Valve appear to have some pretty ambitious future plans for Steam, as we've seen recently in a leak (and not for the first time) that Valve has plans for ARM64 and Android support on Linux.
x86 emulation on ARM is likely foremost about expanding Chromebook support as currently only x86 Chromebooks can use Steam. Android emulation is probably about getting Oculus/Quest games on the in-development stand-alone VR headset.
HOW DARE YOU!!
MY DESIRE FOR ANDROID SUPPORT FOR ALL 🐧SUPPORTED STEAM GAMES MEANS THEY’RE LOOKING AT ARM CHIP SUPPORT SPECIFICALLY TO SATISFY MY DESIRE TO PLAY 1 SPECIFIC GAME ON MY PHONE BECAUSE IT’S REALLY FUCKIN GOOD, AND IT’S A REAL BIG FAFF TO HAUL MY GODDAMN LAPTOP EVERYWHERE WITH ME, AND IF I WANNA PUT A FEW MINUTES INTO IT RANDOMLY DURING A SLOW BIT AT WORK, IT ALWAYS GETS ME TOLD OFF FOR HAVING MY LAPTOP ON THE SCAFFOLD!
SUPPORTED STEAM GAMES MEANS THEY’RE LOOKING AT ARM CHIP SUPPORT SPECIFICALLY TO SATISFY MY DESIRE TO PLAY 1 SPECIFIC GAME ON MY PHONE BECAUSE IT’S REALLY FUCKIN GOOD
In all seriousness, there is a decent chance that as a byproduct, Steam on “regular” ARM Linux will run as well, meaning even stuff like RaspberryPi and PinePhone.
x86 emulation on ARM is likely foremost about expanding Chromebook support as currently only x86 Chromebooks can use Steam. Android emulation is probably about getting Oculus/Quest games on the in-development stand-alone VR headset.
Nothing points to Steam games on mobile phones.
HOW DARE YOU!!
MY DESIRE FOR ANDROID SUPPORT FOR ALL 🐧SUPPORTED STEAM GAMES MEANS THEY’RE LOOKING AT ARM CHIP SUPPORT SPECIFICALLY TO SATISFY MY DESIRE TO PLAY 1 SPECIFIC GAME ON MY PHONE BECAUSE IT’S REALLY FUCKIN GOOD, AND IT’S A REAL BIG FAFF TO HAUL MY GODDAMN LAPTOP EVERYWHERE WITH ME, AND IF I WANNA PUT A FEW MINUTES INTO IT RANDOMLY DURING A SLOW BIT AT WORK, IT ALWAYS GETS ME TOLD OFF FOR HAVING MY LAPTOP ON THE SCAFFOLD!
That said… you’re probably right…
In all seriousness, there is a decent chance that as a byproduct, Steam on “regular” ARM Linux will run as well, meaning even stuff like RaspberryPi and PinePhone.