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Team Fortress: Source 2 and Portal 64 Fan Projects Shut Down by Valve Takedowns

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Re: Team Fortress: Source 2 and Portal 64 Fan Projects Shut Down by Valve Takedowns

#2
Man, this is disappointing. It's particularly surprising that Valve has sent a DMCA here, given their history of pretty much all their popular games originating from the modding community or prior art and the history of fan projects like Black Mesa getting somewhat favourable coverage in the Steam store.

I wonder if they took issue with s&box coming from Facepunch, which might be something that is eventually profited from, thereby a TF2 remake in s&box could drive sales for s&box.

Re: Team Fortress: Source 2 and Portal 64 Fan Projects Shut Down by Valve Takedowns

#6

I don't get why Valve told the Portal 64 dev to take down the project because it depends on Nintendo's proprietary libraries.

Especially since he wasn't distributing the libraries along with the game's source code.

Re: Team Fortress: Source 2 and Portal 64 Fan Projects Shut Down by Valve Takedowns

#7
post #2

Man, this is disappointing. It's particularly surprising that Valve has sent a DMCA here, given their history of pretty much all their popular games originating from the modding community or prior art and the history of fan projects like Black Mesa getting somewhat favourable coverage in the Steam store. I wonder if they took issue with s&box coming from Facepunch, which might be something that is eventually profited…

As someone who has attempted to license a paid Half-Life 2 mod, there's a pre and post-"Hunt Down The Freeman" era. From my understanding working with other licensees, it was so bad that they no longer want anyone working with their IP.

Valve doesn't work with the mod community anymore; they've pivoted hard into only working with UGC creators, which they do not consider the same.

Free mods can continue to exist, but it has to be within their walled garden, and done in ways that they approve of, and they offer no support or guidance. Even for licensees who have blessed support, they no longer have a dedicated Source Engine contact and haven't for years, or even over a decade(?).

Anything that is non-Source is a non-starter.

Most professionals have moved on to working with other IP or developing their own. Frankly, I'm surprised anyone does anything with Valve's stuff anymore, or they're too unfamiliar with working with Valve that they don't understand that their era of absorbing mods and turning them into full-fledged in-house IP is over and they don't treat fans the same way they did in the early aughts. The staff has changed dramatically and Newell himself appears less engaged in the company all together.

Seemingly, you can't get anything done at Valve, or working with them now. There are isolated teams there that work on hardware or existing legacy IP that generates cash flow from UGC work, but that's all Valve does now.

Re: Team Fortress: Source 2 and Portal 64 Fan Projects Shut Down by Valve Takedowns

#9
Submission title is incorrect as regards Portal 64. Per the article:

> Portal 64, meanwhile is being shuttered due to the project "depending on Nintendo's proprietary libraries," according to an update on the project's Patreon. Like Team Fortress, Portal 64 sought to revive Valve's 2007 classic, but on Nintendo 64 hardware. Its developer celebrated the release of its "First Slice" demonstrating its progress on January 5.

Re: Team Fortress: Source 2 and Portal 64 Fan Projects Shut Down by Valve Takedowns

#10

I don't get why Valve told the Portal 64 dev to take down the project because it depends on Nintendo's proprietary libraries.

Maybe they thought it would be a legal liability to have their IP associated with something infringing?

But then again it's almost 30 year old hardware, come on.

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