Linux gamers, perk up your ears: the elusive port of Valve Software’s digital game distribution platform Steam is finally in development, according to a Phoronix scoop. After spending years trying to track it down and finding evidence in 2010, Valve denied the existence of a Linux version in a GamesIndustry.biz interview, and that was allegedly that. Last month, though, Larabel tweeted that Valve co-founder Gabe Newell personally reached out to him about a Linux build… and yesterday, he flew out to Valve’s headquarters in Bellevue, Washington for a personal meeting.
“Steam is coming to Linux,” he replied to a question on Twitter afterward.
He hasn’t published those pictures yet, but over at the NeoGAF gaming forums, there’s even more: reportedly, Larabel took to the Phoronix IRC after a meeting and tour of Valve, and he claims that he ran Linux binaries of the Steam client himself while at the company’s headquarters. If true, it sounds like Steam for Linux is far more than just a glint in Gabe Newell’s eye. We’ll update when Larabel provides photographic evidence and more details tomorrow morning.