Former Valve dev hits back at Epic Games CEO’s claims Steam holds gaming back
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(Image credit: Epic Games)
After Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney’s recent digs at Steam, a former Valve developer has reacted, informing the Fortnite and EGS chief that, quite clearly, “you’re sort of crashing out, dude.”
Sweeney’s dispute with Valve is not a new phenomenon. He has consistently voiced his dissatisfaction, but he has notably intensified his criticisms in recent weeks. After boasting that “we vibe coded the Epic Games Launcher to surpass the other competitor,” he again criticized Steam’s AI disclosure policy, asserting that “compelling developers to write a political statement to be utilized against them by the hate mob they’re aiding in organizing is unacceptable.”
More recently, he boldly stated that “Valve has impeded gaming for years by confining developers’ PC games within Steamworks’ social enclosure where gamers can’t communicate with other players on iOS, Android, Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, or even different PC platforms.” That’s, well, a dubious assertion on several fronts, and understandably, Chet Faliszek, a former developer on Portal, Half-Life, and Left 4 Dead, has now shared some insights.
In a recent video on his YouTube channel (below), Faliszek indicates that parts of Sweeney’s conduct “represent AI psychosis,” but additionally states, “you’re somewhat crashing out, dude.” Initially, acknowledging the CEO’s remarks regarding Steam’s AI disclosures, he contends, “you’re fabricating arguments that simply aren’t there,” attempting to support his point.
Faliszek specifically points out Sweeney’s speculative scenario of “should Valve mandate developers to disclose their political stance? Is that beneficial for consumers?” He counters: “Nobody is genuinely suggesting that.”
He further notes that Epic’s open digital assets marketplace, Fab, employs AI disclosures itself. “You claimed even if Steam eliminates their [AI disclosures] or not, you’d still keep it on Fab because, well, ‘business, it just makes sense.’ Business is political. Hmm. Hmm, Timmy. C’mon. You can’t play both sides, bro.”
Tim if you wish to be pro-consumer….
