Steam Machines 2.0?
While there hasn’t been any wider official rollout for the Powered by SteamOS program but, any transfer by Valve to supply formally licensed SteamOS compatibility for third-party {hardware} would not come as an entire shock. Valve’s Lawrence Yang has been saying since 2022 that “we’re excited to see individuals make their very own SteamOS machines.” And final November, Yang advised PC Gamer that SteamOS can be made “extra obtainable to different handhelds with the same gamepad-style controller” on a tough time-frame of “quickly.”
In August, after a SteamOS beta replace urged SteamOS could be coming to Asus’ Windows-based ROG Ally handheld, Yang advised The Verge that the Valve {hardware} crew “is constant to work on including help for extra handhelds on SteamOS.”
As we have waited for that official help to materialize—and for a long-promised common public distribution of SteamOS 3 on PCs— followers have needed to get a bit artistic to get the Linux-powered, gaming-focused OS onto their units. Earlier this yr, Ayaneo introduced its Next Lite handheld would ship with HoloISO, an Arch Linux fork that seeks to “present a close-to-official SteamOS expertise” with out Valve’s official help.
In 2015, the restricted and underperforming software program help for early SteamOS made Steam Machines a fairly poor various to Windows-powered gaming rigs. Today, the launch of the Steam Deck and the vast implementation of Proton-powered cross-compatibility has made fashionable SteamOS a way more interesting various to a expensive Windows license for {hardware} OEMs. Here’s hoping extra {hardware} makers get the chance to make official use of that various very quickly.
