Linux Gaming
Discussions and news about gaming on the GNU/Linux family of operating systems (including the Steam Deck). Potentially a $HOME away from home for disgruntled /r/linux_gaming denizens of the redditarian demesne.
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First time I've seen this! Tried it out and it was entertaining to root for my favorites, and a lot of fun reading the various jabs they make at each other!
My winners were exactly the ones I use, so I'm happy (Fedora + KDE Plasma)
I just learned about it from Brodies channel (a Linux YouTuber). As you say, its entertaining. It may or may not get a good recommendation. Some questions aren't really suited to ask beiginners, but that's okay. And some questions like what the use case is, would need 3 answers to me: Gaming, Development and the regular Daily stuff. But I love the idea how its presented and the audiovisual style. Pretty cool.
I heard CachyOS is quite popular these days. Other dedicated gaming distros are Bazzite, Nobara, Garuda Linux ...
I've been running Garuda with KDE (dr4g0nized gaming spin) for over a year and have had a great experience. Arch gets a bad rep for breaking updates, but I've never experienced any. My Steam Link in the living room has mostly functioned fine, but it has been a bit finicky lately. As for the AUR, I think I have maybe a dozen packages from there in my machine, partially because Garuda ships with Chaotic-AUR, which has a more robust (read: existant) review process for submissions. I have used both Nvidia and AMD GPUs and both have worked flawlessly. I don't game as much as I used to, but I've been nothing but happy with my Arch gaming experience.
+1 for CachyOS
My PC has an AMD CPU / Nvidia GTX 1060 GPU which was fine when I originally set it up with Kubuntu but had some unrelated issues. So I took the opportunity to try it with Arch and had an absolute bastard of a time getting the Nvidia drivers to work. Cut my losses and tried CachyOS instead and pretty much everything just worked from the off.
Pick one, that is the one
Yeah I feel like you can game on anything these days. I'm on Arch, which is what SteamOS is based on afaik. Works great. Gaming on Steam and Heroic launcher for Epic games. No complaints.
Fedora KDE.
upvoting the bazzite. if you want to play steam games its the obvious go to. I went to it from zorin and enjoying it.
Linux Mint!
It's based on Ubuntu, which means broad support for basically everything, including niche things like the Mullvad VPN client.
Mint has been around for a long time and they have had plenty of time to prove their place as a stable and reliable alternative.
Their software center includes well integrated support for Flatpaks, which is a a must have for things like Steam.
Mint is polished both visually and technically speaking. It's a great general purpose option for both beginners and experienced users.
However. I might not be as 'cool' as some other new shiny players, which seems to be important for some, but I don't feel comfortable recommending something that most likely last for a few years.
Mint is not something that I use myself, but it's what I generally recommend to most users. I hope that excludes me me as some Mint fanboy.
I use Mint for gaming (Steam), some light development and AI work and all everyday computing tasks. It works really well and with minimal hassle. The cool kids will scoff, but for people who just want to get stuff done it's great.
On other comments and what you've said in your other comment, I think you'd be just interested in Nobara or CachyOS. At least, if you want an out of box working experience but still have the ability to tinker and develop relatively easy.
You might prefer Nobara because it's Fedora based rather than Arch, and your hardware specs aren't bleeding edge anyway. If you want a bit more stability than that though, and don't mind doing the set up yourself, plan vanilla Fedora could also work and you just add what you want / need.
I'd avoid any recommendations for immutable distros like Bazzite because they're best for beginners that aren't too tech savvy, or people very familiar with Linux and have no issues mucking about with OS-tree or running a distrobox. Really no in-between.
I also have 8 bitdo controllers and I do recommend updating them on Windows before you get rid of it, depending which you have - some can be updated via a Chrome based browser but others only through Windows really.
Having read through some of the comments I just wanted to add one thing. If you find that one distro doesn't quite do what you need, don't be afraid to wipe it again and install a different distro. I migrated from windows 10 to Linux mint, I found it frustrating for gaming, and then from mint I switched to cachyOS, which is built from the same OS that the steam deck uses. I haven't had any similar issues since. Find what works for you, and don't be afraid to try something else
Fun story about why I'm such a curmudgeon about this:
Long before Proton even existed, I once researched how to run a Windows VM for gaming on a Linux host machine, with GPU passthrough. At the time I had an Intel iGPU and an Nvidia discrete GPU, so I figured the iGPU could run the host, while the discrete GPU could run the guest.
I asked around reddit and some of my tech savvy friends on what the best distro would be to accomplish this. A few people steered me toward Debian, because I expressed concern that the system wouldn't be stable or would be difficult to work with.
Well, turns out Debian was a fucking terrible choice. First I had graphics driver problems, naturally. Secondly, I couldn't even install qemu if I wanted to because it wasn't in the apt repositories that shipped with Debian. So I had to learn to add those. Then I had to learn how to stop Debian from recognizing the nvidia GPU during boot, so that the PCI device could be reserved for the passthrough. That was a monumental headache to figure out. And finally, once everything was set up, I learned that nvidia had more or less disabled their consumer-grade cards from being used in a virtual machine. I spent over a month trying to get that working, and eventually just said fuck it and stayed on Windows. And I caught a ton of flak for that, because obviously I should have known that nvidia was a bad choice of GPU, and I should have just purchased an AMD GPU instead... in the middle of GPU mining bubble, when cards were going for $500 a pop.
I'm really hoping to not have a repeat of that experience.
Secondly, I couldn’t even install qemu if I wanted to because it wasn’t in the apt repositories that shipped with Debian.
Debian has a non-free repo containing non-open-source software that it hasn't historically enabled by default, but I don't think that that'd apply to qemu. I'm pretty sure that's all open-source.
goes looking.
qemu's been in the Debian repos since...checks sarge, which was released as a stable release in 2005.
And it was in main, not non-free, so it should have been there as an out-of-the-box enabled repo:
https://snapshot.debian.org/archive/debian/20050312T000000Z/pool/main/q/qemu/
QEMU only came out in 2003.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/QEMU
QEMU is free software originally developed by Fabrice Bellard; the first preview release was in 2003.
It looks like it was packaged in Debian unstable since 2004, though I wouldn't recommend jumping right on unstable to a new user.
$ apt changelog qemu-system 2>/dev/null|tail -n 15
-- Paul Russell <prussell@debian.org> Mon, 15 Mar 2004 23:56:25 +0100
qemu (0.5.2-2) unstable; urgency=low
* Fix build problem so bios.bin etc. can be found. (Closes: #237553)
-- Paul Russell <prussell@debian.org> Fri, 12 Mar 2004 05:43:00 +0100
qemu (0.5.2-1) unstable; urgency=low
* Initial Release. (Closes: #187407)
-- Paul Russell <prussell@debian.org> Wed, 3 Mar 2004 02:18:54 +0100
Fetched 314 kB in 0s (1,431 kB/s)
$I don't know, maybe I'm misremembering a detail, it was 10 years ago. I think I needed KVM as well, maybe that's what was missing. Either way, I had to add newer repos to an older version. I think the codenames were Jessie and Wheezy.
Yeah, some people are really bad at recommending a Distro for specific usage.
When I started with Linux, quite a while back, I was recommended gentoo.
It's now my least favorite choice 😁
Fedora flavors are a good mix of quicker updates and also very stable. KDE Plasma is a very well thought out desktop environment and familiar to Windows users. I've been using Mint and it feels dated. Also I recommend not using anything from Ubuntu as they keep enshittifing.
Fedora Aurora might suit you. It's immutable but you can still install Mullvad via ostree or a community Flatpak.
Needing Ostree is probably not a good newbie experience, and VPN's in particular should only be installed from secure sources, not an unverified community package.
Love Linux Mint for the easy transition away from Windows.
I love how there are already 38 replies. Linux distro questions are like Lemmy catnip, heh.
Fort what its worth:
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I have very similar hardware: 7800, 3090, 1440p ultrawide, NVMe+SATA
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Similar needs (GoG, game modding, python, Plex, photo backup)
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Problems with linux before.
CachyOS has been my "end boss" distro.
Ive had the same stable partition for like ~3 years now, which Ive never had on linux so long. Its just perfect in so many ways, like development libs being optimized, and every gaming/optimization package you could ever want being packaged by the distro. It saved me from getting hacked or screwing up my own system in a few ways.
THAT BEING SAID,
I still dual boot to (heavily neutered) Windows. Some games, like Cyberpunk, just seem to perform slightly (but measurably) better on Windows when I A/B benchmark them, even when I try to make linux the best case scenario.
And some things I do (like HDR content wheb hooked up to a TV, or rendering HEIF files) still have some quirks on linux.
You dont have to choose. You can keep a tiny Windows partition, and/or a shared NTFS partition that both linux and Windows can access.
Bazzite. Fedora based, "atomic", has nvidia drivers and windows compatibility utilities preinstalled. Atomic means easy rollback after update in case if something breaks, and it probably doesn't expect you to use command line much. It is expecting users to install apps with flatpak so make sure flathub has the software you need (I think it does).
I have never personally used Bazzite, but atomic distros and namely Bazzite are known to be very user friendly and breakproof.
Steam Link is available for Linux. I suppose that most Steam-things are.
My go-to advise for people new to linux or just wanting something that works is Linux Mint (Or Ubuntu if you don't mind the commercial aftertaste). End of discussion.
It is based on Ubuntu packages which are well maintained (things just work), it has been around and popular for a very long time, has a big and active community, and it prioritises ease of use.
The only downsides are support for brand new hardware (<6-12 months) which takes a while to be supported. But that doesn't seem to apply to you.
If you want bleeding edge, extensive customizations, or a cool unconventional desktop you can check out any kind of desktop.
I like discussing distros as much as the next person. But in my long distrohopping career I realised that with new or novice linux users it's best to stick to the easiest, most out of the box experience. I would argue this is linux mint.
I've seen too many times that people send new linux users to the most wild distro's and then be suprised that the user gives up on linux completely after a week.
If you want to get some terminal/technical experience or like to make your hands dirty feel free to experiment.
But make your feet wet in the shallow well known puddles.
Can second this - My PC is Arch BTW but my partner, on my recommendation, installed Mint. Smooth af install and I almost never taught them a terminal command because it has this easy enough repo library app, and prompts for updates. Things just work.
I have an original Steam Link in my living room, and I use it to play games from my PC on the couch. Does Steam on Linux even support this?
Answer: Yes.
Is your PC going to be a gaming-centric PC? Or are you planning on doing other things like work or other stuff?
There's plenty of gaming-focused distros out there. Some easier and some harder to understand.
From your hardware You'd probably be good with something like Linux Mint or Zorin OS. They're Ubuntu based and are pretty solid and easy to use. They support your hardware out of the box. Kubuntu might be a good choice too if you want a more windows-y experience with more customization options. I personally have Kubuntu and my 8bitdo controllers work without a hitch via bluetooth. I play mostly indie games and a few AAA titles from Steam, GOG and Epic via the Heroic launcher as well and have had zero issues.
If you REALLY want a gaming-focused distro, you'll have to go with a Fedora based distro then. Something like Nobara.
But you want to avoid less stable distros like Arch-based ones. Like Cachy OS. Those might end up being more of a headache than anything with problems occurring after updates and a malware-infested 3rd party software repo.
Almost any distro will work for pretty much all of that. Only potentially limiting thing I see there I don't think that the Mullvad VPN client is generally available within distro repositories. Their site says it has clients available for Ubuntu, Debian, and Fedora. So perhaps pick from one of those?
For the steam link question, I know if I have a game running on my desktop it presents me the option to stream to my laptop (both Linux machines). I assume this is the same functionality. I don't use it so can't speak to how well it works.
Edit: It occurs to me this comment lacks a recommendation. Within the three listed supported distros for Mullvad, I think I'd recommend Fedora for you. Been some years since I used it last but I remember the installer being fairly robust and intuitive while still easy to use, and a pretty rock solid system once it's up and running.
Ubuntu based distros are going to have a very easy Nvidia driver experience (just open the driver tool from the start menu and select the version you want, and bam, done). However, one downside of Ubuntu itself is their pushing of snap packaged apps, which are considered a bit crap, and can cause weirdness (I think Valve officially don't recommend the Snap version of Steam).
You can avoid the snap stuff with Linux Mint, as they totally strip that out. Only downside of Mint is that it's still on an older LTS version of Ubuntu, 24.04 (the latest is now 26.04, two years newer). You will need to add an additional PPA (a third party repository) to access the latest 610 Nvidia drivers on it, which some of the very latest games like the James bond require to launch in Proton. That may or may not be an issue for you. Mint also has the best built in app store, IMO.
Fedora is nice, but the Nvidia driver isn't quite as easy to install, and it doesn't come with some needed video codecs out of the box, though this script maker can make those pretty easy to get. I'd recommend it if you want more up to date apps in the repos and don't want to encounter Ubuntu's snaps.
Nobara is a spin of Fedora with all that stuff included (and has an installer with the Nvidia driver pre-installed, I think), made by the Glorious Eggroll who makes improved versions of Proton.
I personally would suggest choosing between those options, since both Ubuntu and Fedora based distros have a lot of 3rd party support, such as Mullvad, which only supports those two officially, and they have large communities with lots of help.
CachyOS. Hands down the best for you.
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Gets updates as soon as they come out which is important for gaming and software development
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Really good performance, has access to a huge amount of software
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Beginner friendly, automatically creates snapshots (backups) in case you mess up
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Has a simple to follow wiki with lots of useful info. Also it lets you install all the gaming packages you need with one button click.
No offense to people on this site but every time this thread pops up there are a lot of terrible recommendations being thrown around. Don't bother using base Arch linux if you're new to Linux. Don't use random niche distros like MX Linux. Debian is very barebones and requires you to manually set up a lot of things that come by default in other modern distros. And finally IMO don't use an immutable OS unless you know what you're getting into, as many people get burned by how hard it is to install applications on them.
Plain old Debian always wins if you prefere a Wirkung sytem over bleeding edge features
I can understand people not being comfortable with the idea of running a constant cutting-edge distro.
I'm a very old-school Linux user (the very first distro I tried was Red Hat back in 1996), and I've had the chance to try most distributions over the years from Debian to SuSE, Slackware to Ubuntu, Mandriva, Fedora, Arch Linux, and various derivatives in between. I can say I know most of them.
Debian and all its derivative distros like Mint, Ubuntu, Pop!_OS, etc., are a bit too dated for nowadays' desktop PC needs. Yes, I know some of them have some new fancy desktop stuff now (like COSMIC on Pop!_OS), but it's like having a BMW X1 body with a Toyota 86 engine. Very fancy to look at, but not very powerful for modern hardware.
I would never recommend Ubuntu, Mint, or Pop!_OS for a modern desktop PC.
While it's not my current distro, I've tried it and found it to be an excellent compromise between stability and modern tweaks (including some optimizations similar to what CachyOS does), so I strongly suggest looking into Nobara (https://nobaraproject.org/). It's Fedora-based, it's not immutable like Bazzite, and it comes out of the box with a lot of tweaks for gaming (see https://wiki.nobaraproject.org/#modifications).
Give it a try!
Zorin OS. They do an amazing job at creating a very smooth UI and give you the ability to tailor it to your liking. It's Ubuntu-based, but very lightweight. I use it in all my VMs for this reason as well.
I've switched to Fedora recently and it feels like a well-balanced everyday distro. The software is fresh enough, you get regular updates, but the system is stable and super easy to install.