Valve Corp. officially announced the release of SteamVR 2.0, the next major update of its virtual reality interface for PC, on Wednesday, which contains a large number of improvements exactly a month after the company surprised users with a preview version a month ago.

The new version brings the user interface in line other interface improvements that the company has made to its other systems over the years, including for its Steam video game distribution platform and its Steam Deck handheld video game system.

“In this release we’re bringing all of what’s new and exciting on the Steam platform into VR,” the company said in the announcement. “This is our first big step in a larger ongoing effort to better unify the Steam ecosystem for all users, providing a more consistent experience across devices.”

The former dashboard has been replaced with easier access to new systems that looks and feels more like the modern setup that Steam users are familiar with, doing away with the older SteamVR 1.0 experience. Now the UI has a sidebar with icons that can be selected using controllers that include tabs for home, library, store, friends and downloads – similar to the Steam Deck.

The bottom displays battery levels for accessories, such as the controllers, and access to notifications and control of sound levels.

Users will also now be able to control their virtual keyboard with both controllers. Users no longer need to lift up their headset in order to hit their physical keyboard type more quickly so that they can seek out the game that they want to play instead of using the in-VR keyboard slowly. The virtual keyboard also has added emojis and more languages.

Social experiences are now directly integrated into the client and easier to reach with text and voice chat.

This may have been a big update for the SteamVR client, but the announcement did not come with any new hardware from Valve. It’s unknown if the company intends to roll out a new version of its Valve Index VR headset, currently sitting in the $1,000 range, or if it intends to make a new headset. Last month there were rumors that it is currently working on a new design codenamed “Deckard,” which could complete with Meta Platform Inc.’s standalone Quest VR headsets.

Images: Valve