Hello everyone, I'm still trying to wrap my head around why Steam decided to focus on computer games instead of websites...

So, I'm writing this review, and I have to admit, I wasn't planning on it. But over the past couple of weeks, I've been really frustrated with Steam. The global situation has made things a lot harder, and unfortunately, gamers aren't immune to it. Before I get into the review, I want to clarify something. I know it's not the biggest deal in the grand scheme of things, but it's been really tough to access computer games lately. And I'm not just talking about Steam - it's a problem across the board. I'm not trying to downplay anyone else's struggles or make Steam's issues seem like the biggest problem in the world. I just need to get this off my chest.

I'm not exactly a gamer, but I've always been drawn to the world of gaming. I think it all started when I was in sixth grade and my brother would let me watch him play. I was hooked from the very beginning. When my brother moved away, I took over his old gaming setup and spent hours playing pirated games I'd find on torrents. My options were pretty limited back then - my old computer couldn't handle much, and I wanted to play a lot of games. I was lucky enough to upgrade my rig before the pandemic, so I got a new video card and processor at a decent price. I'm hoping it'll last me another couple of years, or I'll be in trouble. I upgraded my computer mainly because of Mortal Kombat 11 - I've been a fan of this world since I was a kid and would cry watching the release trailers. I'd spend hours watching other people play on YouTube. Eventually, I discovered that our local hookah bar had a PlayStation, and you could play MK11 there. I remember those late-night sessions, and I'm still embarrassed about how much the bartenders had to accommodate me and my friends. We'd all want to play and get our virtual beatdowns in. In the end, I decided to invest in a proper computer and play games without any issues. That's when I finally understood that there's no such thing as a free lunch. When you download a pirated game, you're basically getting a box of chocolates - you don't know what you're gonna get. Sure, it's free, but it's not guaranteed to be good. I've had games glitch out, especially in the final stages, and don't even get me started on the crashes and bugs. Plus, developers work hard to prevent their games from being pirated, using software like Denuvo and other tricks that make it impossible to play once you've been caught. I've seen some crazy anti-piracy measures in games like GTA IV - things like 'drunk mode' where the protagonist dies from a single hit, cars explode from a single collision, and important buildings are just locked off. Anyway, whether you choose to play fair or not, that's up to you, but for the past two years, I've been playing legit and it's been a game-changer.

I've finally made the switch to the legit side of gaming. I even bought all the games I used to play for free on Steam – as a thank you to the devs. And it looks like the pirate's life is no longer for us gamers...

Steam's been around for ages, and if you're into PC gaming, you've probably used it at some point. It's basically the go-to platform for buying and playing computer games. I'm not gonna dive too deep into the site itself – it's pretty self-explanatory. You can access it through your browser or download the program, which is where I ran into some minor issues. I think it's still the case, but when I signed up, the program was super insistent on installing on my C drive, no matter what I chose. Luckily, I found some online forums that helped me convince it to move to my D drive. They also have a mobile app, which I've got on my phone. To get started, you just need an email address and a mobile number – easy peasy.

I'm pretty low-key on Steam, to be honest. I only use it to launch the games I've bought. I don't mess around with workshops, selling stuff, or hanging out in forums. I just play games, and occasionally I'll shoot a quick message to my friends.

I've gotta say, the design of the site is pretty sweet - I love the blue tone, it's way more upbeat and fun than the Epic Games Store, which is all dark and grey and gloomy. The main menu is super intuitive, no need for a guide. There's a search bar for game titles and categories, which is handy. As a more experienced user, I found myself relying on the site's recommendations more often - there's a dedicated tab on the homepage that analyzes your library and activity in certain games and suggests similar ones. The game page is really cool, too - it's got a brief summary of the story, gameplay mechanics, system requirements, and most importantly, user reviews - which can be super helpful when deciding whether to buy, but I've noticed that if a game's getting a lot of hate or love, my opinion of it often ends up being the opposite, so that strategy doesn't always work for me.Before last year, there were a few ways to pay for games (including bank cards, mobile payments, e-wallets, and Steam's internal wallet, which gets topped up with all the above methods); I mostly used my Qiwi wallet - my IR earnings mostly went towards buying games. The price range on Steam is crazy wide - you can find some indie project for 20 rubles, or a big open-world shooter for over 4,000 rubles. My first big purchase was Cyberpunk 2077 - I had to shell out 1,999 rubles in the fall of 2020. At launch, prices are through the roof, but they do come down over time. Take Cyberpunk, for example - when it was still available for purchase, it cost 999 rubles, and I feel bad for anyone who wanted to buy it but missed out. Days of sales are a real treat - the discounts on games are insane, and it's way more cost-effective to buy them in bundles with extra content.

In normal times, I tried to be patient and not rush into buying - I'd usually add games to my wishlist and wait for price drops. One exception was Life is Strange: True colors. As for Deathloop (which, by the way, has some amazing creators), I was on the fence about buying it for a long time - I finally waited for the Halloween sale and snagged it for 1,600 rubles instead of the original 2,500. And, fun fact, the game still hasn't been hacked.

I've gotta say, Steam's given away some free games in the past, but I've never really scored anything super valuable. I mean, it's not like Epic Games Store, which gave away GTA 5 two years ago - I tried to get it, but the site wouldn't let me register, so I ended up buying it on Steam for 700 rubles. I later gave it to my nephew, who was sick of the bugs in the pirated version. You can find free games in the corresponding categories, but they're usually small, unknown projects that don't even support Russian. Although, if I'm not mistaken, Dota's free forever.Once a game shows up in your library, you can check out the community centers and discussion forums. That's a super useful feature: players create topics, mostly about in-game errors that pop up, and other users can share their recipes for fixing them. Yeah, even with legit games, errors can happen - and Deathloop was no exception. Its most common error, which I also encountered, was error 0xc0000005, which would randomly pop up and kick you out of the game. The discussions really helped me out, thanks to them. And I even created a few topics, which got some responses and help.

Installing games is pretty straightforward - you find the game in your library, right-click it, and choose the installation path. Removing a game is just as easy. I'm really glad they have cloud saves, so even if you switch computers in the future, your game progress won't be lost. If the developer releases an update for the game, it'll automatically download the next time you launch it.In recent years, tech has been advancing fast - and if you don't have a powerful computer but still want to try out modern games, the internet's got a bunch of cloud gaming services to choose from. However, most of them require you to register on Steam and buy the game there.

I've had to return games a couple of times, and while Steam's support team isn't always a breeze to deal with, they're pretty good about getting the process started. I mean, it's not like they're super responsive all the time, but they do try to help. And hey, at least they're quick to respond! You can access Steam support by clicking on the 'Help' tab and selecting the issue you're having from the dropdown menu. I've had to contact them a few times about Deathloop, and while they're always sorry to hear about the problem, they usually just tell me to contact the publisher. Which, of course, means I have to go to the official Bethesda website, register, and wait three days for a response. Not exactly ideal.

One thing I do like about Steam is that it's also a social network of sorts, where you can add friends, send them messages, and even buy games as gifts. But to be honest, I don't really use these features that much. My friend list is pretty small, but it's made up of people I actually know, including my brother. I'm more of a solo player, and I only really play co-op games with one or two other people. Multiplayer games just aren't my thing.My Steam profile has a level, but I've never really paid much attention to it. I'm not even sure what my level is, to be honest! I've just set some custom wallpapers and chosen a few avatars, and that's about it. And yeah, I've collected a bunch of Steam cards, but I'm not really sure how they work. They just seem to drop randomly, and then Steam offers me the option to trade them with other players or buy more. Which, honestly, just seems like a waste of money. But what really gets me going is trying to get all the achievements in a game. I know, I know, it's a bit of a weird obsession, but there's something satisfying about getting that notification from Steam that you've earned a new achievement. It's like a little pat on the back, you know? But of course, it only works if the game is actually any good.

I'm still going strong with my favorite game, Deathloop - I finally managed to platinum it last week. There's this achievement called NA BIS that requires you to go back into the game after the final credits and take out one of the eight bosses. I was trying to get it for weeks, but it just wouldn't budge. I'd kill all eight of them, over and over again, but the achievement just wouldn't unlock. And then, out of nowhere, it finally worked when I went back to take out the first boss using nothing but a knife. Talk about frustrating.

I've also noticed that Steam tends to go into this auto-mode thing where achievements aren't tracked. I learned this the hard way when I was playing another game and it automatically gave me an achievement for completing the first chapter. But, of course, I had to replay the whole thing to get it. Some forums suggested clearing the cache and checking the file integrity, which might help. ❌FALSE ALARM

1. When grabbing a free game, it's best to install it ASAP - I learned this the hard way when Steam made Borderlands 3 temporarily free after the holidays. I grabbed it, but then it just vanished from my library a few days later. Talk about a letdown. Borderlands 3 was gone, and I was left wondering what happened.

2. A license doesn't always mean you're bug-free - although this is more of a developer issue than a Steam one. I had some issues with Cyberpunk, but I didn't get too worked up about it. However, some Steam users who were really affected by bugs got some unexpected support from the admins. Instead of the usual two-hour window for returns, they extended it. If you're having issues with a game, Steam will suggest some standard troubleshooting steps, but ultimately, they'll point you in the direction of the developer to fix the problem. Most reputable devs are on top of things and actively work on resolving issues.

3. I've found that the only way to send a message to a user is by adding them as a friend - although, I'm sure there are other workarounds, but I couldn't find any. I met someone in the discussions who had a similar problem, and I wanted to ask them a ton of questions, but I didn't want to spam the thread. You want a private conversation, right?4. The pricing policy is just plain weird - sometimes it's like the additional content to the game costs more than the main storyline itself.

5. False discounts - I've seen this on the platform in the 'Deals' tab for a game with an attractive price, but when it came to buying, the final price somehow skyrocketed to four times the original, so they were offering to sell me the game at the original price. Customer support just shrugged and said they didn't know anything about it...

6. And, honestly, I'm not surprised. No payment system works for Russian players anymore; until March 5th, there was still a way to buy games using PayPal, but then it vanished, leaving us with a major problem. Now, how do you even buy games?! You can still get them on Steam, and the ruble currency is still there, but there aren't many ways to do it. If you've got a decent amount on your Steam wallet, you can breathe a sigh of relief and keep buying games for a while longer. But if you don't? Unfortunately, there aren't many reliable ways to do it without getting ripped off. My review isn't the place for a masterclass, so I'll just suggest you Google it and find the most convenient method. The most popular options are using the Kazakh tenge currency in your Qiwi wallet (the double conversion fee eats up a huge chunk of your money); buddy-to-buddy help, where someone with money on their Steam account offers to transfer it to you in exchange for buying the game you want (you know, at your own risk); and using third-party services that sell Steam keys (the prices are often higher than on Steam, plus there are additional fees for the service).

Our Russian developers who were selling their games on Steam can't get paid for their sales anymore. So, games that were in development (like that infamous 'Zaychik') are just stuck indefinitely.

CD Project RED, Blоober Team, Bethesda Softworks, Microsoft, Electronical Arts... What's common among all these companies? The fact that they've all pulled their digital products from the Russian (and some Belarusian) market. Games I'd previously bought will still be mine and get updates, but buying new ones is a real challenge. Even if I managed to find a way to top up my Steam wallet, these companies' games are no longer available for purchase. I guess I could try using VPN servers to bypass the block, but Steam reserves the right to punish me for that. Lucky me, I stocked up on games during the winter sale, so I've got something to play for now. But what happens when those games are all gone? I'm afraid it's going to be a sad, sad day: 'yo-ho-ho!' Many players are furious about this decision, and it's hard to understand why these companies would do this (what's the point of having a policy that hurts gamers?). As a result, some are now determined to find games on torrent sites in the future.

It's also disheartening to think that upcoming projects we were all looking forward to this year might not see the light of day. I'm talking about RedFall - a game from the studio behind Dishonored and Prey, which I've grown to love. They promised a fall release this year. The trailer is amazing, the characters are great, and the visuals are top-notch... I guess I'll just have to stick to YouTube videos for now.

I've got to give a shoutout to Finnish studio Remedy Entertainment for being a beacon of hope in the gaming world. They're still standing strong, and I'm still holding out hope for that 'Alan Wake' sequel.

So, here's the thing - I've got mixed feelings about this service. On one hand, it's super convenient and has become my go-to platform. But, I'm just a regular gamer who likes to unwind with games and get all the achievements. It's really frustrating that I can't just buy a game easily anymore - I have to find workarounds that cost me money in fees and conversions. And it's even more disheartening that these respected studios have pulled their products. If it weren't for these recent events, I'd have given this service four stars instead of three. The 'minor annoyances' that were already there, like the support team sending me to the developer's website to resolve issues, Steam going into offline mode, and the weird price disparity on games and DLC, have all added up. And let's not forget that some modern games still have bugs and errors.

The good stuff here is: top-notch support from the team, brainstorms in the game-specific discussions that really help you get to the bottom of the issue, awesome discounts during sales, a super intuitive and user-friendly interface, cloud saves, and automatic updates. Three stars - fingers crossed that things will get back on track soon, and I'll be waiting.