Valve updated a help article recently, noting that they will no longer be supplying physical Steam gift cards due to scammers.
Since 2012, you could go into certain stores and pick up a Steam Wallet gift card, which could then be used to redeem the code and add funds directly into your Steam account for use later. They did make quite nice gifts for people, but sadly once the current stock is gone, Valve will not be supplying retailers with any more. Valve continues to offer the digital version, so you can still e-send someone a gift card for use on Steam, just no physical cards when they're all used up.
As spotted by SteamDB, the help page now notes:
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.Can I purchase Steam Gift Cards at retailers?
Yes, but only for a limited time.
We introduced Steam Gift Cards to retail stores back in 2012, and added the digital program in 2017. Unfortunately, scammers use gift cards from major brands like Steam to take advantage of all people all over the world.
We’ve responded to gift card scams over the years by taking a number of actions to protect customers, including:
- Working with retailers
- Working with law enforcement
- Making changes to the cards, including adding a prominent scam warning
- Limiting redemption to be in the currency of your Steam wallet
- Limiting availability of cards
- Removing cards from sale when we observed abnormal activity
As we have continued to put more and more restrictions in place, scammers have adapted. They continue to have an impact on Steam customers and other unsuspecting individuals. So we've made the difficult decision to end the Steam Gift Card program at retail stores.
As Steam Gift Cards run out of stock at retail locations, we will not be restocking them. We expect all retailers to be out of stock by the end of 2026. Though we will no longer be selling physical gift cards, you will still have the ability to use your existing gift cards on Steam whenever you choose, subject to local laws.
We also continue to offer Steam Digital Gift Cards, and are working to make this an even better experience. Guest checkout, which we added last year, is another way for family members and friends to gift Steam users with a digital card anytime.
You can learn more about gift card scams here.
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Quoting: rea987How about digital Steam Wallet codes distributed to 3rd party sites?The article does note that digital wallet codes will continue to work and will remain available.
blindcoder 4 hours ago
Has been years since I use exclusively this pay method... it was so so convenient to me aaaah!
All that being said, I haven’t bothered to do so for at least 8 years so I suppose the joke is on me when it comes to enabling it.
Steam says it’s to combat fraud but I personally have never heard gift card scams related to Steam cards compared to many other companies (Apple being the biggest one).
Quoting: blindcoderOh come ON. The last option to bypass fuckers like Master and Visa policing content on Steam, and OF COURSE they do away with it.Fortunately in my country we have Pix, so you can use the money from the bank directly without giving money to Visa/MC.
Quoting: HippohopThat is a real shame. I wish there remained a way to pay cash for this stuff without running it through PayPal or MC/Visa’s middleman practices. Unironically would like a digital currency option in my country.It does happen. I used to work in electronics retail and Steam cards were a common target of scammers because they are so easy to resell/launder.
All that being said, I haven’t bothered to do so for at least 8 years so I suppose the joke is on me when it comes to enabling it.
Steam says it’s to combat fraud but I personally have never heard gift card scams related to Steam cards compared to many other companies (Apple being the biggest one).
That still doesn't mean that scammers won't just move on to another gift card, they will. But the observation that Steam cards are frequently involved in scams is valid.
blindcoder 2 hours ago
Quoting: RonDamonOnly Klarna (which requires FULL ACCESS to your bank account if you use it) and PayPal for me. Both obviously no-go.Quoting: blindcoderOh come ON. The last option to bypass fuckers like Master and Visa policing content on Steam, and OF COURSE they do away with it.Fortunately in my country we have Pix, so you can use the money from the bank directly without giving money to Visa/MC.
I _guess_ there's Paysafecard left now...
PlayingOnLinuxphone 1 hour ago
Really, we need this as a way to get power back into hands of us users.
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