Valve has issued forth two big announcements today. The first confirms that the Steam UI beta which has been running for the last two months is finally ready for release and will roll out to all users on Monday, 26th April. The second reveals the release date for the long-awaited Left 4 Dead 2 DLC, The Passing - that will be available on PC and Xbox 360 on Thursday, AKA Tomorrow.
First, the beta. The new Steam UI is mainly a cosmetic update to the now aged look of Valve's digital distribution platform, but it'll also bring with it a lot of new functions too - syndicated news feeds and customisable games libraries to name a few.
Most importantly, the underlying technology that runs Steam has been significantly upgraded and the platform will no longer rely on Internet Explorer so heavily, thanks to a new WebKit-based rendering engine.
Valve has been keen to stress though that the previously announced Mac version of Steam is separate to the UI update, so Apple users will have to wait a little bit longer for that.
Meanwhile, Valve has also announced an April 22nd release for Left 4 Dead 2 DLC The Passing, which acts as a bridge between Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2.
As well as a new campaign, The Passing will include weekly game 'mutations' which will develop new modes and objectives for players. Some of the mutations Valve has hinted at include 'Realism Versus Mode' and 'Chainsaw Massacre'. Sounds fun.
The Passing will cost nothing for PC users, but Xbox 360 gamers will have to pay 560 MS Points to download the new add-on.
You can read more about Valve's latest zombie shooter in our Left 4 Dead 2 review, or our thoughts on the new Steam UI in our beta impressions article. Either way, let us know your thoughts in the forums.
First, the beta. The new Steam UI is mainly a cosmetic update to the now aged look of Valve's digital distribution platform, but it'll also bring with it a lot of new functions too - syndicated news feeds and customisable games libraries to name a few.
Most importantly, the underlying technology that runs Steam has been significantly upgraded and the platform will no longer rely on Internet Explorer so heavily, thanks to a new WebKit-based rendering engine.
Valve has been keen to stress though that the previously announced Mac version of Steam is separate to the UI update, so Apple users will have to wait a little bit longer for that.
Meanwhile, Valve has also announced an April 22nd release for Left 4 Dead 2 DLC The Passing, which acts as a bridge between Left 4 Dead and Left 4 Dead 2.
As well as a new campaign, The Passing will include weekly game 'mutations' which will develop new modes and objectives for players. Some of the mutations Valve has hinted at include 'Realism Versus Mode' and 'Chainsaw Massacre'. Sounds fun.
The Passing will cost nothing for PC users, but Xbox 360 gamers will have to pay 560 MS Points to download the new add-on.
You can read more about Valve's latest zombie shooter in our Left 4 Dead 2 review, or our thoughts on the new Steam UI in our beta impressions article. Either way, let us know your thoughts in the forums.
MSI MPG Velox 100R Chassis Review
October 14 2021 | 15:04
Want to comment? Please log in.