Portal-maker Valve cryptically announces free-to-play game

It's only been just over a week since Valve brought five fancy free-to-play games to Steam, its digital games distribution service. And already the developer slash online marketplace curator has caught the fever known as free, as spokesman Doug Lombardi replied simply "yes" when asked by French magazine Barre de Vie whether Valve had its own free-to-play games in the making.

According to Gamasutra, some guess that the game in question could be Dota 2 (pictured), a game inspired by the Defense of the Ancients game mod created within WarCraft 3, a strategy game by Blizzard released in 2002. The game is said to join other spin-offs of the original like League of Legends by Riot Games, which just so happens to be free-to-play as well. However, this is all guesswork based on Valve's existing projects and what the competition offers within the genre.

Last week, the company brought several free-to-play albeit hardcore games (aside from Spiral Knights) to its Steam service, so it is understandable that Valve would have confidence in the increasingly popular business model. In fact, we all know companies like Zynga, traditionally hardcore developers like EA and even designers like John Romero are digging on free games. So, it appears that Valve is looking to keep up with the competition--at least when it comes to its "hardcore" fans. You know, the ones who bought Bejeweled 3 and Peggle Nights from Steam? We've contacted Valve for comment.

[Image Credit: Valve]

Are you excited to see another major hardcore game creator to join the free-to-play space? How do you think Valve will fare against those who have already enjoyed the successes of free? Sound off in the comments. Add Comment.