Ironically, this bureaucracy – where games license approvals have previously been shut off for months without notice, and only 50 to 60 applications are granted a month when approvals are actually being made – means that Steam not only offers Chinese developers and gamers a way to the international market, but it also provides a platform where they can connect to one another. This obviously goes both ways, with Steam providing both Chinese gamers and developers with a window to the global games market which starkly contrasts with the strictly regulated domestic market enclosed by layers of bureaucracy. Games accessible on Steam are not licensed for domestic release, and yet, for many international developers, Steam opens the door to an ever-growing number of Chinese gamers that they'd have no hope of otherwise reaching. Steam supports Chinese language, and more crucially, it is possible to pay for games on Steam using the Chinese currency Renminbi either through WeChat Pay or Alipay, the two largest e-payment services in China. Steam's position as the leading PC games distribution platform currently extends even to mainland China, where it uncomfortably sits in a complex, gray area as an unofficial distributor.

But what role exactly does Steam currently play, and what would change if it were to be banned outright? Steam is treading on thin ice in mainland China, and the majority of commentators within the Chinese gaming circle are confident that the platform's days are numbered.

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