posted
Heh heh. If you're going to have a high-profile security breach, make sure to name your company "Valve" or "Sieve" or "Faucet", just so the press can have fun with it.
PlanetHalflife has continued to post updates on the Half-life 2 security breach. Now, apparently, a person claiming to be the thief who stole the source code and leaked it onto the internet, calling himself the "Anonymous Leaker" (NOT the coolest h4x0r name I've ever heard), has released a hacked-together build that includes bits from the e3 demo that prove that a few of the events in that demo were scripted. He says that he will continue to release more complete builds, proving that Half-life 2 was an unfinished disappointment, and that Valve has lied to us all about the state of the game and must burn, unless Gabe Newell comes clean.
[...]
[breaks into derisive laughter] I have no idea if this clown is really the guy who took the source code or not, but it's pretty clear that he's an ignorant little brat who has no idea what he's talking about.
1. Of course the game is unfinished and ugly. The game was delayed, and doesn't come out until December. Valve is making changes and is still messing with the content. Look, my game will be finished in two weeks, and the small changes we are making still break the whole game every few days. You can't judge us on the contents of our hard drives any given day. That's SUPPOSED to suck. Judge us on the game we expect you to buy.
2. Of course the e3 demo had scripted stuff in it. That's why it was a PRIVATE DEMO. If the game was finished and fully functional, it would have been on the show floor. The only thing they said was unscripted was some of the ally behavior in the barricade segment. If this idiot really feels shocked and betrayed by the scripted segments, then it's his own fault for being an idiot.
3. Companies have a RESPONSIBILITY to their shareholders not to shoot their own games in the foot. If Valve DID run into problems during development, and things didn't work right, it's their JOB to work it out in private and not tell anyone until the game is released. They have zero responsibility to air their dirty laundry to the gaming community at large.
4. A game company is not a political candidate. They're not asking you to submit to their rule. So inventing "scandals" like this serves no purpose. If their game sucks, then everyone will find out when it gets released, its sales will be disappointing, and everyone will get exactly what they deserve. There is no possible legitimate purpose behind holding a game company hostage until they admit that their unfinished game sucks. No purpose beyond self-aggrandizement and plain meanness.
5. All this guy really accomplishes is forcing game developers to spend more effort on security and less effort on developing fun games. How excited are developers supposed to be about making games for this guy, if he's so insistent about setting up an adversarial relationship? "Give me perfect games or ELSE!" "Hm. How about I quit making games and become a teacher instead?" Valve doesn't owe this guy anything. Valve makes games because it wants the same thing he purports to want — a good time. If he's not interested in what Valve makes, he doesn't have to buy it. Period.
Okay, sorry for the huge rant. I'm just really, really pissed off about this. It's bad for the whole industry, and I'm shocked at how many gamers in PlanetHalflife's forums are siding with this jerk. So I had to say something. Thanks
[ October 09, 2003, 10:55 AM: Message edited by: A Rat Named Dog ]
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