Gameroom is Facebook's new Steam-like service for PC users

2 min. read

Published on November 3, 2016

published on November 3, 2016

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Facebook has decided to heavily commit to its gaming department on PC after its mobile phone branch lost the battle against more experienced platforms in iOS and Android. With Gameroom, Facebook is looking to offer its users a platform separate from the Facebook newsfeed where people can play both exclusive games as well as mobile and web games that were ported from other sources.

The service has been in the development process for quite some time now and has finally reached the point where Facebook can grant developers access to the platform. Gameroom currently being in the beta testing phase. If you want to use Gameroom, you will need at least Windows 7 as your OS.

Gameroom changed its name from Facebook Games Arcade and Facebook announced both the service’s name change and release at the Unity game development platform conference. It let fans know that Gameroom will be available as an export destination in Unity 5.6 which will give developers the opportunity to export to Facebook’s platform rather than WebGL, which is also an available option.

The business strategy behind Facebook’s decision to start its own gaming platform is that despite Steam blanketing the market in terms of hardcore gamers, there is a huge number of casual gamers that would use Gameroom. And for those that desire to do so, there are tons of games on the platform, ranging from puzzle games to arcade type and shooters. After the beta testing phase ends, its release to the general population is next, so there’s not that much time left before everybody can try the new service out.

The potential here is great, especially considering Facebook’s potential monetary rewards with many ways to earn profit with Gameroom, whether it’s by receiving a fixed percentage from every game sale, using the social media outlet to promote developers and secure an already huge community, or simply by adding another service tied in with Facebook — all of which make Facebook an even more present entity in people’s daily lives.

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Radu Tyrsina

Radu Tyrsina has been a Windows fan ever since he got his first PC, a Pentium III (a monster at that time). For most of the kids of his age, the Internet was an amazing way to play and communicate with others, but he was deeply impressed by the flow of information and how easily you can find anything on the web. Prior to founding Windows Report, this particular curiosity about digital content enabled him to grow a number of sites that helped hundreds of millions reach faster the answer they're looking for.