Linux Hits New Highs: What It Means for Gamers

This week, we’ve seen Linux market share explode. We’ll talk about it. Plus, people are still defiantly thumbing their nose at Valve. Are Deck owners okay? And new updates for games, the Steam client, and other gaming apps make for a jam-packed week of Linux Gaming news. Let’s get right into it.

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About Gardiner Bryant: A native Maine resident, Gardiner (yes, that's his first name) is an enthusiastic Linux evangelist, a believer in the efficacy and superiority of the Free and Open Source way, and President of Heavy Element. Heavy Element offers web design, media production, and YouTube consulting services to individuals and companies in Maine and beyond.

-- Chapters --
00:00 Introduction
00:22 Stop Sniffing your Deck
01:50 ProtonUp-QT's new v2.10.2 update
03:14 Dudeling's Free Update and New Android Port
04:03 DeckHD gets official support from Valve
04:45 Most played Steam Deck for July 2024
06:15 Humble's Lego Worlds Collide Bundle
07:33 System76's COSMIC Desktop Environment demo
08:46 Steam's Demo Revamp
09:47 Steam Deck Beta Client Update
10:25 Linux hits all-time-high marketshare

[Duckly]

I'm expecting Microsoft to make their games GamePass exclusive when Linux hits 5%

[mdiego]

Thanks for the Valve update. Also, there is a gentleman who is running a campaign in different areas or regions around the world trying to get a legal definition of video games as a service and end-of-service terms. The initiative is called Stop Killing Games and in the EU we need about one million signatures and he's looking for people to help spread. If the quota is met, the EU Commission is legally obligated to address this.

[PSPIXAR]

used linux for years now, will never go back to

[RifterDask]

There’s enough meat on the bone at 4% that developers and manufacturers might pay at least a cursory bit of attention to Linux compatibility.

That’s a lot better than we were doing five years ago!

[KM-svdh]

Like every graph, linux growth is exponential where the hardest and slowest part is the start.
I hope we achieve 10% by Jully 2025.

[XanTheXanadul]

I don't think there will ever be a "Year of the Linux desktop", but I wouldn't be suprised if the "Decade of the Linux desktop" began two years ago. As in, the decade that Linux marketshare grew so much, that it got on par or even surpassed windows.

[shmink]

I think we're a far way off critical mass of linux gamers. I think you're going to need an absolute minimum of 10% so double the amount that it's currently. It's trending positive though and I look forward to that day.

[MansakeLabsOfficial]

When we soon reach 5%, that'll mean that 1 out of 20 PCs will be running Linux! That's a lotta Linux out there!
I think I would define "The Year of the Linux Desktop" as whatever year Adobe brings their software suite to Linux.

[zipkitty]

Gaming and working on Linux since before the deck. Linux is so awesome, just wish pro software would be ported more often to it. But maybe it is better this way, less users -> less malware :D

[zach_attakk]

I feel linux gamers are like metalheads. I'd casually mention it in conversation but I won't talk about it in detail unless I meet another of "my kind". The general public doesn't understand it enough to manage a longer conversation and you spend most of your time dispelling stigma.

[gerowen]

4:45 Not just that, but at the current size of the Deck screen, 800p is totally fine for gaming. It looks sharp and clear. Having a higher resolution would be barely noticeable, but would hurt battery life and performance.

[thetargos]

I'd say software developers rather than JUST game developers. Ironically, gaming seems to be one of the driving forces behind much of Linux adoption, as much as Microsoft's own doing... probably as they transition Windows into a subscription model as well (as it would seem their final goal is).

I absolutely LOVE to see Linux usage soar, as much as I loathe the amount of inevitable pleas for help that stem from the flood of new users (my patience is not what it used to be years ago), but I still celebrate the new comers, who I hope will stick to Linux once the initial issues get sorted.

With a little luck, hopefully this will bring critical mass so that the Catch 22 of "There are only a few users because XYZ app is not available, and app XYZ is not available because there are too few users"

Thanks for your content, Gardiner!

[mixk]

Most of the gains are off the Steam Deck, I imagine.

Still, fingers crossed more gamers make the jump.

[dozerd]

Wow. 4.5%. Thats a huge bump in six months. More than many years past combined. 5% is not far away! However, I think 10% is critical mass. 10% is the magic number which stabilizes a movement.

[xXdmarkXx]

An interesting moment for Linux Desktop could be, when Windows 10 Support ends. I also consider to switch to Linux if there a good gaming centered distribution that is easy to install and to set up.

[MrGamelover]

I don't see how having a separate demo page could possibly hinder sales.

[gbblackknight]

I swear my OLED vents smell better than my launch Deck did lol 🖤

[MrGamelover]

The year of the Linux desktop would require people to be able to actually buy computers with Linux pre-installed. When critical mass eventually gets reached, then Microsoft Office and Adobe Suite and Fusion 360 and all the other professional software people with jobs rely on will have to start supporting Linux.

Actually, one major thing missing from Linux is something that came to Group Policy Editor. From what I've heard, managing a fleet of Linux systems is pretty much impossible if you don't know what to download first, with no native built-in solution. I'm not sure how much it matters that Windows has all that stuff built in, but I imagine having a built-in infrastructure for that kind of thing makes it a lot more, for lack of a better word, stable. By stable, I mean that you have one standard for everyone to learn, as opposed to always changing standards.

[Innosos]

The decade of the Steam Deck. I'm glad we have a driving force in the industry that understand casual gamers needs and can push these ideas into a functional product.

[GamerxCR]

Will you be able to make a video on Amd fluid motion frames 2 and will it ever come to steam deck. As it supports RDNA2 but doesn't support handheld devices.