Finally, a potential update could allow Windows games to be played on SteamOS

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SteamOS has technically been around since 2013, but it really hit the spotlight in November 2015, when developer Valve launched Steam Machines. This machine looked to almost bridge the gap between traditional PC gaming and console players who got to play from the comfort of their couch. Sounds great, right? Well, there was one problem. SteamOS is Linux-based, and many of the titles on Steam are not compatible with Linux.

So, while the Steam Machine is awesome, in theory, if you wanted free rein to play anything from your Steam Library,  you were in for a bad time. That could be changing, however, according to a post on Reddit. Located under something called “Steam_Settings_Compat” and called “Steam Play,” speculation is this would use to emulate games that were not built with SteamOS (Linux) in mind.

Linux users have had ways of doing this in the past, through things like WINE, but it was far from perfect. This information seems to show that Valve is working on their own compatibility software that could address the lack of many games, both AAA and indie, that do not currently support Linux operating systems. Reddit user icebrutality hits the nail on the head, saying,

It makes sense, considering rumors of SteamOS 3.0 has been circulating since July. Codenamed Clockwerk (after a DOTA 2 character), users are expecting Kernel and GPU driver updates, but maybe something bigger is coming.

Do you use a Steam Machine or SteamOS? Would you be happy to see better compatibility? Let us know in the comments below.

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Josiah Motley

Former KnowTechie editor.