Steam has stopped supporting older versions of Windows, which includes Windows 7, Windows 8, and even Windows 8.1 starting from January 1, 2024. The Valve-owned company has made an official announcement on its website confirming the same.
Steam has also urged users to update to at least Windows 10 to continue using the Steam client on desktop. The company cites that older versions of Windows are too outdated for the proper functioning of its game library.
Steam says that it relies on an embedded version of Google Chrome for its desktop client. Some features in the latest version of Chromium are no longer supported in older Windows OS. The company also states that future updates of Steam will require certain Windows security functions, which are only present in Windows 10 and above.
Steam further clarified that users with Windows 7, 8, and 8.1 could still be able to access their game library on their desktop. However, the company will not provide technical support for older operating systems. Steam also warns that users may not get the best experience on outdated softwares.
It is worth noting that Steam had announced this decision back in April 2023. Since then, the Steam community has shown mixed reactions over the same. While some users are annoyed citing this as a forced change, the other half has appreciated it to welcome the new security features.
According to Statista, over 4% of the total Windows computers in the world still run on Windows 7 and 8, which translates to almost 70 million systems. Hence, the new Steam policy could affect thousands of users who play casual games on their old computers.
Microsoft officially ended support for Windows 7 in January 2020 and also discontinued updates for Windows 8.1 in January 2023. Steam also mentions that users with these older Windows versions are vulnerable to malware when their system connects to the internet.
Furthermore, Steam will also stop supporting macOS 10.13 (High Sierra) and macOS 10.14 (Mojave) starting from February 15, 2024. So if you have an older Windows or macOS desktop, it’s a good time to upgrade to continue playing your favourite games on Steam.
