Gaming

2025 has probably been the best year for Linux that I can remember, at least from the perspective of general PC users. It's had tons of publicity as a viable alternative to Windows, even, and perhaps especially for gaming. I switched to it myself earlier this year, but I'm back on Windows and I don't think I'll be switching back to Linux properly any time soon.

The Linux hype this time was precipitated by Valve's Linux-based operating system, SteamOS, opening up for use on other handhelds than just the Steam Deck. That had been long on the cards, but it finally started seeming close at hand early on this year.

SteamOS has shown what Linux can be capable of for gaming in large part because of Proton, the compatibility layer Valve employs to translate Windows commands into ones that Linux can understand. It's a fork of WINE tailored towards gaming, created and maintained by Valve specifically for that purpose.

Over the years, Proton has gotten so good that compatible games tend to run flawlessly. Valve has an incentive to ensure this is the case, as a great gaming experience on SteamOS via Proton makes for more Steam Deck and Steam Store sales.

The development and improvement of Proton has been a massive part of what's made Linux distros genuinely viable for gaming. And yes, I said "distros", plural, because any distro can use Proton, as it's built into Steam for Linux. It's not just a SteamOS thing.

My own recent foray into Linux was very short-lived, however. I've dipped into Linux many times over the course of my life, but I've never stuck with it, and this time I was punted back over to Windows with undue force. You can read the full story explaining why here, but the long-story-short is it just completely broke—trackpad, Wi-Fi card, the lot—while I was working away at Gamescom, and I didn't have the time or patience to troubleshoot and fix it.

A frantic Windows install was my solution, and the experience has traumatised me enough that I'm reluctant to give Linux another go, at least not on a machine that I depend on for work. I'd experienced troubles that made me consider abandoning Linux prior to this—Nobara Linux didn't seem to gel with my laptop's hybrid graphics and external monitor—but my complete disaster at Gamescom solidified things.

Still, that was just my own experience, and the hype was still there for Linux as the year went on. Whether that was from influencers and publications capitalising on the hype by generating even more hype, or whether it was real enthusiasm, it doesn't matter: it was there.