Key information
Valve has introduced Pyrowave, a video codec designed for in-home game streaming, into the Steam beta client's Remote Play feature. The addition aims to deliver cleaner image quality and lower latency, though reports indicate it requires roughly five to ten times more bandwidth than current streaming codecs.
To reduce lag, the codec processes every frame independently without relying on motion prediction. It utilizes GPU encoding and decoding alongside full YUV 4:4:4 colour and HDR, letting users configure bandwidth settings between 100 Mbps and 500 Mbps.
According to Valve's guidance, gigabit Ethernet is necessary, as insufficient networks will yield no improvements. Tom's Hardware notes that the opt-in feature is restricted to desktops and requires Linux users to run the experimental SteamRT3 client.
Users can access the setting by joining Steam's Client Beta Participation and navigating to the Remote Play advanced options menu. The feature targets enthusiasts with high-speed wired local networks rather than standard Wi-Fi streaming users.
