Valve Updates Steam for Apple Silicon, Boosting Mac Gaming Performance

As confirmed in the Valve community, the company has released a new beta version of its Steam client that, for the first time, offers native support for Mac computers with Apple Silicon processors. It is confirmed, therefore, that both the client and its assistant now run without the need for the Rosetta 2 translation layer, something that should allow it to take greater advantage of the capabilities of the Apple M4, M4 Pro and M4 Max, as well as the previous versions of its ARM chips.

Tom’s Hardware mentions that Valve’s decision comes at the right time. During the recent WWDC 2025 conference, Apple released iOS 26 with Liquid Glass and the rest of the new versions for all its operating systems. During the time dedicated to macOS, the company announced that macOS Tahoe will be the last version compatible with Mac computers with Intel processors and that the Rosetta 2 emulation tool will begin to be phased out.

This forces developers to create native versions of their apps if they want them to continue working in future versions of macOS. Apple has clarified that it will keep parts of Rosetta 2 solely to run older games that no longer receive updates. So Apple’s transition to ARM chips will be completed next year.

Your Mac isn't an ideal computer for gaming yet

This update is a significant step in improving the gaming experience on macOS, but it doesn’t mean that the Windows game catalog is available on Apple computers. To run x86 titles designed for Windows on a Mac, users will still need specific emulation tools. However, it is a small step in the direction that Apple took years ago: to turn the Mac into a computer that (also) serves for gaming.

For Mac users who want to try out this new version, the process is straightforward. You just have to activate the beta client download from the preferences, in the Interface section. After restarting, the app will update to the new native version. You can confirm the change by checking your system’s Activity Monitor, where the Steam app type should be listed as Apple.