One of the largest giants in the video game industry, Valve, says that it is ready to partner with Microsoft for the very purpose of bringing PC Game Pass to Steam together. “I don’t think that’s what we think we need to be doing ourselves when building a subscription service at this time. However, this is clearly a popular option for Microsoft customers and we would be more than happy to work with them to get it on Steam,” Gabe Newell, CEO of Valve, told PC Gamer in a recent interview.
It should also be noted that all of Gabe Newell’s subsequent comments suggest that PC Game Pass won’t be coming to Steam any time soon, but the two companies have already discussed the possibility. “We talked a lot with people about this topic. If your clients want it, you must figure out how to do it. This is where we are,” said the CEO. And while the aforementioned PC Game Pass subscription may never make it to Steam, at least Microsoft has a “role model”, that is, the motivation to take this step.
The bottom line is that back in the summer of 2020, another major video game publisher, namely Electronic Arts, made its own subscription service called EA Play available on Steam. It is worth noting that, as the authoritative publication The Verge points out, still not every subscription level for EA Play is available on the marketplace, and the 30% commission on sales charged by Valve may become a moot point in any negotiations between it and Microsoft.
So, it is quite possible that the above indicated commission may be the reason why PC Game Pass will not appear on Steam. But be that as it may, it should also be noted that Microsoft has also expressed its interest in adding Steam to the Windows 11 app store. Going into details, back in June last year, Panos Panay, CEO of Microsoft, told the same the aforementioned publication that Valve will be “very desirable” on Microsoft’s proprietary marketplace.
