Gabe Newell helped create Half-Life, co-founded Valve, and turned Steam into the backbone of PC gaming.

But what makes him interesting is that Valve rarely behaves like a traditional gaming company.

They can spend years developing a game. They can completely change an entire industry with one platform. They can release hardware that seems strange at first and later become hugely influential.

Steam changed how PC gamers buy and own games. Half-Life changed storytelling in shooters. Portal became a cultural phenomenon. Counter-Strike became one of the biggest competitive games ever.

And somehow, the biggest question surrounding Valve is still:

“So... when is the next game coming out, Gaben?”

Do you think Gabe Newell is one of the most influential figures in gaming history, or does Valve get too much credit for the work of its developers?

Not the obvious answers like GTA, RDR2 or The Witcher 3.

I'm talking about games that are genuinely amazing but somehow never get the recognition they deserve.

Drop your underrated gem below

Debugging meta game and designing is fun and challenging.

Added RPG elements to game such as lvls and stats, still have way more to add until done.

I added textures to my map and added terrain bonuses that tie into combat, just like in real life terrain should influence combat.

Reworked UI a bit to make it more readable and consistent after feedback i got last.

Reworked ranged to use 3d projectiles, that can even hit friendlies when not careful :)

Feedback appreciated.

For me it's "The Invincible", when I first played it, I thought it's just a walking simulator but, after playing for a few hours and advancing the story made me happy about my choice, a really different story and game, but unfortunately my PC died (RIP GTX 1660 super and monitor), what about you??

Mine would be:

1. id Tech 6/7 (DOOM 2016, DOOM Eternal)

- Probably the best optimized engine I've ever experienced.

- The movement feels incredibly fluid and responsive.

- Gorgeous visuals while maintaining insane performance.

- I'm also a huge fan of its Vulkan-first approach.

1. Fox Engine (Metal Gear Solid V)

- Some of the best lighting I've seen in a game.

- Fantastic facial expressions and character animation.

- Still looks stunning today, and it ran amazingly well on older hardware.

1. RE Engine (Resident Evil, Devil May Cry 5, Street Fighter 6, etc.)

- Incredibly versatile and consistently delivers gorgeous visuals.

- Excellent performance across a wide range of hardware.

- One of the most reliable modern game engines, especially for photorealistic games.

What's your top three? I'd love to see which engines people appreciate the most and why.

Halo, Gears, Fable, Banjo-Kazooie, Perfect Dark, or something else?

Just finished Pragmata and wow... what a game. I had a really good time with it from start to finish. The gameplay was fun, the world looked amazing, and the story kept me hooked the whole time. The bond between the characters made it even better.

That ending though... I wasn't ready for it. It was emotional and definitely stayed with me after I finished the game.

If you've played it, drop your review and let me know what you thought. I'm interested to see if you felt the same about the ending.

If you haven't played Pragmata yet, definitely give it a shot. Try to avoid spoilers and experience it for yourself. It's worth it.

Newly appointed Indian-origin CEO Asha Sharma confirmed in a recent post on X that Xbox will lay off 3,200 employees, or about 20% of its entire workforce, during FY27.

"I know this is painful. These changes will directly affect people who have poured their creativity into building XBOX... Today's decisions do not reflect their talent or dedication," Sharma noted.

"Our business today is not healthy. We are operating at margins that are 3-10x lower than comparable platform and publishing businesses. And now the industry is facing the most severe hardware crisis in its history. We must reset XBOX," she said.

Of the 3,200 job cuts, 1,600 happened immediately on July 6, with the remainder exiting throughout FY27.

"I want XBOX to be one of the few companies that entertains more than a billion people each day and gives everyone the opportunity to create and connect. I know we can achieve this goal...we will return to growth in 2027," Sharma added.

Notably, the Xbox layoffs are part of a broader 4,800 job cut announced by Microsoft on the same day, with Xbox accounting for about 1,600 of the immediate eliminations.

I have project zomboid but only have about 1 hour (afk)