Steam Linux Client Finally Drops 13-Year-Old 32-Bit Limitation in New Test Build

Valve is currently working on a native 64bit client for Linux Steam. What does this mean? It finally fixes a 13 year old 32 bit architecture restriction.

Valve addresses long-standing architecture restriction with improved stability and new features

It's important because now Linux is at the same level as current windows client which got the 64bit update earlier this year. For all Linux users out there, this means improved memory management and stability across the board as we move past the old archaic shackles.

The steam client update comes with a few new goodies. Like a new 'Challenge Sets' functionality. Which allows you to group and summarize statistics (games, DLC etc) easier.

There is also a much improved visual update to Big Picture Mode, with 'Big Art' and screensaver options. The interface also includes a new 'High Contrast' auto-activate mode. Which is more readable for different lighting situations.

There are also the little fixes that you normally don't notice for edge-case memory leaks. They also make improvements to offline functionality for activity feeds so that there is a smoother experience. For remote play there are new scaling options which will respond to screen sizes. Overall it's more of an update to make the daily experience better rather than a complete overhaul.

This update comes in the wake of the recent 64bit Steam client update for Windows earlier this year. Last time we wrote about the Steam update, we touched on a lot of the same concepts around balance and stability. Linux client is still x86 exclusive which means it still cannot support the arm handheld systems. Though Valve does note that for the native 64bit client testing is just x86 for now.