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Decoding the Downsides: What are the Disadvantages of Steam Games?

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Steam, the behemoth of PC game distribution, is undeniably popular. However, beneath the veneer of a massive game library, frequent sales, and community features, lie some significant disadvantages that gamers should carefully consider. While Steam is the Editor’s Choice for video game marketplaces on PC, users may still experience some issues when using this platform. This article explores those shortcomings in detail.

The Dark Side of the Digital Distribution King

While Steam provides an incredible gaming experience, the disadvantages can broadly be categorized into the following core areas:

Easily Manipulated Rating System: Steam’s rating system is susceptible to manipulation. This can come in the form of review bombing (where users deliberately downvote a game to protest a decision by the developer or publisher), or even paid reviews designed to artificially inflate a game’s rating. This makes it difficult for consumers to accurately gauge the quality of a game based solely on its user reviews.
Shady Developer Practices & “Garbage Games”: The ease of publishing on Steam has led to a flood of low-quality games, sometimes derisively referred to as “shovelware“. While Steam has attempted to curate the store, many of these games still slip through the cracks, cluttering search results and making it harder to find genuinely good titles.
Too Much Emphasis on Trading Cards: While seemingly innocuous, the emphasis on trading cards can be seen as a predatory practice by some. The game may be more of a venue to collect cards than actually play the game, and users could potentially spend money on games that aren’t very good.
Customer Support Deficiencies: Steam’s customer support has historically been a weak point. Response times can be slow, and resolutions to issues may be unsatisfactory. This is especially frustrating when dealing with account problems, billing errors, or game-related technical difficulties.
Potential for Account Security Issues: While Steam uses HTTPS to secure purchases and offers two-factor authentication, account security remains a concern. Users can fall victim to phishing scams or malware that compromises their account credentials. Once an account is compromised, attackers may be able to make unauthorized purchases.
DRM and Ownership Concerns: Steam uses Digital Rights Management (DRM) technologies. This means that while you “buy” a game on Steam, you don’t actually own it in the traditional sense. Your access to the game is contingent on Steam’s continued existence and your adherence to their terms of service. If Steam were to shut down or ban your account, you would lose access to your purchased games.
Resource Intensive Client: The Steam client itself can be resource-intensive, especially if you’re an active user with a large library or numerous friends. The client can consume a noticeable amount of CPU, GPU, memory and storage in the background, potentially impacting game performance. This can lead to slower speeds, lag, and choppy gameplay.
Regional Pricing Disparities: While Steam attempts to offer regional pricing to make games more affordable in certain regions, these prices can sometimes be inconsistent or unfairly high compared to other platforms. This can be frustrating for players in countries with lower average incomes.
Lack of True Competition (Until Recently): For a long time, Steam enjoyed a near-monopoly on the PC game distribution market. This lack of competition may have contributed to a slower pace of innovation and improvement in certain areas, such as customer support. However, the recent rise of platforms like Epic Games Store is shaking up the market.
“Analysis Paralysis” Due to Sheer Volume: The sheer number of games available on Steam can be overwhelming. This can lead to “analysis paralysis“, where you spend more time browsing and trying to decide what to play than actually playing games. The breadth of menus can sometimes lead to confusion rather than a freeing feeling of choice.
Potential for Impulse Purchases: The frequent sales and discounts on Steam can encourage impulse purchases. You may end up buying games that you never actually play, simply because they were on sale.
Background processes and programs may contribute to laggy gameplay. Bandwidth-heavy programs will result in a low framerate.
Manipulated Prices: Steam has been known for prices that are artificially high only to immediately discount them and show them as a great “deal”.
Games Can Be Slow on a Laptop: Inefficient coding and bugs can cause poor performance on laptops.
Can Be Harmful For Children: Many of the games on Steam aren’t suitable for children and parents must restrict access to these games if necessary.

The rise of the Epic Games Store offers an alternative to Steam, and it might be worth exploring, especially since the Epic Games Store offers streamlined navigation and has a more modern design language.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are some common questions and concerns surrounding the use of Steam, answered by an expert.