Hi there Steam Community, I'm entering this thread to clarify our position when it comes to Valve and Steam threads. These decisions have been made in consultation and agreement with JaseC and Jawmuncher.



First and foremost, it is important to understand that Valve is not solely a developer. They are also a service of distribution for PC gaming and online play. Valve the developer and Valve the distributor are the same entity, and there is no reason to separate the two since they are both Valve.



The priorities of a company are not same thing as a lack of effort. If Valve is more focused on Steam's distribution or supporting GaaS such as Counter-Strike: Global Offensive or DOTA 2, it is perfectly acceptable to criticize a company for their decisions on priorities.



From the perspective of "console/platform warring" Steam is not considered a platform in the same way that Sony, PC Gaming, Nintendo or Microsoft are considered platforms. Steam is a distribution platform for which people on the platform of PC gaming can use to play games. People can also use the distribution platform of Origin, Uplay, Battle.net, GoG, or any other service on the platform of PC gaming to play games.



It is important to note that there is an important distinction between a hardware platform and a distribution platform. A hardware platform such as the PS4 is a platform because you need the PS4 (hardware) to run PS4 games. You need an Xbox One (hardware) to run Xbox One games. You need a Nintendo Switch (hardware) to run Nintendo Switch games. You do not need Steam to run PC games.



I can, as a PC gamer, play and buy all of my Blizzard PC games on Battle.net and buy them through Blizzard. I can never interact with Steam at all. However, if I wanted to play Overwatch on a PS4, I cannot cut out the hardware platform that is the PS4.



Steam is not a hardware platform, but PC gaming is a hardware platform. If you see posts making "console master race" or "PC master race" statements, feel free to report those and we will action them appropriately. All hardware platforms and associated warring are and will be moderated the same way. However, there is no "Steam master race" because Steam is not a hardware platform. As such, it will not be treated the same as the hardware platforms of Sony, Microsoft, Nintendo or PC gaming. We strive to treat all hardware platforms equal on ResetEra, but again, Steam is not a hardware platform.



This does not mean that we as staff don't use or enjoy Steam. Many of use, play and enjoy Steam as a distribution platform. There is not secret vendetta that we have against the platform of PC gaming, and by and large, most of the ResetEra staff are PC gamers first and foremost. We love PC gaming, and many of us enjoy Steam, but from a practical standpoint, Steam is not same thing as PC gaming, and for that reason it will not be treated as such.



Obviously, we realize that you as a community will want to discuss this topic, and we will be allowing discussion on ResetEra, so long as it contained to this community thread only. Posts made elsewhere about this will still be actioned accordingly. If you have specific questions, reach out to me directly via PM or tag me in a post in this thread, and I, Jawmuncher, JaseC, or another administrator will do my best to respond in a timely manner. Please be patient when it comes to responses to feedback or concerns as it may take us some time to appropriately address and respond to them. Thanks.