Steam beta gets native Apple Silicon support — the only public Arm version of Steam

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Valve just released a Steam Client Beta that runs on Apple Silicon. The company announced on the Steam Community website that both the Steam Client and the Steam Helper now run natively on Apple Silicon. This move will improve Steam’s performance on Apple computers, especially as it removes the additional overhead for Rosetta 2.

Valve also has no choice but to create a native version for Steam, especially as Apple is largely sunsetting Rosetta 2 after macOS 27. The company made the announcement this week at WWDC 25, where it also said that macOS Tahoe will be the last OS update for Intel Macs, some five years after the company released the first Apple Silicon-powered MacBook Air.

That means most apps designed for x86 systems will no longer work with macOS, unless their developers create a version that runs natively on Apple Silicon. The company said it will only retain a few portions of Rosetta to run older games that are no longer updated by their developers.

This update means that Steam will have better performance, improving the gaming experience on your macOS device. Notably, it's also the only public Arm version of Steam going. However, it doesn’t mean that you can now start playing Windows-only games on your Apple computer. You still need emulation tools if you want to run x86 Windows games on your Mac.

Despite that, this change is slowly making Apple devices more conducive for gaming. The company wants to capture a bigger slice of the computer gaming pie with its ecosystem approach, but the limited number of titles (compared to the vast library of Windows games) and the relative price of Apple computers versus gaming PCs make it harder for gamers to switch over, despite the performance that Apple silicon delivers.

The phasing out of Rosetta 2 might disappoint a few users, but it is high time that developers start building apps specifically for Apple Silicon. After all, it’s already been five years since the first M1 chip arrived on the MacBook Air, and relying on a translation layer is certainly holding back the hardware from performing at its maximum potential.

If you want to upgrade the Steam client on your macOS device, open the Steam app, go to Steam > Preferences… In the Steam Settings window, go to Interface, then click on the dropdown menu beside Client Beta Participation and choose Steam Beta Update. This will restart Steam and download the updated version (Steam Version: 1749753892 or higher) that natively runs on Apple Silicon. To confirm the update, look for Steam in the Activity Monitor — the Kind column should say Apple.

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Jowi Morales is a tech enthusiast with years of experience working in the industry. He’s been writing with several tech publications since 2021, where he’s been interested in tech hardware and consumer electronics.

8 Comments Comment from the forums

John Nemesh

Hopefully, they will get Proton working on MacOS now! If they had that, Mac would actually be a viable gaming platform!
Reply
Bikki

Thank you Valve for the support and Jowi for a good article.
Reply
TerryLaze

Admin said:
Another Rosetta 2 holdout gone

Steam beta gets native Apple Silicon support — the only public Arm version of Steam : Read more
Valve also has no choice but to create a native version for Steam,
MacOS has like 6% market share in desktop, and only a small fraction of that will be systems that people will also be gaming on....
Steam has another choice and that would be to completely ignore macos and not waste resources on something that will probably never pay off those resources.

That being said, cool move from valve to make the effort.
Reply
cirdecus

TerryLaze said:
MacOS has like 6% market share in desktop, and only a small fraction of that will be systems that people will also be gaming on....
Steam has another choice and that would be to completely ignore macos and not waste resources on something that will probably never pay off those resources.

That being said, cool move from valve to make the effort.
I completely agree. The idea that "They had no choice" because of Apple removing Rosetta 2 is silly. only 1.4% of steam users are on Mac. Valve doesn't need Apple at all, but rather Apple needs Valve. Even there is a native Steam client, it's unlikely and unproven that most AAA game will run well on Apple silicon and with such a small user base, even less likely that any developer will make games for Mac.

While Apple may be using its "ecosystem" to attract gamers, it's Microsoft's "open" approach that has succeeded. No one wants to be boxed into an "ecosystem" unless forced.
Reply
Bikki

now, it's time for dota 2 native apple silicon support
Reply
Loadedaxe

cirdecus said:
I completely agree. The idea that "They had no choice" because of Apple removing Rosetta 2 is silly. only 1.4% of steam users are on Mac. Valve doesn't need Apple at all, but rather Apple needs Valve. Even there is a native Steam client, it's unlikely and unproven that most AAA game will run well on Apple silicon and with such a small user base, even less likely that any developer will make games for Mac.

While Apple may be using its "ecosystem" to attract gamers, it's Microsoft's "open" approach that has succeeded. No one wants to be boxed into an "ecosystem" unless forced.
The idea that Apple is completely dependent on Valve is outdated. While it's true that Mac gaming has historically lagged behind Windows, Apple has been making a serious push into gaming in 2025, investing in native game support, hardware optimizations, and developer incentives.

Apple Silicon has already proven itself capable of running AAA games, with titles like Resident Evil Village and Death Stranding performing well on M-series chips. The argument that "no developer will make games for Mac" ignores the fact that Apple is actively partnering with studios and improving its gaming ecosystem as we speak.

As for the ecosystem debate, Apple’s approach may be closed, but it’s also highly optimized, leading to better performance and efficiency. Microsoft’s open approach has advantages, but Apple’s strategy is clearly working, as evidenced by its growing presence in gaming.
The gaming industry is evolving, and dismissing Apple’s efforts outright ignores the real momentum behind its push into the space.

Change is inevitable. You may doubt it, but its happening.

Lets look at some real numbers just from the last quarter.

Lenovo – 24.5% market share, 15.2 million units shipped.
HP – 19.9%, 12.8 million units.
Dell – 14.4%, 9.6 million units.
Apple – 8.7%, 5.5 million Macs shipped, up from 4.8 million in Q1 2024.
Asus – 5.2%, 3.2 million units.
Source: Forbes
This is cute "While Apple may be using its "ecosystem" to attract gamers, it's Microsoft's "open" approach that has succeeded. No one wants to be boxed into an "ecosystem" unless forced".

Isn't that the same as being boxed into Windows?
Reply
TerryLaze

Loadedaxe said:
The idea that Apple is completely dependent on Valve is outdated. While it's true that Mac gaming has historically lagged behind Windows, Apple has been making a serious push into gaming in 2025, investing in native game support, hardware optimizations, and developer incentives.
Apple made a serious push into gaming in the 90ies as well, anyone remember the pippin?!
They can push as much as they want, outside of smartphones their market is way too small to support a gaming industry.
Reply
Loadedaxe

TerryLaze said:
Apple made a serious push into gaming in the 90ies as well, anyone remember the pippin?!
They can push as much as they want, outside of smartphones their market is way too small to support a gaming industry.
It’s true that Apple’s earlier ventures into gaming, like the Pippin, didn’t exactly leave a lasting legacy. But the landscape today is vastly different. Apple now has a massive, unified hardware and software ecosystem, M-series chips capable of handling demanding games, and one of the largest user bases on the planet.

While Mac’s share of the traditional gaming market is still relatively small, the company is actively investing in tools, developer partnerships, and hardware to change that. And with games now spanning across iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Vision Pro, the definition of "gaming" on Apple’s platforms has evolved significantly.

No one’s claiming Apple will replace Steam or the broader PC market overnight, but it’s clear they’re in it for the long haul this time.....with far more resources, reach, and strategic focus than they had in the '90s.

Plus, with Mac sales hitting record highs, 5.5 million units shipped in Q1 2025 alone, it’s clear Apple isn’t slowing down or getting complacent. If anything, this is the perfect time to push forward. With PC gaming becoming increasingly expensive, Apple has a real opportunity to offer a more accessible, integrated alternative for a broader audience.

As the saying goes, never say never.
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