Valve Expands Steam Ecosystem to Include Android Games
Valve has announced a significant expansion of the Steam ecosystem, revealing that the platform will now support Android games. This move comes with the introduction of the new Steam Frame device, which is equipped with a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip and will allow developers to host their APKs on Steam.
Jeremy Celan, a Valve engineer, emphasized the company’s commitment to simplifying the process of accessing games for users. With the Steam Frame, gamers will be able to download and play games seamlessly, regardless of whether they were originally designed for Windows or Android. Developers can utilize the same APK files used for smartphones and VR devices like the Meta Quest, running them directly on the Steam Frame.
The focus of this new feature is on studios working on VR projects for Android, enabling them to easily port their developments to Steam without the need for modifications. Valve has introduced the Steam Frame Developer Kit program, providing developers with the necessary hardware for testing purposes.
While SteamOS is not Android-based, games will run natively on ARM processors without emulation, ensuring improved performance and responsiveness. Valve also revealed plans to introduce a browser and multi-window mode, allowing users to run web applications within the Steam environment.
Valve has not yet addressed support for regular Android applications like Discord, but hints from company representatives suggest that such compatibility may be considered in the future. Jeremy Celan indicated that the introduction of Steam Frame is just the initial step towards broader support for ARM devices, including laptops and portable consoles.
