Steam, the leading multi-platform game storefront and distributor, has announced that it will officially cease support for older macOS versions, namely macOS Mojave and macOS High Sierra, starting February 15, 2024. This decision marks the end of an era for 32-bit game support on older Mac systems, impacting a small fraction of Steam users.
The statement from Steam clarified the implications of this move: “As of February 15th, 2024, Steam will officially stop supporting the macOS 10.13 (High Sierra) and 10.14 (Mojave) operating systems. After that date, existing Steam Client installations on these operating systems will no longer receive updates of any kind including security updates.
“Steam Support will be unable to offer users technical support for issues related to the old operating systems, and Steam will be unable to guarantee continued functionality of Steam on the unsupported operating system versions.”
This shift follows Apple’s cessation of support for macOS High Sierra in 2020 and macOS Mojave in 2021. Despite the gradual decline in these older operating systems’ popularity, Steam maintained basic updates and support to enable the running of 32-bit games. However, with only about 2% of Steam users still operating on these outdated systems, the impact of this change is expected to be minimal.
Steam users currently utilizing macOS High Sierra or Mojave are encouraged to upgrade to the latest available macOS versions to ensure continued compatibility and enhanced security. Older macOS versions are prone to security vulnerabilities, which have been addressed in more recent updates.
As the February 2024 deadline approaches, Steam reaffirms its commitment to evolving with technological advancements and maintaining a secure and updated platform for its vast gaming community.