Game Playability Database for Library & Store

[[EW] Mitsie]

I have multiple devices that all have different graphics cards. While it is great that I can access all my games on any machine, Why would I want to install or buy games for a machine that simply doesn't have the power to run them? I've always wondered over the years why Valve hasn't collected the performance of games running on certain hardware and allowed users the ability to filter the store by games that will run on their Hardware.

The store is full of reviews of purchases where the customer had to return the game because it didn't work on their device. I play on my desktop which has a High-end graphics card, it plays everything I throw at it. If I take my lower-end laptops on the go for work and want to play a game, I have to look at my library of 900 games and try to work out what would play on the device.

Sometimes I fancy a new game, but it is a nightmare trying to work out on the store if the game I want would play on the device I'm using. The only way is to purchase the game, download it, try it out, and if it doesn't work, uninstall then request a refund. Not only is this a waste of my time, but it's also a waste of Valve Support time & money, issuing a refund.

What a nightmare it is ! It's a lot simpler to keep your wallet in your pocket and give it a miss.

If a certain game doesn't work on an Intel G640, why do another 1000 customers with an Intel G640 graphics card have to purchase the game to find out the game doesn't work on their hardware as well?

In a perfect world, the Steam library would be able to show you what games work well on your Graphics card. Same as the "Works great on Deck" Store section for the Steam Deck that is being introduced.

Surely Valve could compile a list of hardware similar to when it takes the yearly Hardware survey and the Steam overlay has a built-in FPS counter. Couldn't that data be sent with the Hardware information to Valve to create a database of game playability?

Even a Game Playability / Hardware survey so we could complete, helping others with similar Hardware. You could possibly opt-in to leave a hardware playability rating on each device you play your games on, leaving a playability review for others on the Store to browse.

Even the ability for the Steam client to be able to detect your Hardware and automatically cross reference it with the Game's store page minimum spec to create a "Works well on this Device" tab. Its an almost impossible task to cross reference your library with the store pages manually when picking a game.

Alternatively the ability to add custom tags to my library of games, so if I've tested a game on a device, I could add a custom tag for my Library to find these games quickly.

It would be a dream to be able to just pick up any device and be able to click on my Library and choose the "Works well on this device" and not have to test out numerous games until I find a game that works. If you are on a metered connection, this becomes even more of an obstacle.

Wouldnt it be great if I was able to visit the Steam store and purchase a game, Knowing that there is a very strong possibility the game that I'm buying, will work on my device, because others before me have tested it ?

[Gwarsbane]

Wouldn't it be even better if people used the search feature before making huge posts and discovering that what they want will not happen on Steam because of liability issues. (if they tell people they can't run a game, when in fact they can, it opens them to lawsuits from the developers/publishers)

Because that kind of thing is just not accurate because as mentioned in the hundreds of other threads on this topic, its not just because 2 pieces of hardware that are suppose to have the same stats can actually be different than each other because of the silicon lottery, but also because with 10s of millions of hardware combos you have to take into consideration you also have to take into consideration the billions of combos you can have with all the software out there.

Software you are running in the background has just as big of an effect as the hardware you run.

Microsoft, a company with far more money and experienced workers could not get it to be accurate and no being close is not good enough when you are also the one selling the games.

There are 3rd party websites you can use to tell you if you might be able to run it.


Know your own hardware, look on each page to see what the requirements are.

You can already create your own categories and stuff and have things in more than one section. Name your systems, A B and C or what ever and put everything that works for A in A, everything that works for B in B, and everything that works for C in C.

[Yasahi]

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

It would be a dream to be able to just pick up any device and be able to click on my Library and choose the "Works well on this device" and not have to test out numerous games until I find a game that works. If you are on a metered connection, this becomes even more of an obstacle.

Dreaming up features that are impossible to implement sure sounds fun. The problem is that as they're impossible to implement, the dream will remain a dream.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

Wouldnt it be great if I was able to visit the Steam store and purchase a game, Knowing that there is a very strong possibility the game that I'm buying, will work on my device, because others before me have tested it ?

That's already how it is if you know your own specs so perhaps start with that.

[Crazy Tiger]

That won't be implemented for three reasons:
- It's not accurate, at all. There are various canirunit websites and they all give different ratings/advice;
- Liability towards both customers and game devs/publishers;
- There is no universal/standard regarding "playable" or the posted minimum/recommended specs on store pages. Some people consider 30fps playable, while others don't want below 60fps, for example.

A store will not burn themselves on this. And an inaccurate system is much worse than no system in that regard.

[[EW] Mitsie]

Originally posted by Yasahi:

That's already how it is if you know your own specs so perhaps start with that. :lunar2020thinkingtiger:

How do you in real time, match the spec of your machine against the games in your library's minimum specs? That is without going through every game and then clicking on store, then scrolling through the page to find the minimum spec ?

Please explain how I can do this easily and problem solved.

It becomes an impossible task, when sifting through 900 games.

The whole point i'm making is, this could be done by the Steam Client, (which displays my hardware information in settings) cross referencing the Hardware information with the minimum specs for the game. this would make viewing your library on different devices easier, but it isn't implemented, it has to be done by hand going through every game one by one.

[Brian9824]

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

Originally posted by Yasahi:

That's already how it is if you know your own specs so perhaps start with that.

How do you in real time, match the spec of your machine against the games in your library's minimum specs? That is without going through every game and then clicking on store, then scrolling through the page to find the minimum spec ?

Please explain how I can do this easily and problem solved.

It becomes an impossible task, when sifting through 900 games.

The whole point i'm making is, this could be done by the Steam Client, (which displays my hardware information in settings) cross referencing the Hardware information with the minimum specs for the game. this would make viewing your library on different devices easier, but it isn't implemented, it has to be done by hand going through every game one by one.

Except as pointed out it can't be done by the client, not to a degree to make it worthwhile.

The problem is there are a million factors in play, and varying definitions of what is playable, and formats of how devs list the requirements.

Again it's why Microsoft who was in the best possible position to implement abandoned it because it's just not accurate.

[[EW] Mitsie]

Originally posted by Gwarsbane:

Wouldn't it be even better if people used the search feature before making huge posts and discovering that what they want will not happen on Steam because of liability issues. (if they tell people they can't run a game, when in fact they can, it opens them to lawsuits from the developers/publishers)

If the minimum requirements, as stated by the publisher themselves, says it required a 2.4Ghz processor, 6GB RAM and a minimum GTX960. and i have a 1.4Ghz processor 4GB RAM and a GTX760, then obviously my hardware is simply not up to the minimum requirements to run this game, Im saying why isnt there a section which cross references your hardware details with the minimum specs from the publisher, so you know what games work with your device. Obviously, like on the Steam Deck, you can still purchase games that wont work on your device, Valve have created a section for games that "Work well on Deck" Wouldn't this be the same thing?

Why would i want to buy a game that will never work on my Hardware as stated by the Developer/Publisher ?

[Crazy Tiger]

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

Valve have created a section for games that "Work well on Deck" Wouldn't this be the same thing?

The Deck is basically a console. It's predetermined hardware with predetermined OS/Proton that is the same across the board. Valve tests the games, which can be requested by the game devs.

While PCs and laptops vary wildly in configurations of both hardware and software. Valve cannot test the games for that nor can they test your PC configuration, so they cannot verify that something works well or not on your PC

So no, it's not the same.

[[EW] Mitsie]

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

Valve have created a section for games that "Work well on Deck" Wouldn't this be the same thing?

The Deck is basically a console. It's predetermined hardware with predetermined OS/Proton that is the same across the board. Valve tests the games, which can be requested by the game devs.

While PCs and laptops vary wildly in configurations of both hardware and software. Valve cannot test the games for that nor can they test your PC configuration, so they cannot verify that something works well or not on your PC

So no, it's not the same.

It is in the same way that if my hardware does not meet the minimum requirements from a publisher, why shouldn't I be presented the tools to filter games that do meet the minimum requirements for a game?

I'm not saying people shouldn't be allowed to buy any game they want on Steam, I'm saying shouldn't the consumer have the ability to filter the store to games that will most probably work on their devices, as stated by the publisher?

If somebody wants to download Call of Duty Vanguard on a Laptop with an Integrated graphics chip and play it at 1fps, good for them, I'm not saying restrict the store, just give us tools to run a search for games that our hardware can meet the minimum specs. When i'm on my Laptop with integrated graphics, I don't want to sit on the store sifting through game after game matching my specs against the store page, I would prefer to filter the games in the store that has a good probability I can play it.

The Steam Deck is a PC under the hood as stated by Valve themselves. I understand the "Works well on Deck" is for the proton compatibility layer and if it works well on a small screen and has controller support, reviewed by Valve. That's not the point i was getting at, the point was that, with the Deck, you have the ability to filter the store for Games that will work well on the device, but can still buy any game. I was pointing out having a minimum requirements filter in the store would help the customer in the exact same way.

Find games that work well with their hardware quicker and making a purchase simpler.

[Brian9824]

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

If the minimum requirements, as stated by the publisher themselves, says it required a 2.4Ghz processor, 6GB RAM and a minimum GTX960. and i have a 1.4Ghz processor 4GB RAM and a GTX760, then obviously my hardware is simply not up to the minimum requirements to run this game, Im saying why isnt there a section which cross references your hardware details with the minimum specs from the publisher, so you know what games work with your device.

Because it's far more complicated. For instance you could have a 1.8 GHz processor, 8gb of ram and a GTX950 and it's possible the game could run despite being under the requirements for some areas.

Them there are also issues that sometimes a newer video card or processor won't work because of 1 specific feature. Or it runs at 2 frames per second which doesn't meet the users standards.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

Obviously, like on the Steam Deck, you can still purchase games that wont work on your device, Valve have created a section for games that "Work well on Deck" Wouldn't this be the same thing?

No that is working off a fixed configuration that valve can actually test vs the infinite computer configurations that exist.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

Why would i want to buy a game that will never work on my Hardware as stated by the Developer/Publisher ?

Because it's on sale and your going to upgrade later for instance?

[Nx Machina]

Developers, publishers maintain the store pages and they CANNOT test every possible PC config out there. They list instead min, rec specs to remove liability.

Valve sells other developer, publisher games on Steam and do not provide a filter due to liability because someone will claim Steam's filter said it would run after they input their PC specs and it does not, opening Valve up to be sued not just by the purchaser, but also the developer, publisher.

Those sites such as CanYouRunIt do not commit but only give you a rough guide as to whether it may run on your PC but not how good or bad the performance may be as you are not asked to provide any other information such as software installed etc.

There are multiple factors which affect PC's such as botched Windows updates, overzealous antivirus, bad drivers, failing hardware, background processes, windows indexing etc.

The mantra is know your PC and what it is capable of.

[[EW] Mitsie]

Originally posted by Nx Machina:

Those sites such as CanYouRunIt do not commit but only give you a rough guide as to whether it may run on your PC but not how good or bad the performance may be as you are not asked to provide any other information such as software installed etc.

Isn't that the point I'm making, you can already return a game if it doesn't work on your device, Shouldn't these tools to filter the store without you having to check "CanYouRunIt" be included to help you as a consumer? The Steam Client has your full Hardware specification of your device, steam has the minimum requirements for each game. Are you telling me, having the ability to filter the store to match hardware is impossible?

When I'm purchasing for my main desktop, I can buy anything, I don't have a problem. Its when i come to buy things on the store on a more restrictive machine that has for example an integrated graphic chip, it becomes extremely hard not only to find games in my library that work, but also games on the store. It becomes a nightmare.

People keep saying it cant be done, Adding a filter like "Filter library by minimum requirements" Where it reduces my game library and removed 600 games that will definitely never run on my current machine to 300 that might run? That cuts my headache by 2 thirds. I don't believe for a second that it isn't possible. You already own the games, why couldn't the Steam Client cross reference your game library against your hardware for you?

[Crazy Tiger]

As I said before, it's not a case of it not being possible. It's a case of it not being accurate and opening up Valve for liability issues.

All those canirunit sites actually show why it's not feasible for Valve to do it. Pick a few of those sites and you'll notice they give different ratings to whether a game is "playable" or not.

Now if those sites that don't have a commercial stake cannot even get the same results, why would a store, who has a commercial stake, put in an inaccurate system that opens them up for refunds and other legal issues?

What you are asking is that Valve actively rates every component, puts them in a database, maintains a comparison program and updates that frequently. Keep in mind that many minimum specs listed are text fields and not specified (GPUs have different VRAM amounts, for example). Heck, some simply list "a toaster can run it". How is Valve expected to maintain that?

[[EW] Mitsie]

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:

As I said before, it's not a case of it not being possible. It's a case of it not being accurate and opening up Valve for liability issues.

All those canirunit sites actually show why it's not feasible for Valve to do it. Pick a few of those sites and you'll notice they give different ratings to whether a game is "playable" or not.

Now if those sites that don't have a commercial stake cannot even get the same results, why would a store, who has a commercial stake, put in an inaccurate system that opens them up for refunds and other legal issues?

Ok so if you are saying it cant be done for the Store, What is the reason why we cant have the tools to filter our Game library by minimum specification based on our current hardware?

[Crazy Tiger]

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

Originally posted by Crazy Tiger:

As I said before, it's not a case of it not being possible. It's a case of it not being accurate and opening up Valve for liability issues.

All those canirunit sites actually show why it's not feasible for Valve to do it. Pick a few of those sites and you'll notice they give different ratings to whether a game is "playable" or not.

Now if those sites that don't have a commercial stake cannot even get the same results, why would a store, who has a commercial stake, put in an inaccurate system that opens them up for refunds and other legal issues?

Ok so if you are saying it cant be done for the Store, What is the reason why we cant have the tools to filter our Game library by minimum specification based on our current hardware?

I was editing my previous post, I added this:

"What you are asking is that Valve actively rates every component, puts them in a database, maintains a comparison program and updates that frequently. Keep in mind that many minimum specs listed are text fields and not specified (GPUs have different VRAM amounts, for example). Heck, some simply list "a toaster can run it". How is Valve expected to maintain that?"

That also goes for the library.

I've gamed on a potato laptop for a long time. I'd love for this to be feasible, but it really isn't. Heck, I've always used 3 canirunit sites and took the average as a guideline and even then I've played games those sites said I couldn't run. :D

Edit: Take this game for example:
Check the GPU in the minimum. I've played it without issue on a GT 745M, which is far underneath that GPU. What is playable is subjective and such a filter would be inaccurate.

[Mad Scientist]

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

Why would I want to install or buy games for a machine that simply doesn't have the power to run them?

Some people do this, as they intend on building a new system in the future.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

I've always wondered over the years why Valve hasn't collected the performance of games running on certain hardware and allowed users the ability to filter the store by games that will run on their Hardware.

It gets rather annoying having to explain this when people don't use the search feature, but here's the reason why:

Steam, is a Video Game store. They sell video games made by other people
Legally, it is not wise for the store to make claims about what can, and cannot run, with specific hardware.
Developers are the ones that can list, and should list, what they believe the min/rec specs are as they made the game and have a general idea and some systems to test with.
One component can drastically affect the performance of the whole system.

Example:
RUST
8GB RAM, HDD = immense loading times, high chance of skipped frames/visual lag when loading more entities due to lacking memory and reading/writing the data unable to be used to RAM due to lack of said RAM. Chance of outright crashing. High chance of BSOD / game crash if the drive has low space when needing virtual memory due to lack of RAM.
16GB RAM, HDD = moderate to high loading times, drive speed dependent.
16GB RAM, SSD/NVME = 25 seconds to 1-2 minutes loading time, best overall performance dependent on CPU & GPU.

So lacking resources or speed on any one part can be detrimental, or beneficial, to the whole performance of any one game or app.

Users are responsible when shopping, to determine if they should buy a product within a store. This means knowing how your systems specs and how they generally perform.
You can do basic research on YT: "CPU + GPU + GAME", and see results with varying drives, memory/memory speed, resolution, and FPS based upon setting(s). This gives a zero-excuse as to in total; buying something that can't run on your system unless keeping it for a later time when having the necessary hardware. Or otherwise being able to research and see the expected performance range based upon the similarity to your hardware.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

The store is full of reviews of purchases where the customer had to return the game because it didn't work on their device.

People that fail to do research or troubleshooting.
Not a store issue.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

I play on my desktop which has a High-end graphics card, it plays everything I throw at it. If I take my lower-end laptops on the go for work and want to play a game, I have to look at my library of 900 games and try to work out what would play on the device.

That's part of PC gaming and again, it's up to you to know system specs and have expectations accordingly of what to even attempt. Again, not a store issue or problem, that's general laziness.

Sometimes I fancy a new game, but it is a nightmare trying to work out on the store if the game I want would play on the device I'm using.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

The only way is to purchase the game, download it, try it out, and if it doesn't work, uninstall then request a refund. Not only is this a waste of my time, but it's also a waste of Valve Support time & money, issuing a refund.

Do the most basic research before buying

and you wont waste your time. Again, not a store issue or problem. Laziness ie largely attributed to mistake purchases. So the "only way" is not true; research before you buy.
Any issue you have can go through troubleshooting if your system matches the min/rec specs.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

What a nightmare it is ! It's a lot simpler to keep your wallet in your pocket and give it a miss.

Then do research first, not "shut up and take my money! "

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

If a certain game doesn't work on an Intel G640, why do another 1000 customers with an Intel G640 graphics card have to purchase the game to find out the game doesn't work on their hardware as well?

Failure to research or understand integrated vs dedicated and mobile vs desktop performance.

Originally posted by EW Mitsie:

In a perfect world

In a perfect world people would research before buying, and search before posting.