I'm considering switching from Windows 11 to Bazzite. My PC is mainly for gaming and watching videos, and I have an Nvidia GPU. I'm not planning to do much programming, and I can tolerate some performance differences if necessary.
My main hesitation is modding. I regularly mod games such as The Sims 4, Baldur's Gate 3, and Skyrim, along with plenty of others. Older guides often claimed that modding on Linux was impossible or extremely difficult, but most of the information I've found is at least two years old.
How well do modern Linux gaming setups handle mod managers and game mods? Are tools such as Vortex, Mod Organizer 2, or other Linux-native managers practical on Bazzite? Would this be manageable for a Linux beginner, or does modding still require significant command-line and filesystem knowledge?
4 Answers
Modding is definitely possible, but the experience depends heavily on the game and the type of mod. Simple mods that involve copying files into a game's directory usually work much like they do on Windows. More complicated setups can require understanding Linux paths, file permissions, symbolic links, and how Windows programs run through compatibility layers.
You can use Vortex on Linux, although my experience with it was only average. Amethyst Mod Manager has worked better for me and is fairly close in concept to Mod Organizer 2. It isn't necessarily difficult, but some things behave differently from Windows, so there can be a learning curve while you figure out the right paths and compatibility settings.
Amethyst Mod Manager is worth checking out. It can be installed as a Flatpak and feels fairly similar to common Windows mod managers once configured. It supports symlinks and hardlinks, which is useful for keeping mod files organized. The initial setup can be a little fiddly, and you may need to grant it access to the game's files through Flatseal.
I've installed a few mods on Linux without using anything advanced. For basic mods, I just placed the files in the locations specified by the instructions and launched the game. If you mainly use straightforward replacements or manually installed mods, switching shouldn't be a major obstacle. I'd still check each game's current compatibility before making the move, since mod managers and script-heavy mods can vary a lot.
That makes sense. I'd like to learn more about Linux regardless of which distribution I choose, although learning can be frustrating for me because of a brain injury. I'm still willing to take it slowly and work my way beyond beginner level.