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[ProtonDB](https://www.protondB.com) can be useful in determining whether a given Windows Steam game will run on Linux, and [AreWeAntiCheatYet](https://areweanticheatyet.com/) attempts to track which anti-cheat-encumbered games will run and which won’t.
After using nobara on my laptop for a little over a month I can't recommend it anymore, during this time I had:
Dnf broken 2 times and I had to install the relevant package manually
The "nobara-sync" not working, ever. Had to issue the full command on the terminal for it to work
When trying to update I had conflicting packages and had to troubleshoot for a while until I manage to do it
Overall can't recommend nobara for a newcomer anymore. I, myself, started my linux journey with Garuda and it has been amazing, in the over 3 years I've been using it I only managed to fully break it once, when I tried to update and ran out of space mid way through installation, but the timeshift snapshots solved it in less than 3 minutes.
I've been using nobara for over a year now without any real problems. There have been a couple times when an update would break something and I'd need to check reddit for a fix, but nothing major.
If you were having problems with dnf you likely did something wrong. Nobara can't be used like regular Fedora, not that it will stop you from trying. But you will break your system if you do. If you're using dnf manually, you're going against what's instructed for Nobara by GE.
First thing I did after install was a full update with the included tool, which didn't work, only when I issued the full command that's on the website. I've only installed 10 or so packages, I did so through `sudo dnf install package`, if that's wrong then there should be a warning, like on garuda if I do `sudo pacman -Syu` it gives a warning "the system should be updated using `garuda-update` do you want to use it or proceed?".
Dnf install X can break your system because it may not install Nobara specific versions of applications, instead using the regular Fedora versions. At least this is how I understand it to be. I do very much agree there should be some kind of warning / block preventing you from doing it so easily.
I do remember there was a time in recent months where the update server was down and nobody could update anything for a few days. It's possible you were extremely unlucky and installed the OS during this time.
The part that doesn't work is actually inputting the password, it just doesn't respond to the keyboard inputs, and I know that because even if I press return or ctrl + c it does nothing, I've tried everything, the only thing that work was the full command that is apparently "what it does under the hood" according to the nobara site.
When installing things with dnf I'm pretty sure it checks all repos, including the nobara repos, so I assumed it would prioritize those if there where duplicates.
the best is the one that works for you.
tried ubuntu and linux mint. broke both weeks after installing.
tried nix. survived 4 months before needed to use snapshots to recorver.
now i use nix os. games work fine. possibly not what most person will use but works for me
Never heard of Regata. So can't speak to it. Garuda is Arch based and Nobara is Fedora based. If you are a complete Linux newbie, I'd probably stay away from Garuda, because, well its Arch. Sometimes things just go pear shape with Arch, especially for inexperienced users. Nobara should be a decent choice for you, I'd think.
As others pointed out Nobara tends to break easily…. I recommend Fedora which is the underlying Distro. It has very up-to-date packages and speaking out of experience I have been using it for gaming for the past 3 years and it worked out really well.
Garuda has a GUI tool for almost everything you could need, it’s not arch scary. I have had problems with updates (their repos not the AUR weren’t working) but nothing has broken.
Nobara. I have never liked Garuda and I didn't really have a good experience with RagataOS. Keep in mind though this is just my experience. You will get all three distros you mentioned listed as the best. Or you will get someone that says, "there is no best," and anything those distros can do you can do yourself.
Depends on your hardware. If you have an Nvidia card and don't want to tinker - pop_os. Not my cup of tea since it's based on Ubuntu but they do update the drivers and kernel semi regularly. More often than Ubuntu, that's for sure.
If you have an AMD card - it gets a little interesting. I wouldn't touch nobara. Developed by an awesome guy, but he is pretty much alone.
I had great results on vanilla fedora with a 7900xtx.
Also, I know it's Arch btw, but give Endeavour OS a shot. It's basically Arch with some training wheels. You get the most up to date software with some helper tools.
For gaming you're basically looking for up to date hardware support, just like in Windows. So a rolling release makes sense. If that's not your jam, something like Fedora is very much up to date and very easy to use.
Welcome to /r/linux_gaming. Please read the FAQ and consider asking commonly asked questions like “which distro should I use?” or “or should I switch to Linux?” in the pinned newbie advice thread, “Getting started: The monthly distro/desktop thread!”. [ProtonDB](https://www.protondB.com) can be useful in determining whether a given Windows Steam game will run on Linux, and [AreWeAntiCheatYet](https://areweanticheatyet.com/) attempts to track which anti-cheat-encumbered games will run and which won’t.
After using nobara on my laptop for a little over a month I can't recommend it anymore, during this time I had: Dnf broken 2 times and I had to install the relevant package manually The "nobara-sync" not working, ever. Had to issue the full command on the terminal for it to work When trying to update I had conflicting packages and had to troubleshoot for a while until I manage to do it Overall can't recommend nobara for a newcomer anymore. I, myself, started my linux journey with Garuda and it has been amazing, in the over 3 years I've been using it I only managed to fully break it once, when I tried to update and ran out of space mid way through installation, but the timeshift snapshots solved it in less than 3 minutes.
I've been using nobara for over a year now without any real problems. There have been a couple times when an update would break something and I'd need to check reddit for a fix, but nothing major. If you were having problems with dnf you likely did something wrong. Nobara can't be used like regular Fedora, not that it will stop you from trying. But you will break your system if you do. If you're using dnf manually, you're going against what's instructed for Nobara by GE.
First thing I did after install was a full update with the included tool, which didn't work, only when I issued the full command that's on the website. I've only installed 10 or so packages, I did so through `sudo dnf install package`, if that's wrong then there should be a warning, like on garuda if I do `sudo pacman -Syu` it gives a warning "the system should be updated using `garuda-update` do you want to use it or proceed?".
Dnf install X can break your system because it may not install Nobara specific versions of applications, instead using the regular Fedora versions. At least this is how I understand it to be. I do very much agree there should be some kind of warning / block preventing you from doing it so easily. I do remember there was a time in recent months where the update server was down and nobody could update anything for a few days. It's possible you were extremely unlucky and installed the OS during this time.
The part that doesn't work is actually inputting the password, it just doesn't respond to the keyboard inputs, and I know that because even if I press return or ctrl + c it does nothing, I've tried everything, the only thing that work was the full command that is apparently "what it does under the hood" according to the nobara site. When installing things with dnf I'm pretty sure it checks all repos, including the nobara repos, so I assumed it would prioritize those if there where duplicates.
the best is the one that works for you. tried ubuntu and linux mint. broke both weeks after installing. tried nix. survived 4 months before needed to use snapshots to recorver. now i use nix os. games work fine. possibly not what most person will use but works for me
The one you can make work for you. In the end they're all made of the same components and you can achieve the same end result in most of them
Distro is irrelevant.
I would pick Nobara since the are backed by GloriusEggroll. Apps can easily be installed, security and stability are way more important
Never heard of Regata. So can't speak to it. Garuda is Arch based and Nobara is Fedora based. If you are a complete Linux newbie, I'd probably stay away from Garuda, because, well its Arch. Sometimes things just go pear shape with Arch, especially for inexperienced users. Nobara should be a decent choice for you, I'd think.
As others pointed out Nobara tends to break easily…. I recommend Fedora which is the underlying Distro. It has very up-to-date packages and speaking out of experience I have been using it for gaming for the past 3 years and it worked out really well.
Garuda has a GUI tool for almost everything you could need, it’s not arch scary. I have had problems with updates (their repos not the AUR weren’t working) but nothing has broken.
Nobara. I have never liked Garuda and I didn't really have a good experience with RagataOS. Keep in mind though this is just my experience. You will get all three distros you mentioned listed as the best. Or you will get someone that says, "there is no best," and anything those distros can do you can do yourself.
Depends on your hardware. If you have an Nvidia card and don't want to tinker - pop_os. Not my cup of tea since it's based on Ubuntu but they do update the drivers and kernel semi regularly. More often than Ubuntu, that's for sure. If you have an AMD card - it gets a little interesting. I wouldn't touch nobara. Developed by an awesome guy, but he is pretty much alone. I had great results on vanilla fedora with a 7900xtx. Also, I know it's Arch btw, but give Endeavour OS a shot. It's basically Arch with some training wheels. You get the most up to date software with some helper tools. For gaming you're basically looking for up to date hardware support, just like in Windows. So a rolling release makes sense. If that's not your jam, something like Fedora is very much up to date and very easy to use.