Valve is testing Steam Achievement Sets, a beta feature that lets developers group achievements into collections and preserve recognition for a completed set when more achievements are added to it. The system also separates base-game progress from achievements that require paid DLC, rather than treating every new unlock as part of one undivided list.
That distinction matters for games that keep growing after launch. A new expansion or season can bring more challenges for players to tackle, but it can also complicate completion tracking for people who had already finished the achievements available to them. Ongoing releases such as the Space Engineers Prosperity update show how much an established game can continue to add after release.
Separate sets for the base game and DLCDevelopers choose how many sets a game has and what each one covers. A game might split achievements between single-player and multiplayer, while another could sort them into class-based collections. Players continue to unlock achievements in the usual way; Steam then organises them into the sets chosen by the developer.
Each set gets its own progress bar. Completing one adds a set-completion trophy to the player’s profile, and Valve says that recognition stays in place if new achievements are later added to that set. Developers can also add new sets as a game expands, giving returning players a separate group of new objectives without removing their earlier set-completion status.
Set type What it tracks Progress display Base Game Achievements available to all players of the game Blue DLC Achievements requiring access to additional content PurpleDLC achievements do not count toward overall game progress until the player has access to the relevant content. That is a narrower promise than a blanket guarantee that every game’s overall 100% status will remain untouched: the feature preserves completed-set recognition and keeps inaccessible DLC progress separate.
Archived achievements and a revised tracking pageDevelopers can archive individual achievements or whole sets, a tool Valve says may suit seasonal games and limited-time holiday challenges. Players who unlocked archived content keep it visible on their profiles; players who missed it will not have it displayed there or have it block progress toward completing a set or game.
Steam’s updated achievements page is available from the web Games List and from games in the Library. Search filters can narrow results to particular sets or to locked and unlocked achievements, while comparisons can show progress against up to three friends, including rare achievements and DLC sets.
The change reaches beyond the achievement page. Steam has renamed the Perfect Games tab to Completed, which now includes both completed games and games with completed achievement sets. Games played through Family Sharing also appear in the Games List, and Store and Library pages indicate whether a game supports Achievement Sets.
The beta already covers 17 gamesThe beta is open to players and developers, but the feature appears in a game only as its developer adopts the new tools. The source lists 17 supported games, including Against the Storm, Crusader Kings 3, DREDGE, Portal 2, Team Fortress 2 and PowerWash Simulator 2.
Gameplay from Against the Storm. – Image: Against the Storm / SteamValve says it plans to make further improvements during the beta. For now, whether Achievement Sets show up in a particular game depends on its developer; the beta itself is not a universal change to every game’s achievement list.
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