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

submitted 5 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] 4 points 5 days ago (1 children)

What would you suggest they sell on their Android store that users would be so encouraged to install a new store and then what they want?

Steam already has a store on Android, you just can't play games there because most games on steam either already exist on the native google play store, or aren't compatible with mobile architectures like Arm64. Most mobiles unlike a arm laptop, have no x86/amd64 emulator which is what those games are compiled as by their developers.

So what's left?

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

What would you suggest they sell on their Android store that users would be so encouraged to install a new store and then what they want?

...games?

Steam already has a store on Android

Uhhhh they have an Android app which you can use to buy and manage PC games. That's not what I'm talking about.

because most games on steam either already exist on the native google play store

...no? Even if they did you'd have to buy 2 licenses instead of 1. As I mentioned in the OP.

Most mobiles unlike a arm laptop, have no x86/amd64 emulator

I'm not suggesting emulation or translation (although that would be great as well), I'm suggesting an app store for selling and installing native Android games.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 5 days ago (1 children)

I'm trying to figure out the gap in the market you're trying to fill other than "for steam fan boys it would allow us fans of steam games that already exist in a native place, in a non native place!"

Correct me what is going into it that isn't already somewhere, and who that appeals to?

Or is this just thought experiment?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 5 days ago

Well there is that but there's also the example I gave in the OP where devs could potentially extend their existing games into a new market, increasing their potential audience. A single license would gain a new platform with potential sales opportunities.