Valve founder and CEO Gabe Newell revealed that the studio is working on a “larger reboot” of digital card gameArtifact, in an overhaul that is internally known asArtifact 2.
Artifactalready disappointed fans when it was announced atThe International 2017, as they were hoping forHalf-Life 3. Before it was released in December 2018, the digital card game drewheavy criticismfor its monetization model, forcing Valve to make adjustments beforeArtifactentered public beta.
Artifact, which mimics the mechanics ofDOTA 2and uses characters from the massively popular MOBA, was supposed to take on the likes of Blizzard’sHearthstone. However, Valve finallypausedupdates forArtifactabout a year ago in order to fix “deep-rooted issues,” as the studio conceded that it will take more than new features and cards to save the game.
Valve said then that fixingArtifactwas expected to take “a significant amount of time.” A year later, the studio is still working on it.
Artifactreboot still in the works
“Artifactwas an interesting failure in its first go-round,” NewelltoldEdge magazine. “We were surprised. We thought that it was a really strong product.”
According to Edge, the follow-up toArtifactis being referred to within Valve asArtifact 2, presumably due to the magnitude of the project. However, it remains unclear if the studio is working on a just a revamp of the digital card game, or a legitimate sequel that aims to fix everything that was wrong with the original.
Newell, meanwhile, stressed that Valve needs “to do a larger reboot to justify its existence to customers and to markets.”
There remains no timetable for the project that started a year ago, though Newell said that Valve was “getting ready to release” whateverArtifact‘s development team is working on. However, until the studio makes an official announcement, the remaining fans of the digital card game will just have to wait.
In the meantime, Valve is focused onHalf-Life: Alyx, a VR-only entry in the popular franchise that comes free with every purchase of the Valve Index VR headset. IfHalf-Life: Alyxsucceeds, there is a chance that Valve may finally start working onHalf-Life 3.
