Steam: The Unstoppable Force Shaping the Future of PC Gaming

It’s nearly impossible to discuss PC gaming without acknowledging Steam, the giant that has been the backbone of the industry for over two decades, successfully fending off stiff competition from giants like Epic and Ubisoft.

However, it’s Steam’s vibrant community and developer-friendly environment that truly earns the admiration of creators, prompting us to delve into the insights of minds behind top-tier games like Warframe, Baldur’s Gate 3, Slay the Spire, and EVE Online.

Why Steam endures?

Eyrún Jónsdóttir, VP of publishing at CCP Games, highlights the crucial role of Steam in distributing EVE Online, noting that despite its own launcher, the game’s free-to-play version on Steam has been pivotal to its success. Similarly, Michael Douse, publishing director at Larian Studios, describes Steam as a ‘democratic platform,’ where exceptional games have a chance to shine, in stark contrast to the lengthy lobbying for approval required by other platforms that can take over a year.

Douse also underlined Steam’s place as a calming element in an industry frequently in ‘panic mode.’ Amidst the upheaval, Steam remains as a bulwark, offering a solid and consistent platform for PC gaming. Casey Yano, co-creator of Slay the Spire, will be the first to admit that Steam helped tiny independent teams create sustainable careers from their games. Yano’s own path from producing a Flash game that paid him an rather paltry $20 to finding financial success on Steam is itself a testimonial to the potential the platform has given for creators.

“Steam Logo” by theglobalpanorama is licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

Rebecca Ford, creative director of Warframe, attributes her continued involvement in the game to Steam’s revolutionary influence since its open beta launch in March 2013, emphasizing its role in fostering a community that cultivates connections and friendships that are hard to replicate elsewhere. With Steam and Discord leading the charge, she envisions a bright future for PC gaming.

Douse addressed the issue of the overwhelming number of games on Steam by bringing up the pre-Steam period, when creators were restricted by the shelf space of retail chains. Every developer now gets an opportunity to display their work thanks to Steam’s democratization of the process. What makes Steam unique and keeps the developer community coming back to it is its inclusive mindset.

As we delve deeper into Steam, it’s clear that its impact on PC gaming is profound, evolving from a mere marketplace into a lifeline for many in the industry, providing a platform where independent creators can thrive and players can experience a sense of camaraderie. Next, we’ll examine how this democratic nature has been vital to the success stories of numerous developers.

Steam emphasizes democracy while encouraging high-quality work

Developers across the gaming landscape affirm that Steam’s democratic ethos is more than just a buzzword; it truly equalizes opportunities for independent creators alongside major studios. The platform’s structure, which celebrates quality and hard work over connections and budget size, is the essence of this democracy.

“If your game is’really, really good,’ it stands a good chance of being noticed on Steam,” says Michael Douse, publishing director at Larian Studios, summarizing this view. Developers’ experiences on other platforms, where exposure often depends on protracted and unpredictable lobbying to store teams, stand in stark contrast to this meritocratic approach. The business concept of Steam is simple: create a fantastic game, and the platform will assist you in identifying your target market.

“《殺戮尖塔》正式版IGN評分9分取人之長的精彩作品” by steamXO is licensed under CC PDM 1.0

The experiences of developers like Casey Yano, co-creator of Slay the Spire, showcase Steam’s democratic nature, with Yano’s journey from earning a mere $20 with a Flash game to achieving financial success on Steam highlighting the platform’s ability to empower artists. Yano emphasizes that this opportunity is often hindered more by societal pressures than by Valve’s constraints.

Rebecca Ford, once again, identifies Steam as a key factor in the ongoing success of Warframe, illustrating how the platform has enabled her to continue her journey with the game. Since its open beta launch on Steam, Warframe has transformed, with Ford noting how Steam fosters real relationships and friendships that other platforms cannot match, especially given their financial barriers and external control.

Michael Douse directly addresses concerns about Steam’s vast number of titles and potential visibility challenges, highlighting that before Steam, creators were limited by the physical shelf space of retail stores, which posed a far greater challenge to creating and selling games. Steam changed the landscape by allowing all creators to make their work available, irrespective of their marketing budget, underscoring the platform’s appealing philosophy of openness.

And thus, back to the democratic character of Steam: plainly, here is where most artists’ success stories have been written. In fact, with its leveled playing field—created by a fair and open marketplace—Steam helped bring out a varied variety of games, which could subsequently find an audience and prosper. It is a place where quality and originality may be rewarded, where the barriers to access that strangled invention have been pulled down.

Ultimately, the democratic spirit of Steam transcends mere marketing; it is the bedrock of its transformative power in the PC gaming world. A platform that champions the underdog while recognizing talent continues to redefine what’s achievable in the gaming industry, and as we look back, it’s clear that Steam has been at the forefront of this evolution, creating a truly transformative environment for artists in the realm of PC gaming.