Gaming on iPhone and iPad just got a lot better as Valve releases its Steam Link app
Before you purchase another throw-away 79p app for your iPhone, iPad or Apple TV, you may want to have a look at what Half-Life creators Valve are up to. Today, the company has released a version of its Steam Link app for the three Apple devices, bringing genuine PC gaming to iOS.
That means everything in your Steam Library can be streamed to your iOS device, the same as it can on Android, Raspberry Pi or the physical Steam Link Box that Valve discontinued. The Android version has been around since last year, but a release on iPhone was originally blocked by Apple. It looks like the differences have been worked out – possibly because it’s no longer an option to buy games directly through the app any more.
Related: Best PC games
Of course, opening up your iPhone to the 30,000-odd games that are on Steam doesn’t offer the same clean experience as buying a game from the App Store. Not only are PC games obviously not designed to be played on phones necessitating some kind of external gamepad, but games are streamed rather than played locally. That means you’re relying on a steady internet connection – and to be clear this is not the same as Steam Anywhere: you need to be on the same network for it to work.
Still, these might be hurdles worth clearing if you’re a hardcore PC gamer that wants to put some extra hours in. You can download the app for iOS free of charge now.
Will you be downloading Steam Link for iOS, or do you think PC gaming is best done on an actual PC? Let us know what you think on Twitter: @TrustedReviews.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
