

no.
SteamOS is based on Arch, which is what I’m running right now.
Arch comes with the kernel, a package manager, some generic drivers to get you started, and a CLI. That’s it. Zero bloat. You then add what you need/want on top of it.
It’s not “stripped down”, it’s not hobbled for the sake of extra performance, it actually has more system components than my daily driver. You can get ahold of the recovery ISO and go install it on any box, it’s not really super specialized beyond supporting video games.
hell i have a friend who slaps steamos on everything anymore because it works out of the box everywhere and does everything just fine. it’s absolutely not some hobbled abnormal linux, it’s a fully featured OS that does everything just fine.
“De-bloating” and “stripping down” are things Windows users do, because Windows is bloated and fucky and awful. That’s just not a thing on Linux dude.
i know but it’s a thread full of windows gamers and that’s more or less the important takeaway for them. i know there’s a lot more to it than that.