A recent survey of over 300 game industry leaders shows that a large majority – 72% – believe Valve, through its Steam platform, has a monopoly in the PC gaming market.
Steam started in 2003 as a platform for Valve’s games, such as Counter-Strike and Team Fortress. By 2005, it had broadened its scope to include games from developers other than Valve.
For the past twenty years, Steam has dominated the PC gaming world. While companies like EA (with Origin), Ubisoft (with Uplay), and Blizzard (with Battle.net) have all attempted to compete, Steam has consistently stayed in the lead.
A recent survey of 306 game industry leaders reveals that most believe Valve’s Steam platform has a monopolistic hold on the market. They express concerns about Valve’s power within the gaming industry.
72% of game devs claim Steam holds a monopoly
A recent survey by Atomik Research, shared by PC game platform Rokky (according to Games Industry Biz), examined the current PC gaming market. The study, called ‘The State of PC Game Distribution,’ polled 306 industry executives in the UK and USA.
The survey primarily included responses from large AAA game studios – 77% had over 50 employees. A significant majority – 72% of those contacted – believe Steam holds a monopoly in the PC gaming market.
Even though options like the Epic Games Store and GOG are available, Steam remains the dominant platform for game distribution. Nearly half of game developers (48%) release their games on multiple storefronts, but they still see Steam as the leading choice.
Steam has become the most popular platform for PC gamers, so games not available on Steam risk reaching a much smaller audience. Essentially, skipping Steam can significantly reduce potential sales.
Valve earns a significant amount of money from Steam sales. Leaks earlier this year showed just how much the platform has grown – in 2009, Steam made around $100 million in commissions from the games sold on it.
In 2021, that figure reportedly grew to a mammoth $2 billion in commission revenue.
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2025-11-05 02:18