Overview
In this tutorial, we will walk you through the steps required to broadcast your game on the Steam storefront.
Before You Begin
Note: Games marked as "Adult-Only" cannot be streamed on the Steam store.
- You will need a non-limited Steam account. “Non-limited” means that the Steam account you plan to stream from must have spent at least $5 USD on the Steam store. “Limited” accounts (accounts that have not spent at least $5 USD on Steam) will not be able to create an RTMP token and will not be able to stream to a store page on Steam.
- The account you plan to stream from must own the game it will be streaming from. You can check this by logging into the Steam client with this account and confirming you see the game in your Steam Library.
- The account must either have the "Broadcast Live" permission in the Steamworks partner account, or be a member of the Steam Broadcast Beta group.
Setting up your Stream using RTMP
The steps below will help you gather the information required to stream your game from third-party broadcasting software. Streaming on Steam uses the RTMP protocol. You won’t need to know exactly how this protocol works to stream on Steam, but some familiarity with the below concepts will be helpful.
- 1. Go to http://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/upload/
- 2. Check the Upload Server. Steam will automatically select an upload server that’s close to your current location based on your IP address. If you want to select a different upload server, you can do so using the list on the page. The computer that is streaming your game will send video to the upload server, so it’s important to pick one that will have the lowest latency possible, usually the one geographically closest to you.
- 3. Locate your RTMP token. You will need to enter this token into your streaming software.
What is an RTMP token?
An RTMP token is a unique identifier to allow you to stream on Steam. You will generate this token at https://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/upload, and enter it into the software you plan to use to stream your game to Steam.Important: Treat your token like a password, and Never share it, as anyone who has it can stream as you. If you believe your key is compromised, you can invalidate it and generate a new one on this page.
- 4. Enter Your Game's AppID
You can see your game’s App ID by visiting your game’s App landing page in Steamworks or going to your game’s Steam store page--your appID is in the URL.
Note that you should only use the appID for your “base” game--do not use the appID for DLC, Demos, Soundtracks, or other secondary application types.
- 5. Set Your Broadcast Permissions
By default, your stream is set to “Friends Only”, which means it’s only visible by you and your friends on Steam. This is a good way to test your stream before it’s publicly visible on your store page. It will be visible by clicking the “Your broadcast URL” under Quick Links on this page. Once you are ready for your stream to appear publicly on your store page, you can change this permission to “Public”.
Setting up OBS (Optional)
There are several software tools available for streaming your game to Steam. OBS is a popular free and open-source option. Below are steps to get your stream set up in OBS. Steam supports any broadcast software that supports the RTMP protocol.
- 1. Navigate to File-->Settings-->Stream
- 2. In the dropdown menu, select “Custom...”
- 3. In the “Server” field, enter the “Upload Server” you selected at http://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/upload/
- 4. In the “Stream Key” field, enter the token provided at http://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/upload/
- 5. In OBS, navigate to File-->Settings-->Output
- 6. Under Output Mode, select “Advanced” in the drop-down menu.
- 7. On the Streaming tab, enter Keyframe Interval to 2. Note: This step is important. Without this setting your stream will fail to start.
Testing Your Stream
Once you are ready, begin streaming your game using OBS. Next, go back to
http://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/upload/ and look for a link to the right of the page called “Your Broadcast URL”.
You should see your gameplay being streamed on this page. At this point, if you set your broadcast permission to “Friends only”, your stream is not public yet.
Create a Steam Event For Your Game
It's a good idea to let your community know about your stream. You can do this using the Event tools on Steamworks. Below is a brief guide to setting up a Live-Stream/Broadcast event. You can learn more about Events on Steam here:
https://partner.steamgames.com/doc/marketing/event_tools.
Follow these steps:
- 1. From your game’s App Landing Page, Click “Post New Event” (or whatever it says)
- 2. Select “Live-Stream/Broadcast”
- 3. Navigate to the “Broadcasting” tab
This is where you will designate one or more Steam accounts as allowed to stream to your store page during the event. Enter a title for your broadcast from the list, or enter your own. If you enter a custom name, don’t forget to add localized titles.
Add the account you intend to Stream with:
Important: The Steam account setting up the stream and the account that is streaming must be friends in order for it to be visible on this page.
Suggested but optional: upload artwork (which you can re-use in the future) for your livestream. This artwork will appear on both sides of your livestream.
Click the “Save” button to save your event.
- 4. Go to the “Options” tab and confirm the start and stop times of the event are correct. You can continue your stream for up to 24 hours past the end time of your event.
- 5. Enable the broadcast feature on the event
• Save and publish your event. When you start streaming during the event, your stream will appear on your store page. Note that There may be a delay up to 5 minutes before the stream is picked up on the store page once you start streaming, so you may want to begin the stream a few minutes early to account for this.
Troubleshooting:
Q: I don’t see my broadcast on my Steam store page!
- A.You may need to refresh the product page after a few seconds. We only display the live broadcast once a connection is established. First viewers will take the longest to establish the connection to the broadcaster.
- Confirm that you have entered the right appID at https://steamcommunity.com/broadcast/upload. The appid is used to connect the stream to the correct game. If the appid is missing, the Steam store product page will not show the stream and it will not be featured on the front page. You will need to enter the appID and regenerate the RTMP token and enter it into your broadcasting software.
RTMP Streaming Specs
If your stream is using external software to stream content to steam, then this section applies. At this time, Steam requires these encoding specs to be set. If you're having issues with videos stuttering, pausing, or not playing back correctly, please check the following:
Video encoding requirements- Codec: H.264
- Profile: High
- Level: 4.1
- Frame Rate: 30 FPS or 60 FPS
- Frame Ratio: 16:9
- Keyframe interval: 2 seconds
- Maximum bitrate: 7000 kbps CBR
Audio encoding requirements
- Codec: AAC-LC
- Maximum bitrate: 128 kbps
Streaming Software NotesVMIX: By default, VMIX uses Profile Main and Level 3.0. You must change those settings in order for VMIX to stream correctly to Steam.
Using a Multi-streaming Service
Content Rules
Remember to obey the content rules when broadcasting on your product page. Those rules can be found in the FAQ under the answer to 'What kind of content is restricted?'. Valve may moderate streams that violate these rules, or take other action on offending partner accounts, including termination.
