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

Steam Cracks Down on Forced In-Game Ads and Abandoned Early Access Titles

Valve has clarified its stance on in-game advertising, reinforcing its ban on games that force players to watch ads for gameplay or rewards. This policy, part of Steamworks' terms for nearly five years, now has its own dedicated page.

No More Forced Ads: The updated policy explicitly prohibits games requiring ad viewing for progression or offering rewards solely for watching ads. This addresses a common practice in free-to-play mobile games. The increased emphasis on this rule likely reflects the significant growth in Steam game releases (18,942 in 2024 alone, according to SteamDB).

Alternatives for Developers: Games relying on this model must remove ad elements or transition to a paid model. A free-to-play model with optional microtransactions or DLC is also acceptable, as exemplified by Good Pizza, Great Pizza.

Permitted Advertising: The policy allows for product placement and cross-promotions (with proper licensing), such as sponsor logos in racing games or real-world brands in skateboarding games.

This move aims to enhance the quality and user experience on Steam, ensuring a more immersive gaming environment free from disruptive ads.

Early Access Update Warnings: Steam now flags Early Access games inactive for over a year. Store pages for these games will display a message indicating the time since the last update and that developer information may be outdated.

This feature complements existing user reviews, providing clearer warnings about potentially abandoned projects. The community largely welcomes this addition, with some suggesting that games stagnant for extended periods (five years or more) should be delisted.