Steam has almost every PC game, but there are a few exceptions. Why are these titles not on Valve’s store?
For PC gamers, Steam is a near-perfect catalog of old and new games. Developed by Valve, the service offers the digital sales of thousands of titles, ranging from the biggest AAA games to the smallest indies. Despite its convenience, however, Steam doesn’t offer every video game in existence. Not only do some titles never release on the service, but certain games are removed from Steam for one reason or another.
Oftentimes a popular game will be removed to be replaced by an updated version of that same game. For example, the individual games in the Grand Theft Auto 3D trilogy (Grand Theft Auto 3, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas) have all been removed from the platform, though are currently available in the recently-released Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy. Though this may be the case for quite a few games, there are several games that were removed for other reasons. Unfortunately, there’s very little chance these games will ever see the light of day on Steam again.
Updated January 6, 2024 by Mark Sammut: Steam generally tries to avoid delisting games if it is avoidable; however, December 2023 presented a situation that demanded this response.
In some of these cases, an official reason for the removal was not provided; consequently, an informed guess will be presented. 13 Prey (2006)
Before the Arkane Studios reimagining of the property, the original Prey from 2006 proved to be a success when it was first released. The sci-fi/action game received rave reviews from critics, and its popularity garnered a mobile game and a reboot. While Prey can still be purchased from other sources, it’s currently unavailable through Steam.
The reason for Prey’s removal is odd, to say the least. During a Steam sale, the game reportedly sold out, despite the fact that Steam deals exclusively with digital sales, not physical ones. Supposedly, each digital copy was tied to a CD-ROM key, and Steam ran out of these keys during the sale. With no more possible combinations, it seems like it was easier to just remove the game altogether. 12 Fable 3
The first game in the beloved Fable series can be found on Steam with the Fable Anniversary remaster. Though the acclaimed Fable 2 never saw a PC release, the third installment in the franchise did. Once upon a time, fans could purchase Fable 3 for their Steam library. Unfortunately, it seems as though these days are long gone.
Similar to Prey, product keys for Fable 3 are no longer being created. This coincided with the closing of the Games for Windows – Live marketplace in 2013 and is likely the reason product keys for Fable 3 are no longer made. Like its predecessor, Fable 3 can still be played on the Xbox 360. If the upcoming fourth installment sees a Steam release, it will hopefully have better luck on the service. 11 Quantum Of Solace
James Bond fans looking to become 007 will have to wait for the upcoming IO Interactive game since none are available on Steam any longer. Beginning in 2006, developers Activision produced several James Bond video games, all released on Steam as well as other platforms. While Blood Stone and 007 Legends had mixed reception, the video game tie-in to the 2008 film was welcomed far more positively. That being said, Quantum of Solace, along with Activision’s other Bond games, have since been removed from Steam.
In early 2013, all three games were taken off the Steam store. Three days later, Activision stated that the James Bond license had unfortunately expired and that the developer would be moving away from licensed games in the future. This is especially disappointing as there hasn’t been a new Bond game since. Quantum of Solace, along with Blood Stone and 007 Legends are still available on past-generation consoles. 10 Wolfenstein (2009)
The last game in the popular Wolfenstein series before its MachineGames reboot, the 2009 entry was released as the sequel to Return to Castle Wolfenstein in 2001. Despite generally positive critical reception and a commercially successful predecessor, Wolfenstein failed to repeat that commercial success eight years later. Poor sales, however, are probably not the reason the game can’t be downloaded from Steam anymore since that would result in plenty of projects being removed from the service.
