Ever thought to yourself, “gee, I sure have an insane backlog of games to play through. I wish I could share them with friends and family.” Well, now you can, because Valve recently announced its new Steam Family Sharing program.
Valve is currently accepting users to participate in the beta version of its Steam Family Sharing plan. Steam Family Sharing works on requests. If you see a member of your family playing a game you want to try, then you can send them a request. If the lender accepts your request, then you have access to his or her library–not just one game. The leader can share his or her library for up to 10 devices.
There are some limitations as noted in the FAQ. For instance, only one user can access the shared library at a time–that means the lender and the borrower cannot play at the same time. Borrowers will also have access to the leader’s DLC; however, they cannot purchase DLC for a game they do not own. Finally, there are some games that simply cannot be shared. You can check out Steam’s website for the full FAQ.
Still, this is a cool addition to Steam. Even with some of the limitations, Steam Family Sharing is an interesting alternative to renting games in the digital era of gaming. If nothing else, then at least someone will play your backlog of games that you’ve been meaning to get to.
If you’re interested in participating in the beta, then click the source below. And let us know what you think in the comments!
Source: Steam
