What Will Steam Do About Age Verification?

[Pocahawtness]

I'm just wondering what people think.
As of this year, some countries are demanding "robust age verification" for online services. Specifically, with Steam, this will be for adult games.
What do you think Steam will do? Introduce verification or just stop selling games in the appropriate regions? And what about games that have already been sold? Will people lose access to them?
I'm just curious about this, because I think governments aren't really thinking about age verification and the implications.

[Lithurge]

They haven't taken access to already owned games away in the past, so there's no reason to see why they would in the future.

As for the rest, who knows, it could go either way. But I will say governments are aware of the implications, age gating has been in place for years in the physical world so they know what it means, they've just ignored the internet for whatever reason.

[miakisfan]

Since they can't count on people not being honest about their age it is a shame Valve and other companies have to suffer like this.

Governments shouldn't have to be thinking about this because it should be the responsibility of the individual respecting the system.

We don't need a new law or laws ... what we need is for people to be held accountable for making an account they weren't supposed to make in the first place.

Make it so they can't ever make a Steam account again. That should light a fire under their asses. Well, for those who want to be here playing games here anyways. If you made an underage count just to be here on the forums then you need far more help than a law.

The only way I can think of them doing some type of age verification is to physically see the individual while they make the account with some kind of I.D. along with it.

The problem will always be that not everyone will do *the next right thing* but what they think is *the next right thing* which is more often than not the wrong thing to do.

[Jaunitta 🌸]

Very likely a drivers lisence or a bank proof.

[Qbert ⭐]

Originally posted by Jaunitta 🌸:

Very likely a drivers lisence or a bank proof.

I think that may depend on each country (Feel free to correct me if I am wrong)

[peppermint hollows]

If Germany is anything to go off of, Steam will probably just go with the path of least resistance and simply block anyone living in those countries from buying the games

[( ( < < <🤖> > > ) )]

i think i should be able to by a age verification token like a steam wallet
at a supermarket or alcohol store... and just be able to load that code in
to steam....

what a great solution...

you are all welcome...