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Steam achievements can be a source of pride for gamers. But do they actually provide any tangible benefits? Here’s a look at Steam achievements and whether they really matter.
The Benefits of Steam Achievements
Steam achievements don’t have the kind of direct benefits like your Steam Level.Your Steam Level unlocks more customization optionsfor your profile and increases your friends list limit.
On the other hand, Steam achievements are more about bragging rights—especially when you use an achievements showcase on your Steam profile.
But besides showing off your total achievements, rarest achievements, and perfect games, do Steam achievements have any other benefits? I decided to try catch up to some of my friends when it comes to achievements and perfect games and found that there is some appeal to achievement hunting.
One benefit of hunting achievements was that it increased the total time I spent in the game, allowing me to explore all the features and areas in a certain title. I purposely chose games where achievements weren’t too grindy and that didn’t require a massive time investment (like the Baldur’s Gate 3 Honor Mode achievement). But I tried out features I hadn’t in previous playthroughs to get achievements.
In a game like Little Kitty, Big City, which has a relatively short playtime, hunting achievements let me explore every nook and cranny of the game. I also got some replay value out of Unpacking while hunting achievements.
Do Steam Achievements Really Matter?
While I found some benefits to hunting for Steam achievements, I wouldn’t spend an inordinate amount of time chasing particular achievements. In one case where I did have to grind considerably to get an achievement I’d missed in an earlier playthrough, I found that it somewhat soured my enjoyment of the game.
If you don’t care about bragging rights, then Steam achievements are just a nice perk that can make you feel like you achieved a certain milestone in your game. They also encourage you to play a game to its full extent.
But they don’t matter enough that I would encourage grinding them. Some players do take pride in achievements, even going so far as to install achievement farming games on Steam. But much likeitem farming games on Steam, these don’t provide a rewarding experience for players.
If you get a dopamine boost when you get achievements or 100% a game, then by all means, go ahead and hunt for achievements. But if you find yourself grinding a lot and not enjoying the experience (or even starting to dislike a game), then it may be time to remember that Steam achievements aren’t all that important in the grand scheme of things.
