ARM processors are continuing to gain momentum in the PC market. What was once mostly limited to smartphones and tablets is now finding its way into laptops, gaming devices, and even high-performance PCs. This includes Nvidia’s upcoming RTX Spark. Apple made the big switch from x86 to ARM when it moved away from Intel chips to its very own Silicon (M-series) processors back in 2020.

Valve has already started embracing the technology with its upcoming Steam Frame VR headset, and it looks like the company isn’t ruling out bringing ARM to its future gaming hardware either. Valve has also been quietly funding Windows games on ARM emulation by being directly involved in the development of FEX, an open-source emulator that runs x84/x86-64 apps on ARM64 Linux devices.

Valve would be happy to use ARM chips in future hardware

In a recent interview with PC Gamer, Valve engineers Yazan Aldehayyat and Pierre-Loup Griffais were asked whether the company would consider using ARM chips in a future Steam Machine. According to Griffais, the answer is “definitely, yeah”.

“When we’re designing a system like that, we’re just like users: Picking parts, trying to figure out what makes sense. So for us, yeah, things like FEX and the work that we’ve done on SteamOS and Proton are more like catalysts to get to a better outcome in terms of price performance, and all that – for sure, we would consider any platform.”

Pierre-Loup Griffais, Software Engineer at Valve, via PC Gamer

Rather than committing to one processor architecture, Valve says its goal is to support as many platforms as possible. In many ways, the aforementioned FEX serves a similar purpose to Proton, which is a compatibility layer that allows Windows games to run on Linux-based operating systems like SteamOS. FEX does the same thing by translating Windows apps for ARM hardware.

Valve believes this flexibility gives both the company and gamers more choices. If different hardware platforms can run the same Steam library, Valve can choose components that offer better value while users can buy devices that best fit their budget and performance needs. If ARM processors provide a better overall package, Valve says it would absolutely consider using them.

ARM hardware has been improving rapidly, with several manufacturers investing heavily in the architecture. Developers have also started bringing more games to ARM-based systems, and native support is becoming increasingly common. This means future handhelds, like the Steam Deck 2, or gaming PCs, may not have to rely entirely on x86 processors as they have in the past.

This doesn’t necessarily mean the next Steam Machine or Steam Deck will switch to ARM, though. Valve didn’t exactly confirm any future hardware plans, and there are still several challenges to overcome before such a move becomes practical. However, Valve’s comments make it clear that the company is keeping its options open.

About the Author

Abdul Haddi

Abdul is a tech writer and Editor for PC Guide, specializing in all things tech, gaming, and hardware.