If Steam is one of your gaming applications of choice, then you usually won’t spend much time interacting with the program—you’ll probably want to get straight to gaming. Take a few minutes to dive into the settings and features on offer though, and there’s a lot more to explore. From remapping gamepad controls to launching games with custom restrictions, here’s what’s possible. (Note: The tips below are based on the current Steam client for Windows desktop, but you should find comparable options on other Steam apps as well.)
Run a privacy audit to prevent strangers from learning about your gaming habits
You need to pay attention to your privacy on Steam as well as every other application and platform you use. Specifically, you have a Steam profile that may or may not reveal information about you to the world at large.
Click Steam > Settings > Account And then Privacy settings Conduct audits and make any necessary changes. For example, your profile may include details of games you’ve purchased and wishlisted, and people you’re friends with on the platform. Most details can be set to Public, PrivateOr just friends. There is also a setting to control who is allowed to comment on your profile.
Create a “Steam Family” to share games with others
Steam comes with family sharing built in, so games you’ve purchased can be shared with up to five other people in the “same household” (which basically means using the same IP address most of the time).
To get started, open Steam > Settings > Family And then Create or join a Steam family. If you are the head of a family group, you will need to give it a name and send invitations and from there you can manage who is allowed in the group. Multiple games can be played from your library at the same time, but two family members cannot play the same game at the same time.
Besides giving your loved ones access to your games without paying for them, it’s also an effective way to add parental controls for your kids: you can set which games are available to which family members and even set gameplay time limits.
Run commands to customize your games
If you right-click on a game in your Steam library and select Properties > GeneralYou will come across one Launch options box that lets you add command line-style operators to the executable for your chosen game. For those of you who have never been on the command line, we’re talking about specific, additional instructions that tell the game to behave a certain way or enable or disable certain features. They can help troubleshoot issues with the game as well as customize it to suit your needs.
Available options cover everything from forcing a windowed launch to skipping intros to keeping voice chat logs and disabling GPU features. Compatibility varies by game, but you can Find a comprehensive list here.
You don’t have to keep all your games in one place.
Credit: Lifehacker
Add drive to strategically move your games elsewhere
You don’t have to settle for having all your games in one place on your system. Perhaps you have a fast SSD installed, for example, but space on it is limited: you can move a selection of games where speed is most important to this drive, and leave the rest where they are.
First you need to create an alternate location on your system. choose Steam > Settings > StorageClick the drop-down menu at the top, then select Add a drive. After creating another location, you can move the game to your library by right-clicking on it and selecting Properties > Installed Files. choose Move the install folder And you can choose another location.
Limit download speed to keep your internet running smoothly
You don’t want Steam downloading games and updates at the maximum rate every time, especially if you’re trying to enjoy some high-quality 4K video streaming entertainment in the next room.
choose Steam > Settings > Downloads And you get a whole host of options to control how the program handles file transfers. turn on Limit download speed Toggle the switch, and you can set the ceiling in Kbps – handy for times when you don’t need your game updates as fast as possible and don’t need your internet for other things.
Switch to other servers while your work is in progress
As for downloads and download speeds, by default Steam will connect you to the server closest to your location for your data transfer. Most of the time, this will give you the fastest upload and download speeds.
It’s not always guaranteed though: when your default region is particularly busy, you may find a connection further away that gives you faster speeds. Head for Steam > Settings > Downloads And you will find Download region Picker at the top.
What do you think so far?
Use “Big Picture Mode” to navigate Steam with the gamepad
Any Steam game that is gamepad-compatible will work without any fuss once you plug in the controller, but what about the Steam interface? Switching back and forth between the gamepad and keyboard isn’t particularly convenient. The answer is to launch Steam in Big Picture mode, designed for using Steam on a TV. Not only does this make the interface simpler and more suitable for larger screens, it also makes it very gamepad-friendly.
from Steam > SettingsSelect “Interface”, then Enable Start Steam in big picture mode Basically to use this interface. You can also switch in and out via Big Picture mode Alt+EnterMenu button on your controller or the Big Picture Mode icon in the upper-right corner of the client interface (just to the left of the small button).
Remapping Controller Commands in Steam.
Credit: Lifehacker
Remap your gamepad controls
On the subject of gamepads, if you right-click on any game in your library and select Properties > Controller > Controller ConfigurationYou can override the default settings for how the buttons and joysticks are used—or even get a gamepad that doesn’t natively support them.
That’s not all: if you choose Browse profiles On the remap screen, you can use any of the configurations submitted by the Steam community for the selected game. A custom configuration can give you an edge in your next gameplay session.
Use “SteamDB” for future Steam sales insights
When it comes to external Steam resources you should absolutely investigate, I want to point you out SteamDB—which, as its name suggests, is a database of every game currently available on Steam.
Not only can you see new, popular and trending games in the Steam catalog, you can also get updates on upcoming releases and the latest patches, and you can also do a quick calculation to find out how much you’ve spent on Steam over the years. Perhaps most importantly, you can get predictions for when the next Steam sale will take place (based on historical data), and search current sale details in terms of discount amount, release date, genre, etc.
Use FPS Counter to monitor your PC’s performance
Viewing Frames–Per-second performance in real time can help you make sure your gaming hardware is running as it should, and is also useful for diagnosing problems–if you feel like frames are being dropped, this will prove it.
Steam comes with its own default FPS display option: Pick Steam then settingsThen head in the game. There a Show performance monitor Here’s an option that lets you choose where your overlay goes on the screen. Options on the same screen let you choose what is shown other than FPS: it is possible to display CPU, GPU and RAM usage statistics as well.
