this post was submitted on 13 Nov 2025
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In an IGN interview, Valve's Pierre-Loup Griffais said that "[they] want [SteamOS] to be at the point where at some point you can install it on any PC". Below is a transcript of the interview. I tried to clean it up to my best ability.

Just like Steam Deck paved the way for Steam OS on a variety of third-party handhelds, we expect that Steam Machine will pave the way for Steam OS on a bunch of different machines in either similar form factors, different perf envelopes, different segments of the market, and get to a good outcome there. We definitely want to encourage people to try it out on their own hardware. We'll be working on expanding hardware support for the drivers and the base operating system. Just last week, we fixed something that was preventing us from booting on the very latest AMD CPU platforms. Last month, we added support for the Intel Lunar Lake platforms. We're constantly adding support and improving performance. We want it to be at the point where at some point you can install it on any PC, but there's still a ton of work to do there.

If the embedded video doesn't take you to the correct part of the video, the correct timestamp is 5:37.

EDIT: Here’s the written article of the video:
https://www.ign.com/articles/valves-next-gen-steam-machine-and-steam-controller-the-big-interview

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[–] juipeltje@lemmy.world 82 points 19 hours ago (12 children)

When it comes to this i personally tend to agree with what Brodie Robertson always says in his videos about SteamOS. It's kinda silly to keep waiting for an official release when things like Bazzite exist, but if the SteamOS release helps with more people making the switch, then that's still a good thing in the end.

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[–] TommySoda@lemmy.world 144 points 21 hours ago (4 children)

Whether you like the idea of SteamOS or not, this will be the easiest way to get Linux into the mainstream for gamers. And at a time when Windows is forcing everyone to buy a new PC it really couldn't come sooner. If Steam timed this right they could really fuck over Microsoft. I honestly can't think of a more hilarious scenario in which Windows potentially gets dethroned.

Steam gets a lot of deserved flak for their anti-consumer practices and gambling, but it's honestly amazing how much they can do as a company. It's amazing the things you can accomplish when you don't have shareholders to deal with.

[–] Eldritch@piefed.world 16 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

While I generally agree with your overall assessment. The thing you have to understand is that Microsoft has largely written off home users. At least written them off as a concern. They are much more focused now on corporate, government, and AI. Whether or not home users remain trapped on their products, matters less to them. Compared to the other groups.

The recent revelations about meddling by Microsoft corporate into their gaming division, closing so many successful studios. Canceling massive projects. Without regard to how much time, energy and resources were poured into them. All to meet some arbitrary 30% margin of profitability. They're betting in the short term on the other groups to keep home users trapped and helpless. And short term it will work to an extent.

But the time is right for valve to push right now regardless.

[–] luciferofastora@feddit.org 5 points 11 hours ago

At corporate scale, migrating to Linux is a non-starter right now. Our IT had to explain to people where the "windows button" had gone and how people could find all their apps. Support had to argue with a user who had a hardware issue, but didn't want to get a new device because it would come with Win11. Last I heard, a board member still refuses to upgrade.

So yeah, MS has the corporate world by the balls. Smaller companies might have a better shot, but might have a harder time hiring someone willing to give Calc even just a chance when all their training and experience is with Excel.

I hope Linux can gain a larger foothold on the home user market, particularly among those who only really need the browser anyway. If Valve can convince gamers that it really isn't that big of a leap, perhaps that's the best place to pry open MS' grip.

It'll be a long way to go still, but at least it looks like there's some movement.

[–] nfreak@lemmy.ml 38 points 20 hours ago (3 children)

I've seen a lot of folks waiting for this to make the switch, it's silly but having a familiar name attached to it gives them a sense of comfort, and SteamOS is solid for what it is.

I'm not a fan of its whole "read only filesystem" shenanigans and wiping things on upgrade, so I switched my Deck to CachyOS Handheld, but I acknowledge it does those for a reason, adding a safety net to the "console-like" experience for most users. Admittedly that feature may be just the thing some inexperienced users would need in order to not break the thing.

[–] woelkchen@lemmy.world 4 points 12 hours ago

I’ve seen a lot of folks waiting for this to make the switch, it’s silly but having a familiar name attached to it gives them a sense of comfort, and SteamOS is solid for what it is.

And should they be not native English speakers, they'll wonder why the desktop is only in English, why they can't even check the spelling of their native language. Or why playback of WebM videos glitches.

I really like my Steam Deck and actually use it as desktop PC from time to time but you can tell desktop mode is an afterthought. Traditional Linux distributions are actually a better choice for regular users. Valve luckily open sources and upstreams everything of SteamOS other than the actual Steam client, so it's not like SteamOS has some special sauce nobody else gets.

[–] AkatsukiLevi@lemmy.world 25 points 20 hours ago (3 children)

It may limit stuff for a more technical user But for common folks? It makes it reliable, a lot reliable

[–] moody@lemmings.world 9 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

It's more reliable, but more tedious. Kind of like a walled garden, like Apple and Android phones. You can't just go download random software and install it willy nilly like Windows. I mean you can, but that process is more involved. Flatpaks and Appimages are what most users will be limited to.

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[–] nfreak@lemmy.ml 8 points 19 hours ago

Yep, exactly

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[–] Diplomjodler3@lemmy.world 41 points 19 hours ago (1 children)

I really hope they sell the GabeCube in retail outlets. It'll be a Linux machine you can just plug in and use. A lot of people will buy it as a console and then realise it works fine as a PC. That's the kind of promotion Linux needs right now.

[–] Ofiuco@piefed.ca 7 points 16 hours ago (2 children)

I fear for this too but because I live where steam hardware is never sold, I have to rely on scalpers or stores who sell it for triple it's value. I want the controller (tbh I want the vr controllers, but not the steam frame) but I don't want to pay around $2,000 MXN for it.

[–] woelkchen@lemmy.world 3 points 12 hours ago

I have to rely on scalpers or stores who sell it for triple it’s value. I want the controller

The 8bitdo Ultimate 2 series of controllers are fine pieces of hardware. Yes, they don't have the trackpads but they have TMR sticks (probably the very same model as Steam Controller 2) and they are even compatible game consoles.

The biggest problem is that there are four very similarly named controllers ("Bluetooth" is the highest end and compatible with all BT devices even phones) but that's it. No need to throw money at scalpers if good alternatives exist.

PS: If it behaves like Steam Deck's controller, it'll be useless without Steam running and merely acting as mouse.

[–] PieMePlenty@lemmy.world 3 points 14 hours ago

Why not use a reshipping service?

[–] Thorry@feddit.org 20 points 19 hours ago (4 children)

So much for the "I'm still running Windows because I game a lot" crowd. No more excuses, ditch Microsoft and switch to Linux!

[–] Lemminary@lemmy.world 14 points 17 hours ago (2 children)

It's not an excuse when your favorite game only supports kernel-level anti-cheat on Windows.

[–] FreeBooteR69@lemmy.ca 13 points 15 hours ago (1 children)

If enough people stop buying those games because the developer refuses to infect your computer for you, they'll change their tune. Money talks bullshit walks.

[–] Lemminary@lemmy.world 3 points 14 hours ago

Many of these games are free-to-play. At least, mine is. I'm open to alternative games, but none of them scratch that itch.

[–] infinitesunrise@slrpnk.net 9 points 16 hours ago

Yeah at this point the anticheat of the multiplayer military fps genre really is the opiate of the masses keeping windows at the top of gaming market share. Because no OS besides windows would ever allow for something so wildly insecure.

I play the genre, in fact PUBG is one of my favorite games (Judge me as you will), but I made the decision a few years back that my control over my own computer, my privacy and security in my own home, my ideological rejection of the stranglehold microsoft has over the home PC, were all more important than my ability to play a handful of violent, samesie, DoD-funded military apologia.

I have zero regrets. I do miss PUBG from time to time. But no, in the end it wasn't really an excuse to not switch.

[–] Schal330@lemmy.world 20 points 19 hours ago* (last edited 19 hours ago) (6 children)

There are still excuses. Image of the protondb click-play statistics

I love gaming on my Steam Deck, but I'm not ready to make that PC switch yet because I don't have the time anymore to sit and fuck around trying to get a game to run.

[–] A_Random_Idiot@lemmy.world 25 points 18 hours ago* (last edited 18 hours ago) (2 children)

Protondb has a lot of old information on its thats not relevant anymore thanks to updated proton releases.

So there are a lot of games that suggest tweaks/tinkering that dont need it anymore... but people like me(random idiots that don't have IT/Sysadmin experience to know everything about linux) still might do, because the reviews from 18 months ago say its necessary, because there arent many reviews and the one from 18 months ago is still only like 5 places down from the top.

So polls like that should be taken with a heavy grain.

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[–] Kn1ghtDigital@lemmy.zip 45 points 22 hours ago (3 children)

I am very excited for steamos, give me my VR capabilities on Linux and I'll say goodbye to Windows forever.

[–] Galapagon@sh.itjust.works 25 points 20 hours ago (4 children)
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[–] sirico@feddit.uk 20 points 20 hours ago* (last edited 20 hours ago) (7 children)

A friend’s response to me yet again trying to push Linux on them, all unprovoked:

“Windows is getting increasingly shit. I've had a login problem for most of the year on my work machine where the cloud stuff won't sync. I can't even use Notepad now because it's cloud-connected. I have to use Excel in the browser for similar reasons. I'd love to be able to move to Linux for everything, but I also cannot be fucked to maintain a Windows machine let alone a Linux one haha.”

This is exactly the kind of person SteamOS is going to capture, I think. The same way, Mint helped kill that whole “my operating system is my hobby” vibe.

I’ve not used SteamOS as a desktop. I own a Steam Deck, but I do think SteamOS is nearly there as an everyday user platform. It’s just a bit more aggressive with settings resets and data overwrites compared to something like Bazzite, which makes it not great for full desktop use yet. I've deep dove into nix this month and been making my own tools to bounce off the way NixOS works, like tests before switches and auto uploading to GitHub made a little webui control center etc. I could see Valve doing something similar with their OS to overcome current SteamOS's issues and improve things for an end user

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