Valve has already given gamers more than they bargained for last year with The Orange Box. Now they want to increase the value of gamers purchases by supplying free add-on content for their popular online shooter, Team Fortress 2.

Valve’s VP of marketing, Doug Lombardi, went on the record to say that they wish to give gamers as much add-on content for free as possible.

He goes on to explain how Valve views it as an investment in their next product. By providing free content for gamers, Valve is hoping that potential buyers will no longer contemplate purchasing their games, because the consumer will know they will get their value for their dollar. Bravo!

In the end it’s up to the two platform suppliers to make the call. Traditionally in the past add-on content such as maps has always had a price tag strapped to it, at least for a specific period of time. One thing is for sure: it is nice to hear that there are still game companies out there concerned about giving their loyal gamers the best bang for their buck. It’s just another reason why Valve is such a highly respected company in the industry.

Source: Kotaku: Valve Wants Free Team Fortress 2…



If all goes well at Valve, a new game mode will be added to Team Fortress 2 this month: Escort.

The first Escort map will be Goldrush, which features the blue team attemping to progress a mining cart through the map, while the the red team tries to stop them. The more blue players near the cart, the faster it moves, while one lone red player can stop the progression.

This new mode, in addition to new weapons and class abilities, should give players a reason to stop complaining that the game is stale.