Facebook Gameroom: Details About The Windows Desktop Gaming Platform; How It Compares To Rival Platform STEAM?

Social networking company Facebook has just launched its new service, Gameroom, which allows users to play games without having to log in to Facebook. The service was originally called Facebook Games Arcade and is available as a desktop client for Windows.

Facebook Gameroom is designed for Windows 7 and higher operating systems. A beta version has been made available for both developers and users.

According to Facebook, Gameroom offers an "exclusive and immersive gaming experience." The company highlights Gameroom's better performance regarding the "app launch timings and memory consumption."

Facebook Gameroom is originally developed for Windows-based systems. Game developers can create games using Mac OS, but they cannot run them, according to the website IGN.

The company posted on its Facebook developer page that Gameroom will provide a platform for developers to create high-quality games to the PC, taking advantage of the CPU and GPU native power. The creation of Gameroom is attributed to the declining use of Facebook's browser games due to the emergence of the mobile game market.

The Steam-like solution for casual games is described by PCWorld as a Trojan horse for social virtual reality. PCWorld mentions the potential of Gameroom for the expansion of Facebook's virtual reality beyond hardcore PC gaming. It is seen as the gateway to the social network's virtual reality social experiences.

The website Tom's Guide compared Facebook Gameroom to competitor Steam. Tom's Guide cites the similarity between Gameroom's dark blue interface and Steam's. Gameroom is not designed for hardcore PC gamers, the website added. Tom's Guide stresses that Gameroom might not overtake Steam anytime soon.

TechCrunch explains how Facebook will earn from Gameroom. It commends the size of games that has a cap of just 200MB. Facebook is also planning to increase the cap up to 500MB on a case-by-case basis.