Steam Replay is a great feature, showing all your gaming habits and achievements during the last year. However, it may show more than you would like to share with your Steam Family. Admit it or not, you feel awkward about some games that should have not been on your list.
If you're having a similar feeling like this, you can keep your gaming secrets from other people, and here's how to do that.
What is Steam Replay For?
Steam Replay is Valve's annual year-in-review feature that gives you a detailed summary of your activities: hours played, top genres, and every game launched during the year. Released every December, it's a fun way to look back at your gaming milestones. However, it doesn't just track your achievements—it tracks everything. That includes the games you might prefer to keep private, like quirky indie titles or unexpected guilty pleasures.
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The Problem with Steam Replay Privacy
Steam allows you to set your Replay visibility to private or friends-only, but there's a catch: adult members in your Steam Family can still view your Replay, even if you've marked it as private. But wait, there's a solution for that.
Steam Family Sharing was engineered with parental control in mind to ensure parents may monitor their kids' gaming activity. However, for many, that is used for adults—friends, siblings, or roommates—meaning this capability is a potential privacy issue.
Imagine explaining your 100-hour obsession with a Barbie Game at the next family gathering. To avoid these awkward conversations, it's crucial to take proactive steps.
How to Keep Games Out of Your Steam Replay
Skip Generating Steam Replay Entirely
You can easily do this by just not creating the Steam Replay at all. Then, when December hits, avoid that feature entirely. This means that no one can view your gaming statistics.
Hide Individual Games Prior to Playing Them
If you're interested in playing Steam Replay but want to avoid specific games, you have the option of hiding them in your library:
- You will open the Steam client, and click on the game you want to hide.
- Right-click on the game, select "Properties," and find the Privacy settings.
- To hide the game, toggle "Mark as Private."
- When marked as private, these games will not show up in your Steam Replay. It is only required to do this before the game launch to experience the first time.
Set Games to Hidden in Your Library
To take your privacy even further, you can hide games completely from your library view:
- Open your Steam library.
- Right-click the game you want to hide.
- Select "Manage" > "Hide this Game."
- This removes the game from the main library view, adding an extra layer of discretion.
Plan Ahead for Next Year
If last year's Replay brought on any awkward moments, now is the time to turn it around. Managing your library's privacy settings and choosing what to play will let you control what shows up in future Steam Replays.
Whether you're playing niche titles or racking up hours in fan favorites, your gaming habits are yours to share—or keep private. Take these steps now to ensure your Steam Replay reflects only what you're comfortable revealing.
With these tips, you can enjoy Steam Replay without compromising your privacy, keeping your gaming secrets just that—secrets.
