Valve launched its Steam Deck handheld back in 2022, and it has proven to be a massively influential device. It helped spawn a wave of gaming PC handhelds, from the ASUS ROG Ally to the Lenovo Legion Go. One of the key differences between the Steam Deck and its alternatives is the operating system – SteamOS versus Windows. However, Valve’s Linux-based SteamOS will soon be available for devices outside the Deck.

According to well-known leaker Bradley Lynch, who focuses on Steam hardware and software, a general release for SteamOS is “almost here”. We already know that the first handheld shipping with SteamOS (apart from the Deck) will be the Legion Go S. Lenovo already has a Windows variant available, and the SteamOS model is slated for May this year.

SteamOS general release might be coming soon

At CES 2025 a couple of months ago, Valve announced that SteamOS is expanding beyond Steam Deck with the aforementioned Legion Go S, indicated by new “Powered by SteamOS” branding. On top of that, Valve revealed it is “shipping a beta of SteamOS” ahead of the Go S launch. Users will be able to download this and test it themselves. And now, it looks like it’s finally about to happen.

According to Lynch, Valve has “pushed a ton of commits” to prepare for a SteamOS general release. So, we know it can’t be too far away, though it’s hard to say how compatibility and performance are shaping up across a wider range of hardware. The first step is likely to get it running smoothly on handhelds, and it presumably is all ready to go on AMD hardware, which the Steam Deck and upcoming SteamOS Legion Go S both use.

However, Nvidia hardware compatibility with Linux has historically been poor, with Valve software engineer Pierre-Loup Griffais saying “there’s still a lot of work to be done on that side” in an interview earlier this year. As per Valve’s original blog post, the first version of SteamOS will be a beta release, so there’s always time to improve support, and the company is actively working on Nvidia open source drivers.

All in all, Valve offering a widespread release for SteamOS is a great thing for PC gamers, especially if you want to stop gaming on Windows. Linux-based operating systems remain niche on Steam, and even Windows 10 is growing, despite the fact that it will hit its end-of-support deadline in October 2025. And who knows, maybe we’ll see a revival of the ill-fated Steam Machines.

About the Author

Jack Goodall

At PC Guide, Jack is mostly responsible for reporting on hardware deals. He also specializes in monitors, TVs, and headsets and can be found putting his findings together in a review or best-of guide.