Recommend what to play next, anywhere in your game.

A small card for your main menu, pause screen, game over, or anywhere else. It shows players your other games, a friend’s game, or a pick from another indie dev, one click from Steam.

Apply to join See the setup

Press Retry for a new pick, just like your players will. Cards show real Steam games as examples; those games aren’t part of the network.

Free to use
No ads, no rewards for clicks
Nothing that identifies your players

7 ready-made spots

Where to put it

Anywhere players have a moment to look. Each spot is ready-made in the Godot and Unity plugins: drag it in, change the words, done.

A “Recommended games” buttonStart here

Players open it when they want to, so it never feels like an ad. Fits on the main menu or pause menu.

Show: Picks from the network, or your friends’ games
Say: “Recommended games” or “Games we love”
Use: recommended_button.tscn
Don’t: Open it automatically. The player should always be the one who opens it.

Skip: anything on top of gameplay or that pops up when the player goes idle, and rewards for clicking. Both break Steam’s rules and ours.

Not sure which spot works best? Try two. Your dashboard splits shows and clicks by screen.

Three sources

Choose what it shows

Mix them however you like. The header and button can say anything you want.

Your other games

Point players at your back catalog or your next release. Works from day one, no network needed.

A friend’s game

Choose specific games to feature, like your friends’ or your community’s.

Picks from the network

A rotating game from another approved indie dev, matched to yours by genre.

Example cards use real Steam games. Those games aren’t part of the network.

Your news

Your news, in every copy of your game

Running a Kickstarter, launching your next game or putting one on sale? Write a card in your dashboard and it shows first in all your games. No patch, no update.

Start from a template. Kickstarter, our next game, on sale, community or soundtrack.
Schedule it. Start and end dates, and which screens each card shows on.
Only in your own games. Your cards never show in other studios’ games.
Test your wording. Run two versions of a card and see which gets more clicks.

Free, with as many cards as you want.

For Godot 4.3+ and Unity 2021.3+, or any engine

Set up in a few minutes

You can try it before you apply. Without a key, the plugin runs in test mode with example cards.

Download and enable
Unzip into your project so you have addons/pixeldoor, then turn on Pixeldoor in Project Settings, Plugins.
Download the plugin
Drop the card on any screen
Drag promo_card.tscn into a scene, or a ready-made one like the Recommended games button. Choose what it shows and how it’s worded in the inspector.
PixeldoorCard
Placement
gameover
Source
picks
Picks
["my-friends-game"]
Fill From Network
On
Header Text
Try my friend’s game
Button Text
Wishlist it
Auto Load
Off
Everything is set in the inspector. No code needed for the basics.
GDScript
```
# Screens that open later, like game over:
# turn off Auto Load on the card, then
func _on_game_over() -> void:
    $GameOverScreen.show()
    $GameOverScreen/PixeldoorCard.refresh()  # new pick every time
```
Add your key when you’re approved
Until then the plugin uses the test key, so you can build and play with example cards right away. Nothing is recorded in test mode. When your game is approved, paste your key into Project Settings, Pixeldoor.

House rules

Fair to players

Short rules, so players never feel like they’re looking at an ad.

Every game is approved by hand.No asset flips, scams or adult games next to your cozy farm sim.
Never on top of gameplay.Menus, pause, game over, loading screens. Wherever it fits.
No rewards for clicking.Players click because the game looks good, not for coins.
Always easy to ignore.The card sits next to your buttons. It never pops up or blocks anything.

What gets counted

When a card is shown, on which screen, and when it’s clicked
How long a card was on screen before the click
Platform, language and country, so you can see where clicks come from
Plugin and engine version, so we can fix bugs

What never does

Player names, Steam IDs or accounts
IP addresses (country is read from the connection, then the address is dropped)
Device IDs or anything that follows a player between games
Anything a player does in your game

Want less? One setting turns off platform, language and country. Every card link is tagged utm_source=pixeldoor, so wishlists from cards show up in your own Steamworks UTM report. More in the privacy page.

Questions devs ask

Will it slow my game down?

No. The card loads in the background after your screen opens, the plugin is a few small scripts, and stats are sent in small batches every few seconds. Loading screens switch the moment your level is ready, even if the card server is slow.

What if the player is offline?

The card hides itself. Nothing breaks and nothing waits on the network.

Does it work in browser games, like on itch.io?

Yes. The plugin works in Godot web exports, and cards and their art load inside itch.io’s player. Without Steam, a click opens the store page in a new tab. Any other web engine can use the HTTP API.

Is this allowed on Steam?

Valve’s rules allow cross-promotion, including your own products outside Steam like a Kickstarter or soundtrack. What they don’t allow is ads as a business model, forcing players to watch ads, or rewarding them for clicking. The card does none of that, and nobody is paid for showing it. It’s recommendations, not ad space.

What does it cost?

Nothing. The card, the network, your stats and your own news cards are all free while we’re getting started. If we ever add paid extras, we’ll say so first, and you’ll never be charged for anything you didn’t sign up for.

Can I make it match my game?

Yes. It’s a normal Godot scene or Unity UI, so give it your theme, fonts and layout, or build your own card with the plugin’s functions. The docs show how.

Do I need to update my privacy policy?

It’s a good idea. The privacy page has a short paragraph you can copy.

Apply to join

We’re letting games in a few at a time. Tell us about yours and you’ll hear back by email. Questions first? Email michael@newware.co.