Valve Has Quietly Funded Multiple Open Source Programs Needed To Run Windows Games On Phones

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With the recent launch of Valve’s first device powered by an Arm chip, it’s not surprising they’re investing in emulation technology. More importantly, their support for open-source emulation could mean you’ll soon be able to play many PC games on Arm-based devices like phones and tablets without developers needing to create special versions.

Valve’s new Steam Frame headset is the company’s first device powered by an Arm processor. To allow it to play games designed for Windows, it uses an open-source program called FEX. It’s now been revealed that Valve wasn’t just using FEX, but actually started the project and has been the main driving force behind its creation. Valve engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais shared this information in a recent interview with The Verge.

I learned from Griffais that they had a really clear idea of the kind of developers they needed for this project – it wasn’t just anyone, they needed a very specific skillset and people who were in it for the long haul. Apparently, getting them on board was a challenge, but they really pushed to make it happen and have been financially supporting the team ever since!

FEX’s Ryan Houdek recently expressed gratitude to Valve for their early support of the seven-year project. In an anniversary post, he explained that Valve gave him the freedom to design and build a sustainable framework, not just for their own needs, but also allowing others to customize it for their purposes.

Valve recently unveiled its first device powered by Arm technology, but the company began exploring Arm development as far back as 2016. According to Lawrence Griffais, they understood it would take nearly ten years to make the technology reliable enough for users and their game collections.

FEX is a free and open-source tool that’s already helping power popular PC emulators on phones with Arm processors. It works with other Valve technologies like Proton, effectively letting people play Windows games on their phones without needing a separate mobile version. While it’s unclear if Valve plans to directly enter the mobile gaming market, the company says its current priorities are still gaming on TVs, handheld devices, and computers.

Valve’s willingness to support emulation stems from the failure of its initial Steam Machine, which suffered from a lack of available games. Now, through technologies like Proton and FEX, Valve hopes to free up developers from the time and expense of creating ports for different platforms. According to Valve’s Pierre-Loup Griffais, they’d prefer developers focus on improving existing games or creating new ones, as porting feels like a wasted effort when it comes to building a valuable game library.

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2025-12-03 12:39