One of the most common ways to generate revenue for games like season passes Fortnite or Call of Duty wants players to keep coming back day after day, month after month. This week, PC gaming platform Steam introduced support for this monetization approach. The Valve-owned platform has clarified its policy on what it considers a season pass, as well as implementing rules for how developers should communicate with players about pass content.
Steam now states that when a season pass is available for a game, it must list all downloadable content (DLC) included with the purchase. Developers must also provide an expected release date for each DLC. Delays in game development are common, but Valve will only allow the studio to change the season pass release date once; if more changes are needed, Valve should be involved in making those changes. In cases where a season pass is cancelled, customers should receive a refund for any unreleased content they paid for.
“By offering a season pass, you promise future content,” the documents read. “During the Season Pass activation process, you will be asked to adhere to the launch time for each content release in the Season Pass. This launch time is a commitment for both customers and Steam. Unless you are willing to make this clear, each DLC You should not offer the Season Pass on Steam when the content included in AND every DLC is ready to launch.”
Steam recently revised its language around a few key themes this fall. The platform now makes it clear that players have hundreds or thousands of games in their libraries to those titles rather than direct ownership. He also raised points about Valve From the Steam Subscriber Agreement.
