Steam Beta Adds New Big Picture Look, Screensavers, Steam Machine Extra
Valve's latest Steam client beta reworks Big Picture Mode, adds screensavers, and throws in something extra for desktop Steam Machines. Details are thin, but the shape of it is there.
Valve pushed a new beta build to the Steam client, and for once it's not just a bug fix nobody asked for. According to Rock Paper Shotgun, the update reworks Big Picture Mode, the interface you get on SteamOS devices like the Steam Deck or a living-room Steam Machine, and on Windows PCs running the Big Picture view too. It adds screensavers. And it drops in what the outlet calls "a little treat" specifically for desktop Steam Machines, though nobody's spelled out yet what that treat actually is.
The update also got a nod from the channel Gaming On Steam, which framed it as a meaningful feature drop for Steam Deck and Steam Machine owners. That's two outlets pointing at the same beta, not two separate confirmations of what's in it, so treat the specifics as still forming.
What We Actually Know
- A new Big Picture view is rolling out in beta, covering SteamOS handhelds, desktop Steam Machines, and the Windows client's Big Picture mode.
- Screensavers are being added, the kind of thing that kicks in when your console sits idle instead of just going dark.
- Desktop Steam Machine owners get something extra that hasn't been detailed beyond being called a treat.
That's the whole picture right now. Nobody's published a full patch note breakdown of exactly what the new Big Picture layout changes, how the screensavers work, or what that Steam Machine bonus actually does once you sit down with it.
Why I'm Not Popping Champagne
A screensaver is not a killer feature. It's the thing your TV did in 2004 to stop pixels burning in. If Valve wants credit for reworking the interface people actually use every time they turn the thing on, fine, that's worth a look. But "a little treat" is doing a lot of work in that sentence, and vague treats have a way of turning out smaller once you actually go looking for them in the settings menu.
Steam Machines just got back into people's living rooms after Valve admitted it was chasing a cheaper price for its own hardware before the memory market got in the way, as covered in Valve Admits It Wanted a Cheaper Steam Frame. Blame the RAM Crisis. A beta update with a mystery bonus for that hardware is a nice gesture. It's not a reason to get excited yet.
This is a beta. Betas get pulled, trimmed, or quietly patched again before anything ships to everyone else. Fire up the update, poke around the new menus, and see for yourself what the treat actually is. I'll believe it's worth talking about once someone's found it.