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Steam Big Picture Mode in 2019?

Do you use Steam Big Picture Mode in 2019?

  • Yes

    Votes: 142 54.2%

  • No

    Votes: 126 48.1%
  • Total voters
    262
Aswitch

Aswitch

Member
Nov 27, 2017
5,118
Los Angeles, CA
Has it improved since last year? Do people use it?

Personally I'd like to set it up as this but could never get it to reliably work:

I launch steam to big picture mode and it launches directly to my TV consistently after I turn off my pc and turn it back on(have it hooked up to my receiver as a display). I could never get it to work this way. It seems to always pick another display(that's never my tv) when I launch it.
 
alosarjos

alosarjos

Member
Oct 27, 2017
364
I use it when playing with gamepad, since it's the only way to access the gamepad profile and settings while in-game
 
thebishop

thebishop

Banned
Nov 10, 2017
2,758
It hasn't improved much imo but just having a gamepad-controllable TV UI is super useful. I hope Valve eventually gets back to SteamOS and rapid Big Picture refinement.
 
Lashley

Lashley

<<Tag Here>>
Member
Oct 25, 2017
59,928
I don't use it all the time, but I use it.

I wish they'd give it a UI overhaul as well as some improvements.
 
NoblesseOblige

NoblesseOblige

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
3,231
I was forced to use it to get my controller working, but after that no I haven't touched it. I loathe big picture mode.
 
flaxknuckles

flaxknuckles

Member
Oct 25, 2017
4,300
I stopped using it when they changed it so the home page looks ugly as hell and it takes three clicks to start a game.
 
MrHedin

MrHedin

Member
Dec 7, 2018
6,812
I use it quite often. The UI could be a bit better but it's not something that really bothers me either.
 
xGrizzly

xGrizzly

Member
Dec 3, 2017
1,147
Atlanta
The main reason I prefer Steam to all other storefronts. While it isnt perfect and needs updates (specifically being able to go past 1080p) its super convenient when you have your PC connected to a monitor and TV. It seamlessly projects to the TV off a press of the Xbox guide button.
 
Big-E

Big-E

Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,169
Does what it needs to do. I use it only for third person action games as those I play with a controller.
 
Karma

Karma

Banned
Dec 13, 2019
23
Nope. They didn't improve on it.

Valve and forgotten features. Name a more iconic duo.
 
kiryyuu

kiryyuu

Banned
Dec 23, 2019
63
I don't use it as much as I should, it makes couch gaming much easier although it needs a lot polishing.
 
Rotobit

Rotobit

Editor at Nintendo Wire
Verified
Oct 27, 2017
10,196
I pop into it to adjust controller settings - I needed to change the analog deadzone for Trails of Cold Steel II and for some baffling reason the only way you can do that is thru Big Picture (at least from what I could see)

I don't mind it in theory, but for someone very used to the traditional UI it feels sluggish.
 

Deleted member 49611

Nov 14, 2018
5,052
i don't use it but i probably would if i played games on my TV more and wanted the console experience. i'm quite happy just using the desktop client.
 

TitanicFall

Member
Nov 12, 2017
8,263
I use it but don't think it's been enhanced much outside of Steam Input integration. The new Steam UI is more visually pleasing than Big Picture Mode. Perhaps if they added a layout that worked well with just directional inputs then they wouldn't need Big Picture mode any more.
 
Dinjoralo

Dinjoralo

Member
Oct 25, 2017
9,140
I do use it, sometimes when I'm playing on my TV.

It really needs work, though. The way the menus are laid out is so inconsistent, moving your selection between different sections of the menus can have it go anywhere but where you would expect.
 
jetsetrez

jetsetrez

Member
Oct 27, 2017
1,919
It's invaluable to me because (as far as I'm aware) it's the only way to play with non-Xinput controller support without mostly terrible third party programs. It lets me play any game with Switch Pro controller support, and even lets me play Epic Games Store games with it. If I could do these things in the standard Steam interface I probably wouldn't use big picture mode, but it is nice to have when you just want to navigate with controller.
 
StayMe7o

StayMe7o

Member
May 11, 2018
1,016
Kamurocho
I use it to play on my TV but trying to get my controller to work with an Origin game has been a pain in the ass and that's why I always try to play on Steam when possible so I don't have to deal with these annoyances.
 
Hetz

Hetz

Member
Oct 27, 2017
607
I use it, but it could be so much better. Im glad to hear that they are working on improving it. Ever since they made the Library improvements in the regular Steam UI, I've been using that more than Big Picture mode.
 

Deleted member 32726

User requested account closure
Banned
Nov 12, 2017
384
Hopefully we get a 2.0 revision. I have a bucket full of complaints that probably won't see any changes. Often, you're told to use a workaround in the current design.

I have a small PC hooked up to my TV. Minimal cables with no peripherals except a wireless X1 controller. Clean windows install that bypasses login and boots straight into BPM.

If all I do is launch a Steam game with controller support- then it's comfy. Doing anything that you could do on Desktop with the Steam client is simple with BPM.
 
TheSilentCircus

TheSilentCircus

Member
Jun 1, 2018
568
Upland
Youngfossil

Youngfossil

Member
Oct 27, 2017
3,668
Aswitch said:
Has it improved since last year? Do people use it?

Personally I'd like to set it up as this but could never get it to reliably work:

I launch steam to big picture mode and it launches directly to my TV consistently after I turn off my pc and turn it back on(have it hooked up to my receiver as a display). I could never get it to work this way. It seems to always pick another display(that's never my tv) when I launch it.
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...
I'm very confused by this post. What are you trying to do? Seems like user error
 
Antsa

Antsa

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
51
Rotobit said:
I pop into it to adjust controller settings - I needed to change the analog deadzone for Trails of Cold Steel II and for some baffling reason the only way you can do that is thru Big Picture (at least from what I could see)
Click to expand...
Click to shrink...

You can change controller configuration on the Steam library without BPM. Just right click on any game and select "Manage" and "Controller Configuration". You are needed to have a controller connected in order for this selection to appear.
 
eonden

eonden

Member
Oct 25, 2017
17,078
The new BPM is likely just going to be the same as the general UI once it is updated, just with a different scaling factor / small modifications to avoid having to handle 2 different UIs on the development pipeline.
So we will probably see more about it in 2020 / 2021.
 
.exe

.exe

Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,217
Yeah, I use it pretty often since I got a Link and started using Moonlight on Vita.
I could do with an update though. Accessing community stuff or the store gets kinda weird.
 
Lotto

Lotto

Member
Oct 28, 2017
2,372
Earth
it's the default for steamlink and it works well enough. no other choice really when i want to play on the TV, i like it still.
 

Deleted member 3196

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
1,280
They need to go back and do some work to it, but I still use it both for VR and comfy couch gaming.

A lot of the things they've done for the new Library update could transfer well to a new big picture UI. I hope they're working on something like that.
 
dsk1210

dsk1210

Member
Oct 25, 2017
2,390
Edinburgh UK
You can't even change the default color and I have had enough of looking that blue hue, also it has hardly been improved in years past.
 
Cecil

Cecil

Chicken Chaser
Member
Oct 25, 2017
3,445
I use it any time I want to play PC games on my TV. Haven't really had any major issues with it at all.

For me, it's the easiest way to navigate my library, and to get the games to run on my secondary display, when I want to play on the TV.

I haven't really thought about anything being a major issue, or any feature I really miss on it. But then I don't make much use of community features when I play games through BPM, since it just naturally feels like it should be a hassle when only using a joypad.
 
funky

funky

Banned
Oct 25, 2017
8,527
They really should move the control config menu into base steam since for whatever reason its hidden in BPM only. It super weird.

Big Picture Mode is bad and they haven't really improved it since launch. It seemed just tossed off into the wind and abandoned by Valve.
 
Lagamorph

Lagamorph

Wrong About Chicken
Member
Oct 26, 2017
7,355
On my PC? No.

When using a Steam Link? Yes but you don't exactly have an option there.
 
pswii60

pswii60

Member
Oct 27, 2017
26,665
The Milky Way
As a couch gamer, it's the interface I see and use when my PC wakes from standby.

I add games from all launchers to Steam so I can launch them all from BPM.

It does the job but is definitely due an overhaul.
 
Branson

Branson

Member
Oct 27, 2017
2,770
Once I got a wireless KBM and lap board for some couch goodness I haven't went back.
 
BeI

BeI

Member
Dec 9, 2017
5,974
I use it all the time when playing with a controller at a desk, and I'd likely use it a lot if I played on a TV. It does most of the things it needs to alright, but I would very much like an interface even more similar to a console one, and with newer features from the recent UI update. Maybe they could add some sort of way to put your PC into a sleep mode similar to a console, such that you can wake it with any controller remotely. I feel like any BPM UI update would be even bigger than the recent UI update too.
 
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