Steam has clarified its advertising policy, explicitly banning in-game ads that require players to watch or engage with ads to access gameplay. The new policy, available on Steam’s developer documentation page, outlines allowed and prohibited types of advertisements.
Valve permits product placement, such as sponsorships in racing games, but warns against disruptive portrayals. Cross-promotions are also allowed, as long as developers don’t charge players to participate in bundles or sell access to their store pages. Paid advertising campaigns outside Steam that lead to a store page are fair game.
In contrast, any form of in-game advertising that gates access to gameplay is banned. This includes ads tied to rewards like power-ups or in-game currency. Valve’s move aims to prevent developers from relying on paid advertising as a business model within their games.
While no examples of in-game ads have been reported on Steam, the policy reflects Valve’s efforts to promote a PC gaming experience that prioritizes gameplay over advertising. The company has previously banned NFT and crypto-derived games, and requires game developers to disclose generative AI usage.
Source: https://www.pcgamer.com/gaming-industry/valve-bans-games-that-rely-on-in-game-ads-from-steam-so-no-watch-this-to-continue-playing-stuff-will-be-making-its-way-to-our-pcs