There are always more players under Linux, and it’s not just thanks to the steam deck

As the adage wants, the misfortune of some can make others happy. This was possibly the case in May 2025 in the world of video games on computer. According to the Latest Hardware and Software survey Led by Valve with users of its STEAM platform (survey which remains on the basis of volunteering we recall), always more players use Linux to practice their leisure, to the detriment of Windows.

Linux Mint is (a little) shadow to Windows

If Windows (especially Windows 11, at 58.30 %) remains far ahead with 95.45 % share of use, the share of Linux it continues to climb. In May 2025, it reached 2.69 %, thanks to a solid increase of 0.42 %, where Windows in its entirety lost 0.65 %. Note, however, that Windows 11 nibbled 0.46 %, while Windows 10, soon obsolete, lost 1.09 %to fall to 37 %.

The first reflex will be to think that this increase in Linux is due to the fact that the Steam Deck, the very popular portable console of Valve, works under Steamos, an operating system based on Linux. However, looking in detail, Steamos is down 2.83 %, to represent 30.95 % of the Linux cake in May 2025. As unveiled in the list below, it is especially Linux Mint who seems to attract the favors of the players:

• Arch Linux 64 bit 10.09% +0.64%
• Linux Mint 22.1 64 bit 7.76% +1.56%
• Freedesktop SDK 24.08 (flatpak runtime) 64 bit 7.42% +1.01%
• Ubuntu Core 22 64 bit 4.63% +0.01%
• Ubuntu 24.04.2 LTS 64 bit 4.30% -0.14%
• Cachyos 64 bit 2.54% +2.54%
• Endeavouros Linux 64 bit 2.44% -0.02%
• Manjaro Linux 64 bit 2.43% -0.18%
• Pop! _OS 22.04 LTS 64 bit 2.17% -0.06%
• Debian Gnu/Linux 12 (Bookworm) 64 bit 1.99% -0.28%
• Others 23.27% -2.27%

Beyond the fact that the unhappy people of Windows 11 are still numerous, one of the possible reasons for this increase in the Gamingonlinux site concerns the language. Indeed, English is used by 38.24 %of players on Steam (+2.85 %), when the simplified Chinese, used in regions where Linux is little used, is down in May 2025 (24.12 %, -2.92 %). The fact remains that even with a possible future increase in this language, the transition from Windows to Linux currently seems popular and not in the process of stopping.