Steam Doubles Down On Banning Games With Forced In-Game Advertisements

Valve has clarified its stance on in-game advertising, creating a dedicated policy page to emphasize its prohibition of games forcing players to watch ads. This article details the new rules and their implications.

Valve's Policy on Forced In-Game Advertising

Crackdown on Forced Ads

Valve has implemented a stricter policy banning games that require players to watch or interact with ads to progress or earn rewards. This practice, common in free-to-play mobile games, often involves unskippable ads between levels or ad-based reward systems. While the policy has been part of Steamworks' terms for five years, its recent prominent placement reflects a growing need for clarity, particularly given the surge in Steam game releases—a staggering 18,942 in 2024 alone, according to SteamDB.

This move underscores Steam's commitment to a paid advertisement-free platform. Games relying on such models must remove ad elements or transition to a paid, single-purchase model. Alternatively, developers can adopt a free-to-play model with optional microtransactions or DLC, as exemplified by Good Pizza, Great Pizza, which successfully transitioned its in-app purchases to paid DLC.

Permitted Advertising: Product Placement and Cross-Promotions

Despite the ban on disruptive ads, Steam permits product placement and cross-promotions (like bundles and sales) provided proper licensing is secured for any copyrighted content. This allows for realistic branding in games, such as sponsor logos in racing games or real-world brands in skateboarding titles.

This policy aims to enhance the quality and user experience on Steam by eliminating intrusive advertising, ensuring a more immersive gaming environment.

Abandoned Early Access Games Flagged

Steam has introduced a new feature flagging Early Access games untouched for over a year. These games now display a message on their store pages indicating the time since their last update and warning that developer information may be outdated. This addition complements existing user reviews and helps customers identify potentially abandoned projects amidst the abundance of Early Access titles on Steam. The community response has been largely positive, with many users welcoming the transparency and suggesting that games neglected for extended periods (five years or more) should be delisted.