In a market where 18.5K+ games launched on Steam in just nine months of 2025, pricing has become one of the strongest cues players use to judge value before they ever click βPlayβ
Why?
Because it shapes player expectations around scope, quality and credibility
Let’s take a look at the core pricing tiers shaping Steam today
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Free games make up ~30% of monthly Steam releases, more than doubling since 2023. This means every paid title competes not only with other games, but also with a growing pool of $0 alternatives
ππ¨π° ππ’ππ«Β – Up to $29.99
Dominated by Indie games and is the backbone of Steamβs paid market, but also the most crowded and risky to misprice. Some key price anchors are,
βΒ β€ $9.99 – Niche, narrative heavy or tightly scoped experiences (REPO)
βΒ $14.99 – Impulse-buy friendly (Cash Cleaner Simulator)
βΒ $19.99 – Strongest Indie sweet spot (Hollow Knight: Silksong)
βΒ $24.99 – Premium Indies with deeper systems and longer playtimes
ππ’π ππ’ππ« – $30 to $59
Driven primarily by AA games, but also including Indie+ titles and AAA remakes or spin-offs, this is the most competitive and least clearly defined pricing segment. Most titles cluster around,
βΒ $34.99 – Entry AA or Ambitious Indie (Abiotic Factor)
βΒ $39.99 – AA sweet spot (Tempest Rising)
βΒ $49.99 – AA competing with AAA (Clair Obscur: Expedition 33)
ππ’π π‘ ππ’ππ« – $59.99 to $69.99
Dominated by AAA titles, this is the fastest-growing tier among top-grossing games. While lower tiers win on volume, revenue increasingly concentrates here. Pricing anchors are limited to,
βΒ $59.99 – Safest and most common AAA benchmark (Kingdown Come: Deliverance II)
βΒ $69.99 – Mostly reserved for established franchises (Monster Hunter Wilds)
Takeaway:
Pricing is a positioning tool. Players use it to instantly judge scope, quality and trust
The right price isnβt about being cheaper. Itβs about understanding your genre, studying comparable titles, and setting a price that aligns with both market and player expectationsΒ