Yes. Steam Families lets up to six close family members in a household share eligible games while keeping separate Steam accounts, saves and achievements. Different members can play different shared games at the same time; playing the same game simultaneously requires enough copies for everyone playing.
What Steam Families does
Valve made Steam Families generally available to all Steam users on September 11, 2024. It combines the earlier Steam Family Sharing and Steam Family View features into one system for sharing eligible games and managing children’s Steam accounts. See Valve’s Steam Families announcement and the Steam Client Update – September 11th.
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Valve describes Steam Families as intended for a household of up to six close family members. Adults and children can join, but children cannot manage the family. An adult retains ownership of their games; joining does not transfer a game license to another person. Each member plays on their own account and has separate saves and achievements.
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How shared libraries and simultaneous play work
When someone joins, eligible games in the other members’ libraries become available to them, and their own eligible games become available to the family. The rule for simultaneous play depends on whether people want different titles or the same title:
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| What family members want to play | What is required |
|---|---|
| Different games at the same time | Members can play different shared games concurrently, subject to each game’s sharing eligibility. |
| The same game at the same time | The family needs a separate copy for each person playing simultaneously. For example, one copy of Portal 2 allows one person to play at a time; a second copy allows a second person to play too. |
A member can use a shared game while its owner is online playing something else. The number of copies matters when two or more people want to play the same title concurrently—not simply because the owner is online.
Which games can be shared?
Sharing is decided game by game. Developers can opt out, and some games cannot be shared because of technical requirements. Valve gives games that require a third-party key, account or subscription as examples. Previous Family Sharing eligibility carries forward unless the developer opts out. Because eligibility can change, check the specific game’s Steam Store page before relying on family access. Valve explains the exceptions in its Steam Families FAQ.
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Shared games can be played offline when the individual game supports Family Sharing. Offline access is not guaranteed for every shared title.
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Can family members live in different places?
Valve describes the feature as intended for a household of up to six close family members. Its published guidance does not establish a universal address, IP-address or device-location test, so it would be misleading to promise that any group in any location can join. For a specific membership question, consult Valve’s Steam Families FAQ.
Parental controls and child purchase requests
Adults can tailor a child’s Steam access from the family controls. Available controls include:
- Allowing access to appropriate games.
- Restricting access to the Steam Store, Community or Friends Chat.
- Setting hourly or daily playtime limits and reviewing playtime reports.
- Approving or denying a child’s request for extra playtime or access to a feature.
A child can also ask an adult to pay for a shopping cart. If the adult approves the request, the games are added to the child’s account.
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- Valve is entering the gaming console marketplace with the new Steam Deck, a console geared towards PC gamers. The Steam Deck can be docked to a monitor, and used as a PC, or docked to a TV.
- Players can play a huge variety of games at any time with the comfort of a console and the freedom of a PC. Not anti-glare screen.
- Like the name suggests, the Steam Deck will include upgraded 1TB storage, and will include a carrying case. A micro SD slot will also enable expanded storage.
- Valve partnered with AMD to create a specialized APU optimized for handheld gaming, and Valve says the chip will deliver performance to run AAA gaming titles.
- The Steam Deck is outfitted with a 7-inch touchscreen, and two trackpads under the control sticks that allow gamers to operate games never designed outside of mouse and keyboard capabilities.
Leaving or changing a Steam Family
Membership changes have a one-year restriction. Adults can leave a family, but must wait one year from joining their previous family before creating or joining another. When a member leaves, the vacated slot has a one-year cooldown before someone else can occupy it. Adults can remove members; a child cannot leave independently and must be removed by an adult in the family or Steam Support. Valve lists these rules in its Steam Families FAQ.
One important ban consequence
If a family member is banned for cheating while playing another member’s copy of a game, the owner of that copy is also banned in that game. Valve says other family members are not affected.
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