What happened? In a rare, deeply technical interview, Valve has revealed that it is funding and leading large open source projects to make Windows PC games run properly on ARM chips. For those of you who don’t know, ARM is the architecture that powers phones, tablets, and many low-power devices, and Valve believes it could open up a whole new future for Steam that goes beyond traditional PCs and handhelds. The interview was conducted by The edge shows that this is not a side experiment, but a long-term strategy that has been quietly developed for years. Valve has also quietly funded Windows-on-ARM gaming projects and encouraged broader industry support, even beyond Linux and SteamOS environments.
- Valve heavily supports FEX, an open source Windows on ARM compatibility layer similar to Proton.
- The goal is to allow x86 Windows PC games to run natively on ARM hardware without developers having to redo their work.
- The same technology already powers parts of the Steam Deck ecosystem via Proton and Linux translation layers.
- Valve explicitly mentioned lower-power phones and ARM devices as a possible target for PC gaming.
Why this is important: This is the clearest signal yet that Valve is thinking far beyond the Steam Deck. If Windows PC games can run reliably on ARM, the same games you play on desktops and handhelds could one day run on phones, tablets, low-power laptops, and future hybrid devices with far better battery life and thermals. It’s similar to what Netflix does by bringing PC games to your phone, except this wouldn’t require any additional effort from developers.
It also changes the math of the industry. These days, PC gaming is closely tied to x86 chips from Intel and AMD. A functional ARM gaming layer opens the door to Qualcomm, MediaTek, Apple-class silicon and future custom gaming chips. That means cheaper hardware options, fanless designs, and potentially entirely new types of portable gaming devices. Furthermore, this is not an abbreviation for cloud gaming. Valve’s approach is to run games locally on the device itself. This preserves Steam’s core strengths: ownership, offline play, mods, low-latency input, and full-fidelity gaming without relying on internet quality.
Why should I care? Ultimately, this could be how your Steam library escapes your desk and your handheld and ends up right in your pocket. If Valve’s ARM push is successful, you won’t need a gaming laptop, dedicated handheld or cloud streaming to play PC games on mobile-class hardware. Your phone, tablet or future pocket console could become a true local PC gaming device rather than a streaming client.
This also means that battery life, heat and portability may finally no longer be the compromises that limit PC gaming on the go. ARM chips are primarily designed for efficiency. If Valve gets this right, future Steam hardware or even third-party ARM devices could run full PC games for hours without sounding like a jet engine. For anyone who plays on the way to work, on the couch or away from a power outlet, this is a real quality of life improvement.
Okay, what’s next? Of course, you shouldn’t expect a “Steam Phone” announcement so quickly. Valve has made it clear that this is long-term infrastructure work and not short-term product development. The next real signs will likely appear quietly in Proton updates, SteamOS improvements, and breakthroughs in ARM compatibility long before any consumer device arrives. Nonetheless, this news has ensured that the future of gaming looks bright, especially as rising RAM and SSD prices mean you won’t be building a gaming PC any time soon anyway.
