Steam drops huge update for users, including much needed time-saving change

Steam has just dropped a new beta update for all users to opt into, bringing a bunch of new changes to the platform.

The latest beta update to Steam includes changes to the UI, structure, and functions of the Steam client, as well as a few improvements to SteamOS.

As the number of SteamOS users increases following the launch of the Steam Machine, Valve is adding a load of new features to the operating system which will improve your experience.

The main highlight of the update for SteamOS users is the ability to now launch straight into desktop mode when you turn the device on.

Previously, you’d launch into Gaming Mode and have to reboot to desktop mode with no way to change this, so this should save some time for those who use any device using SteamOS as a PC that want to skip Gaming Mode.

Other changes in the Steam Client Beta include a new screensaver mode which cycles through art from your recently played games, or alternatively you can also load your own custom images as a screensaver.

Meanwhile, another highlight of the beta is the placement of bigger art on the home screen, where hovering over a certain game tile will feature a larger version of that artwork in the background.

Although those are the big features of this update, some smaller optimisations and fixes have also been implemented. You can check out the full patch notes for the beta below.

You can opt in to the Steam Client Beta by heading to Steam Settings, then going to Interface and then Client Beta Participation. Select a beta from this drop-down menu.

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Steam Client Beta - September 10, 2026 patch notes

Homescreen - Big Picture Mode

• Added a new 'Big Art Mode' option for the home screen. This can be enabled in Settings > Home.
• Added Personal Calendar to the Recommended tab on the home screen

Screensaver - Big Picture Mode

• Added a new screensaver feature, accessible in Settings > Customization. There are two screensavers available:
• The default is a game art slideshow that can be configured to show artwork from recently played games and your recent in-game screenshots.
• A retro inspired bouncing logo screensaver
• Big Picture mode can also load custom screensavers. Similar to startup movies, they can be placed in the config\uioverrides\screensavers directory in your Steam install directory (e.g. C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam or ~/.steam/root). You can use the bouncing logo screensaver (in the steamui\screensavers directory) as an example to get started.

General

• Improved Steam Client startup performance
• Fixed a case where after server maintenance some users might fail to auto-reconnect to Steam
• Fixed bug where being prompted to refresh credentials more than once could trigger an immediate restart
• On Windows, using the systray menu to exit while the Steam window is minimized will no longer flash the window visible briefly
• Dialogs that appear for serious error conditions now stay above the main window

Game Recording

• Fixed some cases where playback would jump to an unexpected point in the timeline when reaching the end of a play session or clip
• Decreased performance impact of game recording for some D3D12 games on Windows

In-Game Overlay

• Fixed frame rate hitches in D3D11 and D3D12 games when taking screenshots on Windows
• Fixed rendering the overlay and using other overlay related features (screenshots, game recording, etc.) in Vulkan games that create multiple windows.

Big Picture Mode

• Added explicit warning text to power menu confirmation dialogs when proceeding will shut down an active game
• Updated default artwork when an app does not have library or hero artwork
• Reorganized the idle timer settings when on battery and AC power

Steam Input

• Improved CPU performance at runtime and in configuration loading
• Added information about which configurations are compatible in the configurator browser when using a game that requires Steam Input API
• Fixed the controller support widget showing "This game doesn't support controllers" for unreleased games that don't have controller support information yet
• Fixed controllers not using the desktop configuration on the desktop UI login window
• Added the missing settings for adjusting emulated joystick adaptive centering on trackpad

Linux

• Improved download speeds on high latency connections.
• The "Select compatibility tool" dropdown is now always visible.
• The recommended compatibility tool, or steam runtime for native games, now shows at the top of the list as the "Default" option.
• Compatibility tool aliases, e.g. "Proton Stable", can now be selected from this dropdown.
• The SteamOS compatibility dialogs will now show in desktopUI when installing games not verified for that HW
• On Desktop Linux we will now show the SteamOS unsupported dialog when installing games that are known to not work with Proton
• Improve distro information collection for hardware survey, preferring data from /etc/os-release.

SteamRT3 Experimental Beta

• Fixed "Add a Non-Steam Game" showing an invalid list of applications.
• Fixed the "Run Steam when my computer starts" toggle.

Remote Play

• A PIN is no longer required to download an app to a remote device. A PIN is still required to Install and Stream from a remote device.
• Adding Download Complete notification for a remote download if you initiated the download on your current device.