Valve is taking a stance against season passes on Steam, implementing new guidelines that require developers to more clearly explain what a season pass is about and offer refunds if plans change.
“We are not prepared to clearly communicate the content included in each DLC and should not offer a season pass on Steam once each DLC is ready for release,” Valve wrote in the document.
SteamDB creator Pavel Djundik was the first to discover the new document and posted it to Bluesky on Thursday.
In case you don’t know, the season pass is given to players as a way to get future DLC and other bonus features for some of their favorite games. They usually make you buy the deluxe edition of a new release, making it more expensive than just the price. Basic game. Valve says developers who implement season passes are “promising future content” to players and making a “promise” to deliver on those promises.
However, purchasing a season pass can come with risks. When something is changed or canceled after a purchase, it often leaves players in an odd position. You can get a refund, but how easy it is depends on the platform and whether a developer or publisher is involved.
The new guidelines set out how developers advertise their season passes and are all about improving transparency. First, you need to announce everything that will be included in the details. So, instead of just writing that there will be DLC in the future, here’s what the game needs to say: what DLC and other related information. It doesn’t need a huge amount of detail, but it should include the basics and what the player can gain from them. Developers should also record the expected release date or time frame. Lastly, you must have at least one DLC released at time of purchase.
And if the season pass’s DLC is cancelled, customers will receive a refund based on the perceived value of that content. Valve only allows developers to postpone the season pass date once and up to a maximum of three months. This could be problematic for large games that may experience long delays, but Valve has opened the door to discussions about exceptions.
This is not a complete ban on season passes. Rather, Valve is trying to hold developers more accountable and provide transparency to players when problems arise. Developers will be punished with refunds, or in the worst case scenario, they will stop selling season passes altogether.
This is another consumer-friendly step Valve has taken in recent months. Last September, it posted an update to its Steam Subscriber Agreement, saying that if users sued the company, they would no longer be limited to forced arbitration. We’ve also adjusted user reviews to prioritize helpful reviews instead of memes, and made sharing games much easier.
But Valve has also been criticized for spreading extremism, anti-Semitism, and white supremacy on its platform. A US senator wrote a letter to Valve itself, asking it to improve its community moderation and guidelines.
