Valve is taking its first step toward expanding the Steam platform beyond traditional PC games and applications.The company is now offering Android apps directly through Steam, beginning with the popular virtual reality title walkabout Mini Golf VR. This move follows the recent launch of the Steam Frame, Valve’s ARM-powered VR headset, and signals a broader strategy to embrace mobile gaming and perhaps offer a more unified gaming experience across devices. The integration utilizes the latest steamworks SDK update, paving the way for wider Android app distribution-at least initially within the VR and SteamOS ecosystems.
The move follows the recent announcement of the Steam Frame, Valve’s first standalone VR headset powered by ARM technology, and the company’s confirmation that Android games would be supported on the device. Walkabout Mini Golf VR, built using the Unity engine, is already available for standalone Android (ARM) headsets like the Meta Quest, as well as PCVR (x86) users through its existing Steam page.
The addition of the Android APK to the Steam version was discovered on X/Twitter by @SadlyItsBradley using SteamDB, confirming that current Steam Frame owners will have access to the Android version from day one. The Android version is being integrated as an additional branch under the existing Steam title. This expansion demonstrates Valve’s commitment to broadening the Steam ecosystem and offering greater flexibility to developers and users alike.
The news coincides with the completion of version 1.63 of the Steamworks SDK, which now includes libraries for both “linuxarm64” and “androidarm64” within Steam. This indicates that Android APKs should soon be fully distributable through Steam for the Steam Frame, though currently, support appears limited to virtual reality games and SteamOS.
This development opens the possibility of future cross-platform releases between PC and Android, potentially allowing Steam users to play games on PCs, standalone VR headsets, and even smartphones. However, Valve may be cautious about directly competing with Google, despite Epic Games’ recent court victory over Google’s Play Store billing practices. A more seamless cross-platform experience between Android and PC would undoubtedly benefit both Valve and game developers.
Internal testing by Valve with the Waydroid Android emulator, as reported last year, also suggests the potential for adding Android emulation to Steam for PC. This could further enhance gameplay and distribution for Android games that may not have native PC ports.
