Reset Steam personal statistics (number of hours played)

[Sadwick]

Hello all community and users,

I would like to delete all my own personal statistics (hours I played on a game, last connection and so on) For the moment, they appear on my games (hours, last connection, etc)

I dont want them, and for private reason I would like not to show them at all, even on my OWN account :) (Note =i am not talking about using "privacy" to my profile page.. I am talking about what is shown on my personal Steam program and that is not mandatory .. hours and last connection aren't..)

So my question is not about "why should I -or should I not- hide those numbers"

My question is "why, as a customer using Steam, can't I reset or delete those numbers by choice, on my own page..?"

Even every day if I want !

That steam collects my statistics for them in backend, I have no issue with that, they still can do it, but I would really like to get back -as a user- the "control" of what I want to show, or not show, on my "own" steam account page.

Why Steam dev' doesn't allow users to take control of their stats/library content the way "we" want ?

If indeed we can reset those, please, can you clarify it for me ?

A big thanks to all,

Thanks for sharing !

Fen'

[LowJack_VA1]

There's no way to reset them...

[Sadwick]

I dont understand why ?

That Steam dev' wants to keep track of our "hours", they can do it "backend", they don't need us to "show" hours on our account/library.

I dont see any valuable reason why we -users- can't decide to reset "hours/last time played" for example in the game of our libraries that are shown "for ourselves"...

If "we" decide to do so, we should be able to...

[LowJack_VA1]

It's never really bothered me that I didn't have the ability to reset them, but that's me. And yes, I agree that it wouldn't hurt Steam to add that feature.

[Sadwick]

I cant imagine Steam dev' never talked about this "simple" feature. (whatever the way = hide/erase/reset)

What are their official statement on this ? Why don't they add this ?

[[AU] Tabris:DarkPeace]

It's so gaming addict children can't hide their gaming hours from their parents.

It will never be changed.

[Sadwick]

For children, their parents could have a "family" option control = children wouldn't be able to change their data / hours and so on (if that is the issue)

But as an adult, and a customer, I would like to get more flexibility on what I want on my own Steam library.

Even a simple "reset" option doesnt exist. And that is weird..

[Hanomaly]

Originally posted by Fenril radio horizon42.fr:

I dont understand why ?

That Steam dev' wants to keep track of our "hours", they can do it "backend", they don't need us to "show" hours on our account/library.

I dont see any valuable reason why we -users- can't decide to reset "hours/last time played" for example in the game of our libraries that are shown "for ourselves"...

If "we" decide to do so, we should be able to...

Well i can think of one reason the hours need to be publicly displayed and consistent as possible.

It's so *no confusion* is had.

Example.

You have a husband and wife who both share a computer and Steam account because they only have one computer anyway. So one day wife decides to reset the game hours as she starts her personal playthrough of Fallout 4, when it comes out. The previous day the husband had played maybe... 3 hours. But now she resets the hours and plays say... 1 hour.

The next day husband was thinking about how he really didn't enjoy Fallout 4 afterall and checks his "play time" to see if he still qualifies for the refund. He sees his play time as only 1 hour and thinks "phew! i thought i had played longer but i still make it under the 2 hour refund limit"

So he submits a Refund.

Refund is rejected because of too much play time. Husband is annoyed, comes to the forums, along with submitting a Steam Support Ticket ranting about how Valve has screwed up.. he can clearly see he only has 1 hour of play time! And so he's due a Refund!

Now.. even if.. Eventually Steam Support personally contacts him and lets him know the play time on his account had been reset, and he really was over, and show him proof so he's satisfied. That's just added heaps of extra time a support person had to spend with him than someone else.

Imagine 50... 100... 1,000... 10,000 users every month having a similar "play hour confusion" of believing they qualify for refunds they do not.. because to them it appears their play time is "under 2 hours" and they know they bought the game less than 2 weeks ago.

Because siblings in the same house could end up resetting play time without another knowing. Or without the parents knowing. Then telling mom or dad "Hey the game you bought me for christmas is boring, i only played 1.5 hours (really the kid had played 8) can you do the refund request?" Parent agrees... and then when the kid's refund request gets denied kid whines to parents about how Steam is wrongly not allowing them to do a refund (the child knowing darn well they reset the hours - but the parents NOT realising this). So the parent now contacts Steam Support, once again clogging up support with non-sense tickets.

~
If you want to hide your playtime make your Profile 100% private.
If you don't like that idea.. stop letting your friends "embarrass" you for having "too much play time" in some dumb game. Get better friends, or if you want to keep shallow friends, just tell them your little sister or brother plays sometimes on your computer. Or whatever.

If you're trying to hide your play time from your parents.. soooorry! Steam's not helping you.

[[AU] Tabris:DarkPeace]

No normal adult wants this feature.

[Sadwick]

Again, the whole point is not about "I want to hide".

The point is that I can't figure out why there isn't a simple reset/privacy option "for yourself" (not talking about privacy of your profile page visible by others)

We aren't only "children" or teenagers, around here. We have children as well.

So the point is not to discuss "how to live" with, but to figure out what is a reason that make steam dev' avoid us to simple

- hide ?
- erase ?
- reset ?
- not activate ?

our OWN hours / last connection

if WE don't want it to appear on our Steam Data.

We are in 2015, Steam exists for a long time already, and we are in a period of time where people want more controle on their own page. Data that doesn't concern steam itself by the way.. (as said before, they till can collect data, with or without our statistics on our pages)

[Sadwick]

Originally posted by TabrisDarkPeace:

No normal adult wants this feature.

+1

(lets add = no normal adults wants this feature IMPOSED ! :) )

[Hanomaly]

Yet another example is hijacked accounts. Even with all the new protects Valve has added every day careless uses have their accounts hijacked due to falling for scams, and phishing attempts.

Now... the scammer has reset some game times.. Problem is.. the REAL user had done some game time resets.

So when the real account owner finally gets their account back.. Support has to now try to go through fixing every game time the "hacker did" to the old original longer hours, but remembering to leave the ones the "real account owner claims he/she" reset.. in the reset state.

maybe support doesn't want to waste time trying or restore "play time hours" for thousands of users.

So maybe instead when accounts are hijacked and have playtime reset by a mean scammer, you are left now with maybe being proud of the 5,000 hours you've put into DOTA2, but the scammer reset your hours, so now you look like a noob as far as people going to your profile see it.

Because in those cases Support either has to waste time fiddling with fixing resetted hours, leaving people miserable (because now instead of helping users with problems they are trying to sort out scammer-reset play times on heaps of accounts - there for leaving OTHER people needing support help waiting longer and longer)... OR just ignore fixing the hours on hijacked accounts and leaving people miserable that way as well. It's no win.

[[AU] Tabris:DarkPeace]

It's not going to happen for the reasons outlined above.

Get over it and move on with your life.

[777]

öko

[Sadwick]

Originally posted by Hanomaly:

Yet another example is hijacked accounts. Even with all the new protects Valve has added every day careless uses have their accounts hijacked due to falling for scams, and phishing attempts.

Now... the scammer has reset some game times.. Problem is.. the REAL user had done some game time resets.

So when the real account owner finally gets their account back.. Support has to now try to go through fixing every game time the "hacker did" to the old original longer hours, but remembering to leave the ones the "real account owner claims he/she" reset.. in the reset state.

maybe support doesn't want to waste time trying or restore "play time hours" for thousands of users.

So maybe instead when accounts are hijacked and have playtime reset by a mean scammer, you are left now with maybe being proud of the 5,000 hours you've put into DOTA2, but the scammer reset your hours, so now you look like a noob as far as people going to your profile see it.

Because in those cases Support either has to waste time fiddling with fixing resetted hours, leaving people miserable (because now instead of helping users with problems they are trying to sort out scammer-reset play times on heaps of accounts - there for leaving OTHER people needing support help waiting longer and longer)... OR just ignore fixing the hours on hijacked accounts and leaving people miserable that way as well. It's no win.

might be a reason, indeed.

but then they should work on the hijacked part, and not avoid options requested by normal users as us :)

[Hanomaly]

Originally posted by Fenril radio horizon42.fr:

Again, the whole point is not about "I want to hide".

The point is that I can't figure out why there isn't a simple reset/privacy option "for yourself" (not talking about privacy of your profile page visible by others)

Does hide from yourself mean OTHER USERS can still see your accurate and REAL play time? Not your reset play time?

And.. i already told you why "resetting play times" just for yourself can cause REFUND confusion.

Like maybe you play a half hour.. decide to reset the game time.. then you play 1.7 hours.. then try to refund the game because you don't remember your "first play time" amount was already .5 hours, you thought you only played "a few minutes", and there for qualify for Refund..

but.. refund won't go through due to too many play hours.

Even hiding your true playtime from yourself can be a problem with "Hours of Playtime" restrictive Refund policy. A problem for Steam Support.. as well as users.