Hello everyone! I'm a longtime Windows user wanting to make the transition to Linux because of various recent issues with Windows. I have an Asus Zephyrus G GU502DU with 16GB of RAM and an AMD Ryzen 7, and I mainly use it for gaming via Steam. I initially considered going with SteamOS since I'm planning to get a Steam Deck and potentially a Steam Machine later on. However, I've come across some feedback suggesting that SteamOS isn't fully optimized for laptops, particularly mine, and that there might be better alternatives. One distro that keeps coming up is Bazzite, but I want to make sure I'm making the right choice. I'm pretty clueless about all this, and I'm concerned about how difficult it will be to revert to Windows if something goes wrong. Any advice or recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! 🙂
5 Answers
I recommend trying out Pop!_OS. It’s known for having built-in Nvidia drivers, but it works fine with AMD too. It's a friendly environment for gaming, but make sure to compare it with other gaming-focused distros.
I think you should explore CachyOS, which is based on Arch but comes with a user-friendly installer. It has performance tweaks and might work well with your Asus laptop. You could also try live-booting a few distros from a USB to see which one you like best before fully committing.
If you want something that feels a bit like SteamOS, Bazzite might suit your gaming needs, but it’s designed specifically for handheld devices. For a good learning curve, I’d suggest Fedora. Just pick a distro, stick with it for a while, and enjoy the learning process!
I think starting with Ubuntu is a solid choice; it has tons of tutorials and community support. Don't worry too much about snaps since you can easily remove them if you don't like them. You can run Steam on practically any distro, so it’s all about getting comfortable with Linux first.
Yeah, I suggest avoiding SteamOS for now. Instead, consider starting with a more traditional distro like Ubuntu or Fedora to get the hang of things. Once you’re comfortable, you could always try something like Bazzite later on. Also, you can pretty much install Steam on any Linux distro; just go with what feels right for you.

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