How Steam’s refund policy is hurting small games

On Steam, users can request a full refund for a game so long as they’ve only played it for less than two hours. As a result, developers behind smaller games are being negatively affected.

For example, the majority of those who played indie game Summer of 58 refunded it after completing it. Although the game received mostly positive reviews, the amount of refunds meant it didn’t make much money, leading to developer Emika Games quitting game development indefinitely. While not without its benefits, Steam’s policy possibly threatens the future of indie games releasing on the platform.