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Kernel mode anticheat software is somewhat of a divisive topic. Many players believe that it negatively affects the performance of their games and can potentially compromise their system security; but many players also want to do something about all unscrupulous players, and by and large, core-level anticheat is the most effective way to keep clean. It is, as they say, an enigma.

A new addition to Steam won’t change any of the above, but it will at least make it easier for people to know what’s going on and react accordingly: A field on Steam’s store pages will now allow developers to clearly state what kind of anti-cheat software their game uses , and in the case of anticheat in core mode, will require that disclosure.

“We’ve heard from more and more developers recently that they’re looking for the right way to share anti-cheat information about their game with players,” Valve wrote. “At the same time, players have requested more transparency around the anti-cheat services used in games, as well as the existence of additional software that will be installed in the game.”

Any new game added to Steam that installs a client-side kernel mode anti-cheat will be required to populate the new field, and Valve said it will go through its legacy games and contact developers and publishers whose games fall into it category to ensure they update their store pages accordingly.

Games with non-core client or server-based anti-cheat won’t be required to populate the field, “but we generally believe that any game that uses anti-cheat technology would benefit from letting players know about it,” Valve said.

You can see the change on the Counter-Strike 2 Steam page, which now has a field indicating the presence of Valve Anti-Cheat software:

The early response to the change is quite positive (although some comments seem more focused on calling out the inherent evils of kernel mode software than on the new messaging system itself), which isn’t entirely surprising. People have been unhappy with anticheat in core mode for years. Riot’s Vanguard software caused controversy when it went live in 2020, as well Doom Eternal around the same time. Activision tried to dodge the bullet when it announced it Ricochet anticheat in core mode for Call of Duty games in 2021, promising it will only work when Warzone is running, a maneuver that met with limited success; EA jumped into the fray with the same promise in 2023. As we noted earlier this year, anticheat in core mode going nowherebut now at least you’ll know when it’s around.