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Usually, no. In Steam’s current Achievement Sets system, achievements from downloadable content (DLC) are placed in a separate DLC set and do not count toward completion of the base-game set. A game can therefore show a completed base set even when you have not purchased its expansions. The important exception is implementation: older games, or games whose developers have not configured separate sets, may still use one combined achievement list. Check the individual game’s achievement page to see which rule applies.

How Steam’s 100% completion system works now

Steam no longer has to treat every achievement attached to a game as one indivisible checklist. Developers can divide achievements into named sets, such as Base Game, Story Expansion, or a particular DLC. Each set has its own completion state. Valve’s Steamworks achievement documentation states that a DLC set does not count toward completion of the base game or any other set.

Base-game and DLC sets are independent

When a title exposes a separate Base Game set, the 100% figure for that set is calculated only from achievements assigned to it. Achievements assigned to an expansion are measured in that expansion’s set instead. Completing the base set does not require opening, buying, or finishing the DLC set.

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This separation is different from merely labeling achievements “DLC” in a single list. The developer must configure actual Steam Achievement Sets in Steamworks. A visual label alone does not guarantee independent completion.

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Ownership is the gate for DLC progress

Steam counts a DLC set toward your overall game completion only when you own that DLC. Valve’s documentation puts the rule plainly: “DLC sets only count toward a player’s completion if they own the DLC.” If you do not own an expansion, its achievements are excluded from the completion calculation rather than treated as unfinished tasks.

Buying the DLC changes what is eligible. Once the license is on your account, Steam can show that set and include its achievements in your completion progress, even if you have not unlocked any of them yet.

Completion is recorded per set

A set is complete when every achievement that is still required in that set has been unlocked. Steam stores that completion state separately for each set. Valve also says that if new achievements are later added to a set, your completion is preserved. In other words, an already-completed set is not automatically stripped of its completed status merely because the developer adds more achievements to that same set.

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Can you 100% the base game without buying the DLC?

Yes, provided the game uses separate sets. You can finish every achievement in the Base Game set and reach 100% for that set without owning any expansion. The unowned DLC sets remain outside your eligible progress.

There are two details to verify:

  • The game must expose a separate base set. If the developer keeps base and expansion achievements in one legacy set, the additional achievements can affect the same completion list.
  • Your profile may show more than one percentage. Steam can display the completed Base Game set and a separate DLC set, so a game-level view may not look identical to the base-set figure.

Not owning the DLC does not give you a hidden list of permanently incomplete achievements. Under the sets model, Steam excludes that unowned content from the requirements used for your completion percentage.

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Why did a game fall below 100% after DLC was released?

The apparent contradiction comes from two different Steam implementations.

Legacy combined lists

Before Achievement Sets were used for a title, Steam commonly presented one combined achievement list for the game. If a developer appended ten expansion achievements to that same list, the denominator increased while your unlocked total stayed the same. A game that had displayed 100% could then show a lower percentage until you earned the new achievements.

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That behavior is still possible for games that have not been migrated or configured with separate sets. It is not evidence that every Steam game treats DLC this way; it is a title-specific implementation detail.

Separate sets prevent that particular reset

When the developer creates a new DLC set, the expansion appears as its own completion unit. Valve’s Steam announcement explains that DLC achievements are not included in overall game progress until you have access to the content. The Steamworks Development announcement adds that when the DLC goes live, its set appears for players and counts only for players who own the DLC.

For a supported title, your completed base set should remain complete when an unowned expansion launches. If the profile still shows a drop, inspect whether the new achievements were added to the existing set, whether you now own the DLC, or whether the game is using an older configuration.

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How to check a game’s exact behavior

Steam does not apply one universal rule retroactively to every catalog entry. Use the game’s own achievement view before assuming that a purchase is required.

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  1. Open the game’s Steam page or Library entry. Select the game, then open its achievements view using the visible “Achievements” or equivalent link.
  2. Look for set names or grouped sections. A heading such as Base Game followed by one or more separately named DLC sections indicates that the title is exposing Achievement Sets. A single undivided list suggests legacy or combined behavior.
  3. Check whether the DLC is owned. An unowned expansion may be listed for discovery but excluded from your completion requirements. Ownership status is decisive for whether a DLC set contributes to your profile progress.
  4. Compare the set totals. Note the unlocked and total achievements inside the Base Game section separately from each expansion. Do not add every visible number together unless Steam presents them as one set.
  5. Recheck after an update. A developer can add achievements to an existing set or introduce a new set. Steam’s handling depends on where those achievements were assigned.

What each common situation means

Situation Base-game completion DLC completion What to expect
Separate Base Game and DLC sets; DLC not owned Calculated from the Base Game set Excluded from your requirements You can complete the base game without purchasing the expansion.
Separate sets; DLC owned but no DLC achievements unlocked Unaffected by the DLC set Included as an incomplete owned set Your overall game progress can include the owned expansion’s unfinished achievements.
DLC achievements added to the existing combined set Same list now contains more requirements No independent set A previously perfect percentage can fall until the added achievements are earned.
Achievements added to an already completed set Steam preserves the set’s completion state Depends on the set where they were added The completed status is not revoked simply because the set receives additions.
Achievements archived by the developer Archived items are removed from requirements for players who never unlocked them Same rule applies within that set The required total can change without requiring an unavailable achievement.

What archived achievements do to the calculation

Steam can mark an achievement as archived when it is no longer obtainable or should no longer be required. For players who have not unlocked an archived achievement, Steam excludes it from the requirements used to determine completion. This prevents an unavailable task from blocking a set forever.

If you unlocked an achievement before it was archived, your profile can still display that historical unlock. The practical question for a current 100% attempt is whether the item remains in the set’s required total, not whether it is still visible somewhere in the game’s achievement history.

Why developers determine the result

Achievement Sets are a Steamworks configuration feature, not an automatic classification that Steam infers from a store page. The developer decides whether to create a Base Game set, how to name DLC sets, and where newly added achievements belong. That is why two games released in the same year can produce different answers to the same 100% question.

Valve’s documentation describes DLC sets as separate sets that do not count toward the base game or any other set. Valve’s announcements describe the player-facing effect: DLC progress is shown independently and is included in overall game progress only when the player has access to the content. Those statements apply when the title has adopted the feature; they do not convert a legacy combined list automatically.

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During the transition to the newer model, a game may also have a mixture of old and new content. For example, the base achievements might remain in one established set while a later expansion receives its own set. The labels and grouping on that game’s achievement page are therefore more reliable than assumptions based on the release date or the DLC’s store description.

How Steam’s profile language reflects the change

Valve distinguishes completed achievement sets from completed games. A profile can show a completed Base Game set while listing separate progress for owned expansions. This wording matters because “I completed the game” and “I completed every set attached to the game” are no longer necessarily the same claim.

If you are tracking a personal 100% goal, decide which target you mean:

  • Base-game 100%: every still-required achievement in the Base Game set.
  • Owned-content 100%: the base set plus every DLC set you own.
  • All-content 100%: every set, including DLC you have not purchased. Steam does not normally treat unowned DLC as part of your required progress, so this is a personal completion goal rather than the default eligibility calculation.
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Troubleshooting a surprising percentage

The percentage dropped when you do not own the DLC

Open the achievement view and identify where the new achievements sit. If they are inside the Base Game or another existing set, the title is not using a separate DLC set for that content. If they are in an unowned DLC set, they should be excluded from your requirements; allow Steam time to refresh, then check the set-level figures rather than only the headline percentage.

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The DLC set appears, but your overall progress changed after purchase

Ownership makes the DLC set eligible. Once you buy it, its unfinished achievements can enter the progress calculation. That change is expected and does not mean the base set was invalidated. Review the Base Game and DLC percentages independently.

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You earned everything visible but cannot reach 100%

Look for archived or newly added achievements and confirm whether they belong to the same set. An archived achievement that you never unlocked should not remain a requirement, while a newly added achievement may be pending in the set where the developer placed it. Steam’s set grouping, not the total number of achievements shown in a store description, determines the calculation.

A completed set lost its completed status

First verify that you are viewing the same set and account. Steam states that adding achievements to a set preserves its completion, so an apparent reversal points to a different set, a display refresh issue, or a title-specific configuration change rather than the normal behavior of Achievement Sets.

Official rules and announcements

For the implementation details developers use, see Valve’s Steamworks “Step by Step: Achievements” documentation. Valve’s player-facing explanation is in the Steam Achievement Sets announcement, and the rollout details appear in the Steamworks Development Achievement Sets announcement.

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The practical answer

For a game with separate Achievement Sets, DLC achievements do not count against the base-game 100% and unowned DLC is excluded from your required progress. You can finish the Base Game set without buying expansions. The exception is a legacy or differently configured title that keeps DLC achievements in a combined set; in that case, new achievements can affect the same percentage. Always verify the set headings and ownership status on the game’s achievement page before interpreting its 100% figure.

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