I'm planning to dual boot Linux and Windows, but I'm stuck on which Linux distribution to go with for purely gaming purposes. I have three options: Nobara, Cachy OS, and Bazzite. I've previously used Bazzite and liked its interface, but I'm wondering if it's truly the best choice for gaming performance. My gaming rig features an RTX 4070 and an i5-13400F processor with 48 GB of DDR4 RAM, and I've got a 2 TB SSD ready for the Linux installation.
5 Answers
There's no one-size-fits-all distro; every Linux distribution has its strengths. Debian-based distros with the Liquorix kernel can improve latency, and some come pre-installed with Steam and essentials. But it can be tricky figuring out how things work, especially with NVIDIA drivers.
Garuda Linux is another solid option to consider for gaming!
Cachy OS gets my vote too! However, I think you could do well with any of the three options in terms of gaming.
I'm also leaning towards Bazzite since it's so easy to set up and use.
For the best gaming performance, I'd recommend Cachy OS. It's pretty optimized for that, though Nobara and Bazzite have their similarities. I personally use Nobara and really like it!
I went with Bazzite since I found Cachy a bit complicated. Bazzite feels more secure, and I appreciate how user-friendly it is.
Wow, that 2 TB SSD is impressive! Personally, I use Nobara for just about everything and only keep a Windows partition for games that don't run well on Linux because of anti-cheat issues. Nobara is fantastic—it’s like Fedora but with gaming optimizations and easier access to Nvidia drivers. Bazzite might be good too, but I've heard it has some compatibility quirks being immutable. Cachy is based on Arch and has great performance, but rolling releases can be a hassle if you're not familiar with it. Overall, I'd recommend Nobara for beginners—but all three options could work depending on your needs!
I have a separate SSD for Windows, but I've decided to go with Cachy OS based on benchmark tests showing it performs the best.
True, but some distros take features from others and enhance them. I might hold off on my decision for a bit until SteamOS has PC support and more Linux options mature.