Play Order
0 / 6 playedSix landmarks in release order.
About Valve
Valve started with Half-Life in 1998, a first-person shooter that told story without cutscenes and launched the Counter-Strike mod scene. Portal turned student-project portals into comedy physics puzzles, while Left 4 Dead refined cooperative shooting. Dota 2 grew from a Warcraft mod into Valve's lasting esports title.
The games share technology more than plot, with Source engine tricks and Steam Workshop support carrying across series. Playing in release order shows how Valve tests an idea in a mod, polishes it in a full release, then revisits it in VR as with Half-Life: Alyx. Newcomers can start with Portal or Half-Life 2 without needing the 1990s originals.
Good to know
Play in release order. Valve's series do not share continuity, so story chronology only matters inside Half-Life itself, where Half-Life 2 and its episodes follow the original. Portal 1 before Portal 2, Left 4 Dead before Left 4 Dead 2. Team Fortress 2 and Dota 2 are ongoing multiplayer games that can be tried anytime after learning Valve's design basics from the single-player entries.
