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[Durante]

Man, people have a warped view of Old Steam. While the average quality of each release was obviously higher, it was really awful when excellent games were denied a release for weeks/months/years

Exactly. And the "average quality" of games shouldn't matter to anyone, just like the "average quality" of books on Amazon doesn't matter to anyone.

Its a problem that as end users/buyers we should not be making a decision on. As a release platform, Steam should not be a free for all. It should be curated.

Why?

Because you prefer it that way? There are already tons of restrictive platforms out there for users like you who want their set of options to be reduced a priori.

Personally, I prefer to make my own decisions with a full set of choices available to me, and I'm happy that a platform exists which facilitates that. I'm incomparably happier with Steam now and it serves my needs infinitely better than when it was "curated".

 

[HP_Wuvcraft]

And, again, Steam is a digital store with a refund system. If something doesn't work, refund it. Physical product online stores like Amazon have no problem with this system, so why should Steam?

If your issue is that there should be some basic QA that ensures games released on Steam functionally operate to a basic level, then two things:

1) The number of PC games being released means it's literally impossible for Valve to QA test every release.

2) It's not Valve's place to QA test, even if they could do it. Your problem lies with devs/pubs who take advantage of consumers to release broken products, not with the lack of Steam curation. If a product does not work, refund, and tell other users (on Steam, Facebook or Twitter) or email a website to alert more people to the fact that a release is broken. This isn't something new or uncommon - physical stores, and online physical products stores like Amazon, have faced this issue for years. Both they and their customers survive.

As for the general lack of curation, asking Valve to gatekeep what's on Steam is just wrong. Ignoring the fact that Valve don't know everything about their user's (or consumer's in general) tastes, why would people want the largest PC digital distribution system in the world to determine what its users see? That's a crazy amount of control in one place. Steam works so well because Valve seek to lessen their power over it, whilst trying to make sure it works equitably for developers, publishers and users (hence the change in reviews, for example). Curation of PC releases was never something they wanted, it was just something that took them time to move away from.

Anyways... Yey! Store refresh! Woooo! I'd love a client refresh and Steam Workshop support for client skins, but you can't have everything. Curation changes sound good, but... Ehhhh... Curators.

This years Steam Dev Days are going to be real interesting, between the new Review System and now this. I'm really looking forward to it.

 

[Possumowner]

Great stuff,i look forward to those changes as they seem positive...at least I hope they turn out to be.

 

[Bl@de]

Why?

Because you prefer it that way? There are already tons of restrictive platforms out there for users like you who want their set of options to be reduced a priori.

Personally, I prefer to make my own decisions with a full set of choices available to me, and I'm happy that a platform exists which facilitates that. I'm incomparably happier with Steam now and it serves my needs infinitely better than when it was "curated".

100% this. I want to make my own decisions. Because only I know what I really like and a curated plattform may keep amazing experiences away from me. An open plattform gives room for new ideas that may not happen elsewhere. And that's something very important in a creative medium like games, movies and books in my opinion.

 

[Chairmanchuck]

The problem with the curated store was that some of the ones in charge didnt have any clue about games.

They didnt accept the Daedalic Point and Click games, because apparently they wouldnt sell, but accepted bad BigFishGames.
They didnt accept visual novels because "these are not games".

I actually would like a small curation for titles that really seem like "My first Unity project I made in 1 week" or the asset-flips.

 

[Bl@de]

I actually would like a small curation for titles that really seem like "My first Unity project I made in 1 week" or the asset-flips.

I argue for the position "let the market/users decide". A bad product will always be called out and drift away into obscurity. No matter if it's the first product or a so called magnum opus. Why are people afraid of that freedom? You can spot bad games very easily on Steam

 

[KingBroly]

How about automatically pulling games that put rootkits/malware on your PC? I'd be for that.


Steam needs a visual/UI overhaul, IMO.

 

[Coreda]

How about automatically pulling games that put rootkits/malware on your PC? I'd be for that.

They don't do this already?

 

[Nzyme32]

How about automatically pulling games that put rootkits/malware on your PC? I'd be for that.


Steam needs a visual/UI overhaul, IMO.

They don't do this already?

An interesting point here is that no one hears about what Valve is doing behind the scenes. They are not going to put out press releases to inform you of what they have challenged, forced to change or who they contact

 

[SeeNoWeevil]

Fix the damn video player, please. Make the bar auto hide properly and stop forcing me to unmute it even when I have autoplay off.

 

[Nzyme32]

Couple of pictures of the update:

Fix the damn video player, please. Make the bar auto hide properly and stop forcing me to unmute it even when I have autoplay off.

Again - not going to be in such a post addressing steamworks developers about thier game visibility. Look for more customer focused announcements (whenever that will be). Entirely possible that this is part of a refresh and not mentioned here due to who this is addressing and why.

 

[ashecitism]

In time for Steam Dev Days then. Will probably talk about this there.

 

[JarrodL]

This will let customers opt to exclude particular types of products, such as Early Access

Holy shit, yes please. Finally.

 

[Chairmanchuck]

Couple of pictures of the update:

Still looks browser-based. Hope they rehaul the library.

 

[Pixieking]

The problem with the curated store was that some of the ones in charge didnt have any clue about games.

They didnt accept the Daedalic Point and Click games, because apparently they wouldnt sell, but accepted bad BigFishGames.
They didnt accept visual novels because "these are not games".

And GOG didn't accept Cook, Serve, Delicious. Curation cannot please 100% of people (customers and developers) 100% of the time.

An interesting point here is that no one hears about what Valve is doing behind the scenes. They are not going to put out press releases to inform you of what they have challenged, forced to change or who they contact

Indeed... Capcom reversed course very quickly. Do people believe that was entirely down to customer feedback?

 

[Sword Of Doom]

Its a problem that as end users/buyers we should not be making a decision on. As a release platform, Steam should not be a free for all. It should be curated.

The store itself should be designed better, it's not because there are too many games.

i personally would like a more "polished" experience with the storefront and the client itself. A company as big as Valve can do better

 

[Chairmanchuck]

And GOG didn't accept Cook, Serve, Delicious. Curation can not please 100% of people (customers and developers) 100% of the time.

Steam also didnt accept Oil Blue before that.

I just mean that obvious trash like really first Unity projects or Asset flips shouldnt be accepted.

 

[Pixieking]

Steam also didnt accept Oil Blue before that.

I just mean that obvious trash like really first Unity projects or Asset flips shouldnt be accepted.

Yeah, but I mean, that's my point - you can always find a game that should've have been accepted, regardless of who you're looking at.

As for obvious trash, I think Valve would very much like it if pubs/devs stopped doing such obvious cons like asset-flips, but they don't want to hit a slippery-slope. Asset-flips are obviously bad, but first Unity projects? If they're playable and whatever customers buy them can give good feedback, then Steam sales could actually be helpful for the developer in the long-run. And if no first Unity projects, then surely no first RPG Maker projects? And so on...

Valve are I'm sure hoping-and-praying that devs and pubs actually learn that a bad reputation gained from an asset-flip or first Unity project will harm them immeasurably in the future. Unfortunately, people are dumb, and slow to learn.

 

[AJ_Wings]

I hope they provide an option to filter out F2P games.

 

[Jb]

I look forward to the new homepage. There's so much stuff on there I never use like curators, the queue, recently updated games.... I understand they're trying to surface stuff people might like in as many ways as possible but I never use any of these discovery tools. Right now the whole thing's a mess.

 

[Budi]

I hope they provide an option to filter out F2P games.

I just found this funny since it could be arqued that Overwatch is charging 40/60 (depending on platform) dollars for a game that should be free to play instead, with all those egregious microtransactions and lightness of content.

Looking forward to this update, was kinda hoping it was more though. Especially visual changes.

 

[ScientificPizza]

And, again, Steam is a digital store with a refund system. If something doesn't work, refund it. Physical product online stores like Amazon have no problem with this system, so why should Steam?

If your issue is that there should be some basic QA that ensures games released on Steam functionally operate to a basic level, then two things:

1) The number of PC games being released means it's literally impossible for Valve to QA test every release.

2) It's not Valve's place to QA test, even if they could do it. Your problem lies with devs/pubs who take advantage of consumers to release broken products, not with the lack of Steam curation. If a product does not work, refund, and tell other users (on Steam, Facebook or Twitter) or email a website to alert more people to the fact that a release is broken. This isn't something new or uncommon - physical stores, and online physical products stores like Amazon, have faced this issue for years. Both they and their customers survive.

As for the general lack of curation, asking Valve to gatekeep what's on Steam is just wrong. Ignoring the fact that Valve don't know everything about their user's (or consumer's in general) tastes, why would people want the largest PC digital distribution system in the world to determine what its users see? That's a crazy amount of control in one place. Steam works so well because Valve seek to lessen their power over it, whilst trying to make sure it works equitably for developers, publishers and users (hence the change in reviews, for example). Curation of PC releases was never something they wanted, it was just something that took them time to move away from.

Anyways... Yey! Store refresh! Woooo! I'd love a client refresh and Steam Workshop support for client skins, but you can't have everything. Curation changes sound good, but... Ehhhh... Curators.

There's a difference between QA and curation. I don't expect Valve to QA anything other than Valve games.

 

[Pixieking]

There's a difference between QA and curation. I don't expect Valve to QA anything other than Valve games.

But...

There's a big difference between narrative games like That Dragon Cancer and the abundance of completely broken, half assed shit that gets pushed on to the Steam store daily.

How do you know it's broken if you don't check it for bugs (QA)? "Half assed shit" = asset-flips? I might be getting the wrong-end of the stick, but it really does feel like your complaint should lie with the developers, not Valve. And, as myself and others have pointed out, Amazon doesn't curate - what's so different about Steam?

Edit: To go on a tangent "What's so different about Steam?" - Amazon "discovery" is pretty good, and I feel Amazon knows me far better than Steam, even though I've bought less there. Amazon shoves some random bollocks at me (not literally ), but for the most part I can see why it recommends everything it does. Steam... not so much. Their algorithms are just worse. That said, 90% of the stuff Amazon recommends, I already know about and have either bought elsewhere, or would find anyway. I am very rarely surprised by Amazon, whereas Steam's Discovery Queue does give me things that I wouldn't necessarily have found otherwise.

 

[ScientificPizza]

But...



How do you know it's broken if you don't check it for bugs (QA)? "Half assed shit" = asset-flips? I might be getting the wrong-end of the stick, but it really does feel like your complaint should lie with the developers, not Valve. And, as myself and others have pointed out, Amazon doesn't curate - what's so different about Steam?

Edit: To go on a tangent "What's so different about Steam?" - Amazon "discovery" is pretty good, and I feel Amazon knows me far better than Steam, even though I've bought less there. Amazon shoves some random bollocks at me (not literally ), but for the most part I can see why it recommends everything it does. Steam... not so much. Their algorithms are just worse. That said, 90% of the stuff Amazon recommends, I already know about and have either bought elsewhere, or would find anyway. I am very rarely surprised by Amazon, whereas Steam's Discovery Queue does give me things that I wouldn't necessarily have found otherwise.

I don't mean a game that has a few bugs should not be allowed on Steam, but there is a lot of stuff that are barely games, just thrown together Unity assests or bad mobile ports, that muddy up the store more than it needs to be. These things could be easily weeded out with some curation. That doesn't mean I expect someone to go through and check ever corner of every game to make sure it's 100%, but things should still be reviewed before they're allowed.

Just because Steam can sell anything doesn't mean that they should, regardless of their refund policy.

 

[Pixieking]

I don't mean a game that has a few bugs should not be allowed on Steam, but there is a lot of stuff that are barely games, just thrown together Unity assests or bad mobile ports, that muddy up the store more than it needs to be. These things could be easily weeded out with some curation. That doesn't mean I expect someone to go through and check ever corner of every game to make sure it's 100%, but things should still be reviewed before they're allowed.

Just because Steam can sell anything doesn't mean that they should, regardless of their refund policy.

Ah, I see.

Well, again, what makes Steam different in this regard to Amazon? They sure have a ton of what I would class as rubbish... Their iPhone case selection alone is pretty bad. I mean, the case I bought 3 months ago is already falling apart, but I just have to deal with it, since I can't refund it or sell it on. *shrugs*

There's also a world of difference between "thrown together Unity assets" and "bad mobile ports". One is clearly not in the same category as the other, yet Valve would use some indistinct "quality filter" that catches and weeds them both out?

I think the ideal of a curated store that gets rid of the obvious rubbish (and I do mean rubbish, like asset-flips) is fine. But practically, it just can't be done without hitting a slippery slope ("if this goes, then that has to"), or risking anger from consumer and/or developer, annoyed that either something "bad" slipped through the net, or something "good" got caught which shouldn't have. :/

Edit: It's also worth remembering that we can all help curation of the store - every product page has a flag where you can "Report this Product". I'm sure I recall something awhile back about how Valve wanted the Steam community to help curate the store (and not just with the Curation System).

 

[Spectone]

GoG also has a lot of crap games in its store. They are just hidden because of nostalgia. Just because a game is old does not mean it is good. I actually use different metrics to buy games nostalgia/history/entertainment most of my GoG buys is in the first two but Steam is the latter. I would be disappointed if GoG applied curation to the older titles as they form a historical reference.

 

[CHC]

I feel that they really need a top-down redo rather than just more visual and visibility changes. Even compared to its "competitors" like uPlay or Origin the whole of Steam feels very unresponsive, slow and bolted onto an ancient framework. The whole backend needs some overhauling rather than just more changes to what games it suggests or how the store looks. The application has always and still does feel totally unsatisfying to actually interact with.

 

[Pixieking]

I feel that they really need a top-down redo rather than just more visual and visibility changes. Even compared to its "competitors" like uPlay or Origin the whole of Steam feels very unresponsive, slow and bolted onto an ancient framework. The whole backend needs some overhauling rather than just more changes to what games it suggests or how the store looks. The application has always and still does feel totally unsatisfying to actually interact with.

Yeah, for most things I actually use the website, rather than the client. Buying and playing games, I use the client (don't have to input a password when buying through the client, unlike the store). But browsing products, selling cards, checking wishlist, workshop items, discussions - all through the website, since it's more responsive than the client.

 

[LordRaptor]

I often wonder if the fundamental difference in ideology between "It's nobody job to tell me what I'm allowed to like" and "Ugh everything I don't like is dogshit that should never have been allowed to be presented to me" is what platform shaped someones tastes originally.

I grew up on Mastertronic £1.99 Spectrum 48k cassettes from WH Smiths, and moved to things like "100 Super Shareware Classics!" CD-ROMs in between the more obvious Bullfrog / Origin / Sierra / LucasArts fare.

I wonder if I would be as aggressively obnoxious about anything I was previously unfamiliar with, or that was a little amateurish, as being fucking shit made by scam artists who will never fucking deserve any money, and should be punished, ridiculed, scolded and shamed for having the temerity to dare present their scummy subhuman not-even-a-game wares to such an obviously refined consumer as myself if I hadn't.

It's also interesting to note that for all the talk about "asset flips" - as in projects made solely to resell a purchased asset - being the majority of projects available on Steam, well, I have literally never seen one.
It's weird.
Maybe I have the secret non-histrionics build.

 

[CHC]

Yeah, for most things I actually use the website, rather than the client. Buying and playing games, I use the client (don't have to input a password when buying through the client, unlike the store). But browsing products, selling cards, checking wishlist, workshop items, discussions - all through the website, since it's more responsive than the client.

I do the same and considering how basic what the client actually does (browsing and buying games) it's embarrassing that it just feels so sluggish and poor.

 

[jblank83]

Software "curation" is about as concerned with quality as movie theaters. Given the economic forces at play, you end up with the biggest names pushing everything else to the curb, with the exception of a cult classic here and there.

I don't want Steam storefront to become the equivalent of a summer blockbuster billboard. Aside from the fact that the biggest names and most popular titles ARE ALREADY the most heavily featured products on Steam.

If anything, small games need more coverage. Or, more accurately, Steam needs better tools to help people find games they're interested in. And I don't mean "Steam Curator" lists or "Suggested For You" queues. I mean robust search tools that let the user filter down from the entire database to a small set of relevant titles, either by manual searches or by setting filters on features like the Recommended queue. Because right now the Steam search/filter tools are poor, at best.

Part of the problem is that tagging and genre labels are not properly used. I try to filter for "RPG" and I get almost anything but RPGs. I get visual novels, simulators, and strategy games.

There are a lot of ways to handle that problem, the easiest of which is having developers choose one or two primary tags that their game will use for filtering. Another is to stop filtering by community tags. Another is to create a more interactive, visually engaging filtering feature. Think of a dynamically growing/shrinking tree with lots of game art/images.

That's just one idea for solving the "problem" of having too many games, without devolving the storefront into EA and Activision's and the like's personal playground.

 

[Pewpewlazors99]

Still can't filter out games you own!? What....

 

[Parsnip]

This seems pretty good all things considered.

 

[Caffeine]

Still can't filter out games you own!? What....

Yeah I would really love this.

 

[Mobius and pet octopus]

Still can't filter out games you own!? What....

Can't you in the customization option "games already in your account"?

 

[amnesia]

glad they keep updating the store visuals I actually hated the discovery update, but when is the actual client getting a visual update its pretty much been the same for 8 years now other than a few extra buttons and a gradient blue to gray color lol.

I don't think any of the skins released by people are good lol.

Metro for Steam is actually pretty great.

 

[amnesia]

Still looks browser-based. Hope they rehaul the library.

They really need to change this ugly color scheme. They've picked the most boring shade of blue possible, everything looks even more dated because of that.

 

[loganclaws]

WHY CAN'T THEY JUST ADD THE OPTION TO FILTER OUT GAMES BY TAG???

 

[ezodagrom]

Hope they rehaul the library.

Same, the desktop mode library feels like the most outdated part of steam at the moment, it's even still using the older black colour scheme instead of the blue colour scheme that everything else is using.
(I don't have problems with any of the colour schemes, I'm fine with either blue or black, but, it just shows how little attention the library has gotten compared to everything else).

 

[Pixieking]

Not related to the store-changes directly, but I hope they do something to get developers and publishers to post change-logs for games consistently. I shouldn't have to go hunting around on Google for what changed yesterday in a game I bought a few months ago. Maybe tie-it into a Library refresh, so that there's a specific section for update change-logs?

 

[Abilidebob]

Not related to the store-changes directly, but I hope they do something to get developers and publishers to post change-logs for games consistently. I shouldn't have to go hunting around on Google for what changed yesterday in a game I bought a few months ago. Maybe tie-it into a Library refresh, so that there's a specific section for update change-logs?

That would be amazing. If I get an update to a game, that update should have at least a description.

 

[Mobius and pet octopus]

Not related to the store-changes directly, but I hope they do something to get developers and publishers to post change-logs for games consistently. I shouldn't have to go hunting around on Google for what changed yesterday in a game I bought a few months ago. Maybe tie-it into a Library refresh, so that there's a specific section for update change-logs?

They aren't really into forcing people to do stuff I think. If the devs want to post the change log, they have the capability to do it.

 

[Exuro]

Not related to the store-changes directly, but I hope they do something to get developers and publishers to post change-logs for games consistently. I shouldn't have to go hunting around on Google for what changed yesterday in a game I bought a few months ago. Maybe tie-it into a Library refresh, so that there's a specific section for update change-logs?

I was going to say that thats why there's a recently updated section, but then I checked out a random game and its update was literally just an ad that it was on sale.

 

[Ionic]

WHY CAN'T THEY JUST ADD THE OPTION TO FILTER OUT GAMES BY TAG???

You already can by using the Steam store search bar and putting a minus (-) next to tags you wish to omit. They could make the interface a little cleaner though so it's easier to mix and match tags I will agree. Here's an example.

http://store.steampowered.com/search/?term=shooter rpg singleplayer -fps -horror