Should you switch to Linux gaming?

Linux gaming has progressed over the past few years to become, in some respects, a viable competitor to Windows for gaming. But should you swap to Linux? The answer to this question is: it depends. What matters is whether the games you care about work, and whether you are willing to commit the time to get them working.

You should really see how you like Linux as a general desktop experience first, and then try gaming on it. Windows is often significantly easier to game on, so the Linux desktop experience is what would make Linux gaming worth it for you.

General expectations

Running Windows-native games on Linux affects the amount of frames per second (FPS) and general performance that you get in the game. You usually can get up to 15% better or worse FPS compared to Windows, depending on the game and your computer. Typically, its worse by around ~5%, though you can lessen this performance penalty a lot of ways.

By using FSR, you might get significantly better performance than on Windows, but this comes at the cost of image quality. However, depending on your setup (your GPU is bad, but supports Vulkan), this might be worth it for you. Note that the image degradation is noticeable. Full HD + ultra high graphics + FSR might not be worth it. However FHD + low settings + FSR with 60 FPS might be significantly better than having 30 FPS with the same settings and no FSR. The image degradation is not as noticeable with high resolution, so 4k ultra high + FSR might fit your needs.

Genres

If you play mostly indie games, single-player games, older games, do game emulation, etc., you'll likely have a satisfactory gaming experience on Linux.

Problematic genres

If you care the most about these parts of gaming, you're more likely to run into some issues on Linux. These issues range from something you can troubleshoot and fix, to something you can't:

Competitive First Person Shooters (FPS)

Many competitive shooters have anti-cheat software which currently lock out Linux. It depends on the game, though - CS:GO, Overwatch, Splitgate, Apex Legends, and more are playable on Linux.

AAA Games

Again, it depends on the game. If it's a single-player AAA game, it's a lot more likely to work in the first few days of release. But if you're looking to play the new AAA multiplayer game on day one, Linux usually isn't the best platform for that. It mostly depends on anti-cheat and DRM. Elden Ring for example, worked on day one.

Virtual Reality

Virtual reality is doable on Linux, mainly through the Valve Index headset. But it currently lacks many quality of life features, and isn't really worth recommending as of right now.

Racing Simulators

Much racing sim equipment isn't well-supported on Linux.

Game Modding

Game modding is a hit or miss on Linux. Some games support it, especially through the Steam Workshop, but it really depends. Many mods are also Windows-only, so you'd have to try running them through WINE. If you're running your game through WINE, you can install mod managers as you would on Windows. However, some may not work, or may not work well. There are Lutris scripts to help with Nexus Mod Manager and Vortex, but they do not run flawlessly.

Conclusion

Again, things really depend game by game. Use the websites ProtonDB, Lutris, wine AppDB and Are We Anti-Cheat Yet? to check game compatibility!

Future

With the further development of Linux as a gaming platform, these hurdles can be overcome! Things to watch for:

• The release of Valve's Steam Deck (Linux gaming device) in February 2022, which has already lead to Linux Easy Anti-Cheat and BattleEye support
• Amazon putting funding and development into Proton (from December 2021 onwards) for their Amazon Luna cloud gaming platform.
• Rumors of an upcoming Valve Linux-powered VR headset, which would, if it comes out, improve Linux compatibility with VR games
• And more...

Valve is constantly investing in the development of Linux gaming software such as Proton, so circumstances significantly improve year by year.

Lastly, heavily depending on the amount of work invested into it, Linux has some potential of becoming the best gaming platform in several years or so. Compared to Windows, Linux is much more lightweight, and gets better performance in Vulkan games. Linux can also be modified and optimized at its core a lot more easily than Windows thanks to to its open source nature, which opens up a wide door for impactful gaming optimizations. Further development and more Linux-native games could mean better performance in games compared to Windows.