A new beta update for Steam has arrived, and players from Stardew Valley and many other games are excited about how it will be useful. The update adds what Valve has named a Notes app, allowing Steam users to create digital sticky notes that can be viewed both in and out of games. This is perfect for games like Stardew Valley, where players have multiple tasks they'd like to keep track of and can spare some screen space.PC gamers on Steam are likely very familiar with the platform's overlay system. While playing any game through Steam, players can use a hotkey to open up the platform's overlay. The current default overlay includes a Steam user's Friends List, as well as interface tiles for the current game's achievements, guides, community hub, discussion, and other areas from its Steam community. It's rather cumbersome to use mid-game, however, so many users rarely use it for anything but the Friends List and chat.Valve's new beta update for Steam wants to change how players use the in-game overlay, and the Notes app is especially exciting. Using the Notes app, whether playing complicated or task-driven games like Stardew Valley, Elden Ring, Destiny 2, or otherwise, players can keep a sticky note of tasks or other text-based reminders. These notes stay on-screen even after deactivating the overlay. Multiple notes can be saved per game, and they can even be accessed offline or synced across multiple PCs.
It isn't just the Notes app that's being added, either. Valve has completely overhauled the in-game overlay, expanding features and making the overlay dramatically more customizable. Using the new overlay toolbar, Steam users can choose what they see when they open the overlay up. These options are game-specific, too. Options include not just achievements, discussions, and Friends Lists, but also the Notes app, a web browser, controller settings, and even a soundtrack player.
Other areas that have received a substantial overhaul include Steam's notification system and its screenshot manager. Notifications will now be more concise and useful, and will only be flagged if there's something new for the Steam user. The screenshot manager has been streamlined to be much more responsive and easy to use. Steam users can manage both online and offline screenshots, share them with friends or save them as private files, and scroll through thumbnails with ease.
To say these improvements have been a long time coming is an understatement. Valve is known to take its time with changes to the Steam client. Now that these changes are near, they're still in beta after all, some Steam users will wonder why Valve didn't make the changes faster. It's unclear when the Steam overlay overhaul will roll out to all users, but expect news on that subject in the weeks to come.