Valve software hopes their broadband distribution model sets a precedent in the broadband industry, though so far it has only resulted in a massive headache for gamers. The company's Steam distribution system is designed to allow gamers automatic access to game content, multiple payment methods for new games, and an instant message system all rolled into one; skipping the middle man in the publishing equation while cementing the strong sense of community already inherent among fans of Valve titles like Counter-Strike.

The move is the first time a major game developer has marketed top shelf titles directly to consumers via broadband (naturally irking dial-up and ISDN users). It's an idea several game retailers have tinkered with, but with mixed results.

Valve is no stranger to gaming business success. Half-Life is one of the best-selling games ever released, and a user-made game modification (Counter-strike) has been the most popular multiplayer game several years running. Valve is also no stranger to gaming ambition, at one point working with Cisco to develop a new gaming network protocol for dial-up users dubbed Powerplay. Unfortunately for Valve, broadband connections quickly made such an idea irrelevant.

When Steam's beta began, Valve's distribution system (and their 500Mbps pipe) choked under the strain of thousands of users looking to play the latest version of Counter-Strike. If that wasn't a lesson in providing adequate bandwidth, the company probably could have taken a hint from the fact they could barely keep their website operational as the program's launch grew closer.

Valve certainly was aware apparently. In a recent interview, when asked about the company's infrastructure preparedness for the launch, Gabe Newell (Valve co-founder) noted: "This issue scares the pants off of us. Every time we think we understand the aggregate demand that can be created by the community, we find that we have underestimated it catastrophically."

Newell's worries were well founded.

When the product was officially released this past weekend (with a 750Mbps pipe), instead of experiencing a smooth download and the promised easy installation, users were instead plagued by buggy software and massive bandwidth choke. Steam quickly became the butt of the gaming community's jokes as frustrated gamers turned to forums and newsgroups for answers to their installation headaches.

Some early adopters (many of which got a leaked client early via IRC) experienced fewer problems; but users who arrived with the crowd had a less than thrilling broadband gaming experience. If users could get the software to launch at all, they then spent the next several hours trying to get updates (some of which are more than 350MB) to download from overloaded servers. You can check out the list of servers valve used for distribution here, many of which were consistently down or at capacity all weekend long.

In the hopes of easing bandwidth strain, Valve eventually broke down and released a more traditional installer with much of the content already included; though lines at Fileplanet left many waiting just as long in a queue (unless they were subscribers) - ironic in that Steam's primary goal is to eliminate such clunky distribution methods.

It should be noted that the new content is completely free, reducing wiggle room for those with complaints. Still, Valve expects to distribute two eagerly awaited retail games (Half-Life2 and Counter-Strike: Condition Zero) via the platform this fall; and unless the bandwidth available is adequate, gamers will continue to use mail order and brick and mortar outlets for new titles.