Valve is making a bold move, welcoming Android games into the Steam ecosystem! Think of the newly announced Steam Frame as a wireless VR headset for your PC, or perhaps a Steam Deck you wear on your face. But, in essence, Valve is finally stepping into the mobile gaming arena. The Steam Frame isn't just about running Windows games on its Arm-based Qualcomm Snapdragon chip; it's also opening its doors to Android apps, encouraging developers to bring their creations to Steam.
Valve engineer Jeremy Selan explains that their aim is to make this transition seamless for users. "From the user’s perspective, our preference is that they don’t even have to think about it, they just have their titles on Steam, they download them and hit play."
The Steam Frame is designed to use the same Android APKs developers already use for phones and Android-based VR headsets, like the Meta Quest. To facilitate this, Valve is launching a Steam Frame developer kit program. This will help get the hardware into developers' hands, streamlining the process of bringing their games to the platform.
It seems Valve is particularly interested in attracting VR game developers, especially those already familiar with creating APKs for mobile VR platforms. As Selan notes, "They’re really VR developers who want to publish their VR content, and they’re porting a mobile VR title where they’re already familiar with how to make those APKs. They are now free to bring those to Steam, and they’ll just work on this device.”
Performance should be excellent, as the code runs natively on the device. While Valve's SteamOS isn't Android and requires the Proton compatibility layer for Windows apps, the Arm code will run directly on the Arm processor without any translation needed.
But here's where it gets controversial... When asked about Android apps beyond games, such as Discord voice chat, Valve seems a bit hesitant. While they haven't explicitly forbidden it, their focus remains on games. However, they acknowledge the presence of other software on Steam, like Blender. Selan indicates that rich browser integration is planned, allowing users to access websites and multitasking environments.
Will there be a way to quickly launch these web apps from Steam? Selan hopes so, but can't promise it for the launch.
Valve is known for long-term planning, and it's unlikely that their plans end with Android-based VR games for the Steam Frame. The future could hold much more. With Google potentially opening up Android to alternative app stores, Steam might soon be able to sell games on phones, mirroring the efforts of Epic Games.
Gamers Nexus reports that sideloading Android APKs onto the Steam Frame will also be possible.
Valve's Pierre-Loup Griffais hints at the potential of bringing SteamOS to other Arm-based devices, including laptops and future handhelds. He sees the Steam Frame as paving the way for SteamOS on a wider range of Arm devices.
What do you think? Will this move by Valve revolutionize the mobile gaming experience? Do you see a future where Steam becomes a hub for all sorts of Android applications? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
