The Steam legacy library sharing feature will be retiring in early 2025, and the newly announced Steam Family will be fully taking over. Valve introduced this new game-sharing feature to all users in September of this year, and it brought a range of improvements over the old option.
One of the big highlights of Steam Family is that multiple members can play the shared games at the same time, which is something that the legacy library sharing didn't offer. However, it still doesn't allow the members to play the same game simultaneously. For that, you would need multiple copies.
Valve's Steam Family also allows the members to play the shared games offline. This new sharing feature enables you to invite up to five family members, but Valve says that it's meant for the "immediate family" members. Players within one family sharing plan will have their own save games and achievements, which is another nifty perk.
When Valve introduced Steam Family, it said that the legacy game-sharing feature would retire "eventually," but now, it's making it clear that the old method will not be functional after "early 2025." The new feature has been available to all users since September, and you can configure it by heading over to the "Family Management" tab under "Account details." Valve also has a helpful guide that walks you through the process.
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