Linux has always been a popular operating system for a certain kind of user, but itโs always presented complications if you want to play various games. I mean, it might not be an operating system in the mouths of every gamer in the world.
However, according to the Steam Hardware Survey, one of the best windows into how users play games, the number of monthly active Steam users running Linux has risen for the first time to 1%.
Since Valve reported 120 million users in January, Steam has roughly 1.2 million active Linux users.
It is still unknown what drove this increase. Many experts believe this is due to Valve’s upcoming Steam Deck handheld console release. The SteamOS 3.0 operating system is based on Arch Linux distribution and will fully use Proton’s ever-expanding support for Linux gaming.
Some users also assumed that the increase in the Linux share is connected to the Windows 11 announcement. Microsoft’s upcoming OS won’t be able to run smoothly on older machines, so it is no surprise that some people might move away from it.
Admittedly, 1% is a small portion of the overall user base. Not when you consider that just under 90% of people are running Steam on Windows 10 devices.
However, we expect the Linux market share to rise even further once Steam Decks are available to gamers later in December this year.
