Steam is mostly seen as the ‘good guys’ of the PC realm, and it has long conceived a vision where PC gaming isn’t just limited to Windows. The company has been putting its best efforts into making sure its Linux-based SteamOS is capable of delivering the best PC gaming experience, starting with its own handheld. Now, it plans to expand further, straight into its rivals.
SteamOS-Powered ROG Ally?
According to The Verge, Valve has planned to let other companies use its operating system, and that includes one of its biggest rival in the handheld market today, the ASUS ROG Ally. This was confirmed in the recent SteamOS release notes which reads: “Added support for extra ROG Ally keys.” Valve designer Lawrance Yang told the publication that the changelog pertaining to ROG Ally’s keys “is related to third-party device support for SteamOS,” and the team is working on more handhelds to be supported.
It’s unlikely that ASUS will be officially blessing such a modification, but all these handhelds are PCs after all – you are mostly allowed to do whatever you want with it (though warranty coverage can be a complicated matter). On the contrary, ASUS told The Verge that one big reason it sticks to Windows is their validation teams that makes sure the OS works with various kinds of hardware – which is certainly a critical metric when it comes to gaming.
That said, don’t expect SteamOS to be ready to replace your handheld’s home screen just yet. Based on Yang’s statements, it looks like there are plenty of work to do before its ready (and this company has a proud history of taking its sweet time), among other things – like adding dual-boot support for Steam Deck. SteamOS still has some way to go when it comes to supporting competitive titles too, as several major anti-cheat systems still refuse to run in any non-Windows systems.
Pokdepinion: This might very well be the key to break into Microsoft’s dominance in PC gaming, if you think about it.
