Valve's co-founder and managing director, Gabe Newell, will be honored at the Entertainment Software Association Foundation's 'Nite to Unite – For Kids' gala on October 18th for his contribution to creating software that helps develop problem-solving skills in students.

Newell is being honored for "using his technological creativity in interactive entertainment to help teachers access new learning software and to develop critical problem-solving skills in students", the ESA said.

In 2011, Valve partnered with the US Department of Education to bring the studio's first-person puzzler, Portal, into classrooms across the country. Much of Valve's software is believed to enhance learning in the areas of physics, mathematics, and language arts.

Past honorees include the CEO and co-founder of Blizzard Entertainment, Mike Morhaime, former Microsoft president, Robbie Bach, and Star Wars director, George Lucas.