Gaming on Linux - Steam Deck, SteamOS, Bazzite and others

Forums › Gaming › Gaming on Linux - Steam Deck, SteamOS, Bazzite and others

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ShinyChrome

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#3434091 13-Nov-2025 13:23

https://www.digitalfoundry.net/news/2025/11/steam-machine-and-steam-frame-what-you-need-to-know

Looks interesting for sure! Good to see Valve returning to this space, since handhelds have proven AMDs APUs provide a really cheap entry point.

While the specs aren't exactly what I would think make a solid 4k TV gaming experience, Steam Deck has also proven what the secret optimisation sauce of SteamOS can do with a lower spec device.

The Frame also looks like a good competitor to shake up the market, since most of the current sets seem to have heavy vendor lock-in

SpartanVXL

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#3434100 13-Nov-2025 13:39

It gets a certain market segment in the door. SteamOS has proven it’s ease of use on Deck.

The 4k advertising is just that, marketing. Every other device capable of 4k output will slap that on their box. Case in point, PS5/pro/xbox etc. are all not good for actual 4k gaming, but will use that marketing regardless thanks to upscaling. Not even 4090/5090 class GPUs can maintain 4k/60 on certain titles.

Steam machine only has the downside of HDMI2.0 as AMD drivers are not licensed for HDMI2.1 on linux. Not sure if they can work on that if the port itself is actually HDMI2.1 capable. That and RDNA3 is missing out on proper FSR4 support, it can still use the INT8 method at lower performance gain.

Steam frame is interesting as it’s competing with Meta’s Quest. The price point will decide how popular all of these are.

Controller will be fun to play around with, the original one was okay but a little awkward with config until you got it comfortable enough.

Unfortunately I don’t see any of these coming to NZ. Valve has never sold any of their devices here, even in Aus until recently. Pricing from importers will be ridiculously high.

everettpsycho

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#3434220 13-Nov-2025 20:08

What I'm interested in more is now they are making a steam machine again, where's the steam os iso? They said it would come years ago and would mean you could install it on any hardware.

Frustrating that they probably won't sell any of the new kit here, still holding out that gaben won't forget us after his stint living here and one day will offer it to us.

cddt

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#3434251 14-Nov-2025 06:20

everettpsycho:

Frustrating that they probably won't sell any of the new kit here, still holding out that gaben won't forget us after his stint living here and one day will offer it to us.

They never sold any Steam Decks here and those have been out for years. I think he's forgotten.

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ShinyChrome

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#3434258 14-Nov-2025 07:07

I feel that given they are talking about 4k60 with FSR as a target, lack of HDMI 2.1 is not the worst (as pointed out, like they had a choice...), given they can do the whole 4k120 with 8 bit color/chroma sub-sampling. I did this for a little bit when I needed the Displayport on my monitor for a work dock and it wasn't terrible. Freesync support will be a mixed bag across all TVs vs. HDMI 2.1 VRR, but it seems like most "premium" TVs still have both at least.

Agree with the pricing though, i've seen from someone's coverage it is going to be "PC, not console priced", and by the time it ends up in NZ, its dicey whether it will be competitive at all; which is a shame as at the right price, it would be a nice gateway for people as a well-optimised prebuilt. Heck, I'd be keen to pick it up as TV console... at the mega-bucks it will presumably be here, I'll probably opt for just the controller instead

Someone, somewhere coined the Gabecube and I'm all for it.

everettpsycho:

What I'm interested in more is now they are making a steam machine again, where's the steam os iso? They said it would come years ago and would mean you could install it on any hardware.

I was the same, but NGL after trying Bazzite, I like the fact that it delivers a similar experience but is not wholly based around the Steam eco-system (same for other gaming friendly distros, Nobara, CachyOS etc.. Bazzite was just the first to get traction for handhelds) and comes with OOTB support for non-Steam gaming. Sure, you can add that to SteamOS, but at that point, what's the point?

At least they are leaning into it:

ShinyChrome

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#3434392 14-Nov-2025 09:21

It is already immortalised

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SpartanVXL

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#3434410 14-Nov-2025 11:05

everettpsycho:

What I'm interested in more is now they are making a steam machine again, where's the steam os iso? They said it would come years ago and would mean you could install it on any hardware.

Frustrating that they probably won't sell any of the new kit here, still holding out that gaben won't forget us after his stint living here and one day will offer it to us.

SteamOS image is technically available, just that it is only for the Steam Deck and assuredly Steam Machine when it releases. You can force it on a custom pc, but you would need to make changes to get it to work. It is a fair bit easier to get a regular arch distro and add gamescope etc. to play games especially if you have nvidia GPU.

It’s confirmed that Aus is getting it which makes things a bit easier since it’s closer and I have a lot of mates there who’d help me get any Steam hardware.

Handle9

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#3435436 18-Nov-2025 07:26

Handle9:

Yeah I bought my ram last week, I ended up going 6000Mhz CL36. I did order 6000Mhz CL30 but the order was cancelled, likely due to the cost spike.

I was able to buy a 7800x3D for basically the same price as 9700X so the choice was that or a 7600X/9600X. This won’t be upgraded for at least 3 years so it was buy once cry once.

If I could fit a 9700XT at a reasonable price I’d pay the extra but there are only 1-2 models that will fit.

I finished my build over the weekend and have started playing my first game I’m playing Horizon Zero Dawn which I’ve started several times but never finished.

Thermals seem fine but I do have a coupe of smaller fans coming to max out the fans. So far it absolutely rips.

I’m getting native 4K between 70 and 85 FPS. FSR ultra quality is around 100 FPS so I’m super happy.

Handle9

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#3522375 25-Aug-2026 02:27

It looks like Epic game store is coming to Linux. They did an AMA a week or so ago and said so. If Fortnite comes to Linux it could blow up, especially with the Steam machine hype at the moment.

caffynz

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#3522403 25-Aug-2026 10:00

This thread reminded me that PlayTech have recently started selling builds for Steam/Linux: https://playtech.co.nz/collections/linux-gaming-pcs

SpartanVXL

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#3522505 25-Aug-2026 14:08

The playtech machines looks nice, a bit of a shame they are still on AM4 but not much can be done given the market now.

Fortnite having linux support (after blocking it for so long) is great but not sure how far it will affect linux usage.

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shrub

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#3523582 28-Aug-2026 16:50

Once Epic moves hopefully EA will follow. Been on cachyos for a few weeks now and am super impressed with plasmaKDE and the stability. No unnecessary fluff just an operating system that works. Haven't had a crash or an update issue yet.

Last week I Booted back into windows to try play bf6 and had to wait on a windows update then windows asked me to use Edge again... I hard reset immediately and went back to cachyos.

Windows I still use daily for work on a separate device and I actively despise it. If i could get windows app(AVD) and excel to work native on Linux i would.

SpartanVXL

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#3523925 30-Aug-2026 21:10

Activision isn’t anywhere near supporting linux, the recent MW4 beta requires a minimum version of TPM enabled along with secure boot and uses MS Azure TPM attestation service for their Ricochet anti-cheat software.

EA is iffy given who they were just sold to. I wouldn’t hold high hopes for that company anymore.

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