Valve Retires Two Familiar Categories and Introduces Three New Ones

The 2025 Steam Awards nominees arrived with a redesigned ballot, and Valve did not bury the lede. The long-running “Best Game on Steam Deck” category has been retired, along with the meme-friendly but beloved “Best Game You Suck At.” In their place, Valve has introduced three new categories: Best Remake or Remaster, Best Indie Debut, and Best Ongoing Game. It is a significant shake-up for an awards show that usually changes slowly, and it immediately sparked debate among players who had grown attached to the old lineup.

The removal of “Best Game on Steam Deck” is understandable on paper. When the category was introduced, the Steam Deck was still a new piece of hardware, and highlighting games that ran well on it served a real promotional purpose. In 2025, however, Deck Verified status is common, Proton compatibility has improved dramatically, and many major releases are expected to work on the handheld. Valve seems to have concluded that a dedicated award now feels redundant. Still, the category had become a useful spotlight for indie games, older titles, and smaller projects that might not otherwise appear in the Game of the Year conversation. Its absence leaves a gap that the new Best Indie Debut category only partially fills.

The loss of “Best Game You Suck At” is more emotional for many Steam users. The category celebrated difficult games, punishing boss fights, and the strange joy of failure. It was never the most prestigious award, but it was one of the most distinctive. Games like Hades II, Monster Hunter Wilds, and various soulslike releases might have benefited from it this year. Valve has not offered a detailed explanation, but the likely reason is overlap: many difficult games already appear in Game of the Year, Most Innovative Gameplay, or Outstanding Visual Style. Even so, fans are already mourning the loss of an award that felt uniquely Steam.

The three new categories tell a different story about where Valve wants the awards to go. Best Remake or Remaster acknowledges the industry’s growing reliance on refreshed classics. Best Indie Debut gives first-time studios a dedicated stage. Best Ongoing Game rewards titles that survive and evolve long after launch. Together, they make the ballot feel more modern, but also more corporate in the eyes of some critics. The Steam Awards now have twelve categories, and every single one reflects a different part of the platform’s identity: blockbuster spectacle, niche innovation, long-tail community support, and the occasional meme.

Game of the Year Race Pits Blockbuster RPGs Against a Co-Op Phenomenon

As always, the Game of the Year category is the main event. This year’s nominees include Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Hades II, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II, Monster Hunter Wilds, and Split Fiction. It is a lineup that mixes critical darlings, hardcore RPGs, co-op spectacle, and a sequel that spent years in early access. The category also reflects how broad Steam’s audience has become: a turn-based French RPG, a Greek mythology roguelike, a medieval Bohemian sim, a Capcom monster-hunting giant, and a Hazelight co-op adventure are all competing for the same prize.

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is arguably the story of the year. Developed by Sandfall Interactive, a relatively new studio, it combines turn-based combat with real-time defensive mechanics and a bleak, painterly world. Its nomination proves that Steam voters are willing to embrace original RPGs even when they do not have the marketing budget of a major publisher. Hades II, meanwhile, has the advantage of being a sequel to one of the most beloved games on Steam. It launched in early access, built a passionate community, and then reached 1.0 with enough content to satisfy both roguelike veterans and narrative fans. If any game can challenge Clair Obscur, it is Hades II.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is the dark horse. It is unapologetically hardcore, historically grounded, and demanding of its players. Its nomination is a victory for immersive simulation fans who often feel ignored by mainstream awards. Monster Hunter Wilds is the commercial titan of the group. It sold enormous numbers and dominated Steam charts, but its performance issues and post-launch content cadence have created a more complicated legacy. Split Fiction is the co-op outsider. Hazelight’s latest game is designed around two players, which makes it a natural fit for Better With Friends, but its Game of the Year nomination shows that cooperative storytelling can still compete with solo epics.

The snubs are just as interesting. Blue Prince, a puzzle-dense indie masterpiece, missed Game of the Year but landed in Best Indie Debut. Peak, the cooperative climbing sensation, became a social phenomenon but was pushed into Better With Friends. Schedule I, a surprise hit about running a criminal empire, appears in Most Innovative Gameplay rather than the top category. Some players argue that the absence of “Best Game You Suck At” hurt difficult games like Hades II and Monster Hunter Wilds, because it removed an extra category where they could shine. Others believe the Game of the Year race is stronger without filler. Either way, the winner will depend on how Steam’s global audience weighs critical acclaim against raw playtime.

The New Categories Change Which Developers Have a Real Shot at Winning

The new categories do more than shuffle names on a ballot. They change the kinds of games that can win awards and the kinds of developers who can campaign for them. Best Remake or Remaster is already one of the most competitive additions. Nominees include The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3 + 4, and several other refreshed classics. For publishers, this category is a chance to turn nostalgia into trophies. For purists, it raises an uncomfortable question: should a remake receive the same prestige as a brand-new game? Valve’s answer appears to be yes, as long as the remake does enough to modernize the original.

Best Indie Debut may be the most important new category for the health of the platform. Steam has always been a home for independent developers, but the Game of the Year category tends to favor larger productions. A dedicated debut award gives first-time teams a real chance to be seen. Blue Prince, Peak, and Schedule I are among the names benefiting from this change. Each game found a distinct audience in 2025, and each one would have struggled to break into a general category dominated by established franchises. The new award also creates a clearer narrative for voters: instead of asking which game is best overall, they can ask which debut felt most impressive relative to its resources and ambition.

Best Ongoing Game is the most controversial addition. On one hand, it recognizes the reality of modern gaming: many of the most popular titles on Steam are not single-player experiences that end after credits. Helldivers 2, No Man’s Sky, Baldur’s Gate 3, Warframe, and Marvel Rivals all have legitimate claims to the category. On the other hand, Steam already has Labor of Love, which rewards games that receive long-term support. The difference is subtle. Labor of Love often goes to smaller or older games with devoted communities, while Best Ongoing Game sounds designed for live-service giants with seasonal content and battle passes. Critics worry that the new category will simply become a popularity contest for free-to-play games with the biggest marketing budgets.

There is also overlap with Better With Friends and Most Innovative Gameplay. A game like Helldivers 2 could theoretically appear in multiple categories, splitting its own fanbase’s votes. A game like Hades II could suffer from the removal of “Best Game You Suck At,” because it no longer has a dedicated difficulty-focused category where it can dominate. The new lineup rewards games that stay alive, games that get remade, and games that arrive as bold debuts. It does not reward games that are simply hard, strange, or meme-worthy. That trade-off may be intentional, but it will shape which developers leave the awards feeling seen.

Voting, Eligibility, and the Backlash Already Brewing in the Community

Valve has not yet confirmed every detail of the voting schedule, but the Steam Awards traditionally follow a familiar pattern. Players first nominate games during the Steam Autumn Sale, Valve then selects the finalists, and the final voting opens during the Steam Winter Sale. Winners are announced on the final day of the sale, giving the awards a place alongside discounts, trading cards, and the annual recap of player habits. Because voting is tied to Steam accounts, each user can vote once per category. That makes the awards less vulnerable to bot raids than some fan polls, but it also means the results often reflect the tastes of the most engaged Steam users rather than the entire gaming public.

The backlash to the category changes began almost immediately. On Reddit, Steam Community forums, and social media, players complained about the loss of “Best Game You Suck At.” Some argued that the category was one of the few places where difficulty and mastery could be celebrated without judgment. Others said “Best Game on Steam Deck” was a useful tool for handheld players and would be missed during a year with so many demanding releases. Hashtags like #BringBackBestGameYouSuckAt and #SteamDeckAward trended briefly, though Valve has shown little interest in reversing course. The company has historically treated the Steam Awards as a living event, not a permanent institution, and categories have changed before.

Defenders of the new lineup argue that the old categories had run their course. “Best Game on Steam Deck” was introduced when the hardware needed promotion; now it is part of the ecosystem. “Best Game You Suck At” was fun, but it could be awkward for developers who did not want their games reduced to difficulty memes. The new categories, meanwhile, address real trends: remakes are a major part of the release calendar, indie debuts are more ambitious than ever, and live-service games dominate playtime. Valve likely wants the Steam Awards to reflect what people actually play, not just what critics praise in December.

Still, the controversy may overshadow the nominees themselves. The Game of the Year race is genuinely exciting, and the new categories have produced strong finalists. But every discussion about the awards now begins with what is missing. That is a risk for Valve. If the winners are predictable, the category changes will be remembered as the main story. If the winners are surprising, the new awards may prove their worth. For now, players have a few weeks to campaign, argue, and vote. The Steam Awards are still a celebration of the platform’s chaotic, crowded, and deeply opinionated community. The only certainty is that not everyone will be happy with the results.