Steam games Archives

AppWizard

August 10, 2026

Steam Week in Review: Games about sorting 1000s of mundane objects onto shelves is the new craze sweeping PC gaming

A trend in the gaming industry has emerged, focusing on cleaning and organizing games, with titles like House Flipper, Power Wash Simulator, and Unpacking gaining popularity. This micro-genre traces back to the 1980s with the arcade game Bubbles. Recent games include Toy Shop Tidy Up, which debuted on August 7, and Cellar Keeper, also released on August 7, where players must sort 2,448 wine bottles. Librarian: Tidy Up the Arcane Library! has become the most successful sorting game, achieving a peak player count of 29,469 and over 17,000 positive reviews. Upcoming titles include Never Sort By Color, TV Archive: Tidy Up Together, and Cleaning Up The Puzzle Gallery. The rapid production of sorting simulators reflects the commercial success of games like Librarian.

AppWizard

August 1, 2026

How do PC player demographics change at 50 hours vs. 30 minutes?

GameDiscoverCo newsletter has reached 45,000 subscribers. The Video Game History Foundation launched a ‘history of E3’ collection, including an introductory video, vintage footage, and a podcast. Microsoft reported a decline in Xbox revenue for four consecutive quarters, with Content & Services revenue at approximately .75 billion (down 10% year-over-year) and hardware revenue around million (down 13% year-over-year). Asha Sharma noted over 200 million new players joined Xbox in FY2026, but the business did not grow. PlayStation's PS5 sales reached 95.3 million, with a 1.6 million increase for the quarter but a 36% year-over-year decline. Active PSN users rose to 125 million, and profit surged by 37%. Meta's Reality Labs reported a loss of .6 billion in Q2, despite million in revenue. Slotbound, a roguelike auto-battler game, achieved 50,000 wishlists and 2,900 peak demo concurrent users. Over 1,000 PC games now operate direct channels, saving developers an estimated billion in platform fees in 2025. GameDiscoverCo’s Steam Fan Snapshot data revealed that the average age of players is 31 for Clair Obscur and 25 for R.E.P.O. 37.5% of respondents find games through short-form video, while 27.9% use traditional media websites. Players of ARC Raiders show a strong preference for the Steam Deck, and as playtime increases, console playtime declines.

AppWizard

July 30, 2026

I Spent a Month With the Steam Machine and it Perfectly Fills the One Gap in My Gaming Habits

The Steam Machine has been on the market for just over a month and has integrated into the user's gaming routine, particularly during a recent illness. The user connected it to their TV, disabled metrics, and explored their Steam library, finding the experience enjoyable. Despite skepticism about its high price for average consumers, the Steam Machine offers a solution for transitioning gaming from a desk to a living room without monopolizing the network. The user has historically preferred PC gaming over consoles, appreciating the flexibility of switching between devices. Previous attempts to set up living room PCs were inconvenient, but the Steam Machine simplifies this with SteamOS and the Steam Controller's trackpads. The user adjusted the output resolution to 1440p and enjoyed games like Resident Evil 4 Remake and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, valuing the ability to continue saves from their PC. The Steam Machine is priced at ,049, which may deter some, but it appeals to users with extensive Steam libraries.

AppWizard

July 27, 2026

Steam Week in Review: A torrent of janky retail sims continues to flood Steam, and there’s no end in sight

The retail simulator genre on Steam has gained significant popularity since late 2024, with 14 new titles launched last week. "Mall Together" attracted over 1,000 concurrent players and is notable for allowing players to construct entire shopping malls. PlayWay, a major publisher, released two of last week's titles and has launched four games since July 20, with 474 products listed on Steam. Critics have labeled some titles as shovelware, but PlayWay has also produced successful games like "House Flipper 2." Smaller studios are contributing to the genre, indicating demand for well-crafted retail sims. The top sellers on Steam from July 14-21 included "Counter-Strike 2," "Palworld," and "Assassin's Creed Black Flag Resynced." "The Mound: Omen of Cthulhu," released on July 15, received nearly 1,500 "mostly positive" reviews.

AppWizard

July 22, 2026

It’s now easier to gift Steam games, even if you don’t have an account.

Valve has improved the gifting process on Steam, allowing users to purchase and send full games, gift cards, or hardware, even to email addresses not linked to a Steam account. The update also enhances cross-region gifting capabilities, enabling users to send games across different geographical boundaries.

AppWizard

July 22, 2026

What ‘long tail’ should you expect for your PC game in 2026?

GameDiscoverCo hosted the 'Scrappy Saves The Animals' game jam in collaboration with the Oakland Ballers on Itch.io, with the top game being Scrappy’s Rescue Run, which will be showcased at an upcoming event. GDCO Pro reported on trending unreleased Steam games, with Dear Passengers leading in wishlists, followed by Paper Shredder and Guildrun. An analysis revealed that AI-flagged games achieve around 3,000 sales, which is 55% of the rate of non-AI titles. The Binding Of Isaac Complete Bundle sold nearly 4 million additional units after a 90% off sale during the Steam Summer Sale. A developer was arrested for injecting malware into Steam games, affecting around 8,000 users and stealing approximately 0,000 in cryptocurrency. Roblox announced a UGC-centric Build feature, raising concerns about predatory offers to creators. Xbox Game Pass added titles like Halo: Campaign Evolved and Beast of Reincarnation. Valve updated SteamVR with a more VR-native interface. Epic Games and Google withdrew a lawsuit settlement attempt that could impact Android app stores. GameDiscoverCo Pro introduced automated graph annotations for Steam demo launches. An analysis of games released between July 2023 and July 2025 showed cumulative sales increases over time, with higher-priced titles having better long-term sales. Multiplayer and co-op games are experiencing promising sales trajectories. The GameDiscover Show has returned, discussing trends in game discovery and insights from GDCo’s AI survey.

AppWizard

July 21, 2026

Get Borderlands 3, Risk of Rain 2 and 13 other great PC games for $15

The "2K Megahits 2026 Bundle" from Humble includes 15 Steam games for a limited time, featuring popular titles from the 2010s such as BioShock Infinite, Risk of Rain 2, Borderlands 3, and XCOM: Enemy Unknown. The bundle is available until August 7th and is experiencing high demand, leading to a depletion of keys for certain games. Notable games include Risk of Rain 2, which offers engaging roguelike gameplay, and XCOM: Enemy Unknown, a well-regarded turn-based strategy game. The bundle also features three Borderlands titles: Borderlands 3 Special Edition, Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands, and Tales from the Borderlands. Other included games are BioShock Infinite, Duke Nukem 3D, Bulletstorm, and Hidden and Dangerous. A portion of the proceeds will support Covenant House, assisting young individuals facing homelessness, and buyers can customize their donation allocation during checkout. The full list of games in the bundle includes: - Risk of Rain 2 - Borderlands 3 Standard Edition - Mafia II: Definitive Edition - BioShock Infinite - Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands - The Quarry - Tribes of Midgard Deluxe Edition - Homeworld Remastered Collection - Tales from the Borderlands - Bulletstorm Full Clip Edition - Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary World Tour - Hidden and Dangerous Bundle - The Darkness II - X-COM: UFO Defense - XCOM Enemy Unknown

AppWizard

July 21, 2026

FBI arrests 21-year-old who allegedly stole $200,000 with malware-infected Steam games and spent the money on traceable UberEats gift cards

Zyaire Dontaevious Zamarion Wilkins, a 21-year-old from Florida, was arrested for allegedly leading a cybercrime operation that targeted approximately 8,000 gamers by distributing malware disguised as popular Steam games. Wilkins and two accomplices used social media platforms like Discord, Telegram, X, and LinkedIn to promote their malware-infused games, focusing on individuals with significant cryptocurrency holdings. The compromised games include Dashverse (2024), Lunara (2024), PirateFi (2025), Blockblasters (2025), and Lampy (2026). The FBI's investigation revealed that Bitcoin payments were sent from one of Wilkins' co-conspirators to a user identified as "Sibel.eth," who had lost funds intended for medical treatments for stage 4 cancer.

AppWizard

July 20, 2026

Steam Week in Review: Take cover, because it looks like more than half of Steam games will have an AI-disclosure by 2027-2028

In June 2017, Valve introduced Steam Direct, changing the platform's game release process from manual curation to a more open system. Before this, game releases were limited, with only one month—December 2016—exceeding 500 releases. By February 2025, monthly game launches on Steam surpassed 1,500. A study by Sulka Haro analyzed around 53,600 Steam titles released between mid-2023 and mid-2026, noting that in 2024, 10.9% of new games included an AI disclosure, rising to 19.9% in 2025, and reaching 30.8% by July 2026. Non-AI flagged launches increased from about 1,030 to around 1,320 per month, while AI-flagged launches grew from approximately 13 to about 530 monthly. Projections suggest that by 2027 or 2028, nearly half of all games on Steam will have an AI flag. Despite the increase in AI-flagged titles, many struggle financially and receive mediocre reviews. The gaming industry is seeing a rise in generative AI technologies, particularly in management simulation genres. Recent notable releases on Steam include Granblue Fantasy: Relink and Palworld, with anticipation for Star Wars Zero Company on August 27.

AppWizard

July 17, 2026

PC Gamer Finds Clever Way to Turn Steam Games Into Physical Cartridges

A PC gamer has converted select titles from their Steam game library into physical cartridges using spare 2.5" solid-state drives (SSDs). This reflects a trend among users wanting to preserve gaming experiences in a tangible format, despite the shift towards digital-only releases in the gaming industry. Steam has been a leading platform for PC games for over twenty years, with most titles now available only in digital form. The custom cartridge system created by the gamer highlights the efforts of enthusiasts to maintain a connection to their favorite games and preserve their gaming heritage.