- 12 terabytes of Steam depot data has leaked online, reportedly spanning from 2003 to 2013.
- The leak was made publicly available via a torrent file, containing beta builds for thousands of games, including *Portal 2*, *Left 4 Dead 2*, and *Dragon Age: Origins*.
- The data was obtained from an incorrectly exposed endpoint on Valve's legacy Steam2 infrastructure, which left the data completely accessible to the public.
- Community researchers have begun indexing the archive, uncovering early builds of *Portal 2*, *Left 4 Dead*, and *CS:GO*, among others.
- The community is still actively researching the archive, with many more hidden game builds expected to surface in the coming weeks.
- The Steam2 leak contains data spanning from 2003 to 2013, coinciding with Valve's transition to a new storage system.
- Valve's legacy Steam2 infrastructure used proprietary formats like NCF and GCF to store game content until 2013.
A massive 12-terabyte archive of Valve's Steam development data leaked online, offering a rare glimpse into game development from 2003 to 2013. Dubbed the *Steam2 Teraleak*, it includes thousands of beta builds and unreleased projects, revealing early versions of iconic games like *Portal 2* and *Half-Life 2: Episode 3*.89
The leak, attributed to an incorrectly exposed endpoint on Valve's outdated Steam2 infrastructure, has been described as one of the largest video game leaks in history. Gabe Follower, a prominent data miner, noted that the leak was due to human error, not a cyberattack. The data includes early builds of *Left 4 Dead*, *Counter-Strike: Global Offensive*, and even third-party titles like *Sonic 4 Episode II*.34
Among the most intriguing discoveries are early prototypes of *Portal 2*, showcasing test rooms and scrapped concepts like the *F-STOP* mechanic, which involved using a camera to manipulate objects. The leak also revealed a 3D weapon model called the *Weaponizer*, originally intended for *Half-Life 2: Episode 3*, highlighting how close Valve was to releasing the long-awaited title.
The archive serves as a time capsule of Valve's development process, with files that include beta builds and unreleased content for hundreds of games, providing a treasure trove for researchers and fans alike. As the community continues to explore the data, more discoveries are expected to emerge in the coming days.
“The leak originated from an incorrectly exposed endpoint on Valve's legacy Steam2 infrastructure, not a cyberattack, as confirmed by data miner Gabe Follower. Community researchers have already recovered early Portal 2 test rooms with Team Fortress 2 character arms and a 3D model of the Weaponizer, a scrapped Episode 3 asset.”
Kotaku
