Valve Software on Wednesday launched Steam Trading Cards, a new system that rewards Steam customers for playing games on the platform. It's currently launched as a beta and provides virtual trading cards that can be collected and used for rewards such as game badges, profile backgrounds, emoticons, coupons, DLC and more.
Steam customers who participate in the beta will receive game-specific trading cards. Qualifying titles currently include Don't Starve, Dota 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Team Fortress 2, Portal 2 and Half-Life 2. The service will expand over the coming months to include many more titles on Steam, Valve said.
"Collect a set of cards to earn items that help you customize your profile and show off your gameplay," the FAQ reads. "Each participating game drops up to half the set of cards into your Steam inventory during gameplay. The other half of the card set can be collected from other community members. Try the beta group discussions, community market, barter with friends, and trade discussions."
To get into the beta, Steam customers must join the Steam Trading Card group, which will in turn put them in a queue to be part of the beta. Once the customer is accepted, he/she will be notified and given a few extra passes to offer to friends. Valve said it will add more participants every few days.
To see what cards have been collected or are still available to acquire, users simply head to their Badges page and select the "Badges in Progress" tab. There users can select a badge to view the card set, including cards the user owns and cards remaining.
"A badge is an icon on your profile (and tied to your account) that represents the trading card sets you've collected or your participation in an event," the FAQ states.
