Items tagged with Valve
When it comes to digital stores for PC games, Steam is currently the dominant force. Chinese gaming company Tencent wants to battle Steam globally and plans to roll out WeGame beyond its home market of China. The first country that WeGame will battle Steam in is Hong Kong and reports indicate that a version of the platform for that country is in the works now. WeGame launched in September of last year to replace the Tencent Games Platform and has been widely compared to Steam. It is much smaller than Steam with a current catalog of only 220 games. Those gamers are a mix of Chinese titles and some from international companies. The goal for Tencent is to expand that catalog greatly as it rolls...
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Valve has announced that it has made some major changes to its Knuckles EV 1.3 controller. It has been sending out Knuckles EV 1.3 developer kits to game devs over the past year to test and that it has been listening to the feedback from these devs along the way. The result of that feedback is a brand-new version of the Knuckles EV controller called Knuckles EV2. According to Valve, very little of the EV 1.3 controller was left untouched. The EV2 version is still recognizable as Knuckles but has lots of changes: Improved industrial design and ergonomics Updated input set and layout Improved strap fit and feel for more hand sizes New sensors, enabling new interactions Improved battery life, USB-C...
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The kids are out of school and the weather is trending towards scorching hot (depending on where you live), and that can mean only one thing—summer has officially begun! That alone isn't reason for excitement though. Sure, we're stoked about getting outside and catching some rays, but we're equally excited that Valve has kicked off its Steam Summer Sale 2018, an annual bonanza of bargains on games and even some hardware. We readily admit we'll never get around to playing every game in our library to their entirety, but with so many tantalizing discounts, it's difficult to sit on the sidelines and watch Steam's various sales go by, particularly this one. You can take your time, though—the...
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Valve's Steam platform has been in the spotlight a lot lately, for good, bad, or simply odd reasons. The company has just overhauled its Steam chat client, which is hugely appreciated, and perhaps long overdue. At the same time, the company has deemed it appropriate to let the community decide what content should or shouldn't be available on the platform - as long as it's not straight-up trolling, content will remain on Steam. Based on the decision made a couple of weeks ago, school shooter FPS games, and those rife with anime porn, are not a problem - as long as no trolling is going on. What's not OK, on the other hand, are games which have a ridiculous number of achievements built in. We're...
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Valve had many gamers excited when it announced that the Steam Link app would let you stream games from your PC to your iOS device. Not so long after the announcement, Steam Link landed in beta on Google Play for Android aficionados. Unfortunately for the iOS users, Apple blocked the app with Phil Schiller explaining that the app violated App Store rules. However, revised app store rules gave hope that Steam Link might still make it. Valve is now trying to get past Apple censors by removing the purchase options inside the app that was released to TestFlight. Reports claiming that violations that have to do with in-app purchases were one of the things that got Steam Link...
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Valve is overhauling its Steam Chat feature and the immediate reaction is that it's essentially Valve's version of Discord, the go-to chat client for many avid online gamers. The new Steam Chat is not available in polished form—if you want to try it out, you have to download and install the beta client, which Valve has made available to everyone (it's an open beta, not a closed one, in other words). Those who do are in for a shock to the system. The beta Steam Chat is vastly different from the existing one. One of the biggest changes is being able to wrangle friends into groups, which can be based on games or topics of interest. Once a user group is created, you can drag a person from the...
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Valve has been busy of late rolling out new features and thinking hard about how it will handle controversial games. One of the cool new features was Steam Link, an app that allows you to stream games from your PC over to your mobile device under the right circumstances. In addition, Valve recently offered insight into its decision to allow "everything" onto the Steam store short of illegal content and "straight up trolling." Valve has now announced that it will be opening the doors to Steam China this year. The launch of Steam China is in partnership with Perfect World Zhengqi Multimedia Technology Co. Ltd. and Perfect World Game Co. The partnership will provide Chinese gamers access to the...
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Valve is giving the community a bit of an update on its policing policies for Steam via a blog post. This post comes in the wake of controversy and public outcry focused on the video game that was removed from the Steam Store that lets gamers play the part of a school shooter. That game was removed from the Steam Store and the developer was banned for being abusive. The new post says that humans are the ones reviewing controversial games submitted to Steam and the process isn’t automated. The process of making decisions on games to allow refuse is a difficult one according to the post, and has led to confusion among customers, developer partners, and employees. Valve has decided how to...
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Apple has revised its App Store rules and policies with slightly looser restrictions that could pave the way for Valve's Steam Link streaming app to take residence on iOS devices, after it was previously blocked. The relevant wording in the revised rules has to do with how remote mirroring apps like the Steam Link are handled. Depending on Apple's reviews process going forward, the change means that Valve's app could end up on iPhone and iPad devices, after all. First, a little background on the topic. Last month, Valve launched its Steam Link app in beta for Android devices. It works similar to the hardware version of Steam Link, only instead of beaming games in a user's Steam library to a television...
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Until recently, a remote code execution vulnerability in Steam sat unnoticed by Valve for at least a decade, leaving millions of users at risk of attack. Luckily for all involved, it seems that malicious actors were not privy to the security bug either. Valve has since released a patch that partially addresses the vulnerability, so even if an attacker does attempt to exploit it, taking over a victim's PC is highly unlikely. Tom Court, a security researcher with Context, the company that alerted Valve to the vulnerability, discussed the bug in detail in a blog post. He gave credit to Valve for quickly responding to the issue once it was made aware, noting that Context alerted Valve on February...
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Following a whirlwind of controversy over content versus free speech, Valve has decided to yank the game Active Shooter from Steam, but it didn't stop there. Valve also banned the developer Revived Games and publisher Acid from its popular digital distribution platform, which are actually one and the same in Ata Berdiyev, who Valve described as a "troll" with an unsavory history towards its customers. "We have removed the developer Revived Games and publisher Acid from Steam," Valve said in a statement. "This developer and publisher is, in fact, a person calling himself Ata Berdiyev, who had previously been removed last fall when he was operating as ‘[bc]Interactive’ and ‘Elusive...
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Valve launched the Steam Link app in beta on Google Play earlier this month and planned to bring the app to iOS as well. Initially, Apple approved the app for launch only to turn around a couple days later and pull that approval leaving Valve with no way to get the app onto iOS. At the time the denial was issued, all Apple said was that the Steam Link app violated App Store terms. Valve had said that it hoped Apple would reconsider. It appears that Apple is reconsidering with Phil Schiller having sent out emails to some Apple users who cried foul over the Steam Link app rejection. Reports indicate that the same email was received by multiple people indicating it is a canned response. In...
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A controversial game has made its way to Valve's Steam store, and it is sure to spark a vigorous debate about common decency and what is acceptable as a freedom of expression. The game, Active Shooter, allows you to serve as a SWAT team member during an "active shooter" situation at a high school. While this might be a bit unsettling, given recent events in the US, that's not where it ends. The game features "dynamic roles", in which the player can also take on the role as the actual shooter, targeting innocent school children and teachers. Although the Steam listing for the game has been updated since it initially went live, it originally stated that players have the ability to...
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It looks like Android fans have another thing they can hold over the heads of their iOS-using pals. The Steam Link app launched in beta form on Android earlier this month. The app had originally been approved by Apple to launch on iOS, but this week the planned launch was quashed by Apple when it reversed its decision and blocked the app's launch. Apple listed the reason for blocking the app as "business conflicts with app guidelines." There is no clarification on exactly what business guidelines Steam Link app ran afoul of. Speculation suggests that the issue was that the Steam Link app allows Apple device users to access another store, in this cases Steam, where they can buy games and play...
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Earlier this month Valve announced that it would be releasing a new app called Steam Link allowing you to play PC games on your mobile device. Steam Link was promised to land by the end of May and now the Steam Link beta is available via Google Play. The app does exactly what was promised; it allows you to stream PC games via Steam if the smartphone is connected to a PC close by over a 5GHz WiFi network. The PC also must be connected directly to your router via an Ethernet cable. Steam Link won’t function over an LTE connection, which means no streamed PC games from across town. Controlling the games on your mobile device can be accomplished with the Steam Controller or to other Bluetooth...
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Valve has enabled support for Bluetooth on the Steam Controller via a Steam Client Beta update. The update brings support for Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) connectivity and Valve points out that the BLE feature is required to use the Steam Link mobile PC game streaming app that will be launching soon. Gamers can change between wireless modes when the update is applied, and Valve gives some tips on when you will want to use BLE. When streaming games to iOS or Android devices via the Steam Link app, you must use BLE connectivity. You can also use BLE when connecting the Steam Controller to a tablet or laptop that lacks a USB port of course as well. BLE will also work if you have misplaced your...
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Valve just dropped a bit of exciting gaming news on us this afternoon. The company announced its new Steam Link app, which will allow you to stream PC or Mac games from your main computer to your smartphone, tablet, or even to your Apple TV. Valve says that the app will initially be available for iOS, Android (as a beta initially) and tvOS starting on May 21st. However, game streaming (from the host PC or Mac) will only be able to take place over a 5GHz home Wi-Fi or Ethernet connection for gaming. But even with that limitation, you'll have access to your full library of games. In addition, you'll be able to control games on your iOS device using a MFi-certified controller or with the official...
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When one of the industry's biggest game publishers acquires a little indie developer, there's probably going to be a bit of a gasp from that developer's fanbase. All too often, we've seen truly great developers be swallowed by a huge beast (EA we're looking at you), and before long, those same developers disappear into the void. With Valve's latest acquisition, though, hopefully we can have more confidence that the team will be left in tact to continue its success, only now with more resources. Campo Santo, makers of a brilliant game called Firewatch, has just been snapped up by Valve, though the details of the deal currently under wraps, as Valve operates as a private company. All 12 of...
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In a blog post, Valve vowed to continue developing and supporting its Linux-based SteamOS even though "Steam Machines aren't exactly flying off the shelves." Valve delivered the message in the wake of news spreading that it removed the Steam Machines link from the Hardware pull-down menu in Steam, and is no longer selling systems through its storefront, instead now linking to external websites. Valve chalked the removal of Steam Machines as part of a "routine cleanup." While there remains a section of a Steam Store that still shows Steam Machines, Valve made the decision to de-list the heading from its Hardware pull-down menu based on user traffic, or lack thereof. "We're still working hard on...
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Do you remember when Valve had grand aspirations of taking over the gaming PC scene with Steam Machines? Not only did that never happen for various reasons, but it looks like Valve is finally ready to put the initiative in its right view mirror. Without any sort of fan fare, Valve has gone and removed the Steam Machines section from Steam, as well as from the Hardware pull-down menu at the top of the Steam store. Now when you click or hover on Hardware, it only shows links for the Steam Controller, Steam Link, and HTC Vive. You can actually still find Steam Machines by doing a search in Steam or by loading up the old landing spot manually. However, the actual hardware is gone, now replaced by...
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Valve has announced a rather significant update to the SteamVR Beta that will be a boon to owners of both current and future virtual reality headsets. The SteamVR runtime has been upgraded with a new auto-resolution scaling routine that is able to enhance your visual experience based on how powerful the GPU is in your current gaming rig. So how does this work? According to Valve's Alexa Vlachos, SteamVR will automatically determine the speed of your GPU and will choose a resolution based on what it is capable of rendering. Vlachos says that many gamers have incredibly powerful graphics cards that simply aren't being utilized to their fullest potential in VR applications. Now, however, SteamVR...
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One of the most popular game franchises to ever grace the PC was Half-Life, which hailed from Valve. Fans have wanted to delve back into the world of Gordon Freeman for many years now, and have all but given up any hope of Half-Life 3. The flames of hope for Half-Life 3 are starting to be stoked again with Valve's Gabe Newell having announced that Valve is "going to start shipping games again." The first game is certainly not what fans hoped for; it's a game called Artifact, a Dota 2-themed card game that was announced last year. The good news is that Newell did clearly state that isn’t the only game Valve has plans for. Newell said that Artifact was "the first of several games" that Valve...
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