Steam Turns 20 Years Old
Steam has officially turned 20 years old and is celebrating with a history lesson, a limited time overhaul to the home screen and, of course, a bunch of discounted games. Being given to the hands of gamers on September 12th, 2023, Steam has been the number one place for players to buy their games on PC ever since. This still is THE platform to store your collection of games on your desktop- from the biggest of AAA to the smallest of indies (here’s looking at you, Vampire Survivors), and its 20th anniversary celebration is the perfect time to recognize this.
Image by Valve
To celebrate the momentous birthday, Steam has changed its color scheme from the regular blue to a retro green- which is how the site was first launched back in 2003. Since then, Valve has released classics like Portal and Half Life, taken over the PC gaming scene and, of course, refused to acknowledge the number ‘3’ in any of their games. In fact, Steam’s 30th Anniversary will probably never come because of how scared Valve are of the number. Despite this, the company has celebrated by putting on one of their biggest sales ever (which is saying a lot for the platform). Most Valve releases are 90% off, meaning you can experience their entire back catalogue for less than a McDonalds meal. They’re practically giving them away at this point.
Image by Valve
In celebration, Steam is also offering a historical record of its ups and downs. With a retrospective chronicling the blow-up success of the platform, the introduction of refunds and even the first sale, this is the perfect way to brush up on your Valve history knowledge in time for Steam’s birthday. Along with these, Steam is also giving away a bunch of cosmetic goodies to add to your profile collection. With profile pictures and user stickers from series like Portal and Team Fortress, you too can celebrate the chartered history of how Steam became synonymous with PC. Just don’t ask for Half Life 3- Valve doesn’t like that.
Image by Valve
As with any anniversary, however, this 20th birthday celebration is a great chance to look to the future. Considering jut how huge Steam still is, its fair to say that it’ll still be on top in a decade. However, with their biggest competitor, the Epic Games Store, offering a 100% revenue cut for the next six months if their games are exclusive to Epic Games on PC, Steam may have to make some changes to keep players on their storefront. For now, though, this platform remains the holy grail for PC players. There’s a reason why people consider Steam to represent PC when pitted against other platforms and, if Valve get their way, this will always be the case.
