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According to recent reports, Steam will no longer support Microsoft's operating systems, starting with Windows 7 and up until Windows 8.1. This news comes right after Valve announced that they use an embedded version of Google Chrome on Steam, which will no longer support older iterations of the operating system due to security concerns.
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Steam is a digital video game distribution service that acts as a store for gamers worldwide. The app is available on almost all popular operating systems, including macOS, Linux, and Windows. Players can instantly purchase their favorite games from the app and play them.
Apart from just being a digital storefront, the service also acts as a community for gamers to interact with each other, share their achievements in-game, buildup an appealing profile, and more; however, starting soon, the app won't be supported on some popular iterations of Windows.
Everything fans need to know about Steam ending support for older versions of Windows
According to Valve's recent statements, starting January 1, 2024, the app will no longer be supported on the following versions of Microsoft Windows - 7, 8, and 8.1. But they will continue to run on the newer iterations of Windows 10 and 11.
Valve stated that starting next year, users of the previously mentioned versions of Windows will have to upgrade to Windows 10 or 11, to continue using the service. This includes any games or other products, including software such as Virtual Desktop, Wallpaper Engine, 3D Mark, and more.
They mentioned that the app relies heavily on a version of Google Chrome, which allows players to browse through their store on the app; however, since the browser is slowly withdrawing its support for Windows 8.1 and older, the app too won't be functional on older versions of Windows.
Finally, they added that future versions of the app will require the latest version of Microsoft Windows with updated features and security patches, which can only be found in Windows 10 and newer iterations.
While Steam will not be supporting older Windows versions moving forward, the rise of security threats makes this a solid move to protect the interests of its users. Fortunately, only around 2% of users are currently using Windows 8.1 or older to run the app.
