Why does the Steam Deck run Linux? Blame Windows

Valve's Steam Deck" handheld PC has caused quite a stir among PC gaming geeks, but the biggest shakeup might not be its Nintendo Switch-like form factor. The software running inside of it is the real surprise. Why does the Steam Deck run Linux? Blame Windows.

The Steam Deck and the software inside of it are the culmination of a nearly decade-long hedging strategy" embarked upon by Valve chief Gabe Newell and company many moons ago, when Microsoft tried exerting more control over developers with Windows 8.

But it's also the next phase of Valve's escape plan.

Also, Windows is simply a terrible choice for the Steam Deck. The base model only has 64GB of storage, and Windows 10 will easily take up two-thirds of that.