Valve says it’s phasing out its physical Steam gift cards in response to scammers.
In an updated FAQ page, the PC gaming giant says scammers have continued to adapt to its efforts to implement protections and restrictions around physical gift cards, leading it to make the “difficult decision” to discontinue them. The company says it expects retailers to run out of all existing physical gift card stock by the end of the year, and they will remain usable on Steam.
It’s disappointing to lose the option for physical Steam cards, especially since they were decent gifts to put into birthday and Christmas cards. But if nothing else, Steam says it will continue to offer Steam Digital Gift Cards and is working to make this “an even better experience,” although it didn’t provide specifics. You can also gift individual games through Steam.
For more information on Steam gift card scams, check out Valve’s dedicated support page.
Image credit: Valve
