Steam Introduces Built-In Game Recording and Sharing Tools

Valve announced a new beta feature for Steam: a built-in game recording system. The new tool lets gamers record, replay, clip, and share their gameplay footage directly from Steam.

The feature has two modes: background recording and on-demand recording modes. The first continuously saves gameplay, adhering to user-defined storage limits, while the on-demand recording mode allows for manual start and stop.

One of the new tool’s standout capabilities is the Steam Timeline, which appears during active recording sessions. This timeline integrates event markers, generated automatically by the game or manually by the player, making it easy to find key moments.?

Today we’ve launched Steam Game Recording into Beta. This is a new built-in system for creating and sharing your gameplay footage, that works on any game on Steam.

Learn more here: https://t.co/H5z6Reykmx pic.twitter.com/koDAjyUeAe

— Steam (@Steam) June 26, 2024

These markers are especially useful for timeline-enhanced games, which notify Steam of significant in-game events like boss battles or item unlocks. The timeline helps players quickly review essential moments, such as pinpointing when a character died or recalling a necessary dialogue.

In addition to recording, the system offers lightweight tools for clipping and sharing footage. Users can easily find and keep only the most relevant parts of their recordings, and the redesigned Recordings & Screenshots interface streamlines the process of editing and sharing clips.?

Videos can be shared with friends via chat, posted publicly, or transferred between devices from a Steam Deck to a PC or mobile device. For convenience, footage can be exported in MP4 format, making it accessible outside Steam’s ecosystem.

According to a new page on the Steam website, the feature is designed to be efficient, minimizing CPU usage by leveraging the video encoding capabilities of AMD and NVIDIA GPUs.?

It works with any game that supports the Steam Overlay, including non-Steam titles, and offers customizable settings for disk usage and privacy.