Valve on AI clones: no new Steam rule, and advice to out-update the copycats

Valve’s answer to AI clones on Steam, for the moment, is a request for reports and advice to keep improving your game. Here’s what its staff said, what the written rules say and what stays unconfirmed.

What did Valve say about AI clones?

The remarks came at Steam Indie Connect in South Korea on Oct. 27, from Tom Giardino and Marc Wilkinson of the Steam business team. Everything in this section comes from a first-hand Korean report of the session, which we read in translation. Valve hasn’t confirmed the wording, and it hasn’t posted a transcript.

A developer described emails with a blunt offer: pay, or we clone your game with AI and release it first. The tactic was new to Giardino, who asked developers to report such cases and offered to look into them and help.

On AI tools in general, Giardino was direct: “We don’t want to be gatekeepers.” The advice against copycats started with community and trust, then keeping up new features, personality and creativity, rather than relying on a single mechanic someone can copy.

Did Valve change Steam’s rules?

Valve announced no change, and its written pages show none. Here’s what its Steamworks Content Survey and onboarding pages said on Nov. 7:

That leaves a gap. A clone that copies protected art or code runs into the infringement promise. A game that copies only an idea or a mechanic isn’t addressed on these pages.

Valve’s one rules post since the event, on Nov. 3, changed the pre-release review checklist: at least five minutes of Steam playtime before submission and five screenshots categorized as gameplay, among other items. It says reviewers compare a build with its Content Survey disclosures, AI usage included, and it adds nothing on clones.

What should a developer do about a clone threat?

Report it to Valve, according to Giardino’s reported remarks, which also called extortion a matter for law enforcement. The report names no form, address or process, and Valve hasn’t said what looking into a case involves.

Valve’s Content Survey page does give rights holders two written routes: a DMCA notice form and a trademark complaint form. Both fit a clone that copies protected work, and neither covers a threat email by itself.

What did Valve say about low-quality games in Next Fest?

Wilkinson said games show virtually at random for the first two days, with personalized recommendations after that, and accepted that the random start gives some low-quality games exposure as a trade-off. Valve’s own Next Fest page describes the same split, with the first few days fully randomized. Wilkinson also said many Valve staff are working through how to address the problem, with no decision or date. The latest Next Fest ran from Oct. 19 to Oct. 26, and our next Steam sale page has Valve’s calendar of events ahead.

This page is updated as soon as Valve posts a statement or changes its Steam rules on AI content or clones.