5 ms·

I only have a windows machine for gaming... Eyes on Valve as they March towards Linux being a first class gaming platform.

daedalus_j 2y ago
It's pretty dang close. The only games I've had problems with in recent years were non-steam. Once Overwatch died and everything I was playing was in Steam I found myself rebooting into windows a lot less often. Getting your hardware working right is still the biggest problem. The games work great, occasionally audio/video driver issues necessitate some fiddling. (advantage to the Deck is that this goes away.)
cypress66 2y ago
It's so far behind though. Linux still doesn't support VRR or HDR.
- Zhyl 2y ago
  HDR is coming. The OLED steam deck supports it, for example.
- tapoxi 2y ago
  I'm on Fedora 40 KDE, both VRR and HDR are supported.
- SpaceNugget 2y ago
  I have had both freesync and gsync workingwith no fuss for literal years. First with a 1070 and then with a 6800xt. I have never owned an HDR monitor so I can't personally speak to how well that works, but apparently it works just fine on the steam deck. Even if it didn't, the number of people for whom HDR support is a make or break feature is likely not very high. Non developers use linux daily with the steam deck. I set up my mom with my xps 15 with Ubuntu on it when her laptop mobo died. While she wasn't a huge fan of having to learn a new UI, she was able to use it without issue for facebook/email/netflix/taxes/online banking for a few months until a good deal on a replacement came up and I got my laptop back. I don't think if you are objective you can call linux so far behind windows. They are on par, each has their own annoyances and strengths, but for the average person they are just web browsing machines anyway.
pjmlp 2y ago
It is Windows gaming on top of Linux kernel.
- nine_k 2y ago
  Most importantly, it's away from most Windows userland, with cloud accounts, licenses, ads, and other unwanted stuff.
  - pjmlp 2y ago
    Running software written by game studios using Windows userland.
    - rcxdude 2y ago
      I don't see how that's relevant. The game studios can use whatever OS they want. It's not about "windows was never involved", it's about "I'm not subject to their BS"
      - pjmlp 2y ago
        It is being delusional, that is how relevant it happens to be.
        tpush 2y ago
        Delusional about what? The Windows API is just that: an API. An interface. Who cares whether it's implemented by Windows or Linux or whatever else?
        pjmlp 2y ago
        Keep believing that, it did wonders for OS/2.
        tpush 2y ago
waihtis 2y ago
Yes. Gaming, app development / testing for Windows, Powerpoint use (cloud powerpoint was one of the most atrocious experiences ever when I tried it.) It's down to three use cases. Everything else happens on Linux.
- deleted 2y ago
  [deleted]
SteveNuts 2y ago
I recently took my windows desktop apart and put the graphics card into my home server. Used PCIe pass through with proxmox to create a dedicated Linux VM that just hosts my steam library, and stream games to my steam deck which is plugged into my keyboard/monitor/mouse. It works great! And I can use the deck as a normal PC for web browsing/slack/discord etc. There’s nothing I need windows for anymore thankfully.
bigstrat2003 2y ago
I've been daily driving (and gaming on) Linux for 2+ years now.I still keep a Windows 10 install around to run games which I can't get to work in Linux, but those are fairly rare. I spend 95% of my gaming time in Linux and, the vast majority of that time it "just works" without any problems. I highly encourage you to try it out!
itgoon 2y ago
I switched to Linux earlier this year. I was a little worried about which games wouldn't work, and I didn't need to worry. The Steam client works just fine, although I do have to "force compatibility" and choose Proton. So far the games have played fine, including big games like Cyberpunk 2077. For non-Steam, I'm using the Heroic Game Launcher, and it works great. I'm not missing any games, and I certainly don't miss the Windows BS.

daedalus_j 2y ago

It's pretty dang close. The only games I've had problems with in recent years were non-steam. Once Overwatch died and everything I was playing was in Steam I found myself rebooting into windows a lot less often. Getting your hardware working right is still the biggest problem. The games work great, occasionally audio/video driver issues necessitate some fiddling. (advantage to the Deck is that this goes away.)

cypress66 2y ago

It's so far behind though. Linux still doesn't support VRR or HDR.

Zhyl 2y ago
HDR is coming. The OLED steam deck supports it, for example.
tapoxi 2y ago
I'm on Fedora 40 KDE, both VRR and HDR are supported.
SpaceNugget 2y ago
I have had both freesync and gsync workingwith no fuss for literal years. First with a 1070 and then with a 6800xt. I have never owned an HDR monitor so I can't personally speak to how well that works, but apparently it works just fine on the steam deck. Even if it didn't, the number of people for whom HDR support is a make or break feature is likely not very high. Non developers use linux daily with the steam deck. I set up my mom with my xps 15 with Ubuntu on it when her laptop mobo died. While she wasn't a huge fan of having to learn a new UI, she was able to use it without issue for facebook/email/netflix/taxes/online banking for a few months until a good deal on a replacement came up and I got my laptop back. I don't think if you are objective you can call linux so far behind windows. They are on par, each has their own annoyances and strengths, but for the average person they are just web browsing machines anyway.

pjmlp 2y ago

It is Windows gaming on top of Linux kernel.

nine_k 2y ago
Most importantly, it's away from most Windows userland, with cloud accounts, licenses, ads, and other unwanted stuff.
- pjmlp 2y ago
  Running software written by game studios using Windows userland.
  - rcxdude 2y ago
    I don't see how that's relevant. The game studios can use whatever OS they want. It's not about "windows was never involved", it's about "I'm not subject to their BS"
    - pjmlp 2y ago
      It is being delusional, that is how relevant it happens to be.
      - tpush 2y ago
        Delusional about what? The Windows API is just that: an API. An interface. Who cares whether it's implemented by Windows or Linux or whatever else?
        pjmlp 2y ago
        Keep believing that, it did wonders for OS/2.
        tpush 2y ago

waihtis 2y ago

Yes. Gaming, app development / testing for Windows, Powerpoint use (cloud powerpoint was one of the most atrocious experiences ever when I tried it.) It's down to three use cases. Everything else happens on Linux.

deleted 2y ago
[deleted]

SteveNuts 2y ago

I recently took my windows desktop apart and put the graphics card into my home server. Used PCIe pass through with proxmox to create a dedicated Linux VM that just hosts my steam library, and stream games to my steam deck which is plugged into my keyboard/monitor/mouse. It works great! And I can use the deck as a normal PC for web browsing/slack/discord etc. There’s nothing I need windows for anymore thankfully.

bigstrat2003 2y ago

I've been daily driving (and gaming on) Linux for 2+ years now.I still keep a Windows 10 install around to run games which I can't get to work in Linux, but those are fairly rare. I spend 95% of my gaming time in Linux and, the vast majority of that time it "just works" without any problems. I highly encourage you to try it out!

itgoon 2y ago

I switched to Linux earlier this year. I was a little worried about which games wouldn't work, and I didn't need to worry. The Steam client works just fine, although I do have to "force compatibility" and choose Proton. So far the games have played fine, including big games like Cyberpunk 2077. For non-Steam, I'm using the Heroic Game Launcher, and it works great. I'm not missing any games, and I certainly don't miss the Windows BS.