Steam has a new pro-developer/publisher feature that should make related games and DLCs more appealing

Following Valve’s recent announcement of several changes to what developers could and couldn’t put on Steam store pages, developers and publishers sent the company a lot of feedback and suggestions generated from those changes. Now, Valve is implementing more of them.

On August 29, 2024, Valve announced two more changes to Steam Store pages that give developers and publishers more control over what users see when they’re on the pages for their games and DLC. The first new feature allows the store page owner to add related games that they have also made. They can either choose a vague category or related titles, or manually pick the ones they want to see showcased. The second change allows for page owners to feature DLC items.

Custom Steam store page ecosystems

Using the “Special Settings” tab on the store page editor, page owners now have the ability to select a developer, publisher, or franchise, and then sort through the options presented to them so they’re displayed in the way they want. This could include new releases, top sellers, or a specific and relevant tag. However, sometimes these options still aren’t exactly what a page owner would want, which is why it’s now possible to “Force Select” a game and manually pick the titles being referred to users on a store page.

When it comes to displaying and referring DLC, page owners again have new powers top pick the latest DLC for their titles, if they believe that’s what users would want, or select from a range of pre-localized reasons. This might be DLC that’s currently on sale, the most played DLC, or the best option for new players.

Giving store owners more power over their store pages and what games are displayed there allows them to create an ecosystem encompassing every store page they have on Steam. DLC can reference full games, those games can push players back into the DLC, and crossovers, such as Dave the Diver and Balatro, can each refer the other to celebrate and promote the collaboration.

I’ve never thought much of the recommendations I’ve seen on Steam store pages in the past because I’ve generally considered them irrelevant. They’ve never been games I’ve been interested in. This new power that store owners have should serve to rectify that and help showcase games from the same developer and publisher that are far more relevant to fans purchasing games and DLC.