​

When it comes to PC gaming in general, Windows has always been the main OS for users, for its focused development on said OS, and for its compatibility with the vast majority of gaming software available.

While Windows has historically maintained most of the gaming market for PC, other operating systems have also hold a share in it, even if low, like Linux and macOS, which next to Windows, have also their own gaming market. For decades, Windows held the first place, with a percentage of around 95+%, followed closely by macOS and then Linux following with percentages barely breaking above the 1%.

However, due to the popularity of the recently released Steam Deck just a year ago, alongside Valve's own SteamOS, the percentage share for Linux gamers has seen a historical rise in usage, taking the 2nd place with 1.96%, which was held previously by macOS with 1.84%. That 1.96% isn't specific to a particular distribution of Linux, since Linux also ranges from a wide variety of them, with the following braekdown based on Linux distributions for gaming:

SteamOS: 42.07% Arch Linux: 7.94% Ubuntu 22.04.2: 7.38% Freedesktop.org SDK 22.08: 5.99% “Manjaro Linux”: 4.29% Linux Mint 21.1: 3.84% Pop!_OS 22.04: 2.97% Other Linux operating systems: 25.52%

Without a doubt, a huge number of the chart is taken up by SteamOS users, and while SteamOS is the operating system that comes bundled with the Steam Deck, it can also be installed in PCs, though it's unknown just how much of that 42% is taken up by actual Deck users, and how many by PCs with SteamOS users, but it might be safe to say that the majority of that portion from the chart could very well be Steam Deck players.

Source #1
Source #2

 

[Xzi]

That penguin need to lose some weight.

I'd say he looks shredded like E. Honda with that line going down his stomach.

 

[KingVamp]

Epic Games Store almost threw a wrench into this.

First try at a portable and they blew everything that came before out of the water. The "Deck 2" is sure to be something extra special whenever it's released.

Tbf, they had to fail with the Steam Machines first. They didn't make the mistake of making too many different versions this time.

Put simply: Valve is the anti-Nintendo, because Ninty out here charging you $70 for a game that runs at 480p and drops to 15 FPS on their own hardware. Meanwhile I have no issue kicking ass in Elden Ring at 720p and a locked 30 FPS on Steam Deck. The real problem here is that Nintendo's customers don't respect themselves, or are just too young to know better.

I do think the $70 price is ridiculous in general, but hardware wise, kind of a weird comparison, when we know the Switch is about to get replace. For all we know, Elden Ring could be on their next console.

That said, the main point here is, macOS is losing even more support for gaming. I wonder if Apple is going to keep letting that happen.

 

[Deleted member 667441]

Had to register to ask based on all of the apple misinformation shared here, do you guys even use macs or just pcs?

I have had an m1 mac forever and steam was never blocked and there are many games ported to the m1 mac that have no business running there.

Not a mac supporter its a work laptop but its scary how everyone makes claims about installing windows,running games and even installing apps but they havent touched a mac in a decade?

 

[Dungeonseeker]

LOL, imagine riding in on your horse to white knight for Microsoft. Enjoy having your baked in keyloggers sending everything back to daddy Gates and having all your personal info, device fingerprint and usage statistics sold to the highest bidders.

Companies are not your friends and if they offer something for free then you are the product, Microsoft take this one step further and expect you to pay them an entrance fee to become their product.

Using Linux does not make you a nerd, someone who cares about privacy and choice maybe but not a nerd. Using Windows 100% does make you a list of data that is nothing but $$$ to Microsoft.

Also hate to be "that guy" but SteamOS, Manjaro and Arch are all the same thing.

 

[Daggot]

The point is that there's always a huge workload of fixes for devs for a niche os nobody uses.

Just use Windows, nerds.

 

[EWG]

1% of users 99% of bug reporters

Let's not forget how many developors are using GNU+Linux, too. I think the WSL only emphesizes this.

---

I wonder how much higher this number would be if people stopped dual booting and played excusively on GNU+Linux. I bet it'd be above 2%

It'd be far higher if stores sold machines with it. Most people, especially new computer users wouldn't even know the difference between what OS is running when it comes to most tasks.
It's only when it comes to using obscure proprietery software that it makes any difference for novices who aren't set up to use WINE automatically.

 

[K3Nv2]

Valve: Let's put a little effort into getting games to run on Linux and call it LinuxOS

 

[Xzi]

Tbf, they had to fail with the Steam Machines first. They didn't make the mistake of making too many different versions this time.

Valve never manufactured Steam Machines and third-party manufacturers all priced them too high. Deck was their "fine, we'll do it ourselves" moment.

I do think the $70 price is ridiculous in general, but hardware wise, kind of a weird comparison, when we know the Switch is about to get replace. For all we know, Elden Ring could be on their next console.

We're still at least a year out from its replacement, and I'm not super optimistic about its hardware. 16GB of RAM is so damn cheap these days, and yet as long as an even cheaper option exists you know Nintendo will be tempted by it.

 

[Foxi4]

Valve never manufactured Steam Machines and third-party manufacturers all priced them too high. Deck was their "fine, we'll do it ourselves" moment.

Because the business model was asinine, and that’s Valve’s fault. Valve’s “Steam Machine” was Microsoft’s “PlaysForSure” - a sticker that meant next to nothing and was stuck on vastly different products that were kinda-sorta compatible until Microsoft decided that releasing (or rather, rebranding another device as) the original Zune (and making everything else not so PlaysForSure anymore) was a good idea, with the only difference being that the Steamdeck doesn’t suck and is (for the most part) competently designed.

 

[Nincompoopdo]

There are more users of Linux if you count those retro handheld consoles that runs on Linux.

 

[Xzi]

Because the business model was asinine, and that’s Valve’s fault.

More than anything it was the beginning of big picture and the development of Proton. Valve can end up getting ahead of themselves because of their business structure, but something good always comes of it in the long run.

One could also call the Steam Deck "asinine" from a profit standpoint, but Valve is so well-liked precisely because profit isn't their only concern.

 

[divinehawk]

Most of the Steam library disappeared when MacOS dropped 32-bit support. Linux still supports 32 bit for the most part. I don’t expect there will be much for ARM on any platform.

 

[SMNFXCN]

based valve

 

[tabzer]

come on!!!

• Windows users take up 96.21%
• Linux now takes up 1.96%
• macOS is third with 1.84%

This info is on the source. The Linux 1% is bigger than the macOS 1%, how this is newsworthy?

There are methodological problems in the research as well, is it is not counting the Chinese emulation station based handhelds that are selling astronomical numbers, specially outside the fat land and the white land. Those devices are almost always offline and there is no way on earth to know how many are out there with precision.

*Emulation stations and its forks are requite Linux OSs

Yeah, this article is weird. The real news, to me, is that there is steam support for Mac. Didn't know that. So if I am reading the article correctly, the only way to play games on computers is through Steam.

The 1.96% number is referencing to May's Steam users. People who play games on Mac are not counted unless they play games using Steam--which is almost 0% of Mac users?

Source #2 isn't even a source. It's just a template for the misinformation.

Any comment @ShadowOne333 ?

 

[NinStar]

Most of the Steam library disappeared when MacOS dropped 32-bit support. Linux still supports 32 bit for the most part. I don’t expect there will be much for ARM on any platform.

The kernel? Yes, at least for now, but a lot of (popular) distros don't support 32 bit for quite some time.

 

[The Catboy]

The point is that there's always a huge workload of fixes for devs for a niche os nobody uses.

Just use Windows, nerds.

No
Windows is trash and everyone knows it

 

[AkikoKumagara]

How is this an accomplishment? Of course a device that is $500+ less than cheapest Mac is going to cost you, is going to inflate numbers eventually lmao

Because the value of Linux gaming is being proven; and Valve's contributions with both the Steam Deck and Proton are the only reason it's even beating macOS now. This is an achievement considering how widespread macOS computers are. macOS has somewhere around 5x the market share when compared to Linux still, but Linux is now preferable for (STEAM) gaming of the two.

 

[impeeza]

View attachment 386458
​

When it comes to PC gaming in general, Windows has always been the main OS for users, for its focused development on said OS, and for its compatibility with the vast majority of gaming software available.

While Windows has historically maintained most of the gaming market for PC, other operating systems have also hold a share in it, even if low, like Linux and macOS, which next to Windows, have also their own gaming market. For decades, Windows held the first place, with a percentage of around 95+%, followed closely by macOS and then Linux following with percentages barely breaking above the 1%.

However, due to the popularity of the recently released Steam Deck just a year ago, alongside Valve's own SteamOS, the percentage share for Linux gamers has seen a historical rise in usage, taking the 2nd place with 1.96%, which was held previously by macOS with 1.84%. That 1.96% isn't specific to a particular distribution of Linux, since Linux also ranges from a wide variety of them, with the following braekdown based on Linux distributions for gaming:

View attachment 386459

SteamOS: 42.07% Arch Linux: 7.94% Ubuntu 22.04.2: 7.38% Freedesktop.org SDK 22.08: 5.99% “Manjaro Linux”: 4.29% Linux Mint 21.1: 3.84% Pop!_OS 22.04: 2.97% Other Linux operating systems: 25.52%

Without a doubt, a huge number of the chart is taken up by SteamOS users, and while SteamOS is the operating system that comes bundled with the Steam Deck, it can also be installed in PCs, though it's unknown just how much of that 42% is taken up by actual Deck users, and how many by PCs with SteamOS users, but it might be safe to say that the majority of that portion from the chart could very well be Steam Deck players.

Source #1
Source #2

 

[tabzer]

Because the value of Linux gaming is being proven; and Valve's contributions with both the Steam Deck and Proton are the only reason it's even beating macOS now. This is an achievement considering how widespread macOS computers are. macOS has somewhere around 5x the market share when compared to Linux still, but Linux is now preferable for (STEAM) gaming of the two.

I'm going to keep pointing out that this article is fake news until someone corrects me, or corrects the article.

The metric is about percentage of Steam users. Many people who game on Macs do not use Steam, and are not included in the comparison.

Wake up sheeple.

 

[AkikoKumagara]

I'm going to keep pointing out that this article is fake news until someone corrects me, or corrects the article.

The metric is about percentage of Steam users. Many people who game on Macs do not use Steam, and are not included in the comparison.

Wake up sheeple.

Ok, but we're talking about Steam metrics here, which is why I edited my post to make that clear.