Valve, the company behind the popular gaming platform Steam, has announced that the Steam Link app will soon be discontinued on Samsung TVs. Starting from November 30th, 2023, this game streaming service will no longer be available for Samsung TV users.

The Steam Link app was initially introduced as a way for gamers to wirelessly stream their favorite PC games from the Steam library to different devices, such as TVs and phones. It was first launched in 2015 as a physical product called the Steam Link dongle, but this device was discontinued in 2018 in favor of the app itself.

In 2017, Samsung brought the Steam Link app to its line of televisions, giving gamers the opportunity to enjoy their PC games on the big screen. However, in more recent years, Samsung shifted its focus to cloud gaming services, such as those offered by Xbox and NVIDIA GeForce Now, leading to a decrease in support for the Steam Link app on newer Samsung TVs.

While this development may disappoint some Samsung TV users who relied on the Steam Link app, Valve has stated that the app will still be accessible on other platforms like Apple TV and various Android devices, including the NVIDIA Shield and Amazon Fire TV.

It’s important to note that the Steam Link app’s performance on Samsung TVs has been somewhat inconsistent, with users reporting a range of issues. Some users have experienced peculiar problems, such as the right thumbstick on their controller controlling the TV’s volume, while others have encountered freezing issues when attempting to stream games at resolutions higher than 1080p. This change in support for the Steam Link app signals a shift in Samsung’s gaming offerings and highlights the evolving landscape of game streaming services on smart TVs.