Recently I built a mini PC using a Ryzen APU (no vga card) to use like a video game console.
For a long time I wanted an operating system focused for gaming, but due to having many old .exe titles, I stayed using Windows.
Well, after trying Batocera just to test the SORX Linux build, I started to do some experiments. The results were really good and then I decided to take one more step forward by trying SteamOS.
I need to say, it's blowing my mind lol! The performance is not only better, since this OS is focused on gaming, but makes a PC work exactly like a console (just turn on and play).
But the best part is, the SteamOS has a compatibility mode that can run .exe games by using a plugin called "Proton" (I believe it works like Wine).
After enabling it, I was able to run any Windows game, including OpenBOR ones. No input lag, no delay, no glitches, etc, in fact some games worked in the opposite way being even better than running on Windows (like NFSU2). Plus you can use the Remote Play Together natively, to play online with friends in a similar way than Parsec does.
In addition, we have some advanced tools like performance/temperature sensors, controller customization, enable/disable vsync and frame limitation separately (yes, you can cut the screen tearing without having the vsync input lag), plus a desktop mode if needed.
The SteamOS is the same system used by the SteamDeck, so if a game runs on a SteamDeck device, it will run on a PC with SteamOS. Plus, a PC can run even the games that are not SteamDeck compatible too, giving some advantage.
The only requirements I saw are an AMD apu/vga card and a ssd nvme m2 for storage. After downloading the SteamOS image directly from the official site, create a bootable removable device using balenaEtcher, then run on your PC and finish the installation. After installing, just add a non-steam game, go to properties and enable the options like the image below (Proton Experimental).
I didn't test but I believe that you can also run Windows games using only the Steam app in any Linux distro, without needing to install the SteamOS.
Useful links:
store.steampowered.com
etcher.balena.io
PS: If you like emulators, after the SteamOS installation I strongly suggest you install the EmuDeck. It will add the EmulationStation directly to your Steam library, allowing a very easy use.
Honorable mention to @hechelion that already made a quick note about the Proton plugin some years ago.
For a long time I wanted an operating system focused for gaming, but due to having many old .exe titles, I stayed using Windows.
Well, after trying Batocera just to test the SORX Linux build, I started to do some experiments. The results were really good and then I decided to take one more step forward by trying SteamOS.
I need to say, it's blowing my mind lol! The performance is not only better, since this OS is focused on gaming, but makes a PC work exactly like a console (just turn on and play).
But the best part is, the SteamOS has a compatibility mode that can run .exe games by using a plugin called "Proton" (I believe it works like Wine).
After enabling it, I was able to run any Windows game, including OpenBOR ones. No input lag, no delay, no glitches, etc, in fact some games worked in the opposite way being even better than running on Windows (like NFSU2). Plus you can use the Remote Play Together natively, to play online with friends in a similar way than Parsec does.
In addition, we have some advanced tools like performance/temperature sensors, controller customization, enable/disable vsync and frame limitation separately (yes, you can cut the screen tearing without having the vsync input lag), plus a desktop mode if needed.
The SteamOS is the same system used by the SteamDeck, so if a game runs on a SteamDeck device, it will run on a PC with SteamOS. Plus, a PC can run even the games that are not SteamDeck compatible too, giving some advantage.
The only requirements I saw are an AMD apu/vga card and a ssd nvme m2 for storage. After downloading the SteamOS image directly from the official site, create a bootable removable device using balenaEtcher, then run on your PC and finish the installation. After installing, just add a non-steam game, go to properties and enable the options like the image below (Proton Experimental).
I didn't test but I believe that you can also run Windows games using only the Steam app in any Linux distro, without needing to install the SteamOS.
Useful links:
SteamOS
store.steampowered.com
balenaEtcher - Flash OS images to SD cards & USB drives
A cross-platform tool to flash OS images onto SD cards and USB drives safely and easily. Free and open source for makers around the world.
etcher.balena.io
PS: If you like emulators, after the SteamOS installation I strongly suggest you install the EmuDeck. It will add the EmulationStation directly to your Steam library, allowing a very easy use.
Honorable mention to @hechelion that already made a quick note about the Proton plugin some years ago.