Valve founder Gabe Newell presented a very different model for how the gaming industry should work during his keynote at the DICE Summit this evening, one that would radically change the lives of gamers. Here are the key points: Read more...

As part of his just-concluded keynote at the DICE Summit here on the outskirts of Las Vegas, Valve founder Gabe Newell said that the team behind the popular animated shorts for "Team Fortress 2" is prepping comics. This, he said, is part of Valve's transition from being a "video game company" to an "entertainment company." More on that in my next post, which I'll be filing shortly.

Valve's "Left 4 Dead" is steeped in the traditions of b-movie horror films. It's frantic, scary and gory, but not meant to be taken particularly seriously, either.

Along those lines, Valve produced four fake movie posters based on the game's levels -- "Blood Harvest," "Death Toll," "No Mercy" and "Dead Air."

We're not sure if they're planning on making these posters available for purchase, but Valve included mini versions of them while sending over "Left 4 Dead." I've scanned smaller versions above, but if you want to see them bigger…

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If you're like me, you've noticed more ads for Valve's zombie shooter "Left 4 Dead" than there ever were for "The Orange Box."

"Half-Life" is Valve's bread and butter, but a press release yesterday said pre-release buzz for "Left 4 Dead" means Valve is pouring more money into pushing "Left 4 Dead" than any Valve game before it.

"Every time someone plays 'Left 4 Dead,' we witness the most overwhelmingly positive reaction that we've seen from any of our games," said Valve president and co-founder Gabe Newell in the release. "This gives us tremendous confidence in the product and why we've taken the game on the road, produced this pre-launch demo, and invested more advertising dollars on the title than any prior release from Valve."

Valve is spending $10 million on "Left 4 Dead"'s television, outdoor, print and online advertising. Have you noticed those ad dollars in your neck of the woods?

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‘Left 4 Dead’ Is The Online Zombie Game That ‘Resident Evil: Outbreak’ Wanted To Be

"First of all, let me say that I love the forum flame wars about what 'real' zombies are like. Guys get religious [about it]. 'Zombies are slow and shambling. Everyone knows real zombies move slowly!' 'No, zombies move fast!' [laughs] You know, I haven't seen a real zombie. I'm just saying."

-- "Left 4 Dead" lead designer Michael Booth responding to a question about what zombie movies influenced the design of his game. His game has fast zombies.

[Image Credit: 20th Century Fox]

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If Wii and the "LEGO" games have proven anything, it's that people still like to play games with other people in the same room.

Despite this revelation, games of the last few years have all but abandoned split-screen gameplay. Almost everything has been relegated to online multiplayer.

But split-screen was something "Left 4 Dead" lead designer Michael Booth believed was critically important to the Xbox 360 version of his co-op zombie shooter -- even if it was going to be a nightmare to implement.

"Split-screen was a pretty huge investment," said Booth to MTV Multiplayer at a San Francisco event to unveil the zombie mode of the game last night. "It's hard. That's the thing."

Read more...

Many gamers probably didn't play the Gearbox Studios-developed PlayStation 2 port of "Half-Life."

In addition to bringing Valve's classic first-person shooter to Sony's home console, Gearbox engineered a brand-new co-op mission -- a first for the series -- called "Decay."

For roughly three years, a group of modders have been independently porting the Decay mode to the PC "Half-Life." Their work was recently completed. But their project seemed to tip-toe on the possibility of someone calling foul and shutting the whole thing down.

MTV Multiplayer reached out to Gearbox president Randy Pitchford for his thoughts on the matter. And you know what? He loves what they've done.

Read more...

Possibly stealing a play from my colleague Tracey, I feel compelled to point out an amazing convergence in Holiday 2008 video game box art.

In October, Electronic Arts will release sci-fi horror game "Dead Space" and will try to attract gamers' eyes with this box art featuring a severed right hand:

In November, Electronic Arts will release Valve's co-op zombie horror game "Left4Dead" and will try to attract gamers' eyes with this box art featuring a severed left hand:

One could say that at EA, the left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing. Yes, one could say that.

And special bonus points to the first person to use these box arts to create one of those "Zelda"/"Star Fox"-style two-big-hands next to a big head. Maybe do it in "Little Big Planet"?

["Left4Dead" Image Credit: Kotaku]

Did your heart skip a beat this morning when you saw the report that Google was planning to buy Valve? The makers of one of the biggest web companies on earth buying the makers of "Half-Life" and Steam?

Tech news site The Inquirer reported the story earlier today, stating that "WELL PLACED SOURCES tell us that Google is going to be buying Valve any second now." [All-caps emphasis theirs.]

I contacted Valve pr man Doug Lombardi who replied to my request for comment on this news with just two words: "complete fabrication."

Just to make sure Lombardi wasn't being cagey, I asked if it's be correct if we posted that (my words) "Valve says Google isn't buying the company." He said that would be correct. So... no sale!

No, you shouldn't play "Left 4 Dead" by yourself.

PAX 2008 was not the first time I touched Valve and Turtle Rock's zombie thriller, but it was the first time I played alongside the game's built-in artificial intelligence.

How good -- or how bad -- is the humans vs. fast zombies games when a computer controls your human allies? I learned the answer at the Penny Arcade Expo. Read more...