Valve files trademark for Half-Life 3

Half-Life fans, there could be hope after all for the long awaited and hoped for third act to Valve’s Half-Life series.

Valve have filed a trademark for ‘Half-Life 3’ in Europe on Sunday, which could be a sign that the developer is finally going to make the title into a reality.

The file for the trademark doesn’t reveal anything and doesn’t guarantee that Valve will be moving forward on the game, but for Half-Life fans, this could be the sign that its not too soon to give up hope.

Half-Life 2 was released in 2007 as part of the ‘The Orange Box’, alongside Team Fortress 2 and Portal, and since then there have been many rumours about the possibility of the third game, none of which have been confirmed by the company.

Whether this means fans will get the sequel they’ve been waiting for, we’re yet to see, but perhaps, possibly, its not just a dream afterall.

 

Source: NeoGaf

Hardware prototype confirmed by Valve & Beta announced

Announced today on their official site, Valve confimed that a hardware prototype is in the works and a beta will be launched.

300 lucky users will be able to test the hardware, if you’re interested in applying there’s a few steps you’ve got to take. Firstly, make sure you log on to Steam before October 25th and access your quest page to see if you’re eligible. If you are, then join the Steam Universe community group and agree to the terms and conditions. You’ll need at least 10 Steam friends and a public Steam Community profile, as well as being able to play at least one game with a controller in Big Picture mode.

If you complete all the steps, you’ll be “awarded a special badge” and be among the pool of people who the lucky few are chosen from. The list will be locked on October 25th.

“While these products are still in development, we need your help,” Valve wrote. “As always, we believe the best way to ensure that the right products are getting made is to let people try them out and then make changes as we go. We have designed a high-performance prototype that’s optimized for gaming, for the living room, and for Steam. Of course, it’s also completely upgradable and open.

“At Valve we always rely on real-world testing as part of our design process. The specific machine we’re testing is designed for users who want the most control possible over their hardware. Other boxes will optimize for size, price, quietness, or other factors.”

The company will be releasing more details about the prototype soon and noted that “nearly 3,000 games on Steam” will be available for the beta.

This announcement follows from the reveal of SteamOS that came on Monday. Their third and final announcement will hit on September 27th.

 

Source: Valve

Steam Family Sharing announced by Valve

Valve have announced a new service feature, Steam Family Sharing, that allows friends and family to share their libraries of Steam games. It will become available next week through a limited beta and is supported on PC, Mac and Linux systems.

While friends and family members can play each other’s games, individual members will still be able to keep saves achievements intact via the Steam cloud. If a user authorizes their device for sharing, their library will be available for others to access. The owner of the game will always be able to play their games, if a friend is ‘borrowing’ it and the owner starts playing it then the friend has a few minutes to purchase it or quit.

Sharing can be authorized for up to 10 devices at any time, with libraries shared in entirety. Valve have stated that some restrictions will apply, for example, games that require a third-party key, and that DLC will not be available to buy for those who do not own the game themselves.

Steam are giving a thousand users access to beta for Family Sharing, which is available to register for here.

 

Source: Gamespot