Ever keen to maintain its position as many people's first choice when it comes to PC gaming, a new beta update for Steam began rolling out recently which adds some new features, including the ability to take notes and watch videos while in-game. For a lot of people, PC offers the best place to play video games, partly because there's no upper limit to what hardware can be installed, which means it's often where games look their best. Of course, these days, people typically download releases digitally, with Valve's client being regarded as the top dog in this market.
While the Epic Games Store offers free games and Humble Bundle allows people to pay a custom amount, Steam is where it all began. Starting life in 2003, the PC storefront has been the cornerstone of digital gaming for almost 20 years, and Valve has kept on top of things by offering a continuous stream of updates, some of which are equal parts simple and ingenious.
Take the recent beta patch as an example. The Steam website outlines what this newest update offers for those who use the service. To start with, there is now the option to take notes while playing games, with "rich text formatting" and the option to use it in offline mode. However, one of the more interesting changes is the ability to now pin separate windows over the Steam overlay, including a web browser. This means that, so long as gamers have opted in for beta updates, it's now possible to watch movies via Netflix or other streaming services while playing games at the same time.
Steam allowing for note-taking is a feature that was rumored to be coming not long ago. It seems like such a simple idea and will almost certainly come in handy for anyone who needs a quick way to scribble something down during play. Of course, it's the ability to watch something while in-game that's going to be intriguing to some. Valve has also made notifications "richer and more useful" and implemented a new toolbar that gives users "access to anything" they may need in the middle of a game.
While the Steam Deck was one of 2022's best piece of tech, proving that Valve can make it in the hardware market after all, the gaming world has not forgotten about its Steam client. For many, it's the one-stop place for digital gaming, and it will be interesting to see what other features get added in the future.
Source: Steam