Valve is about to make more changes to the Steam store to address some of the digital marketplace’s discovery issues.
Over the weekend, the company notified SteamWorks developers of the impending tweaks, and said it wanted to do more to help content creators big and small connect with their target audiences.
The post was uploaded to NeoGAF over the weekend, and reveals that the changes, while subject to change based on feedback, should be rolled out in the next few weeks.
Perhaps the most notable adjustment for devs comes in the form of targeted visibility for new releases. Valve says it’ll be making “some changes” to the initial launch visibility of new titles, which will now appear in a few different ways on the “New on Steam” page and “New on Steam” queue.
“The goal is to reach a more engaged group of customers, and drive more relevant traffic directly to your store page,” reads the update. “This change should result in your title appearing to a smaller, but better targeted group of potential customers based on their preferences and tastes.”
More power is also being handed to consumers, with additional global customer preference options giving players the ability to specify which product types they want to see on the home page.
It means that, rather than managing each section of the store individually, users will be able to exclude specific products — such as Early Access titles or VR experiences — from appearing on the Steam home page and other parts of the store.
The makeover will see the home page get a “visual refresh” to remove visual clutter and deliver a more streamlined user experience. With that in mind, the storefront will be built-out with new “popular among friends” and “top selling new releases” sections.
Valve then plans to bolster the presence of Steam Curators by highlighting their recent recommendations on the home page. More curator options will also help clarify the purpose of each post.
“We’re going to give Steam Curators the tools to indicate whether their post is recommended, not recommended, or simply informational,” continues the update.
“This helps us better understand whether a curation should be used to promote a game on the front page of Steam, or if it’s intended to be informational that should primarily appear on the individual product page.”
You can read the complete SteamWorks update over on NeoGAF.
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2016