skate. is an upcoming next-generation skateboarding game and it's now confirmed it will not support Linux / SteamOS and Steam Deck due to anti-cheat.
This should perhaps be no surprise since it's an EA (Electronic Arts) published title. They've been gradually moving over older games to their newer EA Javelin Anticheat that completely blocks Linux platforms. Plus, how they also blocked Apex Legends too which uses Easy Anti-Cheat. And with skate. being an online game with no offline mode, it was a given that it would have anti-cheat and now it's fully confirmed.
Pictured - skate., credit: EA
In the latest update post on Steam, these two key FAQ points should be noted:
How will we make sure players have all the appropriate safety/privacy controls?
At EA and Full Circle, we believe in the power of Positive Play. In skate, we want to ensure everyone has a great time, but if something goes sideways, it’s important to empower players to let us know quickly. We have EA Javelin anti-cheat monitoring for any unfair gameplay issues and in-game reporting for other issues like griefing. There are also numerous privacy options (blocking teleporting, spectating, and disabling the ability of others to move your Build Kit items).
Will skate. be available for Mac OS, Steam OS, Proton/Linux systems (handle held PCs like the Steam Deck) for Early Access?
We want to bring skate. to as many platforms as possible and will continue to listen to feedback and look at the feasibility of adding new platforms in the future, but for Early Access launch, MacOS, SteamOS, Proton/Linux will not be supported.
I really do hope Valve keep pushing SteamOS so this anti-cheat problem can eventually be solved as I wrote about before here on GamingOnLinux. It's such a thorn in the side of Linux gaming, one of the last true major hurdles for it to overcome.
At this point, it's also worth reminding people that any upcoming Windows kernel changes will mean nothing for Linux / SteamOS gaming. I wrote about it here on GamingOnLinux back in September 2024 due to various clickbait articles elsewhere. It's come up again recently due to another Microsoft blog post, which talks about new security solutions that work outside of the kernel (for people who don't read it - developers "can" use it, they're not being forced), but everything I wrote before remains the same. If developers want to block Linux, they will continue to do so.
See more on our dedicated anti-cheat compatibility page.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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You can also find comments for this article on social media: 
CatKiller 16 hours ago
And with skate. being an online game with no offline modeThat sounds awful, regardless of whether it works on Linux or not.
Also, that name is chuffing terrible.
Last edited by CatKiller on 15 Jul 2025 at 10:10 pm UTC
Egonaut 16 hours ago
Please, don't buy our games!If you insist.
Turkeysteaks 16 hours ago
Kimyrielle 15 hours ago
Linux_Rocks 15 hours ago
Leahi84 15 hours ago
Last edited by Leahi84 on 15 Jul 2025 at 11:31 pm UTC
TrainDoc 15 hours ago
I was actually kind of hopeful for this one. Well, guess I'm not playing any non-indie skating games for a while.
Doesn't matter to me, not interested in skating games except possibly someday that one with the birds.
tfk 13 hours ago
Mountain Man 13 hours ago
eggrole 13 hours ago
What's the rationale here?
The idea is that always online games can be turned off. If there are people happily playing Skate and Skate 2, we need to make it so they literally cannot continue to play (while they aren't doing that, they are planning that for skate. and future games). This way we "force" them to buy new games.
I honestly think it is as simple as this. Even if there is only a slight chance you buy another EA game, it doesn't matter. If all/most of the companies do more/all online, the forced churn will simply bring more people to the buying market and EA or any other corpo will get some of those sales.
And if the game is doing great? They can keep milking the micro transactions.
ElectricPrism 12 hours ago
It's now confirmed EA Javelin root-kit kernel malware will be required to make sure that skateboard chuds are not also secret UnIx I Gno Dis l33t h4x0rs of the aether who virtua kickflip unfairly.
I'll wipe my tears away with double diamond hand benjamins.
"Performative game dev as 'the product'" is a scourge on Video Games.
This is just a selection event in the industry, someone should create the "Darwin* GameDev Awards" where we send out trophies to publishers that self-annihilate.
Last edited by ElectricPrism on 16 Jul 2025 at 1:50 am UTC
mi1stormilst 10 hours ago
chickenb00 10 hours ago
And if the game is doing great? They can keep milking the micro transactions.
It's two-fold: online games can be shut down; online games can sell MTX cosmetics to instill FOMO. These random players look way cooler than me with their glowing cosmetics or product tie-ins! Hence why we saw them in Diablo 4.
TheRiddick 8 hours ago
By buying this, gamers are just telling EA its ok to steal their money and kill games, and also offer terrible release support (no linux because of anti-cheat, Linux has anti-cheat)
You have to be a real moron to refuse to add additional paying clients to a game...
ambrosia_enjoyer 
2 hours ago
melkemind 2 hours ago
Why always online? Skate, Skate 2 and Skate 3 were perfectly fun offline. I don't understand
It's basically an MMO. It's a multiplayer game with the Skate name, so it won't be similar to the singleplayer experience of the previous games. Skate as we knew it is officially dead. Hopefully, another developer will come along and make a true spiritual successor to Skate.
It's now confirmed EA Javelin root-kit kernel malware
Please stop doing this. These aren't rootkits, and they aren't malware. Aside from having ring0 access, nothing an anti-cheat does is comparable to these, and claiming they are causes undue hysteria over nothing (like what you're doing here). It also waters down the severity of real rootkits, and you might as well be saying GPU configuration utilities are rootkits. It'd have the same amount of meaning.
That all said, I'm not defending EA. I just take infosec very seriously, and online "researchers" really fucked up by calling these things "rootkits", because this boogeyman is now spread all over the place.
(Edit: Also, I just woke up. Apologies for being a bit snappy.)
Last edited by Joom on 16 Jul 2025 at 1:40 pm UTC
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