5 Best Linux Distros for Gaming in 2021

Arjun Unhale

September 17, 2021

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Here are the 5 best Linux Distros for Gaming regardless of your PC’s Nvidia or AMD graphics.

Whether you are planning to play GTA 5 or Witcher Wild Hunt and many more on your Linux system, these particular Distribution Packs can let you play most of these popular window’s games you like.

Thanks to the gaming platform – Valve, its portable Steam Deck gaming system has been announced to be running on Linux. Therefore, gaming on Linux is going to be more fun than ever.

How to Choose the Best Linux Distros for Gaming in 2021?

There are no ‘wrong’ distros in the market. But some distros are easy to use and manage regardless of the circumstances of using them for gaming or something else entirely.

If you are new to Linux, you may need to do some ‘Distro Hopping’, which simply means trying out new distros by installing and finding out the right one at your convenience.

How to Do Distro Hopping?

The upcoming Valve’s Steam OS which will be based on Arch after the premiere on their Steam Deck, you’ll be able to install any type of distro all by yourself on your machine, in case of selecting the best Linux distros for gaming in 2021

If you are an experienced Linux user, the Arch-based Distros are generally an easy-to-use option for gaming. You can also easily dive into Manjaro to get a bunch more features with added repo and stability applications.

If you like to prefer the best Distro that is Pop!_OS, you can use it not only to play games but you can do much else is what make this distro more powerful.

Keeping that aside, if your Linux-based system is privy to bring the best out of gaming, then Drauger OS is the best bet.

Let’s read on to find out what are the best Linux Distros for gaming in 2021

Also Read: How to Uninstall Python on Linux

01.

Best for Beginners

Ubuntu

As Ubuntu is one of the foundations for many Distros out there, it remains the prime for Linux. Since a lot of people start with Ubuntu, you can get either a Long-Term Version (LTV) or the timely updated releases XX.04 & XX.10

Base: Debian

Desktop Environment: GNOME

Positive

Easy to Use
Beginner Friendly Interface
Massive Community

Negatives

Setting up for gaming is a bit hard

02.

The Best Feature Packed Distro

pOP!_oS

It’s still a matter of controversy, but choosing Pop!_OS for gaming is the best distro in our opinion. Pop!_OS is an Ubuntu-based Distro for Linux with numerous features for your daily use. You can choose the relevant ISO based on your system based on AMD or Nvidia.

Base: Ubuntu (20.04 LTS / 21.04)

Desktop environment: COSMIC (GNOME 3.38)

Positive

AMD and Nvidia ISOs
Simple to Operate

Negatives

Constructing Hassel out of the Box

03.

Most Powerful Arch-based Distro

Manjaro

Next is Manjaro. It’s an Arch-based System that is best Preferred with KDE environment although there are multiple versions you can pick from. Manjaro seems to be the best choice while dealing with the drivers is mostly something to account for including its Hardware and Stability.

Base: Arch

Desktop environment: GNOME, KDE, XFCE

Positive

Powerful and Bleeding edge
Excellent Hardware Detection

Negatives

Can Stumble Upon Minor Issues

04.

Easy to Use

Garuda

Even though it’s a newly launched distro that some might state it’s close to competing with Manjaro, the Garuda comes with many customizable options as well as its beginner friendliness offers feasibility without extra efforts.

Base: Arch

Desktop environment: KDE, GNOME, XFCE, LXQt, Qtile, BSPWM, i3wm, Sway, Wayfair

Positive

Ton of Customizations
Easy to Use

Negatives

Might be Unstable

05.

The Best Gaming Optimized Distro

Drauger

A yet another ubuntu based, ‘just right for gaming’ distro to get. Designed with keeping Performance and Accuracy in mind, you can directly install Steam during its installation. If that’s not enough for convenience, Drauger is much stable and lightweight including the XFCE desktop environment that comes with it.

Base: Ubuntu 20.04 LTS

Desktop environment: XFCE

Positive

More Stability and Secrecy
Optimized for Gaming
Kernal Modifications

Negatives

Might be Buggy while Installing

Editorial Advice: Don’t be afraid to install the Linux Distro that suits you best according to your need for your virtual system or hardware.

We certainly hope this blog helped you to get the idea before diving directly into one. We can understand your excitement but for the best gaming experience, taking few minutes to understand the best Linux Distros for Gaming in 2021 will help you way more than you think.