Valve ‘more than happy’ to have PC Game Pass on Steam, says CEO Gabe Newell
Valve is open to having PC Game Pass on Steam, though it’s probably not worth holding your breath just yet.
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What you need to know
Microsoft’sPC Game Passhas a growing collection of thebest PC games. While PC Game Pass has its fans, it is currently limited to the Microsoft Store. That could change, however, if Valve President Gabe Newell had his way.
In a recent interview withPC Gamer, Newell was asked if Valve would look into its own game subscription service. He explained that while Valve doesn’t have any plans to make a PC Game Pass competitor, it would be open to having Microsoft’s subscription service on its platform.
“I don’t think it’s something that we think we need to do ourselves, building a subscription service at this time,” said Newell. “But for their customers it’s clearly a popular option, and we’d be more than happy to work with them to get that on Steam.”
Some discussions have already occurred between Microsoft and Valve, though they appear to be in early stages and may not materialize in PC Game Pass coming to Steam.
“We’ve talked to people there quite a bit about that topic,” said Newell. “If your customers want it, then you should figure out how to make it happen. That’s where we’re at.”
EA Play, another gaming subscription service, is already available through Steam, but there are limitations. EA Play Pro is only available through EA’s Origin Launcher, leaving only the basic version of EA Play as an option through Steam.
Having PC Game Pass work with Steam could also be complicated because different versions of games appear in the Microsoft Store and through Steam. The differing versions of games on Steam and the Microsoft Store came up in our senior editor Jez Corden’s piece arguing thatPC Game Pass is not good enough.
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As is the case with most decisions, money would also be a factor in where Microsoft decides to put PC Game Pass. Valve takes a 30 percent cut on software sales through Steam, though that rate can drop to 20 percent after $50 million worth of sales. Microsoft and Valve would both need to be happy with the financial elements of bringing PC Game Pass to Steam before such a move could happen.
Sean Endicott is a tech journalist at Windows Central, specializing in Windows, Microsoft software, AI, and PCs. He’s covered major launches, from Windows 10 and 11 to the rise of AI tools like ChatGPT. Sean’s journey began with the Lumia 740, leading to strong ties with app developers. Outside writing, he coaches American football, utilizing Microsoft services to manage his team. He studied broadcast journalism at Nottingham Trent University and is active on X @SeanEndicott_ and Threads @sean_endicott_.
