Steam Achievements overhaul rolls out to all users

Valve has released its redesigned Steam Achievements system to all Steam users, about one month after starting a beta test. The update also includes changes to Big Picture mode, Remote Play and the Linux client.

The new achievement system is available for a limited number of games, including Portal 2, Team Fortress 2, Left 4 Dead 2, Forza Horizon 5, Crusader Kings 3 and Against the Storm. Valve’s update notes indicate that developers can implement the system with limited work, allowing more games to adopt it.

Base-game achievements now appear in blue, while downloadable content achievements appear in purple. DLC achievements do not affect a player’s overall completion percentage unless the player owns the relevant add-on or has added a free expansion to their account. A player can therefore keep a 100% completion rating for a base game after new DLC is released.

Developers can divide achievements into sets for different parts of a game, such as single-player and multiplayer modes. They can also create seasonal sets for time-limited content. A seasonal set can later be retired when its achievements are no longer available. Players who earned those achievements keep them, while players who missed the event no longer see empty achievement slots for it.

Steam now has a comparison page that lets users compare their progress with up to three friends. The former Perfect Games section is now called Completed. It includes games completed in full, games with an individual achievement set completed, and games accessed through Steam Family Sharing.

The update changes Steam notifications and improves offline access to the activity feed. Store text search has also been updated. Controller support is available for GameInput v4, and Valve fixed the custom Joystick Power Curve setting, which previously did not work correctly.

Remote Play now includes a display option for screens with different aspect ratios. HDR support is available through Remote Play on Linux and macOS, Steam Deck OLED devices and phones running Android 15 or later.

The Linux Steam client is now a 64-bit application and runs inside a Steam Runtime container, the same type of environment used for games. The change is intended to provide more consistent performance across Linux distributions.

Big Picture mode has received several interface changes. Its chat window now includes a widget for accepting friend requests, and the chat tab has been redesigned. Multiple messages received in quick succession are grouped into one notification.

Users can adjust voice-chat volume from a friend’s context menu. Steam also includes additional time-zone settings for locations with specific daylight-saving changes.

Reviewed and fact-checked by Vlad Kipran on November 12.