Family sharing is here! But, unfortunately, Steam have taken a leaf out of Netflix's playbook; this feature will only work if you are all in the same household. Which means the vast majority of you will never use it.
With Steam Family, you can now share games with your loved ones. Amazing, right? Well, annoyingly, this will only work if you actually live together.
One Family Means One Household
Family sharing is only available in a single household. So starting a "family" of friends is not going to be possible. Clearly, then, the Steam Family concept is not as exciting as we first thought. But it will at least make it easier for parents to monitor and control the games their children play.
Those who join a Family on Steam will have to choose between one of two roles, adult or child. Like on streaming platforms, adults have more rights than children and can restrict games for the children. So, at least parents will get some use out of this feature.
How to Start a Steam Family
Still interested? Then follow these steps:
- Go to Account Details on the Store page to set up a Steam Family.
- Click on the Family Management section.
- Click 'Create a Family' and enter a name to create a new Steam Family (the family name can be changed at any time in the future).
- To invite other family members, select 'Invite a Member' and choose or search for family members to invite.
- Decide if the new member should be added as an adult or child. Any adult family member can manage invites and set account restrictions.
- Voila!
Enjoy Steam Family, if you can.