Avault

Avault was a digital game retail platform and download manager developed by Valve Corporation. It was initially launched in 2003 as a precursor to Steam, Valve's highly successful digital distribution service. Avault allowed users to purchase and download games directly from Valve's servers. It also featured a community aspect, where players could share information and connect with each other.

The platform supported a limited selection of Valve's own titles, including Half-Life and its expansions, as well as Counter-Strike. While it was a novel concept for its time, Avault faced challenges in user adoption and technical limitations. It did not offer the broad selection of games or the robust feature set that would later become hallmarks of Steam.

Ultimately, Avault was discontinued in 2004, shortly after the public beta release of Steam. Valve shifted its focus entirely to Steam, which rapidly evolved into the dominant digital marketplace for PC games. The infrastructure and some of the underlying technology developed for Avault are believed to have contributed to the eventual success of Steam. While not widely remembered today, Avault represents an important early step in Valve's pioneering work in digital game distribution.