Posted in: Games, Video Games | Tagged: Steam, valve

Steam Just Made The Oddest Changes That Will Probably Kill The Gift Giving Program

You know how you're able to purchase gifts and deal them out to your friends whenever you'd like on your own time? Valve just tweaked their system to make that obsolete. A new update that went into place this week changed the purchasing and sending options to that you sending someone a game is only possible as you purchase it. This eliminates the option of purchasing a game to your library and holding onto it to give to someone at a later date, nor will you be able to email it to them as the recipient must have a Steam account. However, you do have an option of scheduling the delivery of the gift for a specific date and time.

One of the few benefits is that international purchases have now been adjusted so that if your purchase works in another country, the gift option will be available and if it isn't, the option won't show up. The new features are in play now but aren't effecting previously purchased gifts. Essentially this now kills off any chances to purchase gifts in advance that are on sale to purchase them at the time and hold onto them for later. But there's also a chance you could purchase several copies of a game on sale at once and hoard them away to sell to others online through gifting, which if often how cheaters who get kicked out of games manage to get back in through new accounts. Regardless, the new system is kind of a bummer and takes away the option for people like myself to buy someone a game and wait three months for a birthday present surprise.

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