The Steam mobile app hasn’t attracted much attention from Valve lately and has hardly been updated. A redesign was out of the question. That’s why it looks so outdated and not really easy to use. Most users download it only because of Steam Guard.
However, Valve woke up and started working on a new version of the mobile app. PC Gamer spotted a blog post in which the company invited “invested Steam users” to beta test its updated Android and iOS client. “We’ve rebuilt the app on a new framework and modernized the design. (2015 called and wanted their app back,)” Valve wrote.
Besides the existing features, the updated app adds smarter notifications, support for multiple accounts, and a new way to sign in to your Steam account. Instead of entering your username, password, and Steam Guard verification, you can use a QR code to simplify the process. This is probably the most useful feature added by Valve. Especially as the majority of popular applications already use QR codes as a convenient possibility of authorization.
According to the overall opinion of the test participants, the new app is a nice improvement over its predecessor. It has the usual flaws found in beta versions of the software, including slow performance and lots of bugs, but it’s a step forward. “The sooner we get your feedback on a product, the better,” Valve wrote. “This is especially important when the app can be used on so many different phones and devices.”
The release date of the new version of the application is not yet known. But the Steam beta is open to anyone who wants to participate. You can find installation instructions on the Steam website, but be aware that the iOS beta is limited to 10,000 simultaneous participants due to Apple TestFlight restrictions.
