Valve

Valve is an American video game company founded in Kirkland, Washington by ex-Microsoft employees Gabe Newell and Mike Harrington on August 24 1996.

Headquarted in Bellevue, Washington, the company created the popular digitial distribution service and gaming storefront, Steam where Valve also sells their own original titles such as Half-Life, Counter-Strike, Portal, Left 4 Dead, Team Fortress and Dota. The company uses their own custom engine, Source, to develop their games, and also have their own studio orchestra, which has soundtracked titles like Team Fortress 2 and Dota 2.

Since 2022, Valve began producing gaming hardware, debuting with the Steam Deck, a portable handheld gaming computer. In 2026, the company is set to release three more gaming hardware items; the Steam Machine, a portable gaming console, the Steam Controller and the Steam Frame, a VR headset.