Steam for Linux Still Doesn't Support ARM Chips, Valve Confirms

Valve has clarified that Steam for Linux is not currently supported on ARM-based hardware, despite the company already having an ARM64 version of its Steam client. The clarification came after an owner of an AYN Odin 3 reported an issue with Steam Remote Play and AV1 hardware decoding on the ARM64 client.

Valve closes ARM Steam bug report with a simple explanation

The issue was reported on Valve’s Steam for Linux GitHub tracker by an AYN Odin 3 owner running a Qualcomm-powered ARM64 handheld with a Fedora-based Linux distribution. The user was running Valve’s native ARM64 Steam client and reported that Steam’s V4L2 decoding path was not exposing AV1 hardware decoding, despite the device supporting AV1.

Valve’s response was brief. A Valve-associated developer account closed the report and pointed to an older issue dating back to October 2015, stating that “Steam for Linux is not currently supported on ARM based hardware.” That older issue remains open as a feature request.

The clarification is interesting because an ARM64 Steam client clearly exists. Valve has been developing ARM64 support for its own hardware, most notably the Steam Frame, which uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and runs SteamOS.

So, while Valve is clearly investing in ARM gaming, third-party ARM Linux PCs and handhelds remain outside the officially supported Steam for Linux platform for now.

Via: VideoCardz