How keys work in Steam. Instructions for activating a key on Steam
How to activate a key on Steam is the most common question for newcomers who have started using it. In this article we will look at a couple of “hot” issues that worry users of Valve’s gaming service.
Why do you need a code and where to get it?
In the Steam gaming service, a key refers to a code that can consist of letters and numbers and is designed to activate a product that you purchased or received as a gift. Keys are initially generated by the developer/publisher (or Steam employees at the request of the developer/publisher), and then provided to other people.
Activation instructions
Let's look at a few instructions regarding activating keys in the system.
In the browser
A short guide on how to activate a key in Steam via a browser:
- Follow the link.
- Log in to your account (if you are not logged in), enter your account login and password and return back to this page.
- Enter the key in the field intended for activating products.
Via PC client version
Via the Steam mobile app
Some users are wondering how to activate the key in Steam on their phone. No way! Mobile application is only for codes and confirmations. The developers of the client for mobile devices considered that this function was not needed there, since games purchased on Steam can only be played through a PC.
Pay attention! You can open any browser on mobile device, follow the link https://store.steampowered.com/account/registerkey and enter the activation code.
The purchased key has already been activated, what should I do?
If the game was not originally purchased from the Steam store, and the key was activated outside of Steam, then now you will NOT link it in any way. In most cases, this means that the key you purchased has already been used on another account. Each activation key is unique and can only be used once. If your code has already been used, support will NOT be able to release it or transfer it to another account.
Example from user experience:
I started playing one of the games via Steam using a connection to the EA Games service NFS series. A year later I decided to play it through Origin. A message appeared in Origin: “This key has already been activated.” I wrote to their technical support because the game was activated on mine account in EA. They checked - everything matches, but for some reason they couldn’t link it to Origin and sent a new key to the game...
We hope we have answered the most common questions that newbies have when activating keys in Steam via a browser / mobile application/ desktop Steam.
How to enter the key in Steam, where to activate the game on Steam, instructions in pictures.
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You decided to play games on your computer, downloaded Steam, paid for the game. To yours email I received a letter from secret code game activation. And at this moment, you are faced with a task: what exactly to do with this code?
How to enter the key in Steam and activate the game? Today I will answer your question. I would like to say that there are already several articles on the blog dedicated to Steam. You can get to know them.
So, first of all, you need to understand what a key is and what its function is. A key is a security code to access a specific game. This code is issued only after payment. You are given a password that opens the game.
So when you buy multiple games, there is a high chance that you will get confused about the keys. I recommend purchasing and activating games not all at once, in bulk, but one at a time.
Login to Steam. It is important that you have exactly the account in whose name the key was sent to you. If you do not have access to this account, or you have changed it to a new one, then you can forget about activation.
Open the Steam agent and go to the games section. From the list in the drop-down menu you should select “Activate on Steam”. An activation window will appear.
Follow the prompts until you reach the key entry window. There is nothing complicated in these steps and they are standard for activating any game or program.
Just agree to the terms, agreement and keep clicking - next, ok or agree. It all depends on what game you activate. Only after these steps will a text line appear in front of you, where you need to enter your activation key.
After these simple manipulations, a new game, paid for and activated by you, will be added to the list of your games.
Activate in game
The game will not prompt you for a password the next time you launch it on your computer. But if you try to run this game from another device, you will again need a password.
And the one you once entered will no longer work. The fact is that a new password is created for each user, which cannot be generated or guessed using crack programs.
Conclusion
As you can see, activating the game on Steam is not difficult. However, if you have any difficulties and you just can’t find how to enter the key in Steam, then I advise you to contact support.
You have received an email containing an activation code. And you don’t know where to insert this code or how to launch a paid game. Open the email with the key and click reply.
Enter your question in the comment text box. describe your problem in detail. Ask them to send you step-by-step instructions.
The customer service's responsibilities include assisting customers. So you can count on a detailed answer.
Description:
People who are working with for the first time Steam program and buy game activation keys for it, they often ask questions: “How to activate the key” and similar ones, in this article you can see how to activate the key on Steam with screenshots.
Let's get started
After logging into Steam, you should find the “Games” tab, which is located at the top of the program, you can see where you can in the screenshot.
As you probably already noticed, I highlighted in the screenshot with a white rectangle where you need to click.
Now after you click on “Games”, a small window will open where you will have to select your next actions, in our case this is key activation, so we click on “Activate via Steam...”, in the screenshot that Below you can see exactly where to click.
After you click on "Activate via Steam..." a window will open where you are informed that you will need to activate the key that is indicated on the box of the product you purchased. In order to proceed to entering the key, you will have to click on the “Next” button. In the screenshot you will see where you need to click to go further, the button you need to click is outlined in a white rectangle.
After clicking on the "Next" button, a window will open where you will have to agree to the rules of use of Steam (Steam Subscriber Agreement), after you have read this, you click on the "Agree" button if you did not notice it or something - Then I’ll highlight it with a white rectangle in the screenshot below this text.
After agreeing to use Steam, you will be transferred to a window where you will have to find the “Product Key” field where you will have to enter the key that you purchased, also under this field you will be able to see the key formats, that is, what they are. After you have entered the product key, you click on the “Next” button, after which the key is activated. In the screenshot you can see in detail: where the keys are written, where to enter the key, where to click for final activation.
In addition to the standard procedure for purchasing games on Steam, there is the ability to enter keys for these products. The key is a specific set of symbols, which is a kind of confirmation of the purchase of the game and is tied to only one game copy. Keys are usually sold on various online stores that sell games in digital format. It can also be found in the disc box if you purchased a physical copy of the game on CD. Read on to find out how to activate game code on Steam and what to do if the key you entered is already activated.
There are several reasons why people choose to buy Steam game keys from third-party digital product marketplaces rather than from the store itself. It's usually a better price to pay for the game or to buy the actual disc with the key inside. When purchasing a game for the first time, many do not know what to do with the key. In fact, this is a fairly easy procedure, provided that the key really works and there are no problems with it.
If you don’t yet have a key and don’t know where to purchase one on the Internet, we recommend reading a separate article on this topic at the following link.
We would like to immediately draw your attention: sometimes you may encounter a notification about how the key will be activated. The screenshot below shows that the service says that a hidden activation of the key will occur (a Gift link will be used) within 5 minutes. Here you will not need everything that is written below - you will only need to log into your account after the purchase.
Method 1: Steam Client
Most often, users want to perform activation through a client running on the computer, so we’ll consider it first.
However, there are situations when digital key refuses to activate, reporting an error. In such a situation, proceed to reading the last part of this material.
Method 2: Browser
When you do not have the opportunity to activate the purchased key through the client, but you need to check its relevance right now, the browser version of the service will come to the rescue. Since this function was introduced relatively recently, the developers did not make a separate section for it, so you will have to follow the direct link. Keep in mind that in order for it to open, you need to log in to the site in advance.
Enter or paste the copied key, check the box indicating that you accept the Steam Subscriber License Agreement and click "Continue". At the end you will receive a notification about the activation status.
It is not yet possible to activate the key through the mobile application, but nothing prevents you from following the link above through the browser of your smartphone or tablet, after logging in to the site, and doing the same steps.
What to do if the purchased Steam key is already activated
The situation that arises often does not mean anything good. Let's look at the steps to take in this situation.
As you can see, the key activation process itself is quite simple and in most cases does not cause any difficulties. However, even if activation fails, there is a high chance that the site or offline store where the purchase was made will resolve the situation in your favor. At the same time, you should not delay the application and abuse this opportunity, trying to deceive sellers.
This is a fairly common topic on many forums and communities. Steam games. Let's see what it is and how to use the keys you receive.
What is this?
Before thinking about how to enter keys in Steam, let's see what it is all about. So, you have decided to buy yourself this or that game. How can developers and creators protect their product from illegal copying? Of course, many come up with different protection systems, while Steam offered an interesting thing - a key.
This is not something that can simply be generated by a cracking program. In order to answer how to activate a key in Steam, you must first obtain it. And the way to get it is simple - buying the game. After that, it will be sent to you by email. There is one for each game. With all this, these keys are created individually, which guarantees reliable protection against copying and attempts to “transfer” the game from one account to another. Now let's see how to enter keys in Steam.
If the game asks for keys...
So, users may encounter a problem that when starting the game they may be asked for an activation key. Very often this problem appears on Need For Speed. Players quite often ask what to do when they have already activated all the keys, but the system still does not let them into the game. How to enter keys in Steam in this situation?
Here, of course, the situation is somewhat different from what we will consider further. The thing is that many games require an additional key. It is obtained through registration in a particular project. Thus, you will need to “dig” through your letters that you received and find the one that the game support sent you. It must contain the active email and the required combination of numbers and letters. Just enter everything you need into the required fields, and the problems will go away on their own. If this does not happen, contact support - all games are purchased on Steam, which leaves you the right to use the so-called support, which should help you solve the problem. But there is another situation that is more suitable for our topic today.
First launch
So, how to enter keys in Steam when the game requires them? You need to register an account and then buy any desired toy. With all this, you must have an active email and access to it. After you make a purchase, you will receive an email containing a key.
But where to enter the key in Steam? Sometimes playing on your own the first time you start it requires an introduction from you. You will just need to copy it from the received letter and paste it into the required fields during the first launch. So this process will not take you much time.
There is a little advice: you shouldn’t buy many games at the same time and launch them right away. This is necessary so that you do not get confused with the keys. It is best to do everything consistently and gradually. True, you can open many windows in your browser, each of which will open a specific letter with a key. But this is not the best idea. There is another method of “activating” the key. Let's see which one it is.
Key activation
So, if you need to activate the “number” sent to you, but you don’t know where to enter the keys in Steam, then the following words will definitely help you.
In order to successfully activate the key issued Steam system, you, of course, need to have an account and access to it. If you cannot log in to the account from which the key was sent to you, you can completely forget about activation.
However, if everything is fine with access, then you will need to install the Steam agent and then log in to it. Next, go to the "My Games" section. Here you have to read the user agreement and then confirm your consent. Next, you will need to enter the received key for the game in the window that appears, which you received immediately after paying for the purchase. Click "Ok" and wait a bit. The toy will appear in your games list. Now you can safely use it with the activated key. Remember that when you change your account, you will not be able to “transfer” your old version games - you will have to buy a new one. So take care of reliable protection of your existing account from ill-wishers and hackers.