Can Steam Family Sharing Give Dlc at the Same Time

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The Steam "family unit share" is a lilliputian bit useless or I'm doing something wrong ?

• Thread starter starblue
• Start date Oct sixteen, 2021

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• #one

I bought a new gaming laptop for my wife last week, I created a Steam account for her and I enabled the share family with my steam account.

The thing is...I can't play any steam games if she is playing any other game from my library...which makes this function useless..., is aforementioned is she was using my business relationship...

I'm missing something or at that place is any manner to play two different games from the aforementioned shared library ?

Thank

• #2

No that's how it works. You can't accept 2 people playing i persons library of games at the aforementioned fourth dimension. Is stupid every bit fuck and I wish they changed information technology.

• #3

i wouldnt call it useless, just yes, thats how information technology works.

• #iv

i think you should both be able to play something from your library if you gear up your steam to offline mode

• #5

That'south exactly how it works. You can play any game she owns as long equally she's not playing a game at all and she tin play any game you own as long as you lot're not playing a game at all. It's dumb as hell and information technology should be better past now merely no, you're non doing anything wrong.

• #6

You are doing it right and it is useless in many cases. I idea it merely wouldn't let two family members play the same game simultaneously just nope.

I just started gaming on PS5 instead so we could share more easily.

• #seven

You're loaning your library to the 2d user to use

• #viii

The family unit share feature works well but in the example where both family members play on the same device. Otherwise it becomes clunky and requires scheduling from both parties.

• #9

You're loaning your library to the 2d user to use

They could have hands immune this at the game level. Nosotros have 3 PCs in the home and it is useless.

• #10

I see :(

Welp I gauge I will play games from Gamepass when she uses my steam library

Thanks !

• #11

Is the Steam Deck going to piece of work the same fashion? Nosotros preordered one for my wife and were going to use my account because of all the games I've bought over the years, but if it means I can't play something on PC while she'due south on the handheld...

• #12

Is the Steam Deck going to work the same way? We preordered one for my wife and were going to use my account because of all the games I've bought over the years, simply if it ways I tin't play something on PC while she'southward on the handheld...

It's more than or less a PC running Steam, so yep.

• #13

Better than useless, worse than perfect. I and my friends accept gotten a tremendous amount of utility out of information technology over the years.Information technology volition naturally be a lot less useful to you if yous and your fellow steam account sharer intend to game mostly in the same window of time.

• #14

It'southward more or less a PC running Steam, so yep.

Ah well, not a bargain breaker.

• #15

The thing is...I tin can't play any steam games if she is playing whatsoever other game from my library...which makes this function useless..., is aforementioned is she was using my account...

You tin can if you go offline.

• #16

The owner can play the games in offline mode. That said there'south no reason why they shouldn't allow 2 people to play at the same time while online if they tin allow for that if the owner is offline and the borrower is online.

But yes it's a flake of a clunky organization, and losing access to the library despite not doing annihilation is a frequent annoyance.

• #17

I'k missing something or there is whatsoever way to play two different games from the same shared library ?

Two people can access the library games of one account holder simultaneously if the original account holder plays offline. You lot tin engage offline mode by clicking Steam -> Go Offline... in the top left hand corner of the window. Of course when playing offline that player will not take admission to any online content in nigh games.

I practice wish that steam library lending was on a per game basis, but information technology'southward the all-time that valve will allow at the moment.

• #eighteen

Problem is if they open information technology upward any farther, there will exist a huge spring of publishers blocking family share (they take the discretion to do that).

• #nineteen

They could accept hands allowed this at the game level.

Of grade they tin can but publishers would never be ok with that.

• #20

i wouldnt phone call information technology useless, but yeah, thats how information technology works.

If not useless, very close to it.

It should exist at a per game basis and then developers should be able to flag their games individually so if they desire, their titles can be played simultaneously by the possessor and the person(due south) information technology's being shared with. That would be smashing for fighting games and co-op titles.

Yes, you can utilise remote play for that technically, only if Emerge is using my stuff and I'thou at work, and then I come home and want to kick Emerge's ass in Tekken, I'm sure it's far less directly forward than me booting upwards the game while Sally's still playing and linking together in private matches.

• #21

yes it's a shame you can't be online at the same time, merely at least y'all can go offline mode if you're playing singleplayer stuff.

• #22

I utilize to practice it with a friend who lived on another continent and so it was mildly useful in that case only information technology pales in comparing to how xbox handles it. And I assume playstation.

• #23

Of form they can only publishers would never be ok with that.

Why wouldn't they be okay with two people playing entirely different games on the same account?

And to go a step frontward, yous should be able to flag specific PCs -- information technology'southward non like Valve doesn't know the specs of our primary systems -- to have admission to the library off-line too.

If I accept two kids who too play PC games, buying the same game iii times is stupid.

• #24

Yeah it's terrible. I assume the millisecond ballsy has a similar feature Steam's will magically go improve.

• #25

Information technology'due south obviously not a technical reason, it'south a business reason. Letting anyone just share games every bit much as they want is not something publishers want, if it was, we wouldn't have DRM and online activations for games.

It is already pretty generous that they added family sharing in the starting time place, expecting more is incredibly unrealistic.

• #26

Why wouldn't they exist okay with ii people playing entirely dissimilar games on the aforementioned account?

Because it may decrease sales if you allow people to infringe games without any restrictions. Sharing accounts has always been a thing and is a difficult matter to command, simply sharing specific digital licenses within a service is rarely, if ever, a affair because that has completely different connotations.

• #27

Wow. Didn't know this.

Even Nintendo has a amend system than Steam. WTF.

• #28

Of course they can but publishers would never be ok with that.

Brand information technology like PS4 where you take a habitation PC and the family can share that. Maybe we are the minority only zero chance we buy the same game twice on PC so we but move to consoles more and more.

People in this thread proverb it can't be done and acting like it isn't already being done in panel ecosystems correct now. I built a gaming PC for each of my kids and I bought thousands of Steam games. We should be able to easily share them. Hell, they could lock it to these devices or the same public IP.

• #29

It's incredibly useful every bit long as you're non playing games on Steam at the exact same time. You lot tin can fifty-fifty share games with friends using information technology.

• #xxx

Devs can as well cake games from existence shared. Experience like information technology would happen a lot more if they broadened information technology's employ.

• #31

Make it like PS4 where you have a home PC and the family unit can share that. Possibly we are the minority merely zero take a chance nosotros buy the same game twice on PC and so we just motion to consoles more and more.

People in this thread saying it can't be washed and acting similar it isn't already being washed in console ecosystems right now.

I hateful I could meet that being a possibility, but it's a scrap different when Sony has complete control of the device their customer is using vs. a versatile PC of any hardware configuration

• #32

I hateful I could encounter that being a possibility, but it'south a scrap dissimilar when Sony has complete control of the device their client is using vs. a versatile PC of whatever hardware configuration

I fail to meet how it is different. Steam can flag an private device with no issue. There are several approaches that would work.

• #33

I wish information technology worked the aforementioned style it works on xbox.

• #34

Family Sharing came around at the same time they were doing the Steam Automobile matter. I think information technology was largely intended to allow multiple people to easily use that device and let them use their own accounts for progress/savegames/achievements. They never really did much with it later on the Steam Machines tanked.

• #35

Brand information technology like PS4 where you accept a home PC and the family tin can share that.

The trouble with that, if I remember correctly, is that your home PC then becomes the only place where you can play games offline. Fuck that. Non a worthwhile tradeoff. Every bit a panel gamer maybe that makes sense. As a PC gamer it absolutely doesn't.

• #36

Letting people share their library on a per-game basis sounds super exploitable. Key selling websites would sell sharing on accounts and could let out their entire library, which would impact indies and triple A games. They already did it with the PS4 and it was rampant until Sony took the sites down themselves. PSNGames.org redirects to Sony's website now. funnily plenty. Family sharing every bit it is at present is fine and I'm not sure what all the hate is nearly. If you have a friend with a huge library, you lot can play any you desire as long as they aren't playing at the same time.

• #37

When I gear up it up I assumed it was going to piece of work like a cleaner version of Xbox game sharing and yep, big thwarting at that place if that'southward what you were expecting.

• #38

If you have a friend with a huge library, you lot tin play whatsoever you want as long as they aren't playing at the same time.

I don't really intendance as I don't game on PC anymore but I personally would have found it useless if I didn't share with somebody who was on a completely unlike continent than me and separated past 6 hours at the fourth dimension. Otherwise it requires a level of coordination, I don't find compatible with how I like to game. But to each his own. PC gaming certainly has other benefits like frequent sales and such. But the family sharing on steam wasn't something that was particularly useful for me exterior of a very specific context. But if that'due south how they wanted to handle it, that's fine.

• #39

The problem with that, if I recollect correctly, is that your abode PC so becomes the just place where you lot can play games offline. Fuck that. Not a worthwhile tradeoff. Every bit a console gamer mayhap that makes sense. As a PC gamer it admittedly doesn't.

Yous need to remember exterior the box a bit. In that location's no reason a make new concept of a "home PC" or whatever for the family needs to be tied to offline mode.

Not sure I get the "console gamer" reference at all. Does the PS4 or some other console rely on an offline way to share games? Non that I'thousand aware of.

• #twoscore

I neglect to see how it is different. Steam can flag an private device with no issue. At that place are several approaches that would piece of work.

In that location's a difference considering Sony can ensure that y'all can't easily exploit the organisation by infinitely sharing their games, while Valve tin't due to the nature of PC existence open.

Terminal edited: Oct 16, 2021

• #41

I use to do it with a friend who lived on another continent so it was mildly useful in that case but it pales in comparison to how xbox handles information technology. And I presume playstation.

And Nintendo for that affair.

• #42

There'due south a difference considering publishers can expect that Sony ensures that you lot can't exploit the system by infinitely sharing their games. Valve can't practice that since information technology's much easier to spoof any form of ID for offline usage on PC.

They could go out the bit that's in place now, but add the per-game by requiring:

-Owner of account must apply Steam Guard and log into each PC that'southward to infringe games
-All PCs doing the sharing must be online and broadcasting from the same public IP
-Limit the family size to 3 or whatever, some modest number

Can information technology exist spoofed through some ways that about people would never attempt? Maybe, but and then tin anything else.

• #43

Information technology's not useless, my So and I employ it all the time.

I see :(

Welp I estimate I volition play games from Gamepass when she uses my steam library

Thank you !

You can withal apply information technology, just do this:

i call up you should both be able to play something from your library if yous prepare your steam to offline way

I got to play Disco Elysium, Doom, and Doom Eternal all this year thank you to Family Sharing, and if my Then needed to play his games, he just opened Steam in offline style and then I could play at the same time. Voilà.

• #44

I thought someone couldn't "borrow" your library if you were offline

• #45

It has been very useful for me, I play games from my brother's account all the time and vice versa, our gaming fourth dimension usually doesn't overlap.

• #46

The supposition is that you lot share the same computer then you'd never be playing at the same time. That being said, you tin both play if you play with Steam offline.

• #47

Yeah, that'south how information technology works. I like the way Stadia does it much better. You lot can add together upward to 5 people to your family unit account and all of you can exist on and playing at the same time (but not the same game unless that person owns it in their library every bit well). Granted it is a purely streaming service.

Last edited: Oct 16, 2021

• #48

It's pretty bad in that regard, and also kind of broken when information technology comes to sharing DLC. At to the lowest degree it used to be, just I don't think information technology was ever fixed.

Basically, if your wife'southward account doesn't ain the base game but yous do, you share the game and all of the DLC. However, if she owns the base game, then you can't share the DLC at all - she'll have to buy it. This particularly sucks for base games that are free, since anybody owns those by default and this makes DLC sharing impossible.

Complimentary DLC is also not supported. If you lot're playing a game from a shared library, there'south no fashion to share free DLC content (because free stuff isn't shared). For example Warhammer Total War has a bunch of free stuff that's inaccessible with family sharing.

• #49

For me it's constantly de-linking and that's what makes information technology useless as I constantly have to pester folks to do the whole process again and again

• #50

For me it's constantly de-linking and that's what makes it useless as I constantly have to pester folks to do the whole procedure over again and again

I think this may exist due to IP changes. Practise you VPN at all?

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Source: https://www.resetera.com/threads/the-steam-family-share-is-a-little-bit-useless-or-im-doing-something-wrong.501294/