How the Steam Algorithm works for games
Free tier
How long should a game stay in “Coming Soon” before launch?
2–6 months is optimal.
1 year+ is bad unless you are a top-tier studio.
Too long → the algorithm “gets bored” and your velocity dies.
notes:
Coming Soon:
Trend for 2–3 days first
Build wishlists for months
Push again 1 month before launch
Launch (EA or Full):
First 48 hours decide everything
Good numbers → you stay in Trending 2–4 days
Bad numbers → you disappear in hours
Steam algorithm tracks:
CTR
Wishlist conversion
Reviews/hour
Refund rate
Player retention
Genre alignment
If you fail to scale fast, Steam hides your page.
Let me know if i can help you with game marketing.
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