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Valve helps Raspberry Pi owners build their own Steam Link box
Steam Link boxes are no more. The simple black micro PCs designed to let you play games in the living room -- or anywhere else in the house away from your gaming rig -- is sold out everywhere and it seems Valve has no plans to produce more. The Steam Link app continues to live on in mobile devices and smart TVs, so it's not the end of days, but this doesn't offer the same latency-mitigating clout as Ethernet-wired hardware. Valve, however, is offering an alternative, and it comes in the form of Raspberry Pi.
Steam Link game streaming box is almost gone for good
If you've been thinking of getting a Steam Link box, you may want to buy it soon -- if you can even find one, that is. Valve has announced that its Steam Link boxes are sold out in Europe and are almost gone in the US, as well. Further, it sounds like that company has no plans to release more. The game developer said in an announcement that it intends to support existing Link hardware and to distribute its software versions going forward. A Steam Link box allows you to play your games in your living room or anywhere else in your home away from your PC. Just plug it into a TV, and it will discover any computer running the platform.
Steam's Summer Sale offers discounts on 'Fallout,' 'Sonic' and more
Steam holds seasonal sales throughout the year, offering decent discounts during certain dates in Autumn, Winter and Summer. It's definitely time for the most recent sale, just a day after PUBG got its first deal ever on the game distribution service. Dubbed the Intergalactic Summer Sale, which runs from June 21st through July 5th, the discounts will net you tons of games from 20 to 85 percent off their regular price, including titles from the Fallout franchise, Ni No Kuni II and Where the Water Tastes Like Wine.
Valve removes game purchases from Steam Link's iOS beta
Apple and Valve have been at an impasse for weeks over the release of Steam Link for iOS, but it looks like they might be closer to an arrangement... if not necessarily the one you'd hope for. TouchArcade has discovered that the latest beta test for Steam Link's iOS edition removes purchasing from within the app. If you visit a game's product page, the usual buying options are replaced with a notice that the content is "available for purchase from your PC." You can use any existing funds in your wallet when you're in the Steam Marketplace, but you can't add funds.
App Store's updated rules could help make iOS Steam Link happen
Apple blocked Steam Link's launch on iOS to protect its business: Valve's app reportedly broke App Store guidelines surrounding in-app purchases. Those generate serious money for the tech giant, which takes a 30 percent cut from every sale. Now, Cupertino has revised its guidelines to include what features are and aren't acceptable for mirroring apps like Steam Link. The rules won't only protect Apple's revenue stream, but will also clarify what developers need to do in order to make sure their applications get approved. In other words, they could pave the way for Steam Link's addition to the iOS App Store.
Apple leaves door open for Steam Link's release on iOS
Just because Apple rejected Steam Link for iOS doesn't mean your dreams of PC-to-iPhone game streaming are finished. Apple senior VP Phil Schiller has been emailing Steam users with word that it will "continue to work with" Valve on developing a Steam Link version that follows the App Store's rules. That's not a guarantee that you'll be streaming games in the near future, but it does leave a door open.
Apple blocks Steam Link on iOS for 'business conflicts'
Valve's Steam Link was on course to come to mobile this week. While the beta version arrived on Google Play just fine, the iOS app appears to have hit an unexpected roadblock. Valve said in a statement that Apple approved then withdrew it from the App Store:
Steam Link beta has landed on Google Play
If you've been itching to play Steam games on your phone, the day you've been waiting for has arrived -- we just hope you have an Android device. The Steam Link app, which gives you the power to stream games from your computer without having to buy Valve's micro PC of the same name, is now available on Google Play. It will run on any device running Android 5.0 or later, but since it's still in beta, you can probably expect to encounter some hiccups along the way.
Valve switches on Steam Controller's mobile connection in beta
Valve's latest beta client activates the Steam Controller's Bluetooth Low Energy function -- a necessary feature if you want to use the gamepad to play on a mobile device in the near future. If you'll recall, the company recently announced that Steam Link will be able beam games to the dedicated iOS and Android apps it's releasing during the week of May 21st. That means you'll soon be able to play on a phone, tablet or TV, so long as it's on the same 5GHz network as the host PC or it's connected to the computer via Ethernet cable.
Steam Link will soon beam games to your iOS or Android device
Steam Link already brings your PC's games to your living room, but soon it will send them to other devices, too. Sometime during the week of May 21st, Valve will release dedicated apps for iOS and Android, which will work with smartphones, tablets and TVs. So long as everything is connected to the same 5Ghz network or Ethernet-cabled to the host system, you'll be able to play across your family of gadgets -- and even support peripherals like the Steam or MFI controllers.
Steam Link puts PC games on Samsung smart TVs
You can now play Steam games on your Samsung 2016 or 2017 smart TVs without having to worry about beta bugs and performance issues. The Steam Link app for the chaebol's latest smart TV models is now out of beta and available for download from the Smart Hub app store. Take note that your TV's firmware must be up to date to be able to install the app, but once you're done, you won't need the $50 Link device to play Steam games on what could be the biggest and clearest display in your home.
Samsung's Smart TVs stream your Steam games with no extra hardware
You can now play PC games on your 4K Samsung Smart TV without having to buy a Steam Link device. Instead, just install the Steam Link app from the Samsung App Store and you're good to go.
Valve Steam Link review: Better than a 50-foot HDMI cable
Steam Machines are finally here -- real gaming PCs designed to live in your entertainment center and play the role of hardcore gaming console. There's just one problem: I've never wanted one. Don't get me wrong: Valve's quest to drag PC gaming into the living room is awesome, but I already have an incredibly powerful gaming rig in my office. I don't need a second, redundant machine in front of my couch. On the other hand, I'm an insane person who drilled holes in his wall to run 50 feet of cabling from his gaming PC to the back of his television set. There's an easier way, according to Valve, and it's called the Steam Link. This $50 micro PC was announced at GDC earlier this year with one express purpose in mind -- piping high-end PC gaming over a home network on the cheap. That sounds pretty good, but can it outperform my power drill and various lengths of cable?
Everything Valve does is because of Steam
Why is Valve getting into virtual reality? Why is Valve making Steam Machines and the Steam Controller? Why did Valve make its own Linux-based operating system? Why did Valve make the Steam Controller? Why is Valve releasing its game engine, Source, for free? It's the Steam economy, stupid! Valve's game store boasts "over 125 million active accounts worldwide." How does Valve keep growing that store? By literally everything else it does. Here's Valve president Gabe Newell explaining it to us last week at GDC 2015: "We're trying to build standard interfaces and standard implementations that other people can use. Because, to be honest, we're going to make our money on the back end, when people buy games from Steam. Right? So we're trying to be forward-thinking and make those longer-term investments for PC gaming that are going to come back a couple years down the road."
$50 Steam Link streams PC games anywhere within your house
Along with a slew of new Steam Machines, Source Engine 2 and VR news, Valve announced an interesting add-on for anyone interested in in-home streaming for their PC games: Steam Link. These $50 boxes (in the US, international pricing is TBD) will stream content from your PC or Steam Machine, as long as they're on the same WiFi network. Adding a Steam Controller will cost an extra $50 when they launch in November, and can handle gaming in 1080p at 60Hz with low latency. Sony's Remote Play game streaming is a couple of generations old, while Microsoft just announced the feature for Windows 10, and now Valve has a cheap hardware solution too. The boxes were listed on the Steam store for a moment (see it in Google's cache here), and pictures showed a slim design, with three USB ports (one up front, two in the back) along with Ethernet, HDMI and power.
