Gabe Newell is tongue-in-cheek worshipped in the gaming community and has been for many years. Far from a dig. Any time you see a photograph or reference to him, it's an in joke, much like the guy who used to work at Twitch and became Kappa. Why this happened is a mix of things from Half Life to Steam, and it's honestly been long enough that nobody remembers or cares.
The problem is, just like some recent folks on /pol/, the newer crowd doesn't realize it's a joke so Gabe has to be cautious how he interacts with the public now. I'm amazed he still handles his own email. He popped up on Reddit recently and amazingly corralled the discussion toward his (real world) car racing team, but it took work on his part. People hug him in public and he's said before that's taken adjustment.
I've seen a GABEN license plate, to give you an idea of how far that gag goes. Funny you mentioned MSFT, too, because most people who perpetuate the gag don't know he worked there at one point; it might even predate their life.
The problem is, just like some recent folks on /pol/, the newer crowd doesn't realize it's a joke so Gabe has to be cautious how he interacts with the public now. I'm amazed he still handles his own email. He popped up on Reddit recently and amazingly corralled the discussion toward his (real world) car racing team, but it took work on his part. People hug him in public and he's said before that's taken adjustment.
I've seen a GABEN license plate, to give you an idea of how far that gag goes. Funny you mentioned MSFT, too, because most people who perpetuate the gag don't know he worked there at one point; it might even predate their life.