Valve aims to make Steam easier to sift through with 'Discovery 2.0' update

Valve today released the "Discovery Update 2.0" for Steam, revamping the platform in an effort to give users more control over what games are shown to them when they browse the Steam storefront.

The name makes this especially notable because Valve's original Discovery Update, launched 2 years ago in direct response to the ever-increasing tide of games released every year, was of significant import to game devs struggling to get their games in front of Steam shoppers who might like to buy them. 

That original Discovery Update brought with it the Steam Curators system, the Discovery Queue, and a Steam storefront that would recommend games based on what a customer had purchased and played in the past. This week's Discovery Update 2.0 brings with it no new systems of similar significance, but instead refines many of those systems in ways that seem intended to show Steam users even more of what they like -- and less of what they avoid. 

For example, most lists across the Steam store (new releases, top-sellers, etc.) will now automatically filter out games that a user already owns or has previously marked as being of no interest. The Curators section on the Steam storefront has been expanded, and most games on the front page now appear with screenshots alongside them.

Some of the buttons are bigger.

This follows a series of smaller changes Valve have made to Steam over the past few months, most recently by pressuring devs to ensure their games on Steam have "appropriate" screenshots. 

You can read a lengthier list of the changes leading up to and comprising this update over on Valve's Discovery 2.0 hype sheet. The effect the original Discovery Update had on Steam devs' business varied; what this new update means for devs remains to be seen.