Chinese Steam Launches With 53 Games and No Forum
China finally got its own version of Steam. Due to restrictions and censorship it is very limited.
- Steam China has been launched in the Middle Kingdom;
- The local version of the service offers access to only 53 games;
- The platform was also deprived of social features.
Steam has finally appeared in China in a version completely adapted to the local market. This means a full translation into simplified Chinese, but also many other changes. The most striking is the number of games available on the platform. Of the more than 30 thousand games that can normally be found on Steam, the Chinese version features only 53 titles. This is related to the restrictions imposed by the local government. However, the number of games is not the only change that we can see. In addition, Valve's platform has been deprived of most social features. Under each game we can still find user ratings, but Steam China offers no forums, Workshop and the ability to share community content.
Creating a version of the service specifically for China had been in Valve's plans for several years. Thanks to a partnership with Perfect World, the international version of Steam became available in the country back in 2019. It had all the aforementioned lacking features. It is also currently running in parallel with Steam China. This means most gamers there are unlikely to abandon it for the Chinese version. This would mean losing the ability to purchase most games, as well as the lack of community features. For now, the Chinese government does not intend to change this situation. However, it cannot be ruled out that with time the only version available in the country will be Steam China.
Such a solution could harm not only users, but also local developers. Cutting off from the international version of the service would mean the loss of many potential players who would purchase Chinese productions. Publishing only on the local market, on the other hand, means months or years of waiting for government decisions on a license to release the game. Such a long period of time can sometimes lead to the bankruptcy of a studio before it manages to make its title available to the players. For now, however, these problems are a matter of the future, as the international version of Steam is still working.
