The controller-friendly user interface of the Steam Deck will replace the big picture mode at some point

Steam’s outdated big picture mode will eventually get the overhaul we have been asking for.

One of the biggest gains Steam deck Reveal that, in addition to all hardware and platform discussions, is the user interface of the handheld device. It’s easy to see that this is very different from the outdated big picture setup that we have been using for years.

It turns out that this is because Valve built a new interface for Steam Deck, but it will not only exist there. The company has confirmed that, as many people suspect, this design will eventually replace the Big Picture on the PC client.

A Valve developer posted under the username Austinp_valve, confirming this exciting news on the Steam forum, in the thread discussing this matter.

“Yes, we are replacing Big Picture with Deck’s new UI. However, we don’t yet have an estimated time of arrival that we can share,” he said.

Big Picture was created almost nine years ago to make Steam more usable on the controller. At that time, Valve insisted that Steam (remember the Steam machine?) be used as a console. Since then, the user interface has undergone minor updates, and although it started well, it has fallen behind in terms of usability and functionality.

This update is indeed overdue, although we do hope that it will not be in a few years.