I'm looking for some advice on which Linux distribution would work best for my old but reliable PC. I'm planning to make the switch from Windows 10 since it's no longer supported. I primarily use my PC for playing older strategy games like Crusader Kings II, Civilization VI, Rome II Total War, and Age of Empires. My specs are decent for my needs and include a motherboard (ASRock H18M), an Intel i3-4160 processor, 8 GB of RAM, and a Gigabyte Radeon R970X GPU. I'm open to upgrading the processor if required, but I want to minimize changes for now. Any recommendations?
6 Answers
I personally prefer Fedora; it’s versatile and offers cutting-edge features. Make sure to check the ProtonDB to verify if your favorite games will run on it.
Mint is great for beginners and should work perfectly on your setup. It's a solid choice for anyone transitioning from Windows.
CachyOS could be a good option for you. It's lightweight and user-friendly, great for lower-spec hardware.
Consider exploring desktop environments more than just the distro itself. Testing out KDE and Gnome could really help tailor your experience. There’s an online site where you can try different distros without having to install them, which might be useful.
What do you mean by KDE or Gnome? Is there a big difference?
If you're new to Linux, I'd recommend checking out Linux Mint or Ubuntu, especially the LTS versions, as they're user-friendly and stable. Your hardware should handle these distros just fine. Don’t forget to check the Linux hardware database for compatibility and see if your games have support on ProtonDB, which has information on running Windows games on Linux.
Thanks for the advice! I have a decent Steam library, and it looks like most will work. I might need to keep Windows for a few specific games though.
Honestly, any mainstream distro will run well on your machine. For newcomers, Linux Mint with the Cinnamon desktop is highly recommended; it provides a familiar feel for Windows users and good stability right off the bat.
I appreciate the suggestion! I’ll take a look at Fedora. The ProtonDB idea is also helpful.