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Why doesn't Steam support Android? (feddit.org)

submitted 6 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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Steam revenue estimated 2024: $10.8B

Google Play Store gaming revenue 2024: ~$31B

Why doesn't Valve want a part of that? I mean they already have an Android app. Several, actually. I realize there's some amount of investment but surely the payoff is worth it, and they have the necessary funds and skills? I mean if F-Droid can do it with nothing but volunteers and grants...?

Certainly plenty of games won't lend themselves well to the mobile experience but also plenty of them do.

From a personal perspective: I don't really care a whole lot for mobile games but I do like Balatro and want to play it on my phone, but if I want to do that I have to buy another license, which I can't even do because I don't run Google Play Services.

Epic got in on this already. Where's Valve?

Edit: my reflections on this conversation:

Valve could distribute their own app like Epic but they'd also probably have to remove it from the Play Store because now a cross-platform game would give them an Android version, thus breaking Google's ToS. So would doing such a thing outweigh lost sales from the Google version, and would it impact customer satisfaction? I wonder how many people are actually purchasing PC games in the Steam Android app...?

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[–] [email protected] 6 points 6 days ago (1 children)

No but it also wouldn't be that difficult

Why would you think that? Of course it would be difficult, it's a massive undertaking.

Amazon and Epic have both tried to launch their own Android storefronts. Neither one has been even remotely successful. Amazon will be shutting theirs down soon.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

Why would you think that?

For the reason I mentioned in the OP. Because it's been done before, several times. Including by Epic, with a fraction of Valve's resources.

Amazon and Epic have both tried to launch their own Android storefronts

Everything I've read about the Amazon store indicates that it sucks on every level, for all parties.

The Epic Store is only a few months old. And they can't even make a decent or profitable app for PC so I'd be very unsurprised if their mobile app is also trash.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Amazon and Epic both failed because it is not easy to move into a market that Google has such a dominant monopoly over. It's not that simple.

[–] [email protected] 0 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (1 children)

Epic has not failed (yet). As I just said, it's only been around for a few months.

I disagree about Amazon for reasons I've already stated so we'll have to agree to disagree on that.

[–] [email protected] 8 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Why'd you even make this thread if you were just going to reject any answers given to you?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

I'm not rejecting anything. It's called a discussion. They could very well be right. I just disagree.