The latest Steam update toys with letting players attach their hardware specs to their reviews so others can more easily see whether they are likely to experience the same level of performance while playing.
As mentioned in the latest Steam Client update notes, one of the beta additions is "the option to attach hardware specs when writing or updating a Steam User Review on a game's store page."
Other additions include the option to send your framerate data to Valve so the company can "learn about game compatibility and improve Steam", bug fixes for Linux users, and the option to add a comment when you report that a game is not suitable for Steam Deck.
However, the ability to include personal hardware specs to Steam reviews is the star of the show with the latest beta update. Steam reviews eschew any form of numerical rating in favor of a simpler recommendation system. This means that many choose not to approve a game purely based on performance.
It makes sense. If a game constantly crashes on you, then you're not going to recommend it, even if you would've loved it had you been able to play perfectly. This can be the case with new games, even if you pass the minimum or even recommended specs on the Steam page.
The new review option will allow players to show others how powerful their machine needs to be to run a game that has been anointed with the dreaded 'Mixed' tag due to performance issues.
Valve is revisiting Steam Machine pricing and release timing due to "rapidly" increasing memory and storage shortages
