How to Have Steam Track Time for Non Steam Games

Steam is a go-to platform for PC gamers, offering an expansive library of games, social features, and the ability to track your gameplay time. But what if your favorite game isn’t on Steam? While you can add non-Steam games to your Steam library, there’s a significant limitation: Steam won’t track the time you spend playing those games. Fortunately, there’s a solution that can bridge this gap: Playnite.

What is Playnite?

Playnite is a powerful, open-source video game library manager that allows you to centralize all your games from various platforms, including Steam, GOG, Epic Games, Origin, and more. One of Playnite’s standout features is its ability to track the time you spend playing each game, regardless of whether it’s from Steam or another launcher. This means that by using Playnite, you can keep an accurate record of your gameplay hours for all your games in one place.

Why Use Playnite for Non-Steam Games?

Here are some reasons why using Playnite can enhance your gaming experience:

Open-Source and Free: Playnite is completely free and open-source, meaning it’s regularly updated and can be modified to suit your needs.

Unified Game Library: Playnite gathers all your games, from Steam to GOG, into one cohesive library, making it easier to manage and launch your games.

Time Tracking: Playnite tracks your gameplay time across all platforms, allowing you to see how much time you’ve invested in each title, including those not on Steam.

Customization and Integration: Playnite offers various customization options and can be integrated with third-party tools to further enhance its functionality.

How to Set Up Playnite for Non-Steam Games

If you’re interested in having Steam track your non-Steam game time through Playnite, here’s a simple guide to get you started:

Optional: Steam Integration: If you still want to use Steam as your main launcher, you can link Playnite with Steam by adding Playnite as a non-Steam game. This way, you can launch Playnite from Steam and access all your games, with Playnite keeping track of your playtime.

Download and Install Playnite: Visit the Playnite website and download the latest version. Follow the installation instructions to get it set up on your PC.

Import Your Game Library: After installing Playnite, the program will prompt you to import your game libraries. Select the platforms you use (e.g., Steam, GOG, Epic Games, etc.) and let Playnite gather your games.

Add Non-Steam Games: For games not included in any of the supported platforms, you can manually add them to Playnite. Simply go to Library > Add Game > Manually, and input the details of your game.

Track Your Gameplay: Once your games are added, Playnite will automatically track the time you spend playing each game. You can view this information in your Playnite library under the game’s details.