Valve has offered up its Big Picture Mode UI for TV/controller users and the like for nearly 10 years. With the announcement of the Steam Deck, it has been showing off a new simple to operate UI that similarly responds neatly to touch/controllers. Is it going to keep both UIs – one for large screens and another for smaller devices? It looks like it won't, as a Valve employee responded to a query about this very question on the Steam forums.
Forum member SparklyVapor put forward the Big Picture UI question on Monday. "Is the Steam Deck OS like the next step for Big Picture?" quizzed the Steam gamer. "In comparison to the UI that we have now everything just looks so outdated and I would love for most of the features to be translated to the awfully outdated big picture mode."
Valve employee Austin P provided a thankfully clear and concise answer. "Yes, we are replacing Big Picture with the new UI from Deck. We don't have an ETA to share yet though," said the Steam forum moderator. If one had to estimate a Big Picture upgrade date, it might be on or around the scheduled release date of Steam Deck hardware – this October. It would be good to get a unified UI ready for that launch.
Valve's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive art contest has a prize pot of $1 million
Valve has announced a generous art contest for those interested in creating CS:GO weapons skins based upon the themes of Dreams & Nightmares. The $1 million prize fund is going to be split into ten $100,000 chunks. After accepting the prize money, artists will still own the rights to their creations, but Valve will have a non-exclusive license to use it in CS:GO.
If you have no idea how to create a weapon skin for CS:GO but consider yourself a dab hand at art, Valve has an extensive Weapon Finishes Guide available here for you to peruse. One essential tool will be the CS:GO Workshop Workbench.
Any Steam member (with an active account which has spent at least US$5 on Steam games), with no geographic restrictions, will be able to enter the competition, and can create as many skins as they like on their own, or as part of a team. It is possible to win more than one prize. The contest is open today, and you have until 21st October to submit entries. Winners will be contacted by 21st November.
