Steam user-based sorting system, Tags, launches in beta

Steam's latest feature, Steam Tags, is now available in beta for users to tag games with titles, themes, attributes and more for easy sorting, Valve announced today.

Tags can include descriptions such as "action," "FPS" or "difficult." Those that are applied frequently to games will become featured categories on Steam, which users can browse via a special section in the Steam Store. The new feature will also allow users to browse tags recommended specifically for their experience, based on what they've recently played.

According to Valve's Al Farnsworth, the feature is intended to make browsing easier.

"As the catalog of products available on Steam continues to grow, we want to ensure that it is easy for customers to find the particular types of games or software they are looking for," Farnsworth said. "With this new feature, we are providing another powerful tool to help organize and browse products on Steam."

The FAQ page for Steam Tags adds that the feature is currently in beta because Valve needs data in its system before it can launch in full.

"That means the initial categorization of items might be a bit off until we see what kind of tags are becoming prevalent and tune the system for the best results," the post reads.