Well, that's an announcement that some publishers and developers won't like at all, but customers will even more so, because it's about DLCs and Seasons Passes.
Steam is currently working hard to tighten its regulations, partly intentionally and partly unintentionally. It was only recently introduced that when you purchase a game, a notice must appear stating that you are only purchasing a usage license, analogous to a new law in California. According to EU regulations, games that are listed on Steam must also have an age rating in the future.
Now Steam has activated another regulation that is intended to ensure more transparency when purchasing and pre-ordering DLCs and Seasos Passes. Accordingly, publishers and developers should provide more specific information about possible content and dates in the future.
“By offering a season pass, you are promising future content,” says the new guidelines for development partners. “As part of the launch of a Season Pass, you will be asked to commit to a schedule for releasing each piece of content in the Season Pass. This schedule is a commitment to both customers and Steam.”
Providers also only have the opportunity to change dates for a DLC or season pass once. Steam has clear words on this: “If you are not prepared to communicate clearly about the content of each DLC AND when each DLC will be ready for launch, you should not offer a season pass on Steam.”
In addition, Season Passes should contain at least one piece of content that is already available at launch, unless it is a game that has not yet been released. Steam reserves the right to automatically issue refunds to players for potential violations of the new rules. And if a DLC is canceled entirely, players will receive the “Value of Unreleased DLC” refunded to their account.
Tough bandages and Steam probably wants to forestall further legal regulations, but perhaps also a good educational measure for developers and publishers. What do you think about it?
Steam Next Fest for October 2024 is here, October 14th to 21st! Discover and play hundreds of game demos, watch developer livestreams, and chat with teams about their games in the works or coming soon to Steam!
