ASCII art for Steam: choose the right text field
A box can line up in one Steam field and fall apart in another. Steam's Guide-comment help lists a fixed-width [code] block that preserves spaces. Its Profile-comment help does not list that tag. Check the destination before pasting a large picture.
Guide comments and Profile comments have different help
Guide comments: a documented code block
The official Guide-comment formatting help lists [code]...[/code] for a fixed-width font and preserved spaces. The complete block below uses that syntax.
Profile comments: do not assume the same support
The official Profile-comment formatting help lists a smaller set of tags, without [code]. A pasted tag is not a promise of monospace text. Use a short plain message when the field cannot preserve the layout.
These are comment-specific help pages, not a specification for your profile's About Me field, chat or an artwork showcase. Inspect the formatting help for the exact field you plan to use. A guide about text formatting does not unlock Steam profile features.
Reproduce a small co-op notice
This original notice is 24 columns and four rows, including its borders. It uses ordinary ASCII spaces, not tabs, emoji or invisible spacing characters. Start small: 24 columns is this example's width, not a Steam limit or a guaranteed mobile fit.
1. Enter these two lines
CO-OP NIGHT FRIDAY 20:00
Open the box generator, replace its sample text, set Total columns to 24 and Border to Classic, then select Generate text box. Your result should match these four lines:
Recreate the notice in the box generator+----------------------+ | CO-OP NIGHT | | FRIDAY 20:00 | +----------------------+
Choose Copy text, not Copy as Markdown. The latter adds backtick fences for Markdown; those fences are not Steam's documented code-block syntax.
2. Use this wrapper where the field supports code
Select the complete block below, including the opening and closing tags. Paste it into your own supported Steam draft. The tags go on separate lines around the art; they are not part of the generated box.
[code] +----------------------+ | CO-OP NIGHT | | FRIDAY 20:00 | +----------------------+ [/code]
The box itself is 99 characters including spaces and line breaks. The complete tagged block is 114. These measurements describe this specimen, not a field's character allowance. Check the current limit shown by Steam. For other art, check whether any text looks like a Steam tag rather than assuming this wrapper safely escapes arbitrary content.
3. Check the draft before posting
All four right-hand borders should share one column. If a row wraps, make a narrower box and try again. If the tags remain visible, check that field's supported formatting rather than stacking more wrappers. Compare a desktop view and the phone or client your readers use.
When the art still looks broken
A proportional font gives letters and spaces different widths. Preserved line breaks alone will not keep a box aligned. Steam's [noparse] tag stops tags from being interpreted; it does not document a fixed-width layout. Markdown backticks and HTML <pre> are different formats.
For a larger image conversion, reduce Output Width and generate again in the image editor. If your destination supports images but cannot preserve text spacing, a PNG export keeps the rendered layout. PNG is not a way to insert an image into every comment field. The box generator exports text, not PNG.
Keep an ordinary caption such as "Co-op night, Friday at 20:00" beside the art. A screen reader may read the border characters individually. Use artwork you have permission to share; changing it into characters does not remove its rights.
The linked Steam help pages were checked on October 21, 2026. This site does not connect to Steam, post comments or verify rendering inside a Steam account. The example demonstrates exact generated text and documented markup, not a published Steam result. Looking for the brand symbol? See the Steam logo conversion and rights notice. For another destination, read the social-sharing guide.