SteamOS

Installing Minecraft on Steam Deck
SteamOS in desktop mode. (Image credit: Ben Wilson | Windows Central)

SteamOS is a fork (modified version) of a Linux distribution (distro) built by Valve for its Steam Deck handheld, previously based on Debian but switching to Arch Linux when the portable device launched in 2022. Its UI is practically identical to Steam's "Big Picture" mode, designed initially to simplify PC gaming on large-screen televisions, but it can switch to a traditional desktop UI based on KDE Plasma.

However, it's now optimized for various screen sizes and focuses on supporting controller inputs rather than a traditional mouse and keyboard. While SteamOS is still primarily built for AMD hardware, starting with the Steam Deck and recently expanding to the Lenovo Legion Go S, it can be compatible with NVIDIA and Intel Arc graphics with mixed success.

SteamOS differs from Windows 11 because it is immutable, meaning the user can't modify or overwrite its core system files. Plus, while Valve's Proton translation layer can attempt to run any game or application designed for Windows, its stability is never guaranteed, and some core systems like anti-cheat software still suffer incompatibility — rendering some multiplayer games unplayable.

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