Here we go again...
Just when you thought the gaming industry was getting stagnant, Valve is here to save the day.
Recently announced by none other than the Jesus Christ of the gaming industry is "Deadlock", because if you thought anything other than yet another competitive shooter in the style of Overwatch/Valorant/CSGO would be nice, then you are out of your gourd.
Before then, it was quietly being pushed to the masses via a playtesting initiative, because Valve was so traumatized by their Artifact reveal. (and paradoxically, they then threw a hissy fit at anyone who talked about it, but that's neither here nor there)
Now it's here. I’ll admit, when I first saw the leaks, not many things in life could make me say “I couldn't be any more disinterested in this” with such aggression. Even worse, it takes a very special skill to make me do that at first glance, but Valve of all people have somehow managed to get that reaction out of me.
I thought it was some sort of joke, and I still wish it was, but it isn’t. Valve is once again putting all their talent into making multiplayer slop instead of just making a damn good game... or finishing the ones we've all been waiting for. Ahem, Half-Life 3.
Earlier I mentioned the collective groan by the Artifact reveal. Valve has largely done a good job dodging a repeat of that incident by pushing the game out to the masses for free via a playtesting initiative. They were so desperate for this idea to work that they’ve opted to artificially inflate its popularity on their own platform. If you can’t win the game, just bribe the referee.
Now they see it has worked, and lo and behold, here we are. An official announcement has come, and we are now pretty much heading into another quagmire; two more decades of Valve obsessing over yet another…
Case opening/gambling scene.
Microtransaction economy.
Competitive scene.
And of course, you can’t forget the cheater scene which will inevitably be prominent and everlasting.
One person on (Allah forgive me for uttering this word) reddit described this game as being "designed by a committee of LLMs", and I couldn't pick a better description (and lookey here...). They spent so long being mindbroken by CSGO and DOTA, I guess I shouldn't expect them to know what people want anymore.
Oh well, fellow Half-Life fans. Better luck next time. See you all in another decade.
People act surprised and hostile when I hold Valve to the standards they set back before 2012 when they were releasing a legendary title literally every other year, since 1998.
The bar has dropped so low and none but a few seemed to have noticed. People drool over them doing the bare minimum, like how they got the TF2 community to shut up about the bots with a simple tweet. Valve fans make a feast out of a crumb.
In addition to that, it's genuinely shocking how many people want the gaming industry to just remain stagnant.
“Ah yes, we'll take another multiplayer title with a two-decade long lifespan filled with constant infighting over competitive balance. Also filled to the brim with DLC/microtransactions, and a cheating scene that can't be stopped.”
Match that with AAA titles taking almost ten years to release because all the budget has gone into getting the most realistic graphics possible.
Artstyle? Never heard of it. Make it look like real-life because that's the unceasing expectation.
Then fill it to the brim with DLC so the sequel can be barren of content.
People think people like me are out to defecate on all the new things because they are new. The problem with that logic is the new things aren’t new at all. It’s the same shit that’s poisoned the gaming industry since 2012, that makes games less about the “game” and more about the money.
I’m not hating on something that’s new. I’m waiting for the industry to move on.
