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Steam to become an Open Beta next week!

By - | Views: 6,612
OMGUbuntu has reported on this thanks to an email they got from the steam mailing list (which for some reason I haven't seemed to have gotten).
QuoteValve cite the ‘stability of the client’ as allowing for the beta to be opened up to more users.

"The Open Beta will be available to the public and will increase the current population from 80K to a higher number" they wrote in a message to the closed Steam for Linux Mailing List.

QuoteA handful of other changes will accompany the Open Beta according to Valve. These include:
      A new web page with details on installing Ubuntu and Steam for Linux
      Steam for Linux repository will be set up for installing the client
      Statistics for the current Linux games library will soon be available
      Supported Linux games will be available for purchase



The list of supported games has now grown rather a lot since the initial beta which include (to just name a select few)
      Team Fortress 2
      Serious Sam 3
      Unity of Command
      Killing Floor
      Red Orchestra 1
      Dungeons of Dredmor
      Dynamite Jack
      Space Pirates and Zombies
      Waveform
      Cubemen
      iBomber Attack
      Solar 2

The beta for me is very stable now so it's good to see them open this up to the public, it really will be interesting to see over the next year exactly how it affects the Linux landscape, as it already has by bringing us some higher profile games like Killing Floor to Linux.

Considering that it also has Steam Workshop support it will be easy to keep your games alive by easily accessing new mods, maps, game modes etc. I have already personally tested the "Aliens" mod for Killing Floor (based on the James Cameron film Aliens) and it's pretty awesome give it a look here.

So for anyone who hasn't included themselves due to worrying about being banned for not officially being in the beta fear no more! Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Tags: Misc
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I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. Find me on Mastodon.
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8 comments

dimko Dec 13, 2012
Well, i can't say it's stable for me, it's in fact, not. But it is very much playable. Some crashes are fatal, some bugs can be tolerated.
Cheeseness Dec 13, 2012
Quoting: "liamdawe, post: 7096, member: 1"So for anyone who hasn't included themselves due to worrying about being banned for not officially being in the beta fear no more!


Valve said in a comment on the Linux blog [URL='http://blogs.valvesoftware.com/linux/the-great-winter-migration/#comment-45161']last month[/URL] that they wouldn't be banning anybody for using the beta without an invite ^_^

The official list of supported Linux titles (which interestingly doesn't include Osmos at the moment, which runs) is here: https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=8495-OKZC-0159
Bumadar Dec 13, 2012
Quoting: "dimko, post: 7097"Well, i can't say it's stable for me, it's in fact, not. But it is very much playable. Some crashes are fatal, some bugs can be tolerated.

I have had no issues with it except big picture mode which causes a crash and no trayicon. My install was just opening the .deb with ark, rip a few files out and placing them in home/Steam, so no install via root needed.
Xpander Dec 13, 2012
i have had no issues also. big picture mode works without any problems as well.
well yeah..tray icon is missing tho. and the ability to run windows games via native client (but that doesnt count i guess :) )
it just currently feels epic downgrade in the amount of games when i log into the native client. 32 vs 117 games
Liam Dawe Dec 13, 2012
I really wish there was a way to run other games in wine but the reply i got from the serious sam dev cleared up why they can't do it especially for steamplay titles.
Hamish Dec 13, 2012
Quoting: "liamdawe, post: 7096, member: 1"The beta for me is very stable now so it's good to see them open this up to the public, it really will be interesting to see over the next year exactly how it affects the Linux landscape, as it already has by bringing us some higher profile games like Killing Floor to Linux.


Not to sound too much like a buzzkill but in the case of Killing Floor the Tripwire guys have been friendly to Linux for years (they started as UT2004 modders) but they could not make a port because of Steamworks. Now this may sound a little simplistic, but you could even say that Valve kept the title from us for three years (even longer for Red Orchestra). Croteam of course also has a Linux history, and they also said the main thing that was keeping them back was because that they were now using Steamworks.

It will be interesting to see if it attracts some more devs that were not simply kept from the platform because of Steam, but rather are actually attracted to it due to the interest surrounding it.
Liam Dawe Dec 13, 2012
I know they had the UT04 mod my point was it's now tied to steam so steam coming to Linux brings it over again and now it's really popular. :)

Still got some texture issues but it works well for the most part.
Anon Dec 13, 2012
I wish it worked well for me, that is even with the patches the amount of texture bugs is making this unplayable for me.

On a separate note, I see you're in Humble QA now Liam! Or maybe I just didn't notice you before. Just wanted to say hi.
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