Steam for Ubuntu confirmed, L4D2 is Valve's first Linux game

Valve has unveiled its plans to provide a full Steam client for Linux users, in addition to existing PC and Mac versions.

In a post on the brand spanking new Valve Linux blog, the 11-strong Linux team revealed its current goals: a complete Steam client for Ubuntu 12.04, and a compatible release of Left 4 Dead 2 which works as well as the Windows version.

Valve chose Ubuntu to kick off with, but will "look at supporting other distributions in the future". In the meantime, focusing on just one distribution makes it easier to test and iterate.

As usual, Valve hasn't put a release window on either project, but has promised to update the blog on a regular basis; the team has been working together since 2011 and has apparently made good progress.

Steam for Linux's imminent debut has been pretty much a dead cert since Gabe Newell re-confirmed it earlier this month.