Game denies Steam blackmail claims

UK retailer Game Group has emphatically denied that it has been coercing publishers into guaranteeing it a period of exclusivity before PC games are made available through Steam.

Yesterday a poster on the Facepunch forum claimed: "Some time around the start of this year Game started talking to multiple publishers regarding their games being available on Steam. They basically want (at least) one month from release date where the game cannot be purchased by those in the UK on Steam.

"And this applies to all games released by that publisher. If the publisher doesn't agree then they'll supposedly refuse to stock and sell that publisher's games via their stores."

The post claims that games from THQ and Bethesda have been or are currently unavailable for UK users to pre-order, and in some cases were unavailable to buy for up to a month after launch. Bethesda's upcoming Skyrim, and THQ's Space Marine and Saints Row: The Third, are all unavailable for pre-order.

In a statement, the retailer said: "We can categorically state that these rumours do not relate to Game Group or any of its employees. We have had no such conversations with any publisher and have been in contact with various publishers who can confirm this for you as well."

While Game's denial is a relief in a week where bricks and mortar and digital retailers alike have hit headlines for the wrong reasons, it still leaves one question unanswered: why are THQ and Bethesda's games not being released, or made available for pre-order, to UK Steam users? We've sought comment from both publishers and will follow up should we hear back.