Steam changes sales policy to limit VPN users to buy cheap games from other regions

Valve has just updated its sales policy, making it more stringent to choose the country. Users must now complete the transaction using a payment method from the country of their choice before Steam will allow players to purchase games from that region.

This move is designed so that buyers cannot take advantage of VPN fake IP to go to another region to buy cheaper games or games that are banned from selling in their region.

Valve has recently made changing your store country more strict, which requires completing a purchase using a payment method from that country.

This should hinder the ability of using VPNs to buy games cheaper. pic.twitter.com/IozwoO6gsi

— Steam Database (@SteamDB) July 29, 2020

VPN and region restrictions

A VPN is a virtual private network, Virtual Private Network, which is a networking technology that helps create a secure network connection when participating in a public network such as the Internet or a private network owned by a service provider. In addition to security features, VPNs can be used to fake IP (fake IP) through servers in other countries, allowing them to use IP addresses in other regions.

This way, users can access content that is exclusive to that region, like watching shows on the Netflix streaming service and digital game stores like Steam. In recent months, users have used VPNs to switch to other regions to buy cheaper games.

Steam’s New Rules

Games sold on Steam often have different prices depending on the region. This happens for a variety of reasons, but most importantly, game companies can charge higher prices in areas with rich economies. For example, Rainbow Six Siege costs $20 if you buy it on Steam in the US, but it only costs 829 Rubbles (Russia), or $11.42 if you buy the game in the Russia region. Using a VPN, gamers can save quite a bit of money when changing IPs to Russia and buying games.

But Steam’s new rule could impact this as it’s much harder to own a country’s payment method than simply changing the region with a VPN.

Valve explains new purchase policy in update :”If you’re moving to another country, or are living abroad for a long time, you can update your country settings in your Steam when you complete a transaction using a payment method from that country. ”

While Valve has just tightened its grip on VPN users, that war has actually been going on for years.

“Using a proxy or VPN to spoof your region is against the Steam Terms of Service and may limit your Steam account,” Valve explains on its support page. “If you try to get a game from a restricted region and your location doesn’t match your past Steam activity, a warning will appear.”

Many Steam users use a VPN as a habit, but it’s not a concern if they don’t use a VPN to buy games from another region. While buying games using a VPN is against the Terms of Service, playing games and using Steam while using a VPN is not prohibited at all.

With the new rules from Steam, it will certainly become much harder to buy games from other regions.

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