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You can play many Steam games offline - here's how to turn on and use offline mode

Ross James   

You can play many Steam games offline - here's how to turn on and use offline mode
Tech3 min read

Steam Valve logo website

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To play Steam games offline, you'll need to turn on offline mode.

  • You can play many Steam games offline - as long as they're single-player or local multiplayer games and fully up-to-date.
  • Steam requires you to be connected to the internet when you activate offline mode, which you'll need to do before you can launch games without an internet connection.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

If you've ever been without internet, you've probably been disappointed that Steam doesn't work like it should.

However, if you set Steam to offline mode, you can play single-player or local multiplayer games anywhere.

But there's a catch to this - when you activate offline mode, you'll need to be connected to the internet, so Steam can verify your account. This means you'll need to plan going into offline mode in advance, before your computer loses its internet connection.

Here's how to find the setting.

Check out the products mentioned in this article:

Steam Gift Card (From $20 at Best Buy)

Macbook Pro (From $1,299 at Best Buy)

Microsoft Surface 2 (From $1,999 at Best Buy)

How to play Steam games offline

1. Open Steam. If you're on a PC, in the toolbar at the top of the screen, select "Steam." If you're using a Mac, select "Account."

2. Select "Go Offline."

Screenshot_1

Ross James/Business Insider

Select "Go offline" from the Steam dropdown menu.

3. Steam will prompt you to restart in offline mode. Only fully up-to-date games at the time of the restart will be available, so make sure everything is updated. However, Steam won't check for updates after this point, meaning you can keep playing games in offline mode indefinitely.

Screenshot_2

Ross James/Business Insider

Steam will prompt you to restart in offline mode, meaning the application will close and reopen.

Cloud saves, Friends Lists, and other online-only features will be disabled in offline mode.

Related coverage from How To Do Everything: Tech:

Insider receives a commission when you buy through our links.

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