Valve

Valve today announced an expansion of its game-streaming app Steam Link, now named Steam Link Anywhere (via The Verge). The original Steam Link app let users stream PC games on Steam to a mobile device within their home, but Steam Link Anywhere lets users stream games from their PC to any compatible device with internet service, excluding Apple devices. Apple rejected the original Steam Link app due to "business conflicts," while the app went on to see a release on Android. The upgraded Steam Link Anywhere will now only be available on Android, Raspberry Pi, and Steam Link hardware, starting today as an early beta. Valve says that players will need a good upload connection for the host computer and a good network connection for the mobile device. Following Apple's rejection last year, Valve pointed out that there are many other remote access-style apps that are allowed in the App Store, so it was unclear why Apple was blocking Valve's app. Since that time, Sony has released its own game streaming app, allowing PS4 owners to stream and control games on their iPhone or iPad, from anywhere with a Wi-Fi connection. Similarly, Microsoft this week has detailed work on its Project xCloud game streaming initiative. The service aims to provide Xbox owners a chance to stream their favorite games from the console to a mobile device, although iOS devices haven't been mentioned yet. "True console-quality gaming will become available on mobile devices," Microsoft CVP of Gaming Cloud, Kareem Choudhry, said. "Providing the 2 billion-plus gamers around the world a new

A few weeks after Apple rejected Valve's planned Steam Link app due to App Store review guideline violations related to in-app purchases, among other things, the company has made a key change to the app in hopes of getting it approved. Namely, in the latest beta version of Steam Link on TestFlight, Valve has removed the option to purchase games within the app. Instead, the app now informs users that games are available to purchase on a PC, or Mac, according to Eli Hodapp, editor-in-chief of MacRumors sister website TouchArcade.Moments ago, Valve pushed out an updated version of the Steam Link app to TestFlight testers which […] removed the ability to buy anything through the actual app itself. When you connect to your PC via the Steam Link app and browse the store, the button you used to be able to push to buy things has been changed to say "Available to purchase from your PC."Shortly after Steam Link was rejected, Apple's marketing chief Phil Schiller explained that it had "discussed these issues with Valve" and would "continue to work with them to help bring the Steam experience to iOS and Apple TV in a way that complies with the store's guidelines," in an email shared by MacStories. Steam Link app now says games are available to purchase on PC Steam Link, unveiled early last month, will allow users to stream Steam games to an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV from a Mac or PC via a 5GHz Wi-Fi network or a wired Ethernet connection. The app, originally set to launch May 21, will include support for both the Steam Controller and Made for iPhone controllers. In his hand

Apple recently made the decision to reject Valve's Steam Link app after initially approving it, leading to many unhappy Steam customers who had been looking forward to the feature. Apple has been silent on the issue despite several requests for comment, but today, Apple marketing chief Phil Schiller explained the reason behind the rejection to a MacStories reader and other Apple customers on Reddit who emailed to ask Apple to reconsider. In the email, Schiller says the Valve app violates a number of guidelines and that Apple is working with the Valve team to rectify the issue.We care deeply about bringing great games to all of our users on the App Store. We would love for Valve's games and services to be on iOS and AppleTV. Unfortunately, the review team found that Valve's Steam iOS app, as currently submitted, violates a number of guidelines around user generated content, in-app purchases, content codes, etc. We've discussed these issues with Valve and will continue to work with them to help bring the Steam experience to iOS and AppleTV in a way that complies with the store's guidelines. We put great effort into creating an App Store that provides the very best experience for everyone. We have clear guidelines that all developers must follow in order to ensure the App Store is a safe place for all users and a fair opportunity for all developers.The Steam Link app is designed to allow Steam users to play their Steam games on an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV using either a 5GHz WiFi network or a wired Ethernet connection to a host PC or Mac. As our sister site TouchAr

It looks like Valve's planned Steam Link app for iOS devices isn't coming after all, because Apple has rejected the app due to "business conflicts." In a statement, Valve said that Apple initially approved Steam Link for release on May 7, but ultimately decided to reject the app because of conflicts that had not been recognized by the original review team.On Monday, May 7th, Apple approved the Steam Link app for release. On Weds, May 9th, Valve released news of the app. The following morning, Apple revoked its approval citing business conflicts with app guidelines that had allegedly not been realized by the original review team. Valve appealed, explaining the Steam Link app simply functions as a LAN-based remote desktop similar to numerous remote desktop applications already available on the App Store. Ultimately, that appeal was denied leaving the Steam Link app for iOS blocked from release. The team here spent many hours on this project and the approval process, so we're clearly disappointed. But we hope Apple will reconsider in the future. Valve's appeals have not been successful at the current point in time, and the company is now hoping that media attention may spur Apple to change its mind. The Steam Link app for iOS, which was announced on May 9, is designed to allow Steam users to play their Steam games on an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV using either a 5GHz WiFi network or a wired Ethernet connection to a host PC or Mac. Valve was planning to launch the Steam Link app this week, and Valve had worked to add Steam Link support for the Steam Controller and

Next week, Valve is launching a "Steam Link" app for iOS and tvOS, allowing users in the Apple ecosystem to play Steam games streamed from a host Mac/PC (using either a 5GHz network or a wired Ethernet connection) onto an iPhone, iPad, or Apple TV. In advance of the app's launch, our sister site TouchArcade got the chance to go hands-on with Steam Link and came away entirely impressed by the quality of gaming that can come out of Valve's app. TouchArcade reports that Steam Link works so well that it "feels like there's some kind of actual wizardry powering it all," and once it's set up (a "simple" process) the app is essentially the same as using a physical Steam Link hardware box or Steam's Big Picture mode. The app doesn't just stream in-game content, but allows gamers to browse the Steam marketplace, purchase games, check their friend lists, play PC exclusive titles, sell things, and more. "There are no corners cut anywhere, it's the complete experience," TouchArcade says. In the end, the site crowned Steam Link as the current "killer app" for Apple devices. Overall, I have constantly found myself completely blown away by how well the Steam Link app works. If you have a gaming PC in your house, and an iPad or Apple TV, I do not think it is at all hyperbole to say that this is the killer app for iOS devices. If you're the kind of person who is always hungry for "real" PC-like game experiences on your Apple device, but have been dismayed by the amount of junk on the App Store, you can basically delete everything else but the Steam Link app. I'm still

Headup Games today announced that its Portal spin-off game "Bridge Constructor Portal" is now officially available for players to buy on the Mac App Store for $9.99 [Direct Link]. The game first launched on December 20 on the iOS App Store, Google Play Store, and Steam. The Mac App Store version of the game is priced to match the other $9.99 desktop version on Steam, coming in at $5 more than the iPhone/iPad app's $4.99 price tag [Direct Link]. Bridge Constructor Portal is a fusion of the Bridge Constructor and Portal franchises, tasking players with building bridges to connect pathways in order to safely traverse large pits and avoid falling to their death. These puzzles are blended with Portal's Aperture Laboratories setting, items, and characters. Elements from Portal include the companion cube, repulsion and propulsion gels from Portal 2, and GLaDOS's narration through all of the player's successes and failures. As a new employee in the Aperture Science test lab, it's your job to build bridges, ramps, slides, and other constructions in 60 test chambers and get the Bendies safely across the finish line in their vehicles. Make use of the many Portal gadgets, like portals, propulsion gel, repulsion gel, aerial faith plates, cubes, and more to bypass the sentry turrets, acid pools and laser barriers, solve switch puzzles, and make it through the test chambers unscathed. Now that the game is available across mobile and desktop devices, Headup Games, ClockStone Software, and Valve are looking toward its release on Nintendo Switch, PS4, and Xbox One "very soon."

Valve, Headup Games, and ClockStone Software today announced that the next iteration of the popular Portal franchise is launching later this month, in the form of a spin-off game tied into the Bridge Constructor puzzle series (via TouchArcade). Bridge Constructor Portal will launch on December 20 for macOS, iOS, Android, Windows, and Linux, and then console versions will follow in 2018. Image via TouchArcade The companies said that the new game "fully embraces the Portal license" while primarily focusing on the puzzle and physics elements of Bridge Constructor. Similar to past Bridge Constructor games, players will have to build bridges to connect pathways and safely traverse across chasms without falling to their death. "Hello and welcome back to the Aperture Science computer-aided enrichment center." We welcome all lucky applicants to Bridge Constructor Portal with our new vehicle-based test chambers, Quantum Tunnels and patented Aperture technology! For the last year we've been secretly working in our underground labs on the next iteration of the million-selling Bridge Constructor series. This new stand-alone title will release on PC, MacOS, Linux, mobile devices, and console, and fully embraces the Portal license, one of the most beloved video game franchises of the last decade. The Portal elements come in with the gaming being set in Aperture Laboratories, as well as various in-game items that players can use to solve puzzles, like the companion cube and the repulsion and propulsion gels from Portal 2. GLaDOS will also narrate your progress and failure as

Video game developer and digital distribution company Valve began sending out emails to customers who pre-ordered its new streaming device, the Steam Link, over the weekend, apologizing to Mac users that the box won't function with Apple's ecosystem at launch. The company has begun shipping the initial wave of pre-orders to customers, but cited "temporary software issues" that prevent it from fully supporting the Mac line out of the gate. The $49.99 Steam Link is a set-top box for the living room that connects users to Valve's Steam platform by streaming content from a PC and into a more traditional console environment. To support the thousands of games that are meant to be played on a mouse and keyboard, the company also launched the Steam Controller for $49.99 alongside the Steam Link. Unfortunately for Mac users, the controller is also incompatible with the Apple line at launch, but Valve hopes the issue to be resolved in "the next few weeks." Unfortunately, there are some temporary software issues that prevent the hardware from functioning with Macs. We expect these problems to be resolved as we update firmware and drivers over the next few weeks. The Steam Link currently doesn't stream from Macs. An upcoming update will add full support for streaming audio, video, and controller input. The Steam Controller doesn't currently support gamepad emulation on Macs. If you opt into the Steam Beta client, keyboard/mouse emulation will be functional. We expect gamepad emulation to become functional within a few weeks. We want to apologize for the delays in providing