Steam Changes Refund Policy, Stops Issuing Refunds For Games Played For 2 Hours Before Launch

Steam has announced changes to its refund policy, which will now see them stop issuing refunds for games that have been played for 2 hours before launch.

As announced by Valve, the refund policy on Steam has been updated, with games that are played during Early Access or Advanced Access now also being counted towards the 2-hour refund limit.

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Here is what the new policy reads:

REFUNDS ON TITLES PURCHASED PRIOR TO RELEASE DATE
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When you purchase a title on Steam prior to the release date, the two-hour playtime limit for refunds will apply (except for beta testing), but the 14-day period for refunds will not start until the release date. For example, if you purchase a game that is in Early Access or Advanced Access, any playtime will count against the two-hour refund limit. If you pre-purchase a title which is not playable prior to the release date, you can request a refund at any time prior to release of that title, and the standard 14-day/two-hour refund period will apply starting on the game’s release date.

Eight years ago, Valve began offering no-reason refunds to players for any game they buy on Steam. As long as the player asked for a refund within 14 days of purchase and had not played more than two hours of the game, they can ask for a refund with no questions asked.

With the introduction of ‘Early Access’ and ‘Advanced Access’ for games, however, players have found a loophole that they can exploit, which is they can play the game for as long as they want before launch and still get a refund afterward.

Now with the new policy changes, Valve has effectively closed the loophole and prevented players from abusing the exploit. As such, players will now need to pay attention to their play limit even for games that are in early access.

Recently, Steam has been making a number of changes to its policies to better adapt to its new features. They have also been introducing new changes to introduce their platforms to more audiences, such as implementing a beta for Steam Families a while ago.