Revenge of the Steam Machine.

[Ungnome]

Yup, it uses flathub as its back end. You can also install distrobox on SteamOS, which can be used to install containerized packages from other major distros, though I haven't really messed with that.

Between Microsoft turning Windows into a massive surveillance system and Apple telling people what they can and can't do with their Macs(really, you have to go through some hoops on their newer versions just to run unsigned apps....) a company like Valve pushing an actual open platform(at least as far as the OS goes) is kind of a breath of fresh air. I know multiple companies DO sell machines with Linux pre-loaded and some even specialize in such things, but they simply don't have the brand recognition that Valve's Steam platform brings.

 

[Steevy Maximus]

Amusingly, everything leaked about Microsoft’s next Xbox console seems to indicate that it will be pretty similar to the SteamBox, running a stripped down Windows 11 (seen in the ROG Ally X), but being basically “a PC”.

But yeah, like I said before, the Steamdeck did a LOT to bolster the state of Linux gaming, even if you didn’t use the device or SteamOS platform. I’m expecting the new Steam Machines to echo that, bringing a LOT of fresh users into Linux, and potentially being a back door for Valve themselves to step in and provide the kind of “unified front” that is sorely lacking in Linux support.

 

[Ungnome]

Not directly Steam Box related, but Valve has also contributed heavily to the FEX project to allow them to run x86 windows games on ARM powered Linux devices. They did so so that a good chunk of the Steam library will run on their new Steam Frame VR headset. I could see a Steam Machine 2 ditching x86 for a desktop-class ARM processor in the future, kind of like what Apple did with their newer systems.

 

[Pocket]

Heck, at this rate it's very likely x86's days are numbered in general. I'm not sure what x86 still offers that ARM can't do better, other than run existing software without the overhead of a translation layer.