Nobody noticed this one coming moreover everyone. Google’s makes an attempt to woo players into shopping for Chromebooks is formally achieved. Steam for Chromebook will likely be becoming a member of Stadia in Google’s gaming graveyard as we go into 2026.
The information was damaged by 9to5Google, who reported that there is now a message stating the Steam for Chromebook beta will likely be ending on January 1, 2026. Oh yeah, it by no means truly progressed past the beta stage.
Steam can nonetheless be put in on Chromebooks for now, albeit with the aforementioned cancellation message. But as soon as it is achieved, any video games of us have on their machines will likely be unplayable.
That will come as a shock to some, in any case, this is not some cloud gaming service, this is Steam. But it’s not like Steam would be installed on your Windows PC, or Mac, or Linux. It is the Linux version of Steam, but it’s built into a special container, and presumably once Google hits the killswitch the container will no longer work.
Google’s gaming efforts outside of Android continue to fall apart
I think the most surprising part about all this is that after debuting initially in 2022, it’s taken until now for this to be discontinued. I’ve tried it out a bit on the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook, in part to see if a ChromeOS laptop could be a viable choice for keen gamers.
Steam works OK, and some games play pretty nicely, but there was never any statement of intent from Google about being serious with it. There are no Chromebooks with dedicated graphics, for example. While not essential, it’d be nice to have had one or two to choose from to show el Goog was serious.
Failing that, utilizing chips from Intel or AMD with recent integrated graphics, even. Both companies have some pretty solid iGPUs nowadays, but Chromebooks still seem to be saddled with mid-tier (at best) offerings.
2022 was a rollercoaster for Google’s gaming ambitions. It announced Steam for Chromebooks at the beginning, further down the line, cancelled Stadia, and then just after cancelling Stadia, announced its “gaming Chromebooks” initiative.
Google apparently has taken “learnings for the future of Chromebook gaming” however these appear clear. It’ll be counting on everybody else’s cloud, together with Xbox Game Pass, and Android.
The worst half is, I truly hoped for a lot extra from this. I like ChromeOS, and in some ways, it is an ideal antidote to Windows for individuals who need a less complicated life. But those self same individuals may very simply need to play video games as nicely.
Increasingly, although, it is more durable to spend money on any new initiatives from the largest tech firms. Google and Microsoft are each famend for cancelling merchandise. But hey, each are all-in on AI!
For players, the platform of selection will proceed to be Windows. It’s the place your entire video games will work, and even a price range gaming laptop computer will get you numerous additional than any Chromebook ever would. You do not have to love Windows, however it would eternally be the secure guess if gaming is your primary precedence.
But I need to pour one out, nonetheless, for Steam on Chromebooks. It was higher than I ever thought it will be, and with the suitable funding, might have been one thing with a rosy future. But it is lifeless, so it is again to Windows. Or a Steam Deck if you wish to spend Chromebook cash and play nearly your entire Steam video games.