Want to play Windows games on your Linux computer but don’t know where to start? Did you hear some Linux distros are better suited for gaming but don’t know which ones to try? Well, here’s a list going over the five best Linux distros that can help you play AAA Windows games.

With every passing day, gaming on Linux is becoming better and better! While the ecosystem already has dozens of first-party Linux games, you can also play many Windows games on Linux using compatibility layers like Proton and Wine. In fact, you can play around 80% of the top 100 Windows games, including AAA titles, on Linux with barely any hiccups. You can technically play all of these compatible games on any Linux distro, but it might require you to make some technical tweaks beforehand.

Thankfully, there are dedicated distros that apply most of the gaming-specific optimizations beforehand, so you can just install the OS and start gaming—and here are the top five distros in this category!

5

CachyOS

CachyOS is, at the time of writing, topping the charts on DistroWatch as the most popular Linux distro and for good reason! Unlike most Linux distros designed to breathe life into older, weaker hardware, CachyOS is optimized for modern and more powerful systems. There’s even a handheld version of the distro targeting folks into portable gaming!

It’s based on Arch Linux, which means you get access to bleeding edge software updates almost as soon as the developers release them. That said, it’s also an Arch-made-simple distro, meaning it offers reasonable system defaults with a bunch of graphical apps, so you have a working system up and running without too much terminal tweaking.

What Makes CachyOS Great for Gaming

• Comes with optimized packages and kernel that deliver noticeable performance improvements on modern hardware.
• High stability thanks to the use of Btrfs file system with Snapper to take automatic system snapshots to recover system states in case anything breaks!
• Pre-configured with gaming tools and performance tweaks out of the box.
• Access to bleeding-edge software through Arch repositories and AUR.

Why CachyOS Might Not Be for You

• Not a good option for older, weaker hardware.
• As an Arch-based rolling release distro, it requires routine system maintenance.
• While it comes with plenty of graphical apps, you might need to occasionally use the terminal for specific tweaks.

4

Garuda

Garuda Linux, like CachyOS, is another Arch-based performance-oriented Linux distro—and the one I’ve personally been daily driving for the last four years. It’s arguably one of the most flamboyant distros out there with a neon-infused, cyberpunk aesthetic. Thankfully, it uses KDE Plasma as the default desktop environment, so you can easily customize it to a more minimal design, if you prefer that!

Now, when talking about Garuda as a gaming distro, I’m specifically referring to its Dragonized Gaming Edition. It features a lot of gaming-specific tools and apps bundled right out-of-the-box. Everything is preconfigured with the best defaults to make the setup process as seamless as possible. While some might see it as bloat, I personally find it extremely useful for Linux newcomers who want to have all necessary apps installed by default.

What Makes Garuda Linux Great for Gaming

• Features performance-focused optimizations like the Zen kernel and zRAM out of the box.
• Utilizes the Btrfs file system with the Snapper tool to help recover system to a working state if something breaks.
• Offers a bold, neon-funk design that perfectly fits the gamer aesthetics.
• Comes with Garuda Rani—a graphical tool to help with routine system maintenance without needing to access the terminal.

Why Garuda Linux Might Not Be for You

• The flashy design might be too much for folks who prefer to keep things clean and minimal.
• Comes preloaded with a lot of software which might come off as bloat to some people.
• As an Arch-based rolling release distro, requires routine maintenance.

3

Nobara

Nobara is a Fedora-based Linux distro developed by GloriousEggroll—the name behind Proton-GE, a community-maintained fork of the Proton compatibility layer which gets more frequent updates and offers better compatibility with some Windows games. GloriousEggroll (legal name Thomas Crider) is also a senior software engineer at Red Hat, the company behind Fedora—which means he really understands the OS he modified with his own technology.

It’s also worth mentioning that Nobara is like a passion project for Thomas—for personal gaming and also something he could confidently recommend to his dad. As such, the distro is optimized to be gaming-ready out of the box, including proprietary drivers, preconfigured compatibility layers—the whole package.

What Makes Nobara Great for Gaming

• Pre-configured with gaming tools, codecs, and drivers—no manual setup required.
• Includes Proton-GE for better Windows game compatibility.
• Based on Fedora’s stable yet cutting-edge foundation.
• Dedicated handheld edition for portable gaming devices.

Why Nobara Might Not Be for You

• Updates can be delayed compared to vanilla Fedora—since it’s an unofficial spin.
• Might feel bloated if you prefer a minimal install, like you get with Fedora, and want to configure everything yourself.

2

SteamOS

SteamOS is Valve’s Linux-based operating system that powers the Steam Deck. It’s built on a heavily customized version of Arch Linux that’s stripped down to focus entirely on gaming. It comes with a console-like interface that makes it feel more like a PlayStation or Xbox, but you do have access to a desktop mode for when you need to tweak a config file or install a mod and similar tasks.

Now, the OS is officially supported to run on the Lenovo Legion Go S, apart from the Steam Deck with Beta support for a few other handhelds. It works brilliantly on these devices, but the same can’t be said for everything else. I actually tried to install it on my desktop PC running a Ryzen 5 5600G paired with an RTX 3060 GPU and I faced a lot of issues. As such, if you own one of the officially supported devices, go ahead and install the distro—but if not, my advice would be to try something else on the list.

What Makes SteamOS Great for Gaming

• Perfect integration with Steam and the Proton compatibility layer for running Windows games.
• Console-like experience that’s incredibly user-friendly for gaming.
• Rock-solid stability on officially supported hardware.

Why SteamOS Might Not Be for You

• Extremely limited hardware compatibility—officially supported on a few handheld gaming PCs.
• You might struggle to get it working on custom PCs, especially with NVIDIA hardware.
• Not optimized for desktop productivity work or non-gaming tasks.

Dimensions

298mm x 117mm x 49mm

Playing Time

2-8 hours of gameplay (content-dependent)

Brand

Valve

Weight

Approx. 669 grams

1

Bazzite

Bazzite is a relatively new distro making a lot of waves in the Linux gaming space. It’s based on Fedora Silverblue or Fedora Kinoite (depending on your choice of desktop environment) utilizing an immutable file system approach. Now, if you’re not familiar with immutable Linux distros, it basically means that you’re getting an ultra-stable base OS where you can’t directly modify system files, and updates replace the entire OS image rather than individual packages.

If you’re planning to set up a gaming console-like experience, the immutable nature actually makes a lot of sense. The distro comes with all the basic gaming-specific optimizations, including gaming essentials like Steam, Lutris, and various compatibility layers pre-installed. In essence, it gives you a rock solid plug and play gaming experience and is one of the best options for building your Linux-powered gaming console.

What Makes Bazzite Great for Gaming

• Immutable file system provides exceptional system stability and reliability.
• Atomic updates mean you won’t break your system with a bad update.
• Multiple variants optimized for different gaming setups (desktop, handheld, HTPC).
• Pre-configured with gaming tools and Fedora’s cutting-edge software stack.

Why Bazzite Might Not Be for You

• The immutable approach can be confusing if you’re used to traditional Linux distros.
• Some advanced customizations might be more difficult due to the immutable design.
• Smaller community compared to more established gaming distros.

Which Distro Should You Choose?

From a software standpoint, you can’t go wrong with any of these distros when it comes to Linux gaming. This means picking the right one depends more on your hardware and whether you want to do more than just play games. If you’re completely new to Linux, I’d recommend Nobara. It’s very stable, reliable, and will rarely require you to tinker in the terminal all the while allowing you to play all your games and run all your software (the ones that are compatible).

That said, if you have been using Linux for some time and want quick access to bleeding edge updates, go with CachyOS or Garuda Linux. Pick Garuda if you want everything pre-installed and access to tons of powerful graphical tools to help you with routine system maintenance. On the other hand, pick CachyOS if you want a more streamlined distro and don’t feel hesitant to tweak around the terminal every once in a while.

Now, if you own a handheld PC for gaming, SteamOS can be an excellent pick, especially if you want the Steam Deck experience. Just ensure the device is compatible with the OS. If not, you can then go with Bazzite. It offers better hardware compatibility, delivering almost the same console-like gaming experience, and is a great way to turn an HTPC into a gaming console.

How to Get Started

Once you have selected a distro you like, I suggest checking out this guide to install and test the distro, without erasing Windows. This will give you a real sense of which games work and how well they perform. If you like what you see, you can follow this guide to install it on your computer.