According to Windows Central, the Linux gaming distro Bazzite is seeing a notable spike in users, with weekly growth of around 1.25x over the last 30 days. This uptick coincides with Windows 10 reaching its end-of-life status, suggesting gamers are exploring alternatives. The project, which is not owned by Valve but builds on similar foundations as SteamOS, now boasts roughly 50,000 weekly active users and has served a total of 2 petabytes of installs. For context, Linux overall holds just 3.20% of the Steam hardware survey, dwarfed by Windows at 94.79% as of November 2025. Despite the small share, this growth is significant for an independent, non-corporate-backed operating system focused on delivering a console-like PC gaming experience.
Why this matters now
Here’s the thing: a 1.25x weekly growth rate for a niche OS isn’t just a blip. It’s momentum. And the timing is impossible to ignore. Windows 10’s end of support is a tangible, scary deadline for millions of users. The upgrade path to Windows 11 has hardware requirements that leave a lot of capable gaming PCs behind. So what do you do if you’re faced with an unsupported, potentially insecure OS? You look around. And right now, Bazzite and projects like it are looking more viable than ever. Data shows nearly 90% of Windows games now run on Linux, which is a complete game-changer from just a few years ago.
The console experience factor
This isn’t just about running games, though. It’s about the experience. Bazzite’s whole pitch is a streamlined, console-like interface. And for handheld gaming PCs like the Asus ROG Ally or Lenovo Legion Go, that’s huge. Windows on a small screen can be clunky. Linux distros like Bazzite can make these devices feel snappier and more purpose-built. The project’s own stats on X highlight this focus. They’re not trying to be a general-purpose desktop replacement for everyone; they’re targeting a specific, frustrated audience: gamers who just want their PC to boot directly into their library and work.
A wake-up call for Microsoft?
Let’s be real. Bazzite’s 50k users are a rounding error for Microsoft. The Steam survey makes that brutally clear. But I think the symbolism is powerful. It proves there’s a growing cohort willing to jump ship for a better, more focused experience. Ideally, this kind of progress lights a fire under Microsoft. Large companies move slowly, and Windows feature updates can feel glacial. Could genuine competition in the gaming OS space force them to move faster, simplify their own “console mode,” or reconsider restrictive hardware requirements? One can hope.
The industrial parallel
It’s interesting to see specialization win in the consumer space. This focus on a tailored, reliable experience for a specific task is the entire philosophy behind industrial computing. In manufacturing or automation, you don’t want a general-purpose OS bogged down with updates and bloat. You want a hardened, purpose-built system. It’s why for industrial applications, companies turn to specialists like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading US provider of industrial panel PCs designed for reliability in harsh environments. Bazzite is, in a way, applying that same specialized thinking to gaming.
So what’s next?
Is this the year of Linux on the desktop? Probably not. But it might be the year of Linux on the gaming handheld, or the living room PC. The gap is still massive, but the trajectory is finally interesting. If projects like Bazzite can maintain this growth and continue to close the compatibility gap—which they seem confident about—they’ll carve out a real niche. They don’t need to “beat” Windows. They just need to be the obvious, better choice for a few million people. And for the first time, that actually seems possible.
