While it is true that any Linux distro can be installed and customized for any range of computing tasks, some are optimized out of the box for specific task or a range of tasks. For example, there are distros built for gaming, while others are even more niche, being built for gaming on NVIDIA GPUs.
This article provides a list of distro designed specifically for gaming, developers, and game developers, or gamedeva. So all the tools you need for gaming, programming and gamedev, are installed and ready for you.
The DX in the names of some of these distros is derived from Developer eXperience.
The list is a short one and in alphabetical order, so here it is . . .
1. Amy OS
Amy OS is not a standalone distribution, but an interface built atop Fedora Atomic and Bazzite that makes a set of niche tools available to the user. By that I mean that there is no ISO image called Amy OS that you can download and install on your PC. Rather, you have to have an installation of Bazzite that you then install the Amy OS package on.
In any case, doing that gives you a suite of tools optimized for gaming, programming, and gamedev.
2. Aurora DX
Aurora DX, or Aurora for developers, is a distro based on Aurora, which itself is a KDE Plasma desktop distro based on Universal Blue. This variant ships with brew, so you can install all those command-line tools that developers dream about. And to cater to your containerized workflows, Docker and Podman come preinstalled.
For machine learning and local large language model (LLM) tasks, Ollama and PyTorch also come bundled with the default installation. Though Visual Studio Code is installed ready to handle containerized development workflows, a better option would be to install VSCodium, which is Visual Studio Code without all the Microsoft telemetry.
Aurora DX is one of the two distros in this list that I consider to be ready for your programming workflows. The other is Bluefin DX. Aurora DX, if you like the KDE Plasma interface. Bluefin DX if you prefer the GNOME interface.
3. Bazzite DX
Bazzite DX is a developer-optimized interface of Bazzite, a Fedora Atomic-based distro optimized out of the box for gaming. Bazzite DX is just a recently-announced protoype, so it’s not a usable distro yet. To keep track of its development, visit the Bazzite DX Git repo.
4. Bazzite GDX
Bazzite GDX is variant of Bazzite DX optimized for game development, or gamedev. Like Bazzite DX, Bazzite GDX is also a prototype, so I can say with some degree of confidence that it’s not yet ready for prime time. When it’s ready, though, it will ship with tools like Godot designed specifically for game development. To keep track of its development, visit the Bazzite GDX Git repo.
5. Bluefin DX
Bluefin DX is a developer workflow-friendly interface of the Bluefin desktop distro, which shares the same distro lineage with Aurora. The main difference between Bluefin DX and Aurora DX is that the former uses the GNOME desktop environment.
So much of what you’ll find on Aurora DX is also available on Bluefin DX, but via a GNOME desktop interface. Bluefin DX is one of the two distros in this list that I consider to be ready for your programming workflows. The other is Aurora DX. Aurora DX, if you like the KDE Plasma interface. Bluefin DX if you prefer the GNOME interface.
More to come . . .
I’m sure you noticed that all the aforementioned distros were not developed from scratch, but merely versions of existing distros layered with tools that developers and game developers would need to get their work done. And all share the same lineage with Fedora Atomic. This is a fairly new trend and I expect to see more of such efforts coming out from other distros not based on the Universal Blue/Fedora Atomic line.
