Note: This update is for the Steam Deck Beta and Preview channels, and includes new features that are still being tested. You can opt into this in Settings > System > System Update Channel.
These notes contain all changes since the current stable SteamOS 3.7 release, with the new changes since the previous 3.8.4 Beta noted below
New in 3.8.5
Fixed a bug on Steam Deck OLED where rebooting would occasionally cause a loss of speaker output until rebooted again
Further improvements to video memory management on discrete GPU platforms
Fixed a bug in Desktop Mode causing previously open applications to not be remembered when using the 'Return to Gaming Mode' shortcut to logout
Fixed a regression from previous 3.8 builds causing controls to misbehave after resuming from suspend on the ASUS ROG Ally
Even more stability and security updates
General
Fixed a case where WiFi performance could become degraded until the device was put to sleep or manually reconnected
Fixed excessive trackpad sensitivity on certain early Steam Deck LCD models
Initial support for upcoming Steam Machine hardware
Added support for waking from sleep via connected Steam Controller
Updated Arch system base
Updated graphics driver with performance and stability fixes
Fixed a case where per-app performance settings would intermittently fail to apply when launching a game
Substantially improved speed of future OS updates on high-speed connections
Improved support for the screencasts in Game Mode (e.g. OBS/Discord)
Fixed dropdown menus not appearing in some games
Improved VRR frame pacing
Fixed FSR badge remaining off in the performance overlay, even if it was actually active
Improved support for games that attempt to open PDF files in external viewers
Added missing graphics features needed for titles such as "Crimson Desert"
Fixed an issue affecting certain titles (such as "SpongeBob SquarePants: Titans of the Tide") where the game window could have an incorrect position
Fixed closing certain titles (such as "STAR WARS Jedi: Survivor™") and Starfield resulting in a session crash
Improved support for certain USB racing wheels and USB devices that boot in a non-standard mode
Frequently these are devices that appear as USB storage devices with a driver installer, and must be switched to their normal mode by the OS
Steam Deck controller firmware updates now display update progress on the splash screen
Fixes issue on specific Steam Deck revisions where firmware updates could render the left controller inoperative for that session
Fixes for experimental nested desktop mode
Numerous stability and security updates
Bluetooth
Re-re-enable Bluetooth Wake for Steam Deck LCD
Fix for more spurious wake issues that were present in earlier attempts
Audio
Detect HDMI channel count and expose surround configuration if available
Add a setting to allow using Bluetooth headset mics (Bluetooth playback quality will be worse while capture is active)
Restore internal audio device on reboot if set to "Off" in desktop mode
Increase suspend timeout for HDMI devices so initial audio isn't cut off after a few seconds of inactivity
Fixed a bug with switching input devices when a wired headset is plugged in
Fixed an issue where audio underruns could be experienced after sleep/resume
Accessibility
Added an option to force mono audio output
Desktop Mode
KDE Plasma updated to version 6.4.3 from 6.2.5, and now uses wayland by default
Fixes several cases of reduced performance in Desktop Mode compared to Game Mode
Improved support for rotated displays
Better scale factor out of the box on TVs
Adds support for external HDR displays
Adds support for VRR displays
Adds support per-display scale factor
For more information, see Plasma release announcements
Steam Controller launched on May 4th, with all the inputs you'd expect plus advanced features (like trackpads) that let you game however you like. The trackpads make every game on Steam playable by providing a ton of functionality to play games of all kinds:
-Need to map 20 hotkeys to a virtual menu? No problem.
-Want a giant screen shot button? Sure.
-Looking for a button that automatically delivers your favorite food? Oh, um. It can't do that. But even if you don't need additional in game functionality, the trackpads can also serve as superior cursor control or aiming experience compared to thumbsticks.
We touched on the capabilities of the trackpads briefly in a previous blog post about Steam Input Configurator, but wanted to provide a deeper dive on everything you can do. Here is how to get the most out of the trackpads on your Steam Controller.
There are two primary use cases for the trackpads:
To control a mouse cursor or to aim. This is done two main ways:
As a mouse, you can use it as everything from a simple cursor that navigates UI buttons, to precise aiming in a highly competitive fast paced shooter. Utilizing both trackpads together can provide an even more complete mouse experience. We recommend this as a primary method. For games that do not handle mixed input (mouse/keyboard and gamepad at the same time causing performance issue or flickering input glyphs), set the template to a mouse/keyboard template. If seeing gamepad glyphs are really important, or a mouse/keyboard template will not work we recommend "as a joystick".
As a joystick, it's similar to above but used more often when games struggle with mixed input (mouse/keyboard and gamepad at the same time). This makes the game believe a joystick is being used, but the actual interaction feels like a mouse. This requires a lot of fine tuning to make a good experience.
As a way to provide mapping for various keys, buttons, shortcuts, or system level functionality that isn't possible with a traditional controller. This can be done many ways, but the two most common are:
As a button/button cluster/directional pad: You can assign each trackpad as one big button or each direction on each trackpad to a separate button, which gives you access to 4 more buttons per trackpad that are easy to press.
As a virtual menu: If 4 buttons per trackpad aren't enough (no judgment!), you can create a radial/touch menu so touching a trackpad pulls up a customizable menu with up to 20 options.
The above is not exhaustive (see the below in this guide for all of the options) but it is what we consider to be the most common use cases. This guide will explain how to set these different scenarios up.
The many options for your Trackpads
In the Steam Input Configurator, when selecting the Trackpad Behavior drop down, you will be presented with the following options:
Here's a breakdown of what each of these options mean:
None - The trackpad will be turned off
As Mouse - The trackpad will emulate a mouse. Note: If you select "As Mouse" and the game you are playing begins flashing controller glyphs and keyboard glyphs rapidly, or even crashing, please try setting the controller config to full mouse and keyboard using the layout templates. If you strongly desire controller glyphs, try "As Joystick" (see below).
Flick Stick - Turns a left/right/down swipe into a rapid, predetermined amount of pixel rotation. Typically used for rapidly turning (90/180 degrees) in competitive games, or for making large scale adjustments when using another input for fine aiming (gyro or other trackpad)
Mouse Region - Set the trackpad to emulate a mouse, but only in a rectangular subsection of the full screen. This can be useful if a game you are playing has a key UI HUD located in the same place the whole game. The dimensions and location of the rectangle are fully customizable.
Joystick - The trackpad will emulate a joystick: Press on the top part of the trackpad and the output will be like a fully deflected thumbstick pressed up.
As Joystick - The trackpad will emulate a mouse, but provide an output like a thumbstick. Works for games that do not handle mouse input and gamepad input at the same time. (Note: You may need to tweak sensitivity or deadzoning settings in the game for best responsiveness.)
Directional Pad or Button Pad - The trackpad will emulate a 4-way directional pad or button cluster (ABXY). Press on the top, bottom, left or right of the trackpad to get a direction, or button. You can map the output of each direction like you map any other button. (Note: Directional Pad includes the capability to press "diagonals" - i.e. top right corner will press Up and Right together)
Single Button - Make the trackpad a giant button by setting it to behave as a single button. Press down on it and get the assigned output.
Directional Swipe - Use directional swipe gesture to provide an output, Swipe Up, Down, Right or Left. You can map the output of each swipe like any other button.
Scroll Wheel - Rotate clockwise or counter clockwise on the trackpad. Great way to emulate the scroll wheel on a mouse to zoom in and out in a RTS game.
Radial Menu - The trackpad will pop up an on-screen menu over the game that can be customized to include whatever output you like.
Touch Menu - Similar to Radial Menu, except it provides selections in a grid format.
Hot Bar - Creates a virtual hot bar: Press down on the trackpad to bring it up; press right or left to cycle through options; then press up to select the item.
Many games on PC are intended to be used with a mouse: Older games, deckbuilders, point and click adventures, fast-paced FPS and many puzzle games are great examples of this. The right trackpad is commonly used as a mouse replacement for these types of games. You can build up functionality of a full mouse based on the games you want to play and how you want to play them.
Mouse control - FPS games, or games where you only need to "aim" with the trackpad
Select one of your trackpads to "As Mouse" in the configuration tool. This will make the trackpad behave as a mouse (movements of your thumb will directly move the mouse cursor).
Clicking the gear next to "Behavior" will give you several options:
Options to adjust settings, including:
Sensitivity - The higher the value for sensitivity, the more mouse motion you will see for a given swipe on the trackpad. Adjust this if you think you need to swipe too much (or too little) for how the motion appears in game.
Vertical Sensitivity - Changes the sensitivity ratio between horizontal and vertical motion on the trackpad. In most FPS games, you can move around horizontally forever, but vertically only until looking fully up or down. Because of this, you might prefer much more sensitivity horizontally than vertically.
Invert X/Y output - Toggle these to invert your output. Similar to using a flight stick.
Trackball Mode - In trackball mode, when you swipe and let go, the swipe will have momentum (like a ball rolling) and will continue to move the mouse in that direction for a while. If you prefer the mouse to stop as soon as you release your finger, turn this off.
Adjust these to your preference.
Tips for using in FPS gaming:
Mapping left/right mouse click to the left/right trigger makes the layout feel more like a traditional gamepad layout. Depending on the game making the left trackpad a directional pad as a short cut for various equipment, or a virtual menu to help with inventory management or quick chat events.
Protip: Shooting, jumping, reloading, etc while aiming is important in fast paced FPS games, Mapping A, B, X, Y to R4, R5, L4, and L5 allow you to continue aiming while doing actions typically mapped to the ABXY button cluster.
Mouse + Click - Casual point and click, deckbuilders, etc.
Adding click to mouse control gives you ease of moving a mouse and clicking and dragging. By default the left click behavior for when you set a trackpad "As Mouse" will be pushing the same trackpad in (click). However if a game requires any kind of drag and drop behavior or has small targets, it is advised to map left click to a separate input. In many templates it is set to right trigger.
We have found one of the most interesting ways to do this is to set the opposite trackpad to left and right click. On most templates the left trackpad is set to a directional pad, and we can just leverage that to turn it into a left and right click. In the drop down make sure Directional Pad is selected:
If you just want the trackpad to be left and right click, you will need to disable the up directional and down directional input. You can do this by clicking in the gear settings and then select remove command.
Then map the left directional to left click and the right directional to right click.
With this layout, you can comfortably play any game that requires mouse and clicking/dragging. We've played this way in a lot of deck builders and casual point and click games.
Mouse + Click + Scroll Wheel - Strategy games, RTS, games that need zooming
In many games the mouse scroll wheel is used to do several things, including scrolling through long lists of items or zooming a camera in and out. Building on the directional pad method for left/right click mentioned above, we have found mapping the up direction and down direction to "Scroll Wheel Up" and "Scroll Wheel Down" works well. Click in each box like the previous section, navigate to mouse, and assign scroll wheel up and down.
One important note: if you want it to behave as a continuous scroll, you will need to click the gear icon → Settings → Turn on "Hold to Repeat (Turbo)". You can change the "Repeat Rate" to tune how fast the scroll command repeats
If you need middle mouse click (for rotating or panning), you can set right trackpad click to middle mouse click. Or, if you don't like pressing and dragging at the same time, you can put middle mouse click on one of the grip buttons (L4/L5/R4/R5).
While this above set-up works great for us, you may find a better one for you, Feel free to experiment and share your configurations. That is one of the most exciting parts about how the Steam Input Configurator works - you can map it how you like!
What if I just want more buttons?
If you just want more buttons, you can always set both trackpads to directional pads, button pads, single buttons, or even button swipes. All of these give you the ability to add more easily accessible buttons to your game, up to 8 if you use two trackpads as directional pads.
While you could do this for gamepad buttons, it is also powerful when remapping keyboard keys.
Mapping Keyboard Keys
Depending on how many keys you need for a game you have several options. If you only need a couple of keys then setting the trackpad to a "Button Pad" or "Directional Pad" would work as well.
Mapping keyboard keys is similar to how you map other buttons, in this example you can set the left trackpad as a "Directional Pad" and then select "Add Command".
Select Keyboard from the input options and then select the key you would like to emulate.
Many games require a ctrl or shift press for an input, to act as an modifier. One example is in RTS control is often used to select or modify a group. To set an input chord to be control + 1.
Select the settings of the Control Key.
Select "Add Extra Command"
This creates a chord for Ctrl + 1.
Not enough - more buttons please!
If 8 additional buttons aren't enough (we've played MMORPGs, we know how it goes), then virtual menus are another place where the trackpads shine. You can set the trackpad to bring up a virtual menu that can give you quick access to your own custom action menu within a game. Radial menus can have up to 20(!) options built in; touch menus up to 16; and hot bars up to 16.
Radial Menu - A circular menu will pop up on screen that point or move in a direction to select:
Touch Menu - Similar to radial menus, except the outputs are arranged in a grid or list format:
Hotbar - A virtual hot bar that can be navigated and selected, similar to inventory slots in a game:
Other Ways to Use Your Trackpads
If the game you want to play already has good controller support, the trackpads can still provide additional functionality. An example is using the trackpads to system level functions, like the volume buttons or capturing a screen shot.
Using Directional Swipes to Change Volume
We've found one intuitive way to change the volume is to use the "directional swipe" trackpad behavior option.
From the trackpad behavior dropdown select Directional Swipe:
For Swipe Up, select System → then Volume Key Up:
For Swipe Down, select System → Then volume down.
To make the swipes more responsive (move the volume more positions with one swipe): select the gear next to the Directional Swipe drop down and in the Scroll Wheel Mode drop down select Vertical Only.
Using the Trackpad to Invoke the On-Screen Keyboard
Another usage is to bring up the on screen keyboard. This is super handy because interacting with the on screen keyboard, for a controller, can feel challenging. We've designed the trackpads to be a simple and fast way to type.
In the trackpad behavior drop down, select Single Button.
Select Click, "add command." System → Show Keyboard.
We find this interaction is best while setting the button behavior to "Start Press". Select the gear to the right of "Show Keyboard", select Regular Press and then Select Start Press. This will make the keyboard appear as you press down.
With the power of the two trackpads and the Steam Input Configurator, virtually anything is possible with the Steam Controller. We encourage you to explore different ways to use the trackpads for how you like to play.
Learn more about Steam Controller on its product page, and keep an eye on the Steam Hardware Blog for future how-to guides and closer looks. We also have this video on our official YouTube channel that takes you on a quick-start tour of Steam Controller.
Virtual menus are customizable on-screen menus controlled by selected inputs on your Steam Controller. While most commonly used with the trackpads, in some cases they can also be enabled with a thumbstick, the directional pad, button pads, or gyro.
Types of Virtual Menus
There are three types of virtual menus you can create.
Radial Menu - A circular menu will pop up on screen showing the assigned commands. You tilt/press the assigned input in the direction of your choice to make a selection.
Touch Menu - Similar to radial menu, except the outputs are arranged in a grid or list format.
Hotbar - A virtual hot bar you can navigate through, similar to inventory slots in a game.
Creating Radial Menus
Radial Menus can be created for:
Trackpads
Thumbsticks
Directional pad
ABXY button cluster
Creating a radial menu can be done by selecting "Create Radial Menu" from the behavior drop down for the input you intend to use.
After selecting Create Radial Menu, you'll need to name it. This will allow Steam to remember your menu in case you decide to use it with other inputs within that same game's configuration.
Once named you can start creating your menu options. You can add a command to the center of the menu by setting a Radial Menu Center Button (1). This allows the center of the circle to be a menu option as well. Note: Radial Menu Center button is only available in a menu created with the thumbstick or trackpads.
To add an entry for your radial menu, click Add Virtual Menu Entry (2) and map it like you would any other button. Continue adding entries to include all the options you want within the virtual menu. The maximum amount of entries you can have is 20.
A preview of what you will see on screen will be shown on the bottom left Radial Menu Settings window.
Customizing the Appearance of Radial Menus
For each Radial Menu Button, you can select an icon by selecting the circle to the left of the entry (1). You can give your entry a custom name by selecting the gear to the right of the entry (2), and selecting rename command.
Using the Radial Menu in a game
For the thumbsticks, directional pad (D-Pad), and button pad, the default method for choosing and activating an entry in the Radial Menu is to highlight the desired entry while pressing down, then release the control while the selection is highlighted (Touch Release). Conversely, the trackpad default method involves pressing down on the control (Click).
More specifically:
For Thumbsticks: Tilt the stick until your choice is highlighted, then release.
For D-Pad and Button Pad, you need to press one of the buttons (D-Pad or ABXY) to bring up the menu. If the button you pressed is not the desired action, continue pressing as you rotate through the buttons to get to your choice, then release the button to activate. Note: Rotating through the options is a bit more intuitive for D-Pad, but you can do the same thing with ABXY and it will work.
We recommend maxing out D-Pad/ABXY radial menus at 8 options; anything higher than that and you won't have the fidelity to select some options.
For the Trackpads, highlight the desired selection and press down on it (Click).
To change the selection behavior, select General and Radial Menu Button Type.
There are 4 ways to customize how the entry is selected:
Click - The command is sent when the input is pressed
Release - The command is sent when an entry is highlighted and the input is released
Touch Release - The command is sent when an entry is highlighted and the input is no longer being touched
Continuous - The command is continuously sent while the highlight is selected
You can further customize the location and size of the menu in the on screen display section.
Creating Touch Menus
Touch menus can be created for the following inputs:
Trackpads
Thumbsticks
Gyro
Creating a Touch Menu for these inputs is done by selecting "Create Touch Menu" from the behavior drop down.
After selecting Create Touch Menu, you will need to name the Touch Menu. This will allow Steam to remember it in case you use it with other inputs within that game configuration.
After naming your Touch Menu, you will be presented an option to start creating your menu. To add an entry for your Touch Menu, select Add Command (1) for Touch Menu Button 1 and map like you would any other button. To add more buttons select Virtual Menu Entry (2).
Continue to add entries to include all the options you want for the virtual menu. The maximum amount of entries you can have is 16.
A preview of what you will see on screen will be shown on the bottom left of the Create Touch Menu Settings window.
Customizing the Appearance of Touch Menus
For each Touch Menu Button, you can choose an icon by selecting the circle to the left of the entry (1). You can give your entry a custom name by selecting the gear to the right of the entry (2), and clicking Rename Command.
Using the Touch Menu in a game
For thumbstick and trackpad, the default method for selecting an entry in a Touch Menu is to highlight a selection and pressing in (on the thumbstick or trackpad) while the item is highlighted (Click). For Gyro, by default, the selection is done by pressing A.
To change the selection behavior, select general and select touch menu activation style.
There are 4 options for how the entry is selected:
Click - The command is sent when the input is pressed
Release - The command is sent when an entry is highlighted and the input is released
Touch Release - The command is sent when an entry is highlighted and the input is no longer being touched
Continuous - the command is continuously sent while the highlight is selected
You can further customize the location and size of the menu in the on screen display section.
Creating Hotbars
Hotbars can be created for:
Trackpads
Thumbsticks
Directional pad (D-Pad)
ABXY button cluster
Creating a Hotbar with these inputs is done by selecting "Create Hotbar Menu" from the behavior drop down.
After selecting Create Hotbar Menu, you will need to name it. This will allow Steam to remember your menu in case you decide to use it with other inputs within that game configuration. After naming your Hotbar, you will be presented an option to start creating entries. To add an entry to your Hotbar, select Add Virtual Menu Entry. The maximum amount of entries you can have is 16.
As you are creating the Hotbar menu, a preview of what will be seen on the screen is shown to the left of the Create Hotbar Menu Settings window.
Customizing the Appearance of Hotbars
You can select an icon to show for your entry by selecting the circle to the left of the entry (1). You can give your entry a custom name by selecting the gear to the right of the entry (2), and selecting rename command.
Using a Hotbar in a Game
To bring up the hotbar in a game, press "down" on the input you selected (for ABXY, "A" is considered "down"). Cycle through the options of the hotbar by pressing "left"/"right" on the input (for ABXY, "B/X" are considered "left"/"right" respectively). Once the desired command is selected press "up" on the input to send the command (for ABXY, "Y" is considered up).
Like the other virtual menus you can customize its size and location in the Onscreen Display section.
Virtual menus are an extremely powerful tool that you can use along with your Steam Controller to have quick access to all the commands you need. Whether you want access to emotes in an MMORPG, or toggle between inventory slots in an extraction shooter, virtual menus give you instant access to any command, however you want to access them!
Learn more about Steam Controller on its product page, and keep an eye on the Steam Hardware Blog for more tips and tricks with how-to guides and closer looks.
We have just shipped an updated Steam Deck Client to the Preview/Beta channel.
General
Fixed an issue where the Steam Workshop would download an older version of an item if there were multiple versions of the item that were marked valid for game beta branch the user opted into.
Fixed Steam html surfaces failing to render in some games (e.g. motd in Team Fortress 2).
Steam Input
Fixed FlyDigi Vader 5 Pro in enhanced mode
Steam Controller: Triggers and Grip Sense Activators now pulse the Rumble Haptics instead of Touchpad Haptics
Steam Controller: if Grip Sense is used with an Activator slot, or as one of the Gyro Enable Buttons, default Haptics Level to low. This is to help confirm activation in the absence of true physical response. To disable, set the Haptics setting to "Off" in Grip Sense activator settings, or if used as a Gyro Enable Button, set Haptics to "Off" in the Gyro mode settings.
Fix: "Reset Camera To Horizon" action was inconsistent in different engines - turn commands chunked into 2 to improve consistency.
Fix: Quick Settings Left Trackpad points to correct settings, instead of toward Gyro.
Steam Controller: Minor improvement to gyro micro stutter (ignore clone packets)
Gyro to Joystick Camera: Defaulted Gyro Deadzone Speed and Gyro Precision Speed to 0 to aide tuning the correct Minimum Joystick Output - these settings would swallow the micro movements needed to check the minimum response to gyro movements. Also: added Minimum Joystick Output slider on the Configurator Quick Settings list.
Fixed not being able to use Grip Sense to activate Touch Menus.
Steam Controller Firmware
Additional fixes for trackpad 'dead zone' issues experienced by some Steam Controllers.
The Steam Client Beta has been updated with the following changes:
General
Fixed an issue where the Steam Workshop would download an older version of an item if there were multiple versions of the item that were marked valid for game beta branch the user opted into.
Fixed Steam html surfaces failing to render in some games (e.g. motd in Team Fortress 2).
Linux
Fixed firmware updates failing on systems where libhidapi was not installed.
Steam Input
Fixed FlyDigi Vader 5 Pro in enhanced mode on Linux and macOS
Steam Controller: Triggers and Grip Sense Activators now pulse the Rumble Haptics instead of Touchpad Haptics
Steam Controller: if Grip Sense is used with an Activator slot, or as one of the Gyro Enable Buttons, default Haptics Level to low. This is to help confirm activation in the absence of true physical response. To disable, set the Haptics setting to "Off" in Grip Sense activator settings, or if used as a Gyro Enable Button, set Haptics to "Off" in the Gyro mode settings.
Fix: "Reset Camera To Horizon" action was inconsistent in different engines - turn commands chunked into 2 to improve consistency.
Fix: Quick Settings Left Trackpad points to correct settings, instead of toward Gyro.
Steam Controller: Minor improvement to gyro micro stutter (ignore clone packets)
Gyro to Joystick Camera: Defaulted Gyro Deadzone Speed and Gyro Precision Speed to 0 to aide tuning the correct Minimum Joystick Output - these settings would swallow the micro movements needed to check the minimum response to gyro movements. Also: added Minimum Joystick Output slider on the Configurator Quick Settings list.
Fixed not being able to use Grip Sense to activate Touch Menus.
Steam Controller Firmware
Additional fixes for trackpad 'dead zone' issues experienced by some Steam Controllers.
Fixed IMU failures when using extended rumble.
Remote Play
Alt-Enter toggles windowed mode
Added a windowed mode toggle and 1:1 resize button to the mouse/keyboard overlay menu
Window mode, position, and size are saved between sessions
Today we've made some changes to the set of official store tags available on Steam, adding 17 new tags, removing 28, and merging/updating a handful of others. These changes are made with the goal of helping players identify the games that best fit their interests, and helping Steam generate appropriate recommendations.
Each year, we typically add a few new tags based on community feedback, but it has been a while since we last did so (Most recently in 2024 when we added Dice, Dwarf, Boomer Shooter, and Elf tags). In the time since, we've built up a list of tags to add, remove, and update.
Store tags support recommendations and exploration
Tags help developers better describe their game to players, but also help Steam understand what kind of game it is and show it accordingly to players via recommendations. Tags are also the foundation upon which each of the store hubs are built, allowing players to find all of the games tagged with their favorite genre, theme, style, or other relevant context.
Tags can be applied to a game by the developer, by players with non-limited accounts, and also by Steam moderators. This means that a game's tags can shift over time as more customers play the game and contribute their perspective on what tags are most relevant for each game. Over time, the types of games that exist and the way customers look at games changes too - so today, we have a list of changes to our current set of tags. Read on for specifics.
New Tags
New tags are added when there are enough games on Steam that the tag could apply to, and when we think it helps establish a connection between games that couldn't already be attained through other combinations of tags. Some of these are content-specific, such as "Wolves" and "Zoo". Others represent broader genres such as "Bullet Heaven" and "Desktop Companion". And some tags cover specific game mechanics such as "Organizing" and "Decorating".
Here is the full list of tags added today:
Bullet Heaven - The opposite of Bullet Hell; Focus on upgrades while automatically attacking hordes of enemies
Desktop Companion - Games that only use part of your screen and keep you company while you do other things
Organizing - Tidy up, de-clutter, or unpack, carefully placing items in virtual spaces
Cleaning - Satisfying removal of grime and dirt from stuff
Decorating - Creative placement of furniture and other objects
Wuxia - Historical fantasy adventure featuring martial arts, competing sects, and inner qi
Xianxia - Fantasy adventure focused on cultivating supernatural powers and strength
Falling Blocks - Arranging, rotating, and placing blocks from above
Espionage - Spying or secretly securing valuable intel
Samurai - Japanese warriors best known for katanas, loyalty, and self-discipline
Zoo - Care for and display a park full of wild animals
We haven't often removed tags from Steam, so we've built up quite a list. The set that we've removed today are done so because they no longer serve a good purpose for establishing connections between games or describing unique and useful elements of content in the game. Many of these tags have alternative options on Steam that better describe the content, and already have a high degree of overlap in application.
For example, both the "NSFW" tag and the "Mature" tag have a very high degree of overlap with more descriptive tags such as "Gore", "Violent", and "Sexual Content".
Some of the other tags that we are removing today are perhaps too subjective like "Well-Written" and "Masterpiece", resulting in disagreements and inconsistent application. Some tags just don't apply to very many products, such as "Drama" and "Ambient".
And lastly, there are a number of tags that apply to specific intellectual property, an attribute that community-sourced information like tags is not well suited for. These collections of intellectual property are typically already covered by the developers and publishers setting up franchise pages to collect together officially all the content shared by that IP.
Here is the full list of tags being removed:
3D Vision
Ambient
America
Blood
Crowdfunded
Cult Classic
Documentary
Drama
Dungeons & Dragons
Electronic
Experience
Feature Film
Foreign
GameMaker
Games Workshop
Illuminati
Kickstarter
LEGO
Masterpiece
Mature
Movie
Narration
NSFW
Roguevania
RPGMaker
Warhammer 40K
Web Publishing
Well-Written
Modified Tags
We also have a set of tags that we've renamed or merged together to clean up some redundancy or to explain the content more clearly.
"Clicker" has been renamed into "Incremental" to capture the broader essence of games that focus on numbers going up.
"Conversation" has been renamed to "Dialogue Heavy" for clarity
We've made a few tags plural to match other tags: Dogs, Foxes, Vampires, Elves, Dwarves, and Assassins
"Pool" was humorously applied to games with a swimming pool, so we've renamed this to "Billiards", which is the overarching term for all games played with cue sticks anyway
Merging "Jet" into "Flight", as the term "Jet" was not unique enough.
Merging "Unforgiving" into "Difficult" since these terms mostly overlap in usage and intent
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What do I do with this information?
A. If any of the newly added tags are of interest to you, feel free to explore the new store hubs to explore the relevant games. If you are aware of a game that should have one of these new tags and doesn't already, you can apply it yourself to help that game get categorized properly.
Q. How are tags applied to games?
A. User tags are applied by game developers in the process of preparing for release, and can also be applied by users to help fill in the gaps where games may be missing useful metadata. To add your own tag to a game, just visit the store page for a game and click the little "+" (Plus) symbol next to the list of tags that appear near the top of the page.
Q. What if I see a game tagged with something that is wrong or inaccurate?
A. Letting customers tag games directly adds a bunch of valuable data to the store. But yes, sometimes people deliberately mis-tag a game. If you see that, feel free to report it to Valve or the game developer- it's quick and easy for a developer to remove a tag if they need to do so. To report a tag you see, just visit the store page for a game and click the little "+" (Plus) symbol next to the list of tags that appear near the top of the page. That will open a pop-up with a list of tags. Just click the little flag that appears next to the tag you wish to report.
Q. What if I had marked as 'excluded' one of the tags that got merged or updated?
A. Your excluded tag should migrate with any changes, so that you're still ignoring the thing that you wanted. (FYI for those not familiar with excluding tags: You can exclude specific tags to filter them out of most places across the Steam store. Just visit your store preferences and scroll down to "Tags To Exclude")
Q. Why isn't my favorite tag on this list?
A. We are not all-knowing, so we sometimes miss stuff. Let us know in the comments. We also don't agree with the appropriateness of every tag that the community advocates for, so we may be unable to add every tag that y'all want.
Q. What are the most common tags on Steam?
A. The "Singleplayer" tag wins by being applied to over 98,000 games (about 62% of all games on Steam). The runner up is the "Indie" tag, which is applied to more than 82,000 games (about 53% of all games on Steam). Then "Action", "Casual", and "Adventure" in that order.
Do you get seasick? No? Great! Wait, yes? Also great—because being on or under the water during Steam Ocean Fest keeps you in the safety of your gaming chair the whole time.
You'll find discounts on games from adventurous to relaxing, and everywhere in between: Ocean explorations and shark encounters; pirate adventures and maritime battles; even underwater shooters and cozy tourist towns by the sea.
Join us now for Steam Ocean Fest, on through May 25th at 10 a.m. Pacific on Steam.
The Steam Client Beta has been updated with the following changes:
General
Fixed a rare case where the Steam Controller welcome dialog could appear while updating the controller's firmware.
Remote Play
Fixed the client disconnecting after a short period of time when doing non-local streaming
In-Game Overlay
Fixed a case where Performance Monitor could over report frame rate if a game erroneously calls NVIDIA APIs to get new frame tokens at a much higher rate than their actual Present frame rate
Fixed cases where the overlay may not immediately cover the entire screen when first invoked
Fixed cases where the Big Picture mode overlay notifications may be positioned incorrectly until the overlay is first invoked
Steam Input:
Fixed several small styling regressions from the previous beta client
Steam Controller Firmware:
Fixed an issue where continuous rumble would sometimes break Gyro input
We have just shipped an updated Steam Deck Client to the Preview/Beta channel.
General
Fixed a crash related to the Steam Controller.
The 'Legacy Steam Runtime' compatibility tool is now an optional standalone download instead of being bundled with the Steam client.
Library
Improved EULA scrolling behavior when using a controller
Settings
Updated the layout and styles for client settings across desktop, Big Picture and controller configuration to improve readability and organization.
Notification settings has been updated to allow changing e-mail, client, and mobile notification preferences in one place
Directly navigating to a specific settings page (i.e by activating the network icon in the header) will now focus the first setting in that section instead of the settings navigation menu.
Friends & Chat
Friend status will now update much more quickly after waking your device from sleep or toggling network connectivity
Steam Input
Removed several configuration options from incompatible inputs. Digital Buttons can no longer be set Press types that require Analog input and Gyro can no longer be set to incompatible Radial Menu or Hotbar. These options will still be available for all compatible inputs.
Fixed Gyro to Joystick Camera timing issue - should appear smoother across all controllers.
Added an extra option to Gyro to Joystick Camera - Angle Catchup can be active while gyro ratcheting.
Fixed micro-stutter in Steam Controller gyro
You can now turn off "Track Pad locking" - by default each trackpad is disabled while the corresponding joystick is either deflected or the joystick's capacitive sensor has been activated. This is to avoid accidental track pad touches when using a joystick. Find the setting in: Settings->Controller->Details->Calibration & Advanced->Trackpad Lockout.
Fixed Grip Sense sensor page Grip Range slider, and adjusted explanations.
Desktop Mode
Fixed a case where dropdown windows and profile hover windows could get stuck on screen.
The Steam Client Beta has been updated with the following changes:
Settings
Updated the layout and styles for client settings across desktop, Big Picture and controller configuration to improve readability and organization.
Notification settings has been updated to allow changing e-mail, client, and mobile notification preferences in one place.
Linux
The 'Legacy Steam Runtime' compatibility tool is now an optional standalone download instead of being bundled with the Steam client.
Fixed a case where dropdown windows and profile hover windows could get stuck on screen.
Fixed a crash related to the Steam Controller on Linux
SteamRT3 Beta
Fixed a failure to start the client and proton games on systems where SDL_VIDEO_DRIVER doesn't include the x11 or windows options.
Steam Input
Removed several configuration options from incompatible inputs. Digital Buttons can no longer be set Press types that require Analog input and Gyro can no longer be set to incompatible Radial Menu or Hotbar. These options will still be available for all compatible inputs.
Fixed Gyro to Joystick Camera timing issue - should appear smoother across all controllers.
Added an extra option to Gyro to Joystick Camera - Angle Catchup can be active while gyro ratcheting.
Fixed micro-stutter in Steam Controller gyro
You can now turn off "Track Pad locking" - by default each trackpad is disabled while the corresponding joystick is either deflected or the joystick's capacitive sensor has been activated. This is to avoid accidental track pad touches when using a joystick. Find the setting in: Settings->Controller->Details->Calibration & Advanced->Trackpad Lockout.
Fixed Grip Sense sensor page Grip Range slider, and adjusted explanations.
Available in beta starting today, we're releasing major updates to the Steam Community Market to improve item pages, listings, and search/filters. The Community Market enables Steam players to buy and sell in-game and Steam Community items to each other. Over the past few years, the number of games participating in the Market has grown significantly. More than 13,000 games now have Steam Community items available on the Market, and more than 700 have in-game items. These game economies have outgrown the Market’s existing browsing and discovery tools, so it's time for an upgrade. Our newly expanded tools provide the Market with a deeper understanding of item data from games - so it's easier to learn about the unique features of items listed for sale, directly on Steam.
Since Counter-Strike items are popular in the Community Market (and a game we work closely with) we’ve used them to experiment and build out this extensive item integration, but we look forward to other games leveraging these same new features.
Here are some noteworthy upgrades:
Bigger, Better Listings
Sometimes you just need a bigger view, and now you get it! Listings can now feature more images, item descriptions, and callouts for listing specific information such as wear/float, pattern template, applied accessories, etc.
Counter-Strike players will immediately notice the new images generated specifically for that listing, rather than generic images, to showcase each item's unique features. No more having to fire up the game in order to make your purchasing decision. (Not just new listings! As part of our internal testing we generated over 27,000,000 unique images to backfill existing Counter-Strike listings.)
Once you narrow down to the desired item, you now get a larger listing view, and you can flip through all the matching results, making it easy to compare the variants of a skin in place.
Showcasing New Game-Specific Data
The Market now leverages all these new item details for better filtering, grouping, and visibility, making it easier for you to find what you want.
Accessories
With a better understanding of attached items like stickers and charms, we link directly to their Market listings. Additionally, we surface that information to show better images and current values.
Unique Properties
Games can now feature unique item properties on their listings. For Counter-Strike skins, that means a better view of things like pattern template, wear/float, and charm template.
(This additional data from Counter-Strike goes a long way toward making listings more accurate, but it's extra useful when bubbled up into the filter options. All games using Steam’s Inventory system — which includes most games on the Market — will automatically benefit from dynamic filters based on item data, with no additional work required from developers. Read more about dynamic filters below.)
Grouping Like Items into One Page
Many Market items are simply variations of the same base item, and we think it's easier to make your selection when you can easily compare them. For some Counter-Strike skins there might be 10 different versions of an item that vary based on one characteristic. When a game decides to group their items together you'll find a set of tabs that let you filter them quickly. For Counter-Strike skins you can use the tabs to get a price overview. Hover over the tab to preview that wear level, then click it to filter both the listings and the graph below.
General Improvements
Many of today's changes require no additional game-specific data to make the Market a better experience for all users and games. We think these updates will feel great across the board, whether you've come to window shop or you know exactly what you are looking for.
Item Pages
All the data mentioned above gets shown off on the updated item pages - which have a new, wider layout to accommodate a full-width grid of items for sale.
Here you can take advantage of additional category links, better graphs, and new dynamic filters.
Scroll down to see the new listing cards with larger images, as well as asset and accessory info.
Improved Graphs
Graphs have also received an overhaul. In addition to many general usability and performance fixes, graphs now display volume data alongside price and can display multiple datasets for grouped items.
Making search more robust with dynamic filters
If you've used the Market lately, you've probably seen the new dynamic filters we've been beta testing. Those will now appear on both item pages and search pages alongside the new listing cards. Plus you'll see price filtering and new sorting options like popularity, price, quantity, etc.
These filters are built from existing item data, so you can filter (and sometimes search) against anything we know about. We've made searching and filtering faster - changing a filter immediately updates the displayed results (plus they automatically load more when you scroll.)
Steam Community Items
Now it's easier to switch between in-game items and Steam Community items. Buying and selling Steam Community items such as emoticons, trading cards, or profile backgrounds has been possible on the Market for years, but the relevant filters were hard to find.
While you're browsing Trading Card Booster Packs, you might also notice we're starting to introduce cross-linking between containers and contained items.
These changes are available now, along with smaller quality of life updates such as automatic loading of listings while scrolling, broader access to advanced search from more page headers, breadcrumb navigation, and text entry support across long lists.
All of this work builds upon other features we've released over the past year including support for Trade Protected Items, game specific filters, price filtering, search autocomplete, and improving overall reliability.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where can I find the changes?
Today we're updating the Community Market's item pages and search results. We're learning as we go and this is a great point for us to gather feedback from players and game developers.
How can I join the beta?
You don't need to! We're enabling the Market beta for everyone. If you need to opt out, there's a button at the top of the item and search pages.
We have just shipped an updated Steam Deck Client to the Preview/Beta channel.
General
Fixed streamable non-Steam games showing in Library when Remote Play is turned off
Fixed the "View friends list" link in the Big Picture home page opening the older non-QAM version of the friends list
Steam Input
Fixed an issue where Steam Controller grip thresholds were loaded incorrectly in the device calibration screen
Fixed an issue preventing the Steam button chord configuration from being edited for the Steam Controller
Fixed an issue with doubled input when the Steam Controller is charging on the puck
Track Pad Locking - You can now turn off the Joystick vs Trackpad Locking behavior in Settings->Controller->Details->Calibration & Advanced->Trackpad Lockout. This feature is intended to avoid accidental touches on the touchpad while using a Joystick, but it can now be turned off.
A new Steam client has been released and will be automatically downloaded.
General
Fixed a case where the Steam Controller firmware update dialog could reopen after a successful update
Fixed streamable games showing when "Ready to Play should include Streamable games" is toggled off
Fixed occasional cursor corruption while streaming on Windows
Added setting to enable or disable controller battery notifications.
Steam Input
Fixed an issue where config selections could fail to save for the new Steam Controller
Fixed compatibility issues in games when a Steam Controller is docked to the charging puck
Fixed a localization bug in the Configuration browser screen
Updated Steam Controller firmware to fix a bug that caused some left trackpads to have issues registering touches on the left side of the pad when connected wirelessly
We have just shipped an updated Steam Deck Client to the Stable channel.
General
Fixed a case where the Steam Controller firmware update dialog could reopen after a successful update
Fixed streamable games showing when "Ready to Play should include Streamable games" is toggled off
Steam Input
Fixed an issue where config selections could fail to save for the new Steam Controller
Fixed compatibility issues in games when a Steam Controller is docked to the charging puck
Fixed a localization bug in the Configuration browser screen
Updated Steam Controller firmware to fix a bug that caused some left trackpads to have issues registering touches on the left side of the pad when connected wirelessly
Note: This update is for the Steam Deck Beta and Preview channels, and includes new features that are still being tested. You can opt into this in Settings > System > System Update Channel.
These notes contain all changes since the current stable SteamOS 3.7 release, with the new changes since the previous 3.8.3 Beta noted below
New in 3.8.4
Fixed a regression causing certain VRR-capable TVs to fail to work via a connected dock
Fixed a rare bug where switching to desktop mode may hang indefinitely
Fixes for experimental nested desktop mode
Even more stability and security updates
Even more support for upcoming Steam Machine hardware
General
Fixed a case where WiFi performance could become degraded until the device was put to sleep or manually reconnected
Fixed excessive trackpad sensitivity on certain early Steam Deck LCD models
Initial support for upcoming Steam Machine hardware
Added support for waking from sleep via connected Steam Controller
Updated Arch system base
Updated graphics driver with performance and stability fixes
Fixed a case where per-app performance settings would intermittently fail to apply when launching a game
Substantially improved speed of future OS updates on high-speed connections
Improved support for the screencasts in Game Mode (e.g. OBS/Discord)
Fixed dropdown menus not appearing in some games
Improved VRR frame pacing
Fixed FSR badge remaining off in the performance overlay, even if it was actually active
Improved support for games that attempt to open PDF files in external viewers
Added missing graphics features needed for titles such as "Crimson Desert"
Fixed an issue affecting certain titles (such as "SpongeBob SquarePants: Titans of the Tide") where the game window could have an incorrect position
Fixed closing certain titles (such as "STAR WARS Jedi: Survivor™") and Starfield resulting in a session crash
Improved support for certain USB racing wheels and USB devices that boot in a non-standard mode
Frequently these are devices that appear as USB storage devices with a driver installer, and must be switched to their normal mode by the OS
Steam Deck controller firmware updates now display update progress on the splash screen
Fixes issue on specific Steam Deck revisions where firmware updates could render the left controller inoperative for that session
Numerous stability and security updates
Bluetooth
Re-re-enable Bluetooth Wake for Steam Deck LCD
Fix for more spurious wake issues that were present in earlier attempts
Audio
Detect HDMI channel count and expose surround configuration if available
Add a setting to allow using Bluetooth headset mics (Bluetooth playback quality will be worse while capture is active)
Restore internal audio device on reboot if set to "Off" in desktop mode
Increase suspend timeout for HDMI devices so initial audio isn't cut off after a few seconds of inactivity
Fixed a bug with switching input devices when a wired headset is plugged in
Fixed an issue where audio underruns could be experienced after sleep/resume
Accessibility
Added an option to force mono audio output
Desktop Mode
KDE Plasma updated to version 6.4.3 from 6.2.5, and now uses wayland by default
Fixes several cases of reduced performance in Desktop Mode compared to Game Mode
Improved support for rotated displays
Better scale factor out of the box on TVs
Adds support for external HDR displays
Adds support for VRR displays
Adds support per-display scale factor
For more information, see Plasma release announcements
Steam Controller launched on May 4th, and while we were happy to see such a high level of interest, the experience for a lot of you trying to buy it was incredibly frustrating. We plan to continue replenishing stock as we get more in, but in the meantime wanted to share changes we're making to improve the purchase experience and to limit reseller activity:
Beginning May 8th at 10 am Pacific, we're opening a reservation queue for Steam Controller. Once you reserve, your place in line will be saved. When we go back in stock, order emails will be sent in the same order that reservations were made.
Here are the details on how we're hoping to improve the experience overall while also taking steps to limit reseller activity:
Reservation details:
Reservations will be limited to one Steam Controller per user.
Once you receive an order email, you have three days (72 hours) to make your purchase on Steam.
For now, customers who have already purchased a Steam Controller are not yet eligible to reserve another Steam Controller.
Additionally:
Your account must be in good standing on Steam
You must have made a purchase on Steam prior to April 27, 2026
Replenishment of inventory will vary from region to region. We will start fulfilling reservations next week in the US / Canada, and UK / EU / AU in the following weeks.
Note: this beta was re-released on 5/7 with additional fixes
We have just shipped an updated Steam Deck Client to the Preview/Beta channel.
General
Fixed a case where the Steam Controller firmware update dialog could reopen after a successful update
Fixed streamable games showing when "Ready to Play should include Streamable games" is toggled off
Steam Input
Fixed an issue where config selections could fail to save for the new Steam Controller
Fixed compatibility issues in games when a Steam Controller is docked to the charging puck
Fixed a localization bug in the Configuration browser screen
Updated Steam Controller firmware to fix a bug that caused some left trackpads to have issues registering touches on the left side of the pad when connected wirelessly
Note: this beta was re-released on 5/7 with additional fixes
The Steam Client Beta has been updated with the following changes:
General
Fixed a case where the Steam Controller firmware update dialog could reopen after a successful update
Fixed streamable games showing when "Ready to Play should include Streamable games" is toggled off
Steam Input
Fixed an issue where config selections could fail to save for the new Steam Controller
Fixed compatibility issues in games when a Steam Controller is docked to the charging puck
Fixed a localization bug in the Configuration browser screen
Updated Steam Controller firmware to fix a bug that caused some left trackpads to have issues registering touches on the left side of the pad when connected wirelessly
Greetings! We have exciting news to share for those of you who want to hack, mod, or design accessories for the Steam Controller and Puck.
Today we're making the CAD files for the external shell (surface topology) of Steam Controller and Puck available for download under a Creative Commons license. This includes an STP model of each, an STL model of each, and an engineering drawing with critical features/keep outs for each.
Sure, a fest all about deckbuilders might sound straightforward. But even just a quick glance at Steam Deckbuilders Fest (or even at the official trailer, above) tells you not all deckbuilders are the same.
Build a formidable deck and use it to lure humans into a haunted mansion. Restore a crumbling library in the 1930s. Collect mystical cards, build unique decks, even use your deck alongside dice: there's a deckbuilder for you no matter what kind you're looking for.
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