New Steam Games with Native Linux Builds, including Knuckle Jet and Throttle Race - 2026-09-16 Edition

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This one is a few days late too but we are catching up after the TGS! Between 2026-09-09 and 2026-09-16 there were 100 New Steam games released with Native Linux builds. For reference, during the same time, there were 980 games released for Windows on Steam, so the Linux versions represent about 10.2 % of total released titles.

First I’d like to highlight Knuckle Jet which is a new action ricochet platformer from the makers of Teslagrad, produced with top-notch stop-motion like animation.

Knucke jet running on Linux

And there’s also Throttle Race, where you are in control of a F1-like car but only play with brakes and acceleration as your two main variables. It does not mean it’s easy! And it manages to be addicting with a carreer mode that goes into more depth than you’d expect.

Full details and more games below!

OPENFRONT

Released on 17 Sep, 2026, developed by OpenFront Inc, and published by OpenFront Inc. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Indie, Massively Multiplayer, Strategy, Early Access

About the game: A massively multiplayer real-time strategy game pitting hundreds of players against one another. Over one million nuke each other every month.

Steam Reviews Summary: The underlying game itself is widely loved: reviewers call it a deceptively complex RTS that demands real micro skills and long term planning, with alliances, betrayals and nuke spam making no two games the same. It’s described as fast paced, addictive and great at its very low price, mostly seen as a way to support the devs who have kept iterating on their browser passion project since alpha days. The main complaints are about the Steam port specifically: it currently adds little over the free web version (the advertised Steam achievements aren’t there yet), in-game purchases and subscriptions still exist despite paying for it, one reviewer says performance can be worse than the browser build, Russian players report servers that basically don’t work from their region, and a few mention cheaters and bots. A handful wish for workshop support so player made maps could come to Steam too.

THE PLANT SHOP

Released on 16 Sep, 2026, developed by Tori, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Adventure, Casual, Indie, Simulation

About the game: A cozy horror game where you craft plants for late-night customers while you manage a small plant shop. Expand your plant collection, upgrade your shop & grow your business.

Steam Reviews Summary: Players describe it as a very well made, fair priced spin on the “night shift” horror genre: making plants and arrangements is genuinely satisfying to do (with upgrades that streamline the work), the VHS/retro look fits perfectly, and there’s plenty of dark humor, meme references and funny customer encounters mixed in. The multiple endings (including a hidden one) plus endless mode with leaderboard give it good replay value for roughly an hour per playthrough, and several reviewers say they’d buy it again just to chase every ending or save the cat. Criticisms: some felt the horror side takes a back seat since scares are mostly cheap jumpscares rather than tension, the story could be tighter and the ending rushed, one reviewer called it all style no substance with jumpscare pacing that feels designed for streamers, and a couple noted the screen gets too dark during late game timed orders even at max brightness.

DR DOMINOES

Released on 15 Sep, 2026, developed by Gammes, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Casual, Simulation, Sports

About the game: Dominican partner dominoes in 3D, with proximity voice chat: you hear every player from where they’re sitting. Private rooms, a room browser, offline AI, and games to 100, 120, 150 or 200 points.

Steam Reviews Summary: A unanimously positive launch from the Dominican community: reviewers say it nails the feeling of playing with friends at a colmado (bachata in the background, romo and all), calls it 10/10 immersion for anyone who grew up around dominicano dominoes, notes the offline AI is actually challenging to beat, and praises how smooth and complete the core game already feels. The most common wishes are quality of life additions: more or changeable music (the current track gets repetitive), character customization, emotes/gestures like etralla la ficha on a capicua, being able to rearrange your tiles, new scenarios (rooftops, San Juan, the romana) and mod support. A few technical gripes were raised: high GPU usage on one laptop, occasional ping spikes or private room creation issues early on, and one reviewer found the voice chat quality only okay so far.

HOPE 01

Released on 15 Sep, 2026, developed by Bending Boy Games, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Action, Adventure, Indie, RPG, Early Access

About the game: HOPE 01 is a single player extraction survival RPG with multiple endings. Explore, Loot, and Fight your way through the dangerous enemies and bosses of the hab cluster and solve the mystery of the legendary HAB 01.

Steam Reviews Summary: Reviewers are calling this one of the most solid Early Access releases they’ve seen in years: a 2D metroidvania meets Tarkov style extraction loop with an absurd amount of content for under $15, from dozens of distinct guns to item descriptions that double as worldbuilding. The scan and print system is repeatedly praised since anything you bring home can be reprinted later at the base, so deaths sting far less than in other extraction games while still keeping runs tense. Standout details include a target range where you test bullets against gel blocks and record weapon stats yourself, excellent sound design (shell casings clatter differently per reload), survival horror atmosphere, bosses with surprising tricks, and an extremely responsive solo dev who patches fast even during EA. Complaints center on the controls taking time to get used to, no minimap so memorizing the large facility is a real hurdle for some players, very dark cave areas where the flashlight barely helps, small inventory space and 10 minute extraction waits, plus English only localization at launch (more languages planned). Steam Deck: two reviewers specifically mention it works great there. One says it plays absolutely perfect on Deck with good battery life.

CLOUDBREAKER

Released on 15/set./2026, developed by Ballast Games, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Action, Indie, RPG

About the game: Bullet Heaven meets Inventory Management. Dive through a sky-world, shred hordes of enemies, and slot engine parts into your airship’s grid to build absurd synergies. A roguelite where placement, not luck, decides the run. Every ship has a different grid to solve.

Steam Reviews Summary: The core idea lands hard: reviewers love fitting engine parts and weapons into each airship’s unique storage grid (Tetris skills help), then watching their carefully planned builds turn them untouchable mid run. Each unlocked ship has its own layout, primary weapon and defensive maneuver so runs stay different, the painterly pixel art with fancy VFX and chill ethereal soundtrack get frequent praise, and it’s a very light install (~300MB) that runs smoothly even on modest hardware. It’s described as something you can lose an entire day to between dives of roughly 20 minutes each plus endless mode. Criticisms: early runs are pretty punishing since your power ramps slowly (one veteran roguelike player couldn’t survive past five minutes), balance and some upgrades feel rough or generic at this stage, one reviewer reported consistent crashes after buying upgrades that took their whole PC down with the game, and a couple wish for more worldbuilding/lore. Steam Deck: mentioned positively by one reviewer as another great couch deck game thanks to its accessibility settings.

SUBLIGHT

Released on 15 Sep, 2026, developed by CODEBREW SOFTWARE LTD, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Action, Casual, Indie, Early Access

About the game: Sublight is a space bullet heaven roguelike, where you captain a powerful warship and carve through escalating waves of enemies. Upgrade your arsenal, unlock new ships, and experiment with countless builds to dominate the battlefield.

Steam Reviews Summary: Fans describe it as “Vampire Survivors in the Star Trek universe”: instead of dodging hordes you maneuver a lumbering broadsiding warship, and that slow heavy feel is exactly what sells it. Guns are praised for feeling weighty with great sound, there’s real strategic depth since weapons have limited arcs of fire so positioning matters even though aiming is automatic, and the meta progression (unlocking ships, captains, weapon tiers and buffing drop quality between runs) keeps people coming back into a very addictive loop. The solo dev being active on Discord and patching issues within days gets repeated thanks. Negatives: one detailed review says combat feels floaty with little feedback when you take damage, weapons are either lost in the chaos or completely dominate (shotguns), levels barely differ from each other, endless mode stops scaling so once you unlock the 10 slot Dreadnought it becomes an AFK grind; others note only about six maps and no achievements yet for what some call a slightly high EA price, plus UI/tutorial roughness around upgrades and navigation.

LOOK TO THE BIRDS

Released on 15 Sep, 2026, developed by Soltorch Games, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Casual, Indie, Simulation

About the game: A cozy first-person birdwatching game about slowing down, noticing nature, and finding peace in small moments. Photograph 30+ bird species across five hand-crafted dioramas and fill your journal as you travel through the Canadian Maritimes.

Steam Reviews Summary: A fully positive reception for a game reviewers say is unlike anything else on Steam: it’s not about doing, just being. People describe it as genuinely calming and meditative (one compared the genre to going on a hike), with phenomenal ambient sound design that makes you feel really out in the wilderness, low poly art full of small details like wind moving through grass and water splashes when birds land, and bird animations modeled closely enough on real species behavior that actual birdwatchers could identify many correctly. Several families played it together as a relaxing bonding activity, and multiple reviewers said playing made them want to go birding in real life. Minor notes: the experience feels a bit short (a couple wish for more levels or an owl night level), birds occasionally pop into existence with noticeable teleports, one reviewer hit a flickering tree graphics bug on the beach diorama that easing fog settings mostly fixed, and a few think the hint system could be more gradual so you can get partial direction instead of full location. One practical tip from reviews: turn off fog and motion blur to spot birds easier when chasing all species.

THROTTLE TRACE

Released on 15 Sep, 2026, developed by Unordered Games and published by MicroProse Software. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Casual, Indie, Racing, Simulation, Sports, Early Access

About the game: Slot cars meets simulation racing. Master grip, timing, and race strategy using only throttle and brake. Push to the limit, outsmart rivals, and fight for every corner in intense wheel-to-wheel competition.

Steam Reviews Summary: With 28 reviews so far and not a single negative one, players are genuinely surprised by how well the throttle-and-brake-only concept works as an F1 style sim rather than just an arcade gimmick. Reviewers keep mentioning that it pulls you into thinking about braking zones, trail braking, tire heat and wear, dirty air and weather instead of racing lines, which makes longer races where stints matter a lot more fun (the default 5 minute race is called too short by several). The track editor gets repeated praise for how easily real world F1 circuits can be recreated at correct length with realistic lap times. Career mode depth also caught people off guard: driver market, contract negotiations that react to your play style, pit strategies and dynamic weather are all welcomed as “a lot more than expected.” Early access gripes center on rough edges rather than the core loop: jarring audio, clumsy menus, thin pre/post race presentation, no achievements yet, and missing Chinese localization. On Steam Deck performance is a known issue right now; one reviewer reports it struggles on handheld while desktop runs rock solid, though they note the developer has stated stability work is actively in progress.

MIXED SPIRITS: BARTENDER

Released on 15 Sep, 2026, developed by Rogue Duck Interactive and published by Rogue Duck Interactive, . [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Casual, Indie, Simulation, Strategy

About the game: Run a cozy bar, make cocktails for fun customers! 🍸 Mixed Spirits is a Job Simulator where you work as a bartender. Take orders, mix custom drinks, and discover secret recipes in a chill, creative night-shift experience with no timers or stress, or rush orders in Happy Hour mode!

Steam Reviews Summary: Very Positive so far. The game delivers exactly what it promises: a relaxing no-timer bartending loop with charming art, well designed characters and drink visuals, pleasant piano/jazz soundtrack, and satisfying management side quests like restocking ingredients, brewing beer or wine. Several reviewers specifically thank the devs for including an ADHD mode in settings. The most common criticism by far is the writing: many players find the dialogue to feel AI generated, pretentious and exhausting, with every customer sounding almost identical regardless of which character they are, and story choices that don’t actually branch (one reviewer tested this after a save reset). Others say the bartending itself is too shallow for anyone who wants real cocktail knowledge. You can serve mostly alcohol or mostly mixer as long as numbers match, secret recipes give no extra reward, hard mode barely changes anything from casual, and the loop starts feeling repetitive around 3 to 4 hours in. A few minor bugs are mentioned (wine pouring especially). If you want a cozy mood piece with pretty character designs over deep simulation or strong story, it’s widely considered worth the price; if dialogue quality is your priority, look elsewhere for now.

ACTIVE MATTER

Released on 15 Sep, 2026, developed by Matter Team and published by Gaijin Network Ltd. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Action, Massively Multiplayer

About the game: Join dangerous raids for loot or intense PvP battles in this new realistic military shooter set in a fractured multiverse. Fight in the quantum unstable zones over control of the active matter – the substance that bends time and space.

Steam Reviews Summary: Mostly Positive, with a clear split between what people love about the game itself and two launch decisions that generated most of the backlash. The biggest complaint is that there was no full progress wipe for the Steam release: players who had been on the external launcher version for months show up in PvP lobbies as max level, fully kitted veterans (with permanent skill tree perks like better healing or movement), snipe newbies from rooftops and make early multiplayer feel unfair. The second controversy is a post-extraction screen that taunts you with how many more credits “you would have earned” had you bought the pricier editions of the game; even some positive reviewers are calling on Matter Team to remove it, since several players say they refunded specifically because of this FOMO framing. A third recurring issue is forced head bobbing and camera sway that cannot be turned off, which caused motion sickness bad enough for refunds in a number of reviews (one with nearly 200 helpful votes). On the positive side: fans describe it as “Stalker meets Tarkov” done right, praising the creepy anomaly zones where gravity bends, walls phase through you and weird creatures teleport out of fog; gunplay feels meaty, graphics are beautiful, optimization is solid on many rigs including older hardware. The unrestricted PvE mode (no tickets, no hidden PvP) is a standout that saves the game for solo players who just want to explore scary zones with friends or alone. Native controller support gets unusually enthusiastic praise as one of the best implementations in an input-heavy extraction shooter. Music and cassette collecting are also called out as highlights.

KNUCKLE JET

Released on 15 Sep, 2026, developed by Rain Games, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Action, Adventure

About the game: What’s this? An off-the-wall, riveting jetpunk nose-breaking ricochet action platformer, lovingly crafted by the oddballs behind the Teslagrad series!

Steam Reviews Summary: Very Positive. The claymation stop-motion art style divides people immediately, but most who stick with it come back to say they love the look. Combat is called out over and over for its punchy hit feedback: ricocheting off walls with the jet gloves, nitro plus punch combos that keep you airborne forever, wall bounce physics and a tight parry mechanic give movement a real skill ceiling even though difficulty stays accessible (there’s an easy mode too). The rock soundtrack is consistently praised as one of the best parts. Equipment slots with exaggerated strengths and weaknesses are seen as genuinely interesting design; some players just wish they could downgrade gear or carry a backup loadout since levels can demand different setups, and two player mode has buggy revive behavior plus shared screen effects that make it more of a hack than real co-op (one reviewer runs “2P” solo purely to bring extra equipment). Criticisms: the UI is very basic with no minimap so you can lose your place on branches, the deliberate stop-motion frame stutter gets tiring for some after long sessions, one player finds controller flight handling awkward since gloves don’t follow stick input precisely, and story content is thin. A few note it plays better at a discount given the price point relative to similar titles, though most consider launch pricing fair. On handhelds, at least one reviewer says the character renders too small on screen, making it hard to find yourself in fast levels; desktop experience seems solid overall.

ORBA

Released on 13 Sep, 2026, developed by Robro Games, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Action, Indie

About the game: ORBA is a unique vertical time-attack platformer. Strike a mysterious Orb to the top of an ever-changing tower and master random abilities to maintain momentum before time runs out.

Steam Reviews Summary: Only few reviews so far, but they are enthusiastic: one player who admits they “suck” at the game still loves it, praising how well it uses verticality and its twists on platformer conventions, with unlockable skills giving nice replayability for fans of challenging runs. Another found hitting the Orb to feel very satisfying right away. Treat this as an early signal rather than a full picture.

DEEP SHEOL

Released on 11 Sep, 2026, developed by Acid Arrow Studio, , self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Action, Adventure, Indie

About the game: In a dystopian future, Agent Seth investigates a corporate geological facility where a biological gas turned people into bloodthirsty monsters. Fight through enemy hordes, uncover a dark corporate conspiracy, and face Lovecraftian nightmares in this tense retro FPS with survival horror!

Steam Reviews Summary: Positive so far. The atmosphere is the star: reviewers repeatedly say it nails that late 90s/early 2000s FPS feeling, with neon and fog in a dystopian facility, music called fantastic multiple times, satisfying menus/inventory sounds, and level design plus puzzles solid enough for what is essentially a one-person budget project. It runs on modest hardware (and flawlessly on Linux per at least one reviewer). The main weakness across reviews is that the “survival horror” label overpromises: enemies mostly just rush you in straight lines like Serious Sam, ammo drops so plentifully that crafting and inventory management stop mattering even on high difficulty, and free night vision can stay on for the whole game. Other gripes include no autosave yet (a Polish reviewer hopes it comes in a hotfix), lots of backtracking across large maps with some corridors existing purely to pad length, thin story/lore, and one negative review that found mandatory password-guessing by trial and error tedious. Overall consensus: short (about 3 hours), cheap, atmospheric fun for retro FPS fans who don’t need hardcore balance; best bought on sale if you’re picky about enemy variety or pacing.

THE LOOPLER

Released on Sep 11, 2026, developed by Mheep and published by Mheep, . [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Casual, Indie, Racing, Simulation, Strategy

About the game: The Loopler is a roguelite deckbuilder about a slot car driving in mesmerizing loops. Pick cards, place gates, and collect charms. Settle into the loop as numbers go up and dopamine fills your brain. See how far you can go in the pursuit of infinity.

Steam Reviews Summary: Players are calling it one of the best “numbers go up” games around, with many comparing its addictive sauce to Balatro without copying any of the mechanics. The chill jazz/funk soundtrack, stylized UI and satisfying gate/car/charm synergies get praised constantly, and runs last a quick 12-15 minutes which keeps the loop tight. Minor gripes: some feel it’s priced more like a $5 game (though several changed their minds after playing), endless mode can turn into waiting around for long rounds to finish so it starts feeling idle-ish, higher difficulties get RNG heavy and the unlock chain feels like homework before builds actually work out, one achievement requiring #1 on a leaderboard rubs completionists the wrong way, and background music has no separate mute. On Steam Deck everything works but controls occasionally stop responding until you tap the touch screen; it also runs great on Linux per at least one reviewer.

AGENTS! PLEASE?

Released on 10 Sep, 2026, developed by KIB Games, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Casual, Indie, Simulation

About the game: The AI writes all the code. Confidently. Wrong. You are the last human reviewer. Interrogate the swarm, run the code, catch the lie. Fix it, or ship it anyway. Next comes a problem, a recall, a funeral, or the end of the world. Plays fully on a controller, and the code is real when you want it.

Steam Reviews Summary: Only 10 written reviews so far (all positive), so take this as an early sample: players love the premise of interrogating a confident AI swarm and catching its mistakes before shipping code. The Papers Please style task loop feels rewarding, figuring out where the AI went wrong is genuinely satisfying to solve, coding tasks adapt themselves based on your performance, and the retro vibe with music, illustrations and UI design gets consistent praise for fitting the atmosphere well. Main caveat: it expects some basic familiarity with code or at least patience for trial-and-error, since several reviewers wish the tutorial were more step-by-step instead of dropping a lot of buttons and objectives at you all at once.

GARDEN INK

Released on 10 Sep, 2026, developed by Kranich, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Casual, Indie

About the game: Paint, combine and discover! Garden Ink is a cozy sandbox game. Combine decorations and use painting tools to customize your world. With hand-painted graphics and a relaxing soundtrack, it’s time to discover every cute surprise.

Steam Reviews Summary: All reviews are positive and the sentiment is unanimous: this is a cozy gem you lose hours in without noticing. Merging decorations into roughly 150 combinations, coloring literally everything by hand-painted detail, silly little creatures with adorable sound effects, diverse mini games and wordless exploration make it feel like an interactive coloring book that keeps surprising you. No time pressure at all so reviewers keep recommending it for unwinding after a long day or playing alongside kids. Small niggles: there is no auto-save (one reviewer lost hours of progress in a crash) so save manually, the language setting resets to your device default on every launch, and heavy scenes can get slightly laggy; one player also hit some odd color-assignment bugs with specific items like engraved rocks. On Steam Deck it works like a charm per at least one happy owner.

FORSWORN

Released on 10 Sep, 2026, developed by Resummon Studios LLC, self-published. [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Indie, RPG, Strategy

About the game: Stack game-breaking synergies until your party can slay gods. Command a party of heroes, forge powerful synergies, and level them up across runs in this turn-based tactics roguelite. Battle the gods solo or in co-op, where defeat is just another beginning.

Steam Reviews Summary: The recurring comparison is “BG3 combat plus Slay the Spire progression” and fans of turn-based tactics roguelites are very happy, especially in co-op which gets called out as great fun with friends. Build crafting around class synergies has real depth, higher difficulties reward min-maxing hard without being impossible, a full run takes about an evening at the low price point, demo progress carries over if you buy later, and devs keep shipping updates quickly. Criticisms cluster on balance: some items are way too strong while others feel like unusable trash, normal battles spam reinforcements that overwhelm undertuned AoE with little taunt or zone control to protect squishies (and knocked-down heroes suffer permanent stat loss), maps and bosses repeat across runs more than reviewers would like, meta-progression can get grindy, and the visuals and repeating textures still need polish. On Steam Deck it plays fine but one reviewer could not change the language setting on Deck itself.

HAZARD PAY

Released on 10 Sep, 2026, developed by Smitner Studio and published by Smitner Studio, . [Steam Store Page]

Genre: Casual, Indie

About the game: In this pixel-art dystopian block-pushing puzzler, a shadowy client has hired you to navigate a network of hazardous secret labs. Find a way to clean the scene and destroy the ███████. Take the money, do the job, don’t ask questions.

Steam Reviews Summary: All reviews are positive so far: this is Sokoban with genuinely fresh mechanics (watching your own footsteps replay, dissolving evidence in acid and other darkly funny deaths) that fit the crime scene cleanup premise perfectly. The difficulty curve gets praised as challenging but fair since unlimited undos never break minimum-move records, onboarding teaches by doing instead of walls of text, some levels have alternate solutions with branching story consequences, and the pixel art plus tech-punk soundtrack are well liked for setting an isolated, mysterious mood. Main gripes: it’s short (around 50 puzzles, roughly a day or two for most players) so several suggest waiting for a discount if you want more per dollar, and people keep wishing for the promised level editor/workshop to extend replay value beyond hunting leaderboard scores. Works perfectly on Steam Deck per one reviewer.

LOOKING FOR MORE?

You can also check our previous entries in the series for the New Steam Games released with Native Linux clients. We have them every week: