Linux
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Linux is a family of open source Unix-like operating systems based on the Linux kernel, an operating system kernel first released on September 17, 1991 by Linus Torvalds. Linux is typically packaged in a Linux distribution (or distro for short).
Distributions include the Linux kernel and supporting system software and libraries, many of which are provided by the GNU Project. Many Linux distributions use the word "Linux" in their name, but the Free Software Foundation uses the name GNU/Linux to emphasize the importance of GNU software, causing some controversy.
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For someone new to gaming, I'd recommend Outer Wilds. It isn't "addictive" in that you can play it endlessly, but it's something easy to get into for someone new to gaming and one of the best games ever made. It's also only $15 right now.
If you end up sucking at flying, like many players do, just remember it doesn't matter how pretty your landing is if you can walk away from it. Even if you can't, no big deal.
Rimworld if you want to play the Sims but with war-crimes.
Factorio if you like automation and IRL time skipping.
Oxygen not Included if you like to accidentally starve people due to your poor understanding of thermodynamics 100 hours ago.
Minecraft because everyone likes Minecraft.
Noita if your an unhinged masochist.
Helldivers 2 to discover your friends lead a much more busy life than you.
Don't miss this entire genre: classic LucasArts point-and-click adventure games! Sam & Max Hit the Road, Full Throttle and Monkey Island are a few of the stand-outs for me, and they all run on Linux via the amazing ScummVM.
Grimm Fandango (one of the best games ever made) along with Myst and Riven also run on Scummvm!
Like other posts, Factorio. You will lose sleep. Set timers...
Proton and Vulkan make most things easy-ish if you are using Steam. Note that there is a little properties button on the game page that you probably need to use to force it to use Proton so it will install. Proton DB is your friend. Lutris + Wine is pretty good too. Proton is just Wine with enhancements.
You may find Helldivers a lot of fun too, especially if you can play with friends. It is suitably ridiculous in the best way and is sort of human vs aliens/robots. All of the humans (us) play on co-op teams to bring Democracy to the universe. There is a game master from the company that makes it that is leading the war against us. Like I said, suitably ridiculous. Most of my friends are playing it nightly and it will be a big part of our LAN party this weekend.
If you want addictive, try Stardew Valley and Factorio. I think both have Linux-native releases on Steam. I've got 182 hours in Factorio. The factory must grow.
(edit) ah fuck I fell back into Factorio again
With Lutris + Wine-ge you can play practically any game you want. My recommendation is the games I have enjoyed playing since I got my PC a few months back, in no particular order.
- God of War
- Spiderman Remastered + MM
- Horizon Zero Dawn + FW
- Guardians of the Galaxy
- Forza Horizon 5
- Armored Core 6
- Maybe Hogwarts Legacy if you're into the gameplay hint mash RT
Stellaris on Steam has a fully-native Linux executable.
The multiplayer classics:
- Counter-Strike 2
- Dota 2
Some single player gems:
- Black Mesa (Half-Life remake)
- Half-Life 2
- Soma
N++ is a very fun puzzle platformer. Vvvvvvv is a very fun puzzle platformer with cool music Hades is an excellent isometric fighter game with cool music 2048 is a very simple puzzle game that's very very replayable. It's like solitaire with simple addition Unreal tournament is three gold standard first person action game period. The npc enemies are no fucking joke and is fun and fast
Probably check out Batman series, they run quite well on Linux, just been working my way through them myself. Otherwise Red Dead Redemption 2 I found difficult to put away once I started.
Most games will run fine through Steam, as long as you check of the compatibility box in steam settings. Otherwise there is Heroic Launcher, and Lutris as different launchers.
Yes! That was my advice too. Most things work well, I'm using a 1060 and 4th generation i5 on a cheap 10+ yr old SSD.
Lutris really simplifies things too, I was able to easily install Battle.net and the Epic store too through it.
Going on a limb here but... it's basically the other way around, which games CAN'T you play on Linux. Basically games with actively prevent it via bad anticheat or DRMs.
Otherwise check ProtonDB.
My favorites being Baldur's Gate 3 at the moment but also, not addictive but really excellent Half-life: Alyx and more casually Viewfinder.
If you're going to be on Steam, and become a gamer, the other suggestions over here are good.
However, if games aren't really your thing, and you just want a casual gaming experience, then I'd suggest a few Linux native games, that exist in all distro repos: gweled, ltris, lbreakout2, lgeneral, frozen-bubble, gnome-mahjongg, gnome-tetravex, xye, kobo-deluxe, aisleriot, powermanga, open-invaders, supertux, pingus, berusky, opentyrian (requires data from the dos game, which are also free to download elsewhere).
Then there are some more heavy hitters (still native linux games), like freeciv-gtk3, opencol, 0ad, tuxracer, lincity-ng, simutrans etc.
It depends on what kind of game you like. Here are 2 video games I play on Linux:
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Minecraft is a sandbox game with a survival aspect, where you can be as creative as you want while still having fun challenges. There are many different playing styles. It costs about $30 and requires a Microsoft account to play legally. Minecraft: Java Edition officially runs on Linux. Minecraft: Bedrock Edition (the one with console cross-play) does not run on Linux by any official methods.
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Mindustry is a techy/industrial game, I've heard some say it's like if Factorio was a tower defense. It is free and open-source (under GPLv3), requires no account.
For purchasing or acquiring games, I'd recommend Steam. It has lots of games and many of them work on Linux. There's also Heroic Games Launcher for Epic and GOG games.
FTL
Dwarf Fortress.
But you need to read the wiki :)
Not really sure what would be your type of game but here's some that I've played that I found addicting, from various genres. All of these are on Steam and I've played on Linux.
Definitely look at Portal 2. Great game that's easy to get into.
If you played and liked Portal 2, also take a look at Portal, The Talos Principle, and Q.U.B.E. (I probably can't go wrong recommending puzzle games)
Maybe also Mirror's Edge (2008).
Baldur's Gate 3 is one I've put a lot of time into recently.
Chill exploration game that I couldn't put down and am still obsessed with: INFRA
If you think you could like base builder games: RimWorld, Factorio, Satisfactory
And then some absolute PC classics: Half-Life (1998, or you can also play the remake Black Mesa), System Shock (play the 2023 remake), Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines.
Download steam to buy and play games first: steampowered.com
3 free games I love
- RVGL is a classic racing game
- Beyond All Reason is a deep and complex RTS
- Brogue is a surprisingly accessable traditional roguelike.
The best game of all time: dungeon crawl stone soup. Open source dungeon crawler that has been developed for 20 years. It is free and you can play in your browser. And since deaths are permanent, it is an easy game to walk away from since game sessions tend to be short (because it is easy to die).
Another classic is Dwarf Fortress.
Classicube for that simple block-building itch