Valve opens SteamOS to custom PC builds

Valve’s Pierre-Loup Griffais confirmed the company is actively refining the software to ensure it functions reliably on general desktop hardware. While previous iterations were largely confined to AMD-based systems and required cumbersome recovery images, the latest updates improve support for recent Intel platforms. A dedicated team is also collaborating with Nvidia to bring driver compatibility to the OS, though this integration is not expected until after this year.

For those looking to convert a living room PC into a console-like experience, the current version of SteamOS provides the core features of the Steam Deck, including shader precompilation and specialized graphics drivers. However, the software remains a work in progress for general consumers. The current installation method is designed for fresh drives and lacks a user-friendly wizard for partitioning or dual-booting with other operating systems. Users should be prepared to wipe their drives entirely during the setup process, as the system is not yet optimized for coexisting with Windows or other distributions.