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Hey console gamers, if you don't game on your PC or Mac then you probably don't know exactly what Steam or Valve is. But you've surely seen the gaming darling online in their massive sales and critical acclaim for such games as the Half-Life and the Portal series. But after quickly redefining gaming as we new it back in 1998 with the original Half-Life Valve starting looking deep into the future of gaming where Steam, the game delivery service, is finally coming into its own. Here's what you need to know and why Steam is going to be a part of your gaming life.
To understand what Steam is, lets take a quick look at Valve and its eccentric founder, Gabe Newell. Newell dropped out of Harvard to join the fledgling Microsoft Corporation and produced the first three version of Microsoft's Windows. Windows revolutionized PC computing and caused Microsoft to become to unstoppable Juggernaut of on the 1990s. But after making millions Newell jumped ship with fellow designer Mike Harrington to found Valve and used their Windows cash to make Half-Life.
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History Of Valve
Half-Life revolutionized storytelling in gaming and created a whole new generation of developers with its open system of mods. Allowing fans to make their own single players and online modes of play. 15 years later gamers are still playing Half-Life online daily.
Valve didn't release a new game for six years but kept putting out expansions like Team Fortress, Counter Strike, Day of Defeat and many other mods all for free as well as two story expansions for the original game. It was at this point that Valve noticeably put its fans and community ahead of its own development in a big way that no other gaming company has since.
Steam Launches
Steam was launched in 2003 as a way to update Valve's own games more quickly. However Steam started out with some problems. The universally condemned digital rights management (DRM), which usually means gamers must get online verification that they are playing an original, unadulterated copy of a game was first introduced by Steam to some serious gamer grumbling. But it also provided a stable and virtually cheat-free environment for games to could endlessly play online games for free.
Steam Begins Digital Delivery
In 2005 Steam began distributing not only its own games but also signed deals with major developers to start selling other games digitally. This began the ascent of Steam as the premiere gaming delivery platform. With years of development under its belt, Steam felt seamless to gamers used to having to jump through hoops to get games. Sign up once and download games.
Steam Is Good For Gaming
If you love gaming you need to get on Steam. But console gamers are going to feel Steam rolling into their lives whether they like it or not as Valve is moving from the personal computer into the world of living room consoles.
So why do gamers love Steam so much? Because the gamer wins, always. Steam is like a game store that has almost every title you could ever want, released on the day it comes out for direct download. It has constant sales and unlike Xbox Live or PlayStation network you can play online games for free. Downloading steam is free and there are a growing number of free-to-play games. The biggest of which has become in the international eSports sensation Dota 2.
Steam Great Deals
What's the biggest advantage of using Steam? Cheap games! Steam is known for its crazy sales dropping developer bundles of games for loose change. For instance this past black Friday Steam users could pick up Skyrim, the massive fantasy game for only $7.
Play Free Games
Steam also has a growing number of free games. Most famously the massive battle arena eSports hit Dota 2. Dota 2 is completely free to users and one of the biggest competitive games in the world right now. At Valve's annual International competition earlier this year the winning team walked away with $1.43 million dollars, not bad for training with a free game. While users can spend money on cosmetic changes to their character it won’t help them in battle.
Steam Greenlight
Steam supports indie developers by allowing fans to vote for which games they'd like to see on Steam. Hundreds of independently made games are getting backed every week on the service so there is no shortage of new games to discover. No other developer lets developers so openly work with the public and supply a way for small companies to get its games out into the world.
Make Friends
Like getting social with games? Want to get free mods for games you already own? Steam's community of indie and home developers is massive. Valve is like no other developer in that they wholly support its modders. Home developer build new versions of games and Steam will post it up for the rest of the world to enjoy without having to worry about viruses or bugs.
Keep track of friends in-game or jump into games your friends are setting up. If you’ve used Xbox 360’s social platform you’ll feel at home with Steam’s. Steam also lets your buddy up with friends to share games. Exchange game lists and play friends titles for free.
Steam Reviews
Steam recently launched a new review site as part of its expanding community. Not only can every user of Steam have their own personal review site but they can also sell the good they earn while playing games on Steam. Users can sell achievements as well as items they earn in free games like Dota 2.
Steam Machines
What's next for Steam? It's coming to your living room. Valve announced an ambitious new project to bring the Steam service to console-like boxes built by multiple manufactures and ranging in power. Users will be able to buy just as much power as they want or can afford possibly blowing open the console market. The so-called Steam Machines will be heading your way in 2014. Check one of the top-of-the-line models out here.
If you're not gaming on Steam, you're missing out on some of the best new games and biggest trends coming to gaming. Want to know more about Steam and Valve and what it sees as the future of gaming? Check out the Steam Machine reveal here.
