Valve seems to be planning to follow the likes of Microsoft and Google into the realm of cloud gaming, if JavaScript code buried on the company's Steamworks Partner site is any indication.

Yesterday, Steam Database noticed an update to the JavaScript file that manages the online form for new partners signing the Steam Distribution Agreement. That update makes repeated reference to a "Steam Cloud Gaming Addendum" that needs to be signed before continuing.

The JavaScript code places the "Steam Cloud Gaming Addendum" on the same level as similar legal agreements for existing Steam programs governing Steam PC Cafes and Steam Wallet Code Resellers. Spot checks by Steam developers who spoke to Ars Technica didn't show any new cloud gaming-related language in the Distribution Agreement text itself, but the JavaScript code does make reference to an InviteID, suggesting Valve might be actively inviting select developers to prepare for the feature at the moment.

Hey, you, get onto my cloud

While the "Steam Cloud Gaming" name seems evocative and self-explanatory enough, its reveal doesn't necessarily mean that Valve will be following in the footsteps of Google's Stadia Sony's PlayStation Now , and Nvidia's GeForce Now . Valve has offered the similarly named "Steam Cloud" service for maintaining save files across devices since 2008 , after all.

That said, Valve has been experimenting with streaming games since 2014, when it first introduced in-home streaming as a beta feature. In March, the company expanded that feature to include outside-the-home streaming, essentially letting users set up their own cloud gaming service by using a home PC as the server. And in October, Valve announced a "Remote Play Together" feature that lets players share streamed local multiplayer gameplay with up to three friends.

Expanding those ideas to a truly centralized "cloud gaming" offering with Valve-controlled servers would likely be trivial from a technical point of view. And Valve already partners with Level 3's CDN to provide game downloads and multiplayer services, which could definitely help if it decided to offer low-latency game streaming to customers worldwide.

With so many gamers already maintaining a massive library of Steam games , a Valve cloud gaming service would have a leg up on the start-from-scratch à la carte game purchases of Google Stadia , for instance. And with major publishers predicting that cloud gaming could soon replace specialized gaming hardware , it's hard to blame Valve for apparently wanting to get in on the idea.