Steam Overlay opens both in-game and in background "Steam Big Picture" window. Focus issue, unusable mostly.

[BloodyIron]

Steam Version: 1699498641 Steam Client Build Date: Wed, Nov 8 18:56 UTC -08:00 Steam Web Build Date: Wed, Nov 8 19:44 UTC -08:00 Steam API Version: SteamClient021

"Beta as of today"

• Ubuntu 23.10
• Tested with Yes and No to beta client
• I update almost daily
• GPU: RTX 3060 ti 545.29.02

==========

The issue I have looks to be not localised to my hardware in any way, and I've tested the results with both an original Steam Link device (you know the small OG one) and the Steam Link App on a Samsung Galaxy Tab 4 (stock OS).

The problem is when I press the appropriate button to trigger the Steam Overlay when I'm in a game, it visually launches but the UX is that you can no longer interact with it.

The thing is I've already figured out why... this is a focus issue, and a weirdness of the STEAM software because the overlay function gets trigger for BOTH the running game, and the background "Steam Big Picture" window. So when this happens, the "Steam Big Picture" window gains focus of the input devices (mouse, keyboard, gamepad, anything) and the game itself loses focus. However this is not apparent to the gamer because VISUALLY the focus has not switched and you're still seeing the Steam Overlay from the game's perspective NOT FROM THE STEAM BIG PICTURE WINDOW PERSPECTIVE!!!

How do I know this? Because when I trigger the reproducible scenario, and I'm at my computer, I alt tab to the background "Steam Big Picture" window and I see both images of the overlay showing up! ANNDDDD when I switch back to the game for focus, instantly my gamepad can now interact with the in-game Overlay menu (as a gamer would expect).

So this issue looks to be a focus issue. And this has exhibited for me in "stable latest" and "beta" app streams based on this date (Nov 12 2023).

Steps I took to reproduce, and this is on either the Steam Link OG Hardware, or Steam Link App on my Tablet:

1. Launch Steam Link
2. Connect to gaming computer
3. Steam Big Picture is visible for the gamer on the Steam Link system
4. Launch game (Everspace is what I tested with but this happens with every game I try)
5. Once game has launched and I'm at main menu, hit the button to launch Steam Overlay
6. Steam Overlay visually displays, but at this point it "looks" like all inputs fail (but you hear some weird noises as you interact with the background overlay you don't even realise is happening). At this point you have generally lost control over your game, unless you fiddle with gamepad/other button combos to alt-tab or other jank you shouldn't need to do to regain focus.

I've been able to reproduce this every time so far, and I'll post a screenshot below shortly. Also I don't know if any other people are getting this issue, but I bet a good bit of people are, and aren't able to actually explain what's going on (as I look to be the first to even notice this nuance). I do not know when this issue started happening.

[BloodyIron]

Okay and of course now I cannot actually reproduce it now that I want to take a screenshot... but I know this issue is what's going on because I just spent like the last few hours PROVING it... without taking a screenshot.

So while some aspects of this issue seems to be intermittent, this issue is present and active. In that, this first is a focus stealing issue, and secondly the hidden Steam Big Picture window being weird. Sorry I can't get a screenshot right now (ARGH) but yeah this needs to really get looked at, as this is a HUGE UX fail.

[martinpl]

Same issue, I didn't use much of Steam Link (yet!), so I cannot give details, but I can easily reproduce that on Forza 5.

TV / Steam Link (microphone doesn't catch that, but when I press the Xbox button i hear Steam overlay sound working in the background) PXL_20231119_204732353.webm

PC (ignore flickering, on left we see TV view and on right what is really happening) PXL_20231119_203950982.webm

Arch Linux / GNOME X11 / AMD 7900 XTX

[VoodaGod]

i, too, have this problem, only when using remote play

[mthnry]

I have the same issue with Snow Runner right now. Running Linux Mint 21.2, Steam beta update (daily updates).

[martinpl]

If this happens, you can switch to correct window (at least on GNOME / my setup) via Xbox/PS Button + Menu button.

[willthong]

I have this issue streaming with Sunshine rather than Steam Link. The overlay works the first time I use it, but can't be launched again after dismissing it.

[zdv80]

I can confirm the same problem, with linux Mint and 6600xt with amdgpu driver. I don't know if it's because I also use Gnome, but the combination that explains @MartinPL is a temporal solution to bypass the problem... Thanks! :)

[Whayme]

This also occurs on GNOME Wayland, not just X as previously mentioned. Couch play is basically impossible without getting up to use a keyboard and mouse. On stable that is, can't confirm if it happens on the current beta or not due to #10406.

[EliConstructor]

Same issue exists on Manjaro with KDE Plasma as well as i3. Using a GTX 1660ti with proprietary Nvidia drivers.

[magicmyth]

Definitely a focus fighting issue between the active game and Big Picture (possibly the same with normal desktop mode buts I've not tested that as extensively). You can quite reliably (though not 100% of the time) reproduce this using KDE Plasma, open up some other windows like the file manager and a terminal (not needed to trigger the issue but helps with demonstrating) , next start up Steam in Big Picture mode, launch Deep Rock Galactic and get into the game.

Now bring up the invite panel by pressing "Y" on the controller. Notice you can navigate and interact with it just fine. Press the controller's "steam" button to open the overlay. This should be intractable at this point just fine as well. Now close the overlay and alt-tab. This should bring up Big Picture. Alt tab back to Deep Rock Galactic and trigger the invite. The panel can no longer be interacted with. Press the "steam" button on the controller and you will hear the overlay pop-up sound but see no overlay and the invite panel will still be present. Pressing the "steam" button multiple times will just keep making the overlay sound. If you instead press shift-tab the invite panel will disappear. Press shift-tab again and the overlay will appear and you can navigate around it but cannot select anything. shift-tab again to close the overlay and press the "steam" button on the controller will still only create the overlay sound but not show it. So the controller steam button and shift-tab seem to interact with the overlay a bit differently.

Now Alt-tab but keep alt-tabing until you select a window that is not Steam. Notice in the Plasma taskbar that the Big Picture task is glowing indicating that the application wants attention. This is because those overlay sounds heard before were trigging the menu in big picture instead of the game and taking focus. So if we now click some of the other open windows other than Steam and finally click the Deep Rock Galactic task the game's invite panel will start working correctly again as well as the overlay. Note though if you try the overlay first it won't work as before but if you bring up the invite panel with "Y" and close it then the overlay works again with the game.

I've found you can reduce the chance of the issue happening if you launch Steam with gamescope and its integration enabled (with "-e" flag). I think this is more because the game and Steam to the window system now look as one. This comes with its own issue though of not easily being able to close Steam as it thinks its running on a Deck instead. Plus the issue can still happen but toggling between things like invite panel, the games menu, hitting the "steam" button a few times seems to eventually cause the focus to get back to the game.

This is on Manjaro with a Radeon RX 580 using Mesa. I can confirm it also happens on an Ubuntu 22.04 with Radeon system using Gnome as well as Kubuntu 22.04.

As @Whayme mentioned this issue makes couch playing painful and tends to require a mouse and keyboard which is an extra pain when streaming with remote play.

[martinpl]

It didn't happen for a while, instead there is some visual bug when pressing the guide button, but that's kind of progress :D

[JustCryen]

Same thing is happening to me.
The difference being it happens in both situations, when streaming to a steamlink and when using only "locally".
Basically everytime a big picture is involved.

I'm using Archlinux on Gnome (both wayland and x11) with a full AMD system.
I can provide more info if needed.