Linux has always been a popular operating system for a certain kind of user, but it's always presented complications if you want to play a wide variety of games. Now, however, the number of monthly active Steam users running Linux has risen to 1%, according to the Steam Hardware Survey.
As spotted by the Linux site GamingOnLinux, the percentage of Linux users on Steam has increased and decreased over the past three years, but the overall line of fit tends towards the positive. This is the first time that the tracker has shown above a 1% Linux share since at least September 2018.
Since Valve reported 120 million users back in January, this means that there are roughly 1.2 million monthly active Linux users on Steam, assuming that those numbers are still accurate. Some Linux users have speculated that the recent reveal of the Steam Deck--which runs Linux--has driven interest in the operating system.
The Steam Deck uses Valve-developed software called Proton, which is designed to allow Windows-based games to play on Linux. Proton is based on a fork of Wine, the famous "compatibility layer" that allows Windows software to run on Unix-based operating systems like Linux. According to fansite ProtonDB, the most popular games on Proton include Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Dota 2, and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds.
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