I created an application that automatically idles your Steam games to extract all of your available Steam Trading Cards. The application automatically finds the games you have drops remaining in, and idles those games one by one until all of your trading cards are in your inventory. This way, you can start up the program and go to sleep / work / away and come back to an inventory full of cards.

Website
Source Code
Official Group

Installation Instructions

Go to the Official Site, download and run the setup.exe file there. The program should launch automatically when the installation is complete. Make sure Steam is open and you're logged in. To start idling, you'll need to click the (Sign In) button and sign in to Steam. Once that's done you should be "in-game" on Steam and the program will indicate as such. Now go watch TV, go to bed, or go on vacation. When you come back to your computer, you should have a pile of Trading Cards in your inventory.

Some FAQ

How does this work?

First of all, the program will determine which of your games still have card drops remaining. It will go through each application and simulate you being “in-game” so that cards will drop. It will check periodically to see if the game you’re idling has card drops remaining. When only one drop remains, it will start checking more frequently. When the game you’re idling has no more cards, it’ll move on to the next game. When no more cards are available, the program will exit.

Do I need to download a game in order for this program to get it's trading cards?

No.

Do I need to be logged in to Steam for Idle Master to work?

Yes, Steam needs to be running and you must be logged in.

Can I play a game while this is running?

It’s possible, but doing so may significantly reduce your card drop rate. For best results, exit this program before playing a game.

How do I close the application?

Simply click the red X on the application.

Is this safe?

Presumably so, yes. The program that simulates you being in-game is no different than other popular methods like using Steam Achievement Manager or "the AppID trick".

Why do I need to sign in to Steam from the application?

When you visit your badges page on Steam, it will show you how many card drops you have remaining in each game. When another user looks at your badges page, they can only see the badges you've completed. By signing in, this allows Idle Master to connect to Steam properly and gives it access to this information that only you can see.

Why should I trust this?

The entire project is open source, which includes the source code for all binaries.

Troubleshooting

Idle Master looks like it's working, but I'm not getting any Steam Trading Cards.

First of all, be patient. Idle Master doesn't make them drop any faster than they normally would if you were playing the game, and each game has a different drop rate. Another thing to check is that your Steam profile correctly shows that you're "In-Game". If Steam doesn't think you're "In-Game", it means something is wrong with your configuration.

10 years ago*

Comment has been collapsed.

Any chance to make it work under Linux ? :)
I would gladly test it if you intent to do it....

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

See Ozo's post. I believe he got it to work for linux.:)

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Ozo forked a different script and made it work under Linux. (apparently works on Windows too)

I didn't try it myself, but you can test your luck with it.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

redid because of some a*hole
Clicky

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Clicky
Just install node, make a folder and download this file into that. than run "npm install" for packages steam and request in there. After that you should be able to just run that file.

Launch:
In first time, just put in your username and password, and comment out authCode line. When you receive steam guard code (if it's enabled for you), uncomment authCode and put your code in there.
Everything should be running.
If you or anyone else have any problems with that, just add me.
[P.S. npm instructions is for Linux. I don't know the exact npm syntax for Windows but I believe it's easy to find :)]

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I have tried to run it but it gives me this error
I am using Manjaro Linux btw...(arch based distro)
js: uncaught JavaScript runtime exception: ReferenceError: "process" is not defined.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

You need to use node.js

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

node.js is already installed on my system
I have downloaded the file that ozo2003 created and put it on the folder cards
when i run npm install it gives me this error ....

[wolf@w cards]$ npm install

npm ERR! install Couldn't read dependencies

npm ERR! package.json ENOENT, open '/home/wolf/Downloads/cards/package.json'

npm ERR! package.json This is most likely not a problem with npm itself.

npm ERR! package.json npm can't find a package.json file in your current directory.

npm ERR! System Linux 3.16.0-1-MANJARO

npm ERR! command "/usr/bin/node" "/usr/bin/npm" "install"

npm ERR! cwd /home/wolf/Downloads/cards

npm ERR! node -v v0.10.30

npm ERR! npm -v 1.4.21

npm ERR! path /home/wolf/Downloads/cards/package.json

npm ERR! code ENOPACKAGEJSON

npm ERR! errno 34

npm ERR!

npm ERR! Additional logging details can be found in:

npm ERR! /home/wolf/Downloads/cards/npm-debug.log

npm ERR! not ok code 0

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

can you zip and send me all the files with all the dependencies that it needs ?
(ps dont forget to remove your username and password)

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

i wrote that you need npm install for packages steam and request. that means you should run "npm install steam request"

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I think it's the same in Windows, but you need install ursa dependencies manually before installing node-steam.

Clicky

I went easier way and used my linux vm.

Nice updates btw.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

No.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

work great ,Thank you!

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

...lol, ofc I see this literally as I'm finishing up idling for cards for the past few days :L going out of my way to start the 8 card games before going to class/bed. thanks for the easier method for the last 3 games, lol.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Had to run as admin for it to actually work in Windows 8.1. You should have a second window pop up showing the game that is running, not just one dos window. So nice not to have to install the games, great work!

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Thanks, was wondering why I wasn't ingame.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

There is a second pop-up window. Either you're blind or you've got some sort of bug.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

You just repeated what he said. Learn to read maybe?

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Depends on your interpretation. "You should have a second window pop up showing the game that is running, not just one dos window." That could either be a suggestion to the program's creator to add a second window to make things clearer, or it could be a declaration telling other people in the thread that there won't just be a DOS window.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

To me it was obvious that it was a declaration that the second window should pop up and that under 8.1 he had to run it as administrator for it to happen.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I read it the other way initially and didn't see anything wrong with Clockian's response (apart from being a bit cheeky), but that...makes sense in hindsight, heh. :P

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

You first.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

He said that under Windows 8.1 the pop-up window did not appear until he ran it as administrator. Then you repeated that there was a pop-up window and called him blind.

I can see where you failed at reading, can you please tell me where I did?

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Maybe in your mangled idea of English, that works. In proper English you need to join connected thoughts together, like so:

"Had to run as admin for it to actually work in Windows 8.1. I didn't get the second window with the game information until I did that, just the DOS prompt."

The way they wrote it, they are two completely unrelated sentences. And I didn't call them blind. Did you catch the "or" in that statement? Perhaps English just isn't for you. And your assumption blind is some sort of insult is hilarious. I call myself blind when I fail to notice something all the time. Maybe it's because I'm pretty blind without my glasses on. But ooooh, I bet you're going to call me a four-eyes now with your impressive command of the English language.

Seriously, you're looking to start something where nothing needed to be started, buzz off already.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

looks great.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

No go for me here on Win 7. Setup was simple enough and it found my info, but , after running all day...did not find a single card and was stuck on the same game. Used Ctrl-C to skip the game and was met with "ERROR: The process "steam-idle.exe" not found."...It's there. In the same directory. Not sure what my issue may be. shrugs

-EDIT- Trying the blacklist feature and to see if that changes anything...Not getting a game window. Nada.

-EDIT 2- Blacklisted the offending game but still no game window and not showing as "in-game." Oh well. Maybe I'll give this a look when I'm more rested.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Try deleting sort ="". I run Win 7 too and that's what I needed to do to get it to work.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Nothing. It says it's finding cards now but they aren't being added to my account....Oh well.

-EDIT- Re-downloaded the package and set it up again from scratch. Seems to be working now. Meaning, I now see a game window when I start the program. Gonna see how it goes. :)

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Wow thanks! This is great.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

EPIC, you sir are a LEGEND

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Gonna try this as well, sounds really good

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Juuuust a little reminder. Third-party programs like this are against the Steam TOS, but unlikely to result in punitive measures. Valve have historically frowned on things like this, but never gave out heavy punishments for using them given their innocent nature.

Once upon a time, there was a program that let people idle for TF2 items without logging into the game. The punishment wave that occurred as they patched it, was simply to remove the items generated by idling. Some people got their inventories wiped. Though it's worth noting that this was back when inventories were only for TF2, there were only a handful of alternate weapons (it was only when the first medic alternates were being made I believe), and there was no cash store.

Don't be surprised if Valve waggle their fingers at you in a similar manner, but rest assured they probably won't mash your inventory or screw you badly. I personally wouldn't want to risk having any cards taken from me, buuuut that seems unlikely anyway. Still. History lesson served. Use at your own risk~

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Yeah - I'd be reluctant to have this sort of application running while playing a VAC enabled game too. Perhaps I worry too much?

Didn't some folks get VAC bans for running SAM under these circumstances, or was that just a urban myth?

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I have no idea, though false positives do happen. I assume Valve would be pretty good about unbanning if you can wait out the initial waves of automated responses, and can list any running programs/processes that might have triggered it.

I always make a note of any gaming programs I run while on multiplayer games. Silly things like Teamspeak, Bandicam, FRAPS. It just pays to know what to mention, really. Besides, you don't need to be running a VAC enabled game in this instance as you're tricking the system into thinking you're playing when you're not. That alone might be enough. Then again, I might just be paranoid.

Either way I have way too many games to risk on something like this. I'll do it the slow way. Besides this gives me incentive to actually play through my backlog~

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

+1 on the last paragraph

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Ditto for me. As tempting as this is, with 1,806 card drops remaining, I won't risk losing my account, no matter how unlikely it is. My account is certainly worth a lot more than $300 worth of card drops. I'll just keep farming the old fashioned way! And who knows, might find a gem of a game while doing it.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Another +1, I value my account too much to risk it for €12-13 (total value of undropped cards). Everything in its due time.

9 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Works fine, thanks, OP!
Is it possible to skip a game that is currently idling?

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

While it's running? Not sure. Beforehand you can put games in the blacklist, I think.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Ctrl+C when window is selected.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

nice maybe i'll use it sometime soon :D

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Just so people are aware, a hit on WS.Reputation.1 from Symantec just means that Symantec doesn't recognize the application as being widely used. This is not surprising since it was only released a few days ago. More Info Here.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

What am I doing wrong?

Edit: I've also tried restarting Steam and deleting the cookies and repasting them.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Someone mentioned earlier that they had to run it as administrator before it would work, might try that.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Right click -> Run as administrator? Nah still coming up the same :s

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Did you fill the settings.txt correctly?

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I think so, took the screenshots to ask.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

It might be due to both items being on the same line in your notepad file. The settings.txt file does not have the carriage return at the end of the lines. (I edited it in Wordpad so I didn't screw up the format.)

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Tried putting them on separate lines, no luck.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

You would need to do it in the same format they originally were. Redownload the file and try editing it again without touching any of the line breaks. Only click inside of the quotation marks and paste your information there and you'll be fine.

Alternatively, if you use an editor like Notepad++, it can handle Linux-style line breaks and you won't have to worry about messing with things you can't see.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Like Clockian said, starting back from the original file might help.

If you don't want to download any alternative editor, Wordpad comes with Windows and will keep the file format intact.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Thanks for all the help everyone, Wordpad helped.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Much better than SAM. Thanks a lot!

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

better because ?

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Because he said so.. what?
DAMN!

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

it automatically switches to the next game with card drops. Sam you have to watch Steam and open the next game manually.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

can this work for drop item too?
like tf2?

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

In Team Fortress you must play in a ranked server to get drops

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

VAC secured, not necessarily ranked. There are idle servers in tf2, you just need some way to hit the button for each drop.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Still don't trust sam or this.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Some don't trust people who took 4+ free games from golden joysticks to boost their CV here either, but if you look at the source code of this program, you can see there if there were something to worry about.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Wow. A personal attack for nothing. Keeping it classy, BrandeX?

The difference between giving away free games and using a third party tool is that one is harmless, and the other can potentially screw you out of an account. Caution is a good thing. Throwing pointless internet tough-guy barbs is not.

Edit : Disregard me, there are clone copies. That IS pretty bad :/

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

It seemed to me like he was insinuating jshackles was probably a scammer attempting to hack people's accounts, more or less something like a person attack too, especially considering it's open source and anyone can inspect the code to see what's going on. Anyway I was right about that guy, and it's not about what he's given but what he's "won". I'm not going to do a callout, you'll have to follow the profile trail yourself if you care.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

15+ games to get cards pretty much all the time (blame sales and bundles!!!)- and work/kids/bills... And old laptop. And 3 gamers on 1 same bandwidth... With 2 of them going at multiplayer quite often... So sure I decided to give it a try. Using a video it was a breeze to install and start it. So much easier than downloading and running games and constantly manually checking on everything! Less hassle and more time and resources to do something else.
Thank you very much! <3

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Just started running this.... looks like it could save me a lot of time and effort.

Thanks, big thumbs up!

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

naiisuu

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Wow, thanks for this awesome tool... and Enhanced Steam! :D

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

620 card drops remaining

165 games with drops remaining

Worth Approximately 57,91€

Sounds dumb, but messing my playtime history is not worth 60€ for me :D

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Where can you see that data?
€dit: Nvm, looks like Enhanced Steam is pretty cool. :D

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

It's a feature of Enhanced Steam

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

I'm curious-- if anyone reads this, can they explain what the "app id trick" is? Even if it doesn't work anymore, I'd like to know.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

the appid trick is where you would go into your game files and change appid.txt to another games appid. so you would seem to be playing game B while youre actually playing game A.

10 years ago
Permalink

Comment has been collapsed.

Sign in through Steam to add a comment.