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Valve released a separate app for Steam Link on Apple’s macOS app store, adding a new option for Mac users who want to play games on machines that are often labeled as bad options for games.
Steam Link allows users to stream games from a gaming PC to a compatible device on the same local network and play those games with an MFI or Steam controller.
Valve already offered a full Steam app for macOS, but it takes up 1GB of space and has a reputation for being clunky. By contrast, the Steam Link app has a minimalist interface that seems designed with the game controller’s peripherals in mind.
Valve has also previously offered a Steam Link app for iOS and iPadOS, but this is the first time the company has released software through Apple’s macOS app store. (The full version of Steam is offered as a web download, not as an App Store app.)
Game streaming has had a somewhat tumultuous history on Apple’s mobile platforms, but it’s been a bit more optimistic on the macOS side. The same streaming features that Steam Link offers were already possible through the full Steam app for macOS, GeForce Now has a Mac client, and Mac users have long enjoyed the ability to stream PlayStation games with a basic app. .
And in general, Mac games have had their ups and downs over the years and lately things have been going downhill. Apple’s switch from OpenGL to Metal allowed for much better performance for games whose developers struggled to support it, but we’ve also seen fewer triple-A gaming Mac ports overall lately.
However, many indies are still compatible with Macs, and with the introduction of Macs that run CPUs and GPUs that share an architecture with the chips found in iPhones and iPads, Apple has opened the door for iOS and iPadOS games. run natively on newer Macs.
However, our own tests of iOS and iPadOS games on the M1-equipped Macs that were released last year showed that things were quite unpredictable, with interface issues and other limitations making the experience unsatisfactory. As a result, macOS currently feels caught between the two vast worlds of PC and iPhone gaming, not entirely inclined to become an optimal platform for either.
Steam Link allows users to play modern high-end games on a MacBook Air or similar, as long as they have a robust Windows gaming PC on the same local network.
