Valve says Steam review delays have stretched to as long as 12 business days, well past its usual target of three to five. In a Steamworks post on November 3, it blamed a “significant increase in submissions for store page and build review in recent months” and added new required steps to the release checklist.
Valve put it plainly in the post’s FAQ: “We aim to test every game build in a timely manner, typically within 3-5 business days. However, we’re running a little behind right now and taking up to 12 business days. Much of that delay is due to having to re-review games, which isn’t great for you or for us.”
- Normal build review: 3-5 business days
- Current wait: up to 12 business days, according to Valve
- Main cause, per Valve: games failing basic checks and needing a second review
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Why Steam review delays are hitting release dates
Developers had been complaining in public, as The Verge reported on November 3. One was Studio Daimon, which was due to launch its RPG Food Devils in Early Access that day. In a Steam announcement, game director Alfred Kamon wrote that the team had submitted its build “more than 20 days ago, on October 12th”, that an urgent support ticket “got ignored”, and that he would announce a new date “as soon as we have some news”. When we checked at 11:28 UTC on November 5, the game’s Steam page still said “Coming soon”.
Food Devils missed its November 3 Early Access date while waiting for Steam's review. Image: Studio Daimon
The publisher 2 Left Thumbs had planned to launch Wheel Make It on October 12. According to its Steam updates, the game sat in the queue for about two weeks. Then, on October 21, it failed review because “one single option in the menu (the resolution setting) was not accessible with a controller”. Steam also wouldn’t let the team set a new date. It finally launched on November 1.
The volume is the backdrop. The Verge cites How to Market a Game’s count of 7,240 games in October’s Steam Next Fest, 65.2% more than in June. Both studios suspect AI-made games are clogging the queue. Valve’s post doesn’t name AI, though Valve has already spoken about AI slop in Next Fest, and the topic came up again in Tim Sweeney’s criticism of Steam’s AI disclosure label.
The new Steam release checklist rules
The most notable additions Valve listed:
- Play it through Steam: someone has to launch the game with Steam’s Play button and run it for at least 5 minutes, within the past 7 days or since the last build. “Believe it or not, sometimes we review builds that have not ever been played through Steam,” Valve wrote.
- Redistributables: developers have to declare which common packages, such as DirectX, Visual C++, .NET or XNA, Steam should install, or confirm that none are needed.
- Achievements: new checks flag missing names, missing icons and duplicate names.
- Steam Cloud: if a game lists Cloud saves, a member of the developer’s team has to write a save to Steam Cloud first.
- Screenshots: store pages now need 5 screenshots tagged as gameplay. Menu screens, concept art and cutscenes are allowed if they’re labeled as such.
- Submission reminders: the review form asks developers to confirm promised languages are in the build, and has a field for test-account credentials if reviewers need them to reach multiplayer.
Valve also says what its reviewers look for. Is the store page clear? Does the build match what the page promises? Is sensitive content disclosed in the content survey, “such as mature content and AI usage”?
What it means for players
If you wishlist small PC games, some may miss their announced dates while the backlog lasts. A delay like this doesn’t mean the game is broken. As Wheel Make It’s case shows, one menu option can send a game back for another review. Our October Next Fest guide lists ten demos from that event.
Steam's new sale-event section replaces the banner at the top of game pages. Image: Valve
Valve also changed how store pages look for players this week. A November 4 Steamworks post removes the sale-event banners from the top of game pages. In their place, a personalized section next to the “More like this” carousel shows games from the event that Steam recommends to you. It appears during the first two weeks of a sale event; our Steam Black Friday explainer covers what Valve has said about November sales.
What’s next
Valve says more improvements to build review are on the way. A checklist reference guide is “coming soon”. It hasn’t said when waits will return to three to five days. We’ll update this story if Valve posts a new estimate or Food Devils gets a release date.
Sources: Valve (Steamworks, November 3), Valve (Steamworks, November 4), Steamworks review process documentation, Studio Daimon and 2 Left Thumbs (Steam announcements), The Verge, Eurogamer.
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Featured image: 2 Left Thumbs
