Earlier this year in March, Valve introduced a new feature for Steam Beta users called Steam Families, designed to help households with multiple gamers. Today, this feature has exited beta and is now available to all Steam users. Steam Families combines the functionality of both Family Sharing, which lets you share your game library, and Family View, now renamed Parental Controls, which limits access to specific Steam content. Additionally, it introduces the ability for family members with restricted access to request game purchases for approval.
The biggest update to Steam Families is that up to six people can now play games simultaneously from a shared library. However, if multiple users want to play the same game at the same time, they will need individual copies. Offline play is also supported, provided the game allows Family Sharing.
To start using Steam Families, you can either create a new family group or join an existing one. Once a group is created, you can invite up to five other members to join. Each member maintains their own save files, achievements, and Workshop subscriptions, ensuring a personalized gaming experience.
While anyone can currently join your Steam Family, Valve intends this feature to be used by close family members within a household. There are no hard restrictions yet, but it’s possible Valve may introduce them if the system is exploited.
A word of caution: if someone in your Steam Family gets banned for cheating while playing a shared game, that ban will apply to you as well. It’s wise to only share your library with people you trust.
