Lots of people write a will in order to express their intentions for what should happen to their property after they pass away. For many gamers, this can include vast collections of consoles, video games, and accessories, which often leads to loved ones inheriting a bundle of gaming gear and games.
The issue now is that we find ourselves in a digital age where more and more gamers are buying the majority of their video games digitally, especially through online retailers like Steam. So, what will that mean for leaving digital games to loved ones when a gamer passes away?
Steam seemingly has some unfortunate news for anyone who is posing this question. In a recent conversation with Steam, they seemed to indicate that leaving a gamer’s Steam library to a loved one through a will or trust could face some roadblocks.
A conversation with Steam support has recently been shared online, where one Steam user asked if they could transfer an account in a will in the event of their death. Steam support responded by stating that transferring a user’s account or game library isn’t possible due to the company’s policies regarding the matter. While it is possible to share Steam libraries, fully transferring an account through the use of a will isn’t, as of now at least.
Many users have commented on the response with a mixed bag of reactions and emotions. Lots of Steam users are frustrated and disheartened by the news, but others have suggested that the workaround could be as simple as leaving a loved on the login information and changing the payment card on the account if the inheritor plans to purchase more games with the account, without notifying Steam that the account ownership had technically transferred to someone else.
Some users however have pointed out that even though this may work in the short-term, a Steam account being used longer than the average lifespan of a human being could set off alarms and the company may look into the matter and could shut down the account if it is consistently passed on from user to user. There’s also no guarantee that all of the games in the library will remain downloadable over the years, and unless the user left their computer in their will as well, it just wouldn’t work out.
Many users hope that Steam will change their policy pertaining to this matter as the games associated with a user’s account have been bought and paid for and should be considered property of the user that if they so wished, could be bequeathed to a loved one.
This whole situation underlines the blatant issue with the distribution of purchased digital files and games, which in general seems to come with limitations to the user in which they aren’t really buying the product. As of now, it seems as though the digital marketplace is simply a space to purchase a license to access content, that if the company chose, could be removed without a moment’s notice.
Optimistically there will be legal changes around this matter, with the ever-evolving world of the tech, streaming, and gaming industries, I think many consumers are hopeful that laws will be put in place to protect the user’s purchase as their property. For now, if gamers choose to pass on games after they have passed away, then those games will have to remain physical copies until something significant changes.
How do you feel about the limitations around digital games? Are you hopeful for changes where this matter is concerned? Do you still buy physical games, or is your library mostly digital? I’m curious to know where most gamers stand on this
