Orange Box was to be a five-game package for the PC, Xbox 360, and PS3, which included HL2, HL2: Episode One, HL2: Episode Two, Team Fortress 2, and Portal.
Team Fortress 2 was the sequel to the popular multiplayer game Team Fortress: Classic, though it took a much more stylized approach with visuals reminiscent of a Pixar film. Portal, inspired by a student project titled Narbacular Drop, was one of the more unique games released in recent memory. The game saw the player navigating the Aperture Science Enrichment Center using a Portal Gun to teleport and maneuver through physics-based puzzles. The Orange Box was released in 2007, and unsurprisingly garnered much critical acclaim.
Valve is currently working on Portal 2, Half-Life 2: Episode Three, and is rumored to be working on a true sequel to Counter-Strike.
Valve was set up on August 24th 1996 by two former Microsoft employees: Gabe Newell and Mike Harrington. They were based in Kirkland, WA and were a Limited Liable Company (L.L.C). While still at Microsoft both Newell and Harrington played key roles in the development and success of Microsoft's Window's operating system.
After acquiring the rights to the Quake Engine from id Software Valve began working on their first game Half-life. Set to become a company tradition, the game suffered several delays and restarts and was pushed back from it's intended release in 1997 to the end of 1998.
The game was eventually released on November 19th 1998 by Sierra Online. It received universal accolades for it's immersive environments, interactiveness and unique narrative all while still being a solid FPS. This was combined with commercial success and as of 2008 the game has sold in excess of 9.8 million copies.
Valve would continue the development philosophy on Half-life in their later games which is a partial reason to their success and loyal fanbase.
Valve Corporation is a company known for popular game series' such as the Half-Life, Counter-Strike, Team Fortress, Portal, and the recently released Left 4 Dead.
Franchises
Half-Life ~ Counter-Strike ~ Team Fortress ~ Day of Defeat ~ Portal ~ Left 4 Dead
Overview
Valve Software was founded in Bellevue, Washington in 1996. They quickly made their mark on PC gaming history with their debut title, Half-Life; a game which went on to receive numerous "Game of the Year" awards and is still regarded as one of the genre-defining FPS games. Half-Life went on to spawn multiple expansion packs and several multiplayer mods, including Counter-Strike, which to this day is still one of the most played online shooters.
Dog & Alyx from HL2.
Valve planned episodic releases for the Half-Life 2 storyline, and they released the first of these in 2006, titled Half-Life 2: Episode One. Following the release of Episode One, Valve began work on The Orange Box. The Orange Box was to be a five-game package for the PC, Xbox 360, and PS3, which included HL2, HL2: Episode One, HL2: Episode Two, Team Fortress 2, and Portal.
Portal - A picture is worth a thousand words.
Valve is currently working on Portal 2, Half-Life 2: Episode Three, and is rumored to be working on a true sequel to Counter-Strike.
History
Beginnings
Valve was set up on August 24th 1996 by two former Microsoft employees: Gabe Newell and Mike Harrington. They were based in Kirkland, WA and were a Limited Liable Company (L.L.C). While still at Microsoft both Newell and Harrington played key roles in the development and success of Microsoft's Window's operating system.
Gabe Newell.
The game was eventually released on November 19th 1998 by Sierra Online. It received universal accolades for it's immersive environments, interactiveness and unique narrative all while still being a solid FPS. This was combined with commercial success and as of 2008 the game has sold in excess of 9.8 million copies.
Valve would continue the development philosophy on Half-life in their later games which is a partial reason to their success and loyal fanbase.
Important Dates
- August 24th, 1996 - Valve Software is set up by Gabe Newell and Mike Harrington.
- November 19th, 1998 - Half-life is released.
- March 25th, 1999 - Counter Strike is released as a mod for Half-life.
Scene for Half-life. - April 7th, 1999 - Team Fortress Classic is released, a remake of the original Quake mod based on the GoldSrc engine.
- January 15th 2000 - Mike Harrington dissolves his partnership with Valve, giving Gabe Newell full control.
- April 20th, 2000 - Valve hires the developers of Counter Strike.
- 2003 - Valve moves to Bellvue, WA after becoming a corporation.
- September 12th, 2003 - Valve releases its Steam client.
- November 16th, 2004 - Half-life 2 is finally released, after numerous delays and complications, to glowing reviews.
- June 1st 2006 - HL2: Episode 1 is released. The first of a planned trilogy that were supposed to be released in a short period.
- October 10h, 2007 - The Orange Box is released. It includes the following games: Team Fortress 2 (which spent 5 years in development), Portal and HL2: Episode 2.
- November 18th, 2008 - Valve releases Left 4 Dead.
- November 17, 2009-Valve releases Left 4 Dead 2, the sequel to the previous year's big hit. Months before, there was some huge controversy, evven having a boycott on the game. However, the game still sells well being at #1 on Steam.
Key Figures
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Gabe Newell - Co-founder and Managing Director.
Doug Lombardi. - Doug Lombardi - Vice-President of Marketing.
- Marc Laidlaw - Writer - Sole writer on Half-Life 1 and 2. Lead writer on HL Episodes.
- Erik Wolpaw - Writer - Head writer for Portal and writer on HL episodes.
- Chet Faliszek - Writer - Lead writer on Left 4 Dead and writer on HL episodes.
- Robin Walker - Software Developer - Was co-creator of the original TF Quake mode and is one of the lead designers of Team Fortress 2.
- Doug Wood - Animator - Lead animator on Half-life series and other Valve games.
| Company Name | Valve Corporation |
| Street Address | PO BOX 1688 |
| City | Bellevue, WA 98009 |
| State | Washington |
| Country | United States of America |
| Website | http://www.valvesoftware.com |
| Contact Email | contact@valvesoftware.com |
| Phone Number | 425-889-9642 |
| Date Founded | Aug. 24, 1996 |
| Count of Games Published | 49 |
| Count of Games Developed | 23 |
| Aliases |
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Gordon Freeman first in Half-Life |
23
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G-Man first in Half-Life |
17
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Barney Calhoun first in Half-Life |
16
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Isaac Kleiner first in Half-Life |
15
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Eli Vance first in Half-Life |
13
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Alyx Vance first in Half-Life 2 |
13
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Judith Mossman first in Half-Life 2 |
12
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Dog first in Half-Life 2 |
12
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Wallace Breen first in Half-Life 2 |
10
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Lamarr first in Half-Life 2 |
9
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| See all » |
