Steam is a great utility for the distribution of games. It gives the control the developers and distributors of games want, and it allows the End User (Gamer) to organize and access their purchased game library wherever they may be, whether they travel, log on to different systems, reinstall their operating system, or purchase a new computer without Steam at all. Just a few clicks and you are either playing your games, or after a bit of downloading, will be playing them soon.
One of the many benefits of using Steam to play your games is that you can easily restore access to your game library, even if you reinstall your Operating System (Windows, etc) or purchase a new hard drive (the filing cabinet inside your computer that keeps all your information) or purchase an entirely new computer. Either way, Steam keeps track of the games that you own the rights to play and allows you to play them in short time in any of those situations.
One of my favourite capabilites of Steam is that, since the games are kept within Steam's own directory system (it's own folders and subfolders) even though I recently reinstalled Windows, I can still be up and playing my games in a matter of minutes. I can even have my old Save Games so I can pick up where I left off, all it takes are a couple of steps.
For example, if you know that you'll be reinstalling Windows soon (perhaps a hard drive is giving signs of trouble and might fail soon, so you will have to buy a new one) or purchasing an entirely new system, all it takes to save Steam and all your downloaded and installed games and saves is these steps:
- (Optional Step) Copy your Saved Games to a location to be retrieved later.
This will allow you to continue the longer games without starting over (unless you want to start over for fun, of course). Game saves are kept under the MyDocuments folder in Windows, usually in the MyGames subfolder, or a subfolder created by the game itself. Copy these files wherever you wish, to put them back in the same places later, after you are done reinstalling Windows, for example.
It is also a good idea to keep a backup copy of these somewhere anytime, so that you do not have to always start at the beginning of a game after reinstalling it.
It is also a good idea to keep a backup copy of these somewhere anytime, so that you do not have to always start at the beginning of a game after reinstalling it.
Some games create a subfolder within the game directory (usually named after the game). If you do not see a Save Game folder in MyDocuments or MyGames for the game you choose, it may be in the games installation location (eg. c:\program files\game name\saves).
- Copy the Steam folder to a location to be retrieved later.
The Steam folder is usually in the Program Files directory. Simply copy this file somewhere to put it back later, or relocate it wherever you have some spare room.
**You can also install Steam to a different location (than the default Windows/Main drive for example), then if you have to reinstall Windows for some reason (virus, hard drive failure, etc) you can use Steam from wherever you installed it.
**You can also install Steam to a different location (than the default Windows/Main drive for example), then if you have to reinstall Windows for some reason (virus, hard drive failure, etc) you can use Steam from wherever you installed it.
- Run the Steam.exe file within the Steam folder.
Whether you originally installed Steam in the default location (c:\program files\steam) or somewhere else, simply navigate to the Steam folder and run the Steam executable. Valve has made it easy to get Steam up and running again by allowing it to simply detect your current Operating System situation and download and install any files that it needs to get itself working.
Valve has also put in a nice little layer of security when starting Steam 'for the first time again' like this, by sending you a special code to your Steam Registered Email Account. It will ask you to log in to your email and then enter this code into the Steam window and then your game library is now unlocked and you can play all of your games in the new setup you have.
- Verify the Games Library, in case you missed and if you deleted any games or game files.
If you deleted any games to save some space, or the copying of the Steam folder failed for some reason, make sure your games are fully installed and ready to play by right-clicking on any game in your game library and choosing Properties.
In here, click on the Local Files tab and then click on the Verify Integrity Of The Game Cache button. This will tell Steam to check to make sure all game files needed to run the game are present and accounted for.
If not, it will automatically download what is required to run the game. When you start it up, it may also install DirectX or other system files if needed.
Hopefully all will go well and you should just see this:
That's it!
Have fun playing your Steam games!
If you liked this post, buy me a cup of coffee :) (You can even use your credit card to donate a dollar with PayPal and it does not give out your information to the person you are sending it to). Thanks and check back in once in a while to see more tutorials on How To Save Things!
