Steam Deck Client Gets a Huge Update With Display Off Downloads and More

The Steam Deck client just got a pretty huge update, and the biggest thing in here is the new display off download feature. You can finally let your downloads finish with the screen off, and a bunch of other stuff landed with it too.

This new feature is enabled by default when the Deck is plugged into power. You can also switch it on for battery use by going into Settings, then Power. Using it is simple. Pick the game you want to download, press the power button, and you’ll see the option pop up to continue the download. That’s all you need to do.

There are also a bunch of general fixes. One of the big ones is a fix for certain collections going missing when reinstalling Steam or putting Steam onto a new machine. Another one worth calling out is the fix for Bluetooth devices not showing up as available to pair when toggling Bluetooth on. That one has hit plenty of people, and it’s good to see it finally sorted.

There’s also a small update for accessibility. High contrast support in the settings dialog has been improved. If you go into Accessibility and scroll down, you’ll see high contrast mode and the different colour filters you can switch between. Not sure how much of that was already there, but it’s worth pointing out and showing what it looks like now.

Friends and chat got a change too. Suspicious or harassing one on one messages can now be reported straight from the chat window. You just select the message, open the options from the suspicious chat warning, and report it right there.

Steam Input has a list of fixes. There’s a fix for the gyro sensitivity issue that showed up in the previous beta release. There’s also a fix for PS5 controller gyro over Bluetooth, plus support for the latest game input release and support for the 8bit Do 64 Bluetooth controller.

Remote Play got a small but useful update as well. There’s now a connect button in the Remote Play settings for streaming your remote desktop. In Play Together, they fixed enabling and disabling player input and improved cursor sharing so the local player has priority.

Game recording has also been cleaned up. The timeline marker sometimes wouldn’t show up when viewing recordings outside of a game or after deleting a marker you created, and that has now been fixed. In desktop mode, there was an issue where the client and chat windows wouldn’t keep their position after being moved. That’s been fixed too.

That’s the full update. The highlight is definitely the display off downloading. Being able to download games with the screen off is something people have been asking for forever, so finally seeing it land on the Deck is a big deal. Looking forward to using that one a lot.

Full List of Changes

Display-Off Low Power Downloads

• Added a new feature, allowing Steam Deck to complete all active downloads in a new display-off low-power mode before going to sleep.

• This feature is enabled by default when Steam Deck is plugged in to power, and can also be enabled on battery power in Settings > Power.

• Learn more about this feature at our blog post here.

General

• Fixed a case where certain collections would become unavailable to user after reinstalling Steam or installing Steam on a new machine.

• Fixed a case where a launch dialog could appear for a game that was blocked by parental controls.

• Fixed alerts not showing up on Steam web pages that appear on Steam Deck.

• Fixed the network icon on the header showing the wrong state during startup.

• Fixed the Quick Access Menu alignment when in game.

• Fixed hidden games showing in All and Library tabs. They now appear in their own tab if applicable.

• Fixed an issue where controls could lock up for several seconds after resume or on regaining a connection to Steam servers.

• Fixed some titles launching with incorrect Steam Play settings when installed right after purchase.

• Fixed a case where bluetooth devices wouldn't show up as available to pair when toggling bluetooth on.

• Fixed SteamOS updates failing to respect HTTP proxy configuration.

Accessibility

• Improved high contrast support in the settings dialog.

Friends & Chat

• Suspicious or harassing 1 on 1 chat messages can be reported directly in the chat window by selecting the message and pressing 'Options' or from the suspicious chat warning. You can optionally block and/or unfriend the other user while submitting the report.

• Added a suspicious chat warning that will appear at the top of the chat window when you receive a message that is potentially malicious. Links in chat are disabled while this warning is visible.

Steam Input

• Fixed an issue with gyro sensitivity introduced in the previous beta release.

• Fixed an issue with PS5 controller gyro over BT, and improved Nintendo controllers' gyro stability generally.

• Fixed swapping modes between left and right hand sources breaking bindings for mode-shifts.

• Fixed the guide button opening the overlay when the guide button is disabled in controller settings.

• Added support for the latest GameInput release.

• Fixed an issue where PlayStation controller light bar settings did not stick when exiting the controller calibration page.

• Added support for the 8BitDo 64 Bluetooth Controller.

Remote Play

• Added a "Connect" button to Remote Play settings for streaming the remote desktop.

• Don't switch to Big Picture when streaming to Steam Deck.

Remote Play Together

• Fixed enabling and disabling player input in the Remote Play Together dialog.

• Input enable settings are persistent and are saved per-game.

• Improved mouse cursor sharing between players, with the local player having priority.

Game Recording

• Fixed timeline markers sometimes not appearing when viewing recordings outside of a game or after deleting a user created marker.

Desktop Mode

• Fixed client and chat windows not saving location when moved.