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Valve have had a philosophy of not shipping until it is perfect. (see TF2, HL2:EP3, etc). This might be changing (L4D2), but I'm still waiting for HL2:EP3, an

Valve have had a philosophy of not shipping until it is perfect. (see TF2, HL2:EP3, etc). This might be changing (L4D2), but I'm still waiting for HL2:EP3, and games like HL2 had a 6 year development cycle.

oasisbob 16y ago
I may not be informed on Valve's ship-philosophy, but is Valve really the best example of shipping at perfection? Hasn't TF2 experienced well over 100+ updates by this point? If Valve is doing something right, it seems to be incremental improvement -- not vitrification and release of a finalized product.
- timknauf 16y ago
  Don't be fooled by the high number of updates for TF2 - it was already a quality product upon release. The updates aren't just fixes; many include genuine new features, maps and game modes. I think the idea is to keep community interest high, since the game dies if its fanbase deserts it for pastures new.
- jasonlotito 16y ago
  TF2 was perfect on release. It was fun, exciting, and offered many hours of enjoyment, and still does because Valve is constantly going back in and tweaking and adding content based on community feedback. Those 100+ updates are fixes to something broken. They are improvements on perfection. I think only Valve can get away with something like that, though. If every company modeled it's game production the same way Valve does, I think gaming would be better off, even if we had to wait longer between releases.
  - wildmXranat 16y ago
    Having played TF2 from day 1, I have to agree with your description of enjoyable gameplay, but there were bugs, massive blunders both in map design or character interaction. Who can forget the infinite uber exploit or sentries located below map grounds. In valve's defense, the game was always user-centric. Fun, very friendly to community and a great value for the dollar. We were administrating 4 TF2 servers and updates to the servers were almost a weekly occurrence. Was it worth the hassle : yes. Valve knew how to handle community issues and provide a product that players wanted. I don't think it's easy to hold a lot of game companies in this high regard.
- deleted 16y ago
  [deleted]
- thecircusb0y 16y ago
  Team Fortress 2 was released and enjoyed by millions. The updates which they release fixed leaks in maps, and patch the engine to handle new technology and be more optimal with developing hardware. Remember, the source engine is almost a decade old, and they keep making it better and better. (Granted I think its now called the Orange Box engine to refer to the newer engine.) And the number of updates have no added new features, weapons, items, and maps to the game, free of charge. None of that paying for DLC bullshit. I believe that the TF2 dev team consists of the original TF developers from back in the quake days, and they have plenty of experience and knowledge in what the people want. Whats more is they have as much fun making the game and its updates as players do. Jeez... if I thought like you, I'd think that Operating systems are garbage because of the multiple updates and versions over time to interface with new hardware, technologies, and add new features.

oasisbob 16y ago

I may not be informed on Valve's ship-philosophy, but is Valve really the best example of shipping at perfection? Hasn't TF2 experienced well over 100+ updates by this point? If Valve is doing something right, it seems to be incremental improvement -- not vitrification and release of a finalized product.

timknauf 16y ago
Don't be fooled by the high number of updates for TF2 - it was already a quality product upon release. The updates aren't just fixes; many include genuine new features, maps and game modes. I think the idea is to keep community interest high, since the game dies if its fanbase deserts it for pastures new.
jasonlotito 16y ago
TF2 was perfect on release. It was fun, exciting, and offered many hours of enjoyment, and still does because Valve is constantly going back in and tweaking and adding content based on community feedback. Those 100+ updates are fixes to something broken. They are improvements on perfection. I think only Valve can get away with something like that, though. If every company modeled it's game production the same way Valve does, I think gaming would be better off, even if we had to wait longer between releases.
- wildmXranat 16y ago
  Having played TF2 from day 1, I have to agree with your description of enjoyable gameplay, but there were bugs, massive blunders both in map design or character interaction. Who can forget the infinite uber exploit or sentries located below map grounds. In valve's defense, the game was always user-centric. Fun, very friendly to community and a great value for the dollar. We were administrating 4 TF2 servers and updates to the servers were almost a weekly occurrence. Was it worth the hassle : yes. Valve knew how to handle community issues and provide a product that players wanted. I don't think it's easy to hold a lot of game companies in this high regard.
deleted 16y ago
[deleted]
thecircusb0y 16y ago
Team Fortress 2 was released and enjoyed by millions. The updates which they release fixed leaks in maps, and patch the engine to handle new technology and be more optimal with developing hardware. Remember, the source engine is almost a decade old, and they keep making it better and better. (Granted I think its now called the Orange Box engine to refer to the newer engine.) And the number of updates have no added new features, weapons, items, and maps to the game, free of charge. None of that paying for DLC bullshit. I believe that the TF2 dev team consists of the original TF developers from back in the quake days, and they have plenty of experience and knowledge in what the people want. Whats more is they have as much fun making the game and its updates as players do. Jeez... if I thought like you, I'd think that Operating systems are garbage because of the multiple updates and versions over time to interface with new hardware, technologies, and add new features.