Valve is testing a new video codec for Steam Remote Play called Pyrowave, with Linux and SteamOS support available through the experimental SteamRT3 client.
The codec is part of the current Steam beta and is available on Windows and macOS. On Linux and SteamOS, users must enable the experimental SteamRT3 client from Steam’s System Settings before Pyrowave becomes available.
Pyrowave was created by Hans-Kristian Arntzen and is designed for very low streaming latency. According to Valve, it uses the GPU for encoding and decoding, reducing end-to-end latency when the network is fast enough.
That performance requires substantial bandwidth. Valve says Pyrowave can use five to ten times more bandwidth than conventional streaming codecs and recommends connecting both systems directly to the router via at least Gigabit Ethernet.
The codec supports HDR and YUV 4:4:4 color. HDR is enabled automatically when both host and client support it, while YUV 4:4:4 is optional because it requires extra bandwidth and processing. Valve says the latter is useful for desktop streaming or displaying text on a 4K screen, where better color precision makes a visible difference.
Importantly, Pyrowave is not enabled by default. Users can activate it in Steam’s advanced Remote Play client settings, where a quality slider balances image quality and bandwidth usage.
Steam normally adjusts the stream automatically, but users can disable automatic bitrate control and manually select values between 100 Mbit/s and 500 Mbit/s. Bandwidth requirements rise as frame rates increase.
Valve notes that final streaming latency depends on the codec, network latency, decoding, and display time, so Pyrowave will not improve every setup. Steam’s Remote Play performance graph can monitor different parts of the latency chain during testing.
For Linux and SteamOS users, Valve clarified that the required Steam beta build is now available and reminded users to enable SteamRT3 in the settings. Pyrowave support is planned for the Steam Link mobile app, though Valve has not provided a release date.
For now, Pyrowave remains an experimental option aimed primarily at users with fast local networks who want lower latency and higher image quality from Steam Remote Play.
For additional details, see Valve’s announcement.
