Steam Wants Me to Buy Game Again

Steam doesn't recognize installed games: Try these fixes

Tashreef Shareef is a software developer turned tech writer. He discovered his involvement in technology later on reading a tech magazine accidentally. At present he writes nearly everything tech from Windows to iOS and streaming services... Read more

Updated: Feb xi, 2022

Posted: May 2019

• Many users reported that sometimes Steam doesn't recognize the installed games and it tin be a pretty annoying problem.
• To fix this result, try reinstalling the games without downloading them.
• Adding a Steam Library folder manually proved to solve this consequence in several cases.
• To brand Steam recognize the installed games, you tin try to force the recognition.

10INSTALL BY CLICKING THE DOWNLOAD FILE

Steam allows you lot to manage all your games from ane identify. However, it seems similar Steam doesn't sometimes recognize installed games.

The trouble can occur if you determine to clean install Windows and take a fill-in of the Steam app folder containing your game files and other data.

Moved information technology dorsum to the Steam installation binder only to have Steam to re-download all the game data dorsum again.

And then if Steam is not detecting installed games, continue reading the guide beneath and discover the all-time methods to easily get rid of this problem.

What tin I do if Steam doesn't recognize installed games?

1. Reinstall the Games without downloading
2. Add together Steam Library folder manually
3. Recognize Games from a new Drive
4. Apply .acf Cache to force recognize Steam games

1. Reinstall the Games without downloading

1. Hit the Windows cardinal, type Steam, then open information technology.
2. Go to Games.
3. Select and click on Install for the game that Steam has failed to recognize.
4. Steam will start to find existing files for the game.

If Steam fails to recognize any of the installed games, it will show you lot an pick to install the game all again.

If y'all have the game data in the Steam apps folder, and then you can forcefulness Steam to recognize the games by initiating the installation of the game.

2. Add Steam Library folder manually

1. Press on the Windows cardinal, blazon the app'due south name, then launch Steam.
2. From the height-left corner of the window, click on Steam.
3. Navigate to Settings.
4. Click on the Downloads tab.
5. Click on Steam Library Folders.
6. In the pop-up window, click on the Add button (marked as a +).
7. Select the location where all your Steam game data is saved, and then click on Add together.
8. Close the settings.
9. Exit Steam, then restart the app
10. Steam should at present recognize installed games again and listing them in the games folder.

Steam by default stores the game data in the Steamapps binder in the installation disk. If yous had a custom location where the game data was stored, you could endeavor to add the location in the Steam app to fix this issue.

3. Recognize Games from a new drive

1. Click on the Windows search bar, type Steam, then open the desktop app.
2. From the pinnacle-left corner of the window, click on Steam.
3. Navigate to Settings.
4. Click on the Downloads tab.
5. Now, from the right window pane, click on Steam Library Folders.
6. In the pop-up window, click on the Add together push (marked equally a +).
7. Navigate to the location where your games are moved (new directory) that is: D:/games/your_subdirectory
8. Click on Select and close to save the library folder.

If your main bulldoze (steam default installation location) does non accept enough infinite to install all the games, you tin can movement the game data to a new hard drive so add together the Game Library Folder manually in the Steam app.

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In the steps above you can find how to do it if yous desire your games to be in the D:/games directory. Thus, y'all'll need offset to create a subdirectory named Steamappscommon. The binder construction volition look like this:

D:\Games\steamapps\common

Once the subdirectory is created, movement all the games to the newly-created directory.

After moving the games, the game directory will look like this:

D:\Games\steamapps\mutual\Assassin's Creed Iv Blackness Flag

D:\Games\steamapps\common\Counter Strike Global Offensive

Go out Steam and relaunch it. The app will scan the newly selected Library binder and testify all the games as installed.

iv. Use .acf Enshroud to force recognize Steam games

1. Make sure that you take reinstalled Steam or have the existing installation.
2. Correct-click on the game data folder, and then paste it to C: \Program Files (x86)\Steam\Steamapps folder
3. Press on the Windows key, type Steam, then open the first result.
4. At this point, Steam may show some games that are installed correctly.
5. For the games that show every bit not installed, select and click on the Install push button.
6. Steam will start to find all the existing files.
7. However, if the Steam does not recognize the existing files, information technology will kickoff to download the files, and the progress will read 0%.
8. Pause the updating for the games and exit Steam.
9. Become to: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\Steamapps and find all the current .acf files.
10. Copy all the .acf files and motility information technology to a new binder outside the Steamapps folder.
11. Relaunch Steam again. In the Games library, the afflicted game will show as uninstalled.
12. Exit Steam.
13. Move all the .acf files back into this folder: C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\Steamapps folder.
14. Restart Steam. Go the Game library and click Resume Updating for the games that yous paused previously.

If you have taken the Steamapps folder fill-in with all the game data, you can apply the Steam cache files to force Steam to recognize the installed games from the game data. In other words, yous make Steam scan for games that you lot own.

If everything goes right, all the games that you had previously installed will appear every bit installed. If an update is required, proceed with it.

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Source: https://windowsreport.com/steam-doesnt-recognize-installed-games/

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