Steam across countries and accounts
I am trying to give a laptop to family member in another country (he is mostly a gamer type, but the country's internet is too slow for massive downloads), and I want to give him some steam games downloaded from here. Dota 2, Team Fortress 2, etc.
But my questions are:
If i download them on MY account (to the laptop), and he makes his account and logs in, does he have to re-download entirely, or will there be item problems, etc ?
And If I download games on a US connection logged into a US server, and he makes his in his country, will there be country problems in game.
If you need more info, I can provide.
Best Answer
Games that are free to play, such as TF2 and Dota 2, like you mentioned, will work fine, and the person who logs into his Steam account on the computer with the game won't have to re-download the game.
Games that are not free to play can only be accessed only if the account that owns that game is logged into in Steam. If Family Sharing is enabled and both of your accounts are linked together, while only one account can have access to said shared games at a time, as long as it is installed on the computer previously, the other account linked has no need to reinstall.
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Can you use a Steam account on different country?
Yes, but you'll need a local billing address and payment method. For example, you may be traveling or moving to a new country and want to check out the local deals before you arrive. This means you have to change your Steam country using a VPN so that it matches your billing location before you can make a purchase.What happens to my Steam account if I move countries?
If you are a new Steam user it is not possible to temporarily change your store region to make purchases while traveling. You will need to return to your country of residence before you can set your store country. We suggest setting up your account and your store region before traveling.Can I make an American Steam account?
No, it's not OK. I appreciate that you probably want to do this so that you can gift games to friends but it's still against the terms of the Steam SSA. Find a legit key seller, buy global keys from them and give them to your friends.Can you family share across regions Steam?
No, any region restrictions will remain in place when lending or borrowing games. If the game is region-restricted, you may not be able to play the game or even see it being shared.How to Change Steam Region Complete Tutorial
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Answer 2
Adding to the answer provided by aytimothy.
It is best for you to download the games that you want to give on your laptop and create back up of all the games on the same machine.
Regardless of using your account or his own, he can restore the backed up games and be able to enjoy it at earliest. Do check if the games you are giving is available in your family member's region.
Happy gaming!
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