Steam Account Transfer Via Will on Death is Not Permitted, Valve Confirms

In case you were curious, a Steam account transfer via will is not permitted according to an official response from Valve.

[anast]

The games are theirs. People just pay to ride the ride.

[XiNatsuDragnel]

That sucks man

[Skuletor]

Would be nice if the article's writer looked into and reported whether other digital game libraries could be transferred over via will (Xbox, Playstation, Nintendo, EGS, EA app, GOG, Ubisoft Connect, Rockstar Launcher etc) instead of this half-baked piece but it's probably the same for all of them anyway

[Kornholic]

This seems like a way bigger issue than mandatory PSN account linking for PlayStation games.

So where is the outcry?

[Skuletor]

It's not like PlayStation is doing any different.

"You may not sell, buy, trade, or transfer your Online ID, Account or any personal access to PSN Services through any means or method, including by use of web sites."
https://www.playstation.com...

[Kornholic]

So you are that saying Steam is being very anti consumer with its policies. That's why I'm so baffled by the lack of outcry from the PC audience.

[NotoriousWhiz]

It's not like your account just stops working when you die. Include your email, account id, and password in the will (including the password to your email) and your survivors should have no problem using your games.

[VIK2121]

Precisely!

[anast]

PC gamers are a different lot. They don't mind renting their games forever, they don't mind spending money on overpriced equipment, and they don't mind fiddling with settings for hours before they even play the game, but linking a PSN account demands a riot. This is hard to understand, but then again, we all have to draw our lines somewhere.

[Skuletor]

You sure talk a lot of nonsense.Go look up the percentage of digital sales compared to physical sales of PS5 games, then tell me again about "renting" games.

[mandf]

Overblown funny and 100percent true

[anast]

There is no option at all to buy a physical copy of a PC game... And more people game on consoles for the reasons that make PC gamers a different lot.

[VIK2121]

it's not so much the linking but the fact that certain countries aren't allowed to access psn...

[VIK2121]

@anast I have a disc ps5 since launch, initially I bought some disc games, but I can't be bothered to walk to a physical store nowadays... I just buy the titles when they go on special sale or gray market store like CDKeys...

[DustMan]

PSN was a different story altogether. It kept people who bought the game from playing in countries that PSN wasn't supported. I never understood the issue anyway.

I don't know if PC stuff is overpriced considering that you can buy a new video card with the same amount of money you'd spend over 5 or 6 years paying to play games online with a console. I'll never pay double to use the same connection. That is what I'll never understand about console gamers. "let me pay an extra hundred & twenty dollars a year to use the same internet I pay for monthly and use on literally every device in my home for free....except for my Playstation"

[Extermin8or3_]

@Skuletor about 50-60% of sales are digital for most games. Meaning 40-50% are physical....

[anast]

@VIK

You might not but you are not the expectation that creates a universal.

[Skuletor]

@Extermin8or3_
Right and where are you getting that information from?
https://www.statista.com/st...

@anast

"Renting games"
In the fourth fiscal quarter of 2023, approximately 77 percent of Sony Corporation's PlayStation gaming sales were generated via digital downloads.

"overpriced equipment"
Some people are willing to pay a premium for better performance, the way you keep talking about the PS5 Pro on N4G proves you're a hypocrite in that regard but whatever, lol

"fiddling with settings for hours before they even play the game"
Most pc games will give the option to scan your system to choose recommended settings or start with moderate settings that will run the game fine but you're free to mess around at your own leisure, to improve performance or quality if you wish to. For those that don't want to, there's free software that can do that for you, such as Nvidia's Geforce or AMD's AMD Catalyst. Geforce Experience even gives you the option of choosing whether to prioritize performance vs image quality with a simple slider for easy optimization, it's not rocket science, like you try make it out to be.

"linking a PSN account demands a riot"
Playstation selling Helldivers 2 in regions without the legal means to create a PSN account by Sony's own standards, then telling people in those regions that already bought the game that they can no longer play the game, isn't a cause for concern? Though you've already heard about that but keep going along with your own narrative because of your weird vendetta against PC on here.

This is hard to understand, but then again, we all have to draw our lines somewhere.

[PRIMORDUS]

I don't rent I torrent to keep, if they take them down that's ok I don't care I have them LOL. I do buy PC games but very little as I want full control which is why I torrent to keep them in my collection, and I do not give a fuck what the devs or publishers want. I never did never will.

[anast]

@DustMan

Just like you can choose play games on low to barely mid settings for the price of a PS5, you can also choose not to game online on the PS5. So, now you are getting a better gaming experience and not paying extra for online.

[thorstein]

So just give your progeny the passwords.

[OtterX]

Keep the password sealed in the Will, only to be opened after death. :)

[Aphrodia]

Right? How are they gonna know you are dead?

[FinalFantasyFanatic]

The only way they will know is when an account is active for 300 years, lol.

[ravens52]

🤷🏽. Whoever gets my collection when I die will be good, seeing as it's all physical. 👍🏽✌🏽. I'll die with peace of mind.

[NotoriousWhiz]

I have a pretty sizable physical collection and I 100% expect it all to go to waste after I die. Probably will end up in a pawn shop or on ebay. I doubt my children (grand children?) will care at all about my PS1 collection when the PS15 is around.

[Petebloodyonion]

This underscores the need for more robust regulations in the digital industry. Digital ownership should be clearly defined at the point of purchase, not buried in a lengthy terms of service agreement. For instance, Sony's Funimation marketed digital movies with the promise of "owning it forever," yet they rescinded all purchases following the acquisition of Crunchyroll and the subsequent closure of Funimation.
https://arstechnica.com/cul...

I'm not suggesting that digital distribution should last indefinitely, just as physical games depend on functioning consoles and games, but it should be transparent what I am purchasing.

[Eonjay]

What a dark topic lol.

[VIK2121]

C'est la vie

[VIK2121]

I just keep the account credentials and 2fa methods in a password manager, if I die, my vault is transferred to someone, they can simply flip the account information and give Valve the middle finger LOL

Gotta' think outside of the box kids ;)

[DustMan]

Guy at the funeral...."who's getting his games?"

[RNTody]

Interesting, but a bit less cool to leave my five year old son my username and password as opposed to my "account".

[Inverno]

What i read was that it was just a customer service rep, and also anyone with enough common sense knows that all that's required is to give your tag/pass/steam guard. So idk why this keeps circulating around these sites.

[FACTUAL evidence]

Does it feel great to own your games physically and give them to whom you please? Aaaah, an all physical future would be lovely in a perfect world.

[gvrd0019]

who cares, just give em the username and password before you gone !

[PRIMORDUS]

This is another reason to torrent, to keep and own your games, and give them to anyone you want later on. Nothing stopping the person from giving someone else full control of their account user, password, email, etc etc.

[Gravesinger_]

Meh, just leave your password and account credentials in the will, problem solved. Is Valve gonna know the moment you die? Not likely, so unless these accounts have a time limit of 150 years and then they delete the account, I doubt this will be an issue.