A reported Steam Remote Play test measured about 210 Mbps with Pyrowave

A reported default-settings test of Pyrowave in Steam Remote Play measured about 210 Mbps while streaming Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis from a desktop to a Lenovo Legion Go S. The same test described the stream as more responsive than the tester’s usual Remote Play experience, with especially strong image quality when YUV 4:4:4 was enabled.

What the reported test found

The session used one game, one desktop and one handheld. Valve says whether Pyrowave benefits a particular setup depends on the codec and network latency; it may or may not help.

Individual beta users have described mixed results. One reported compression artifacts in small details and static scenes at 400–500 Mbps compared with Moonlight using NVENC HEVC. Another reported smooth play in Forza but hitching and stutters in Marvel Tokon.

What Valve says about the beta

Valve announced Pyrowave as an optional codec in the Steam Remote Play beta on September 21, 2026. It describes the codec as using five to ten times as much bandwidth as other streaming codecs. A separate reported default-settings stream measured about 210 Mbps.

Valve recommends connecting both computers directly to a router over at least Gigabit Ethernet. Pyrowave is designed for local-network game streaming, so the stream travels across the home network.

How Pyrowave and its settings work

Pyrowave uses the GPU to encode and decode frames. Its creator, Hans-Kristian “TheMaister” Arntzen, describes it as an intra-frame, wavelet-based codec: it encodes frames individually using wavelet transforms rather than relying on motion prediction between frames.

Valve says HDR is selected automatically when both the host and client support it. YUV 4:4:4, a format that retains full color detail rather than subsampling chroma, is optional and off by default. It uses more bandwidth and processing time, and can be enabled for desktop streaming or reading text on a 4K display.

With automatic bitrate disabled, users can select a fixed bitrate from 100 to 500 Mbps. To try Pyrowave, join the Steam beta and enable it in Steam Remote Play’s advanced client settings.

Beta platforms and mobile support

Valve lists beta support for macOS and Windows. On Linux, users also need to enable the experimental SteamRT3 Steam Client. On September 21, Valve said it planned to bring Pyrowave support to the Steam Link app for mobile devices.