Valve, the well-known PC platform, has recently revised its rules for marketing season passes on Steam. According to the updated guidelines on Steamworks, game developers and publishers now need to specify a release date when promoting upcoming content like season passes on a game’s store page. Valve emphasizes that if a company can’t “clearly communicate” when this content will be available, they shouldn’t be offering or taking pre-orders for it.
Developers have the option to provide a broad release window, such as a particular quarter, season, or year, in addition to a specific release date for the upcoming content.
Valve elaborated on this by saying, “When you offer a Season Pass, you’re essentially promising future content.” They further clarified that as part of launching a Season Pass, developers must commit to a release schedule for each piece of content included. This schedule acts as a pledge to both the consumers and the Steam platform.
“If you’re not prepared to give clear details about the content within each DLC and its launch timing, it’s best not to offer a Season Pass on Steam,” Valve advised.
