GoKawiilHadlee Simons / Android Authority
Android apps like Winlator, GameHub, and GameNative have been revelations in recent years. These apps all allow you to play PC games locally on your Android device, with GameHub and GameNative even supporting your Steam library.
However, Valve delivered a major surprise earlier this month when it released an official Steam client for Arm-based versions of Linux. This client joins the Windows x86, MacOS, and Linux x86 versions. That’s great news because you can install Arm-based Linux distributions like Rocknix on some Android handhelds. So does that mean I can effectively turn my Android handheld into a Steam Deck? Here’s how I fared.
Why is Steam on Linux Arm a big deal? This new version of Steam serves as more evidence that Valve is slowly bringing all the pieces together for PC games on truly mobile hardware. Valve is undertaking this work as the company’s Steam Frame headset uses a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset derived from smartphones. The company wants its Linux-based SteamOS platform to run directly on this device. So it’s clear that the newly released Steam client for Linux Arm is the latest piece of the puzzle.
Another recent puzzle piece is the release of the Proton 11 beta earlier this month. Proton is Valve’s open-source compatibility tool for running Windows games on Linux, and it’s the backbone of the Steam Deck and Steam OS at large. It’s also a key tool in the GameHub and GameNative Android apps. Proton 11 now supports Arm devices by incorporating the latest Fex release (2604). Fex, which is supported by Valve, translates x86 CPU instructions into Arm64 Linux instructions.
So we have a Linux Arm version of Steam as well as the Proton 11 release with Arm support. It’s time to install Linux on my AYN Odin 2 Portal and see if Steam and Steam games run well here.
How to install Linux and Steam on an Android handheld
Hadlee Simons / Android Authority
Some Android handhelds indeed allow you to install Arm flavors of Linux. Rocknix is probably the most popular Linux distribution in this regard, and installing it isn’t an insurmountable challenge. Best of all, you can install it on your handheld’s microSD card, so you aren’t putting your Android installation at risk.
The microSD card installation instructions below apply to users with Windows computers. These steps aren’t too advanced, but I’d still warn you to turn back now if you don’t feel comfortable tinkering with your device. It’s also worth noting that some steps might vary depending on your handheld. Once again, I’m using an AYN Odin 2 Portal. Download and install the latest version of the Rocknix Image Burner tool from the project’s GitHub page. Launch the Rocknix Image Burner, then choose your handheld manufacturer and device model, along with your preferred Rocknix branch (stable or nightly). Some handhelds only have nightly branches, so switch to the nightly option if your device manufacturer and model aren’t listed. Choose your microSD card in the Select Target Drive field. This process will wipe your memory card altogether and install Rocknix on it. Click Write Image to Drive. The tool will then download the relevant OS version and write it to your microSD card, turning it into a bootable memory card. Now that you’ve got your bootable microSD card with Rocknix, it’s time to configure your Android handheld. This might be a little bit different on your device. Insert the microSD card into your handheld, open your pre-installed Files app, and look for a folder named rocknix_abl. From here, copy this folder into the root of your device storage (i.e., don’t add it to a specific folder, like Downloads or Movies) Visit settings > execute script as root (this path might vary on your handheld) and run the script titled backup_abl.sh, then run the script titled flash_abl.sh. Both scripts are located in the rocknix_abl folder you just copied to your device storage. Up next, you’ll need to change the boot order of your Android handheld. When your handheld starts up, it typically looks at the internal storage for an operating system. But we’re going to tell it to look at the microSD card instead. Here’s how we’ll do that. Restart your handheld, and then immediately hold down the volume-down button for several seconds to enter the fastboot menu. Alternatively, you can turn off your handheld, then turn it on by holding the power and volume-down buttons to enter this menu. Your touchscreen won’t work in this menu, so you’ll need to use the volume keys to navigate and the power button to confirm. From here, navigate to Switch boot mode and then switch the boot mode from Android to Linux. Choose Start, and that’s it. Your handheld will now always boot into Linux. Want to switch back to Android? Enter the fastboot menu via the aforementioned methods, then switch the boot mode from Linux to Android.
... continue reading