A beginner guide on using the Steam platform

In this topic you will learn how to get started with Steam. Here are the features this guide is going to cover:

1. What is Steam?
2. How to add friends?
3. How to search for games?
4. How to add games to wish list?
5. How to purchase a game?
6. How to start a game?

What is Steam and what is it used for?

Steam is a free cloud-based gaming library. It is an online platform which allows its users to:

• purchase, play and discuss games
• use any computer to play the games they have bought from their Steam accounts
• store a large collection of games without using too much computer memory.

How to add friends

As a Steam user, you can add people as friends. This allows you to:

• see when they are online,
• send messages
• see what games they are playing,
• purchase games for them,

and many more options.

Prerequisites

To be able to add friends, you need to be logged into your Steam account.

Steps

1. Open the Steam client.
2. Click on the footer of the client menu, where it says "Friends&Chat"
3. Click on the add friend icon

4. You will be redirected to the Add Friends Menu, where you can input your friend's profile name.
5. After input, press Enter. It will display users found with that username
6. When you find your friend, click on the "Add as Friend" button.

Once you click on the button, a friend request will be sent to the user. They will have to accept it in order to become friends.

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How to search for games

Prerequisites

To be able to search for games, you need to be logged into your Steam account.

Steps

1. Open the Steam client
2. Go to the search field

3. Write the name of the game

If the game is available in Steam, it will show up on the screen.

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How to add games to wish list

Adding a game to your wishlist helps you keep track of all the games that you are interested in, but not ready to buy.

Prerequisites

To add a game to your wish list, you need to be logged into your Steam account

Steps

1. Search for the game you want to add to your wish list (You can use How to search for games? for reference)
2. Select it to open its profile
3. Click on the "Add to your wish list" button

After successfully adding to wishlist it will display this on the screen:

You will now see the game in your wishlist

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How to purchase a game

Prerequisites

To purchase a game, you need to be logged into your Steam account

Steps

1. Search for the game you want to purchase (You can use How to search for games? for reference)
2. Select it to open its profile
3. Scroll down until you see an option "Add to Cart"
4. Click on the "Add to Cart" button

5. Then click on the "Purchase for myself" option

It will redirect you to the Payment Info screen.

6. Select your payment method and input the required information
7. Click on "Continue"
8. Check the box "I agree to the terms and conditions"
9. Click on "Purchase"

A "Thank you for your purchase" screen appears, telling you that an email confirmation of your purchase has been sent to you.

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How to start a game

Prerequisites

In order to start a game, you need to be logged into your Steam account and to own at least one game.

Steps

1. Click on "Library"
2. On the left side of the screen you see all of your games in your library. Select the game you wish to start
3. Click on "Play"

The game will start.

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Summary

Thanks to Steam, you can enjoy a gaming experience on all major operating systems. New games are regularly added and if you still need convincing on whether or not a Steam account is worth it, here is an information graphic showing the number of games released on Steam in the years between 2014 and 2019.

Need help with something?

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