A $1,000 Steam game that does absolutely nothing — and people are buying it
A new Steam listing called Congratulations On Your Purchase costs $999.99, contains no gameplay whatsoever, and already has more buyers than it has ever had concurrent players. Launched May 28, 2026, by developer Minimum Viable Prestige and publisher Worth It Studio, it bills itself as the most expensive game on Steam — and it almost certainly is.
What you actually get
The "game" is a 10-minute walking experience through a palace corridor: red carpet, chandeliers, velvet ropes, pixelated onlookers. There are no mechanics, no quests, no dialogue, no objectives. You walk. You reach the end. That's it. One achievement exists — "You are now one of us" — but OpenCritic reports only 16.6% of buyers have unlocked it, meaning most people who spent four figures on this thing haven't even launched it.
Peak concurrent players recorded: one. Presumed to be the developer.
The joke, explained
The whole thing is a deliberate meta-commentary on status spending and social-media flex culture. The studio's name — Minimum Viable Prestige — tells you everything. As TheGamer frames it, the game is essentially the "hustle of trying to fleece rich people," a satirical Garry's Mod-style map dressed up as a luxury product. The Steam Store page explicitly states the price is not a mistake.
The closest precedent is the "I Am Rich" iOS app from 2008 — a $999.99 red gem that did nothing except confirm you'd spent $999.99. Apple pulled it within 24 hours. Valve has not pulled this.
The Steam listing confirms the $999.99 price is intentional.
Steam's standard refund policy — two hours of playtime, within 14 days — technically applies. Given the game lasts ten minutes, a determined buyer could request a refund after a single session. Whether Valve would honour it for something that functioned exactly as advertised is a different question entirely.
Zero user reviews have been posted so far. Whether that reflects buyers' embarrassment, amusement, or a very small sample size is unclear — actual purchase numbers haven't been disclosed.
