Former Valve writer Chet Faliszek says Gabe Newell’s vision for Steam has always been much bigger than just a digital game store. According to Faliszek, Newell has described Steam’s “North Star” as an MMO. “Players aren’t just consuming, they’re also expressing themselves.” Trading cards, badges, levels, profiles, awards and the Marketplace give users ways to build an identity and interact with others. Faliszek says that’s what makes Steam more than just a game store. “There’s a whole bunch of places for you to express yourself inside of there.” He also believes this is one area where Epic Games Store still falls behind, as many of Epic’s creation tools require far more effort from users.