When Half-Life 2 released in 2004, the Source Engine really was something to behold. The textures were beautiful, the lighting was great – especially when HDR was added in – and you didn’t even need a particularly high-end PC to get those visuals.
Seven years later, however, the engine is starting to show its old age. Valve continues to push the engine, opting to update it as technology progresses rather than building up a new engine from scratch, but even Portal 2 , as gorgeous as it was, betrayed the engine’s age at times.
Valve is aware of this, but that doesn’t mean that they’re in a rush to get started on Source Engine 2. Not yet, at least.
In an interview with GamingLives, Valve’s Chet Faliszek explained why we haven’t seen a Source Engine 2 (yet), saying:
“[We] just update [Source] – not just replace it,” he said. “At some point we may say there’s Source 2 or whatever, but really for us there’s been a pretty easy way to keep it and understanding the tools. When you replace an engine, you’re replacing the tools and the way that people work, there’s an expense in man hours and people learning and people getting up on it right.”
Personally, I’d be willing to wait as long as it takes for Source Engine 2, or whatever it will be called. Portal 2 looked great and Left 4 Dead 2 didn’t look half bad either, but that’s not what’s really important in the end; What’s important is that Valve continues making games that are a blast to play, and there’s no signs of them stopping anytime soon.
What do you think? Are you tired of the Source Engine?
Source: GamingLives (via PC Gamer )
