Honestly - depending on the hardware and the specific game - sometimes better than on Windows.
For Steam itself, the experience is functionally identical up to a point. There’s a “start” menu entry, it checks for updates and it has a tray icon that allows navigating the standard library/store/chat dialogs. In order to run games that aren’t native to Linux, you need to essentially check a box in the master settings to allow the Proton compatibility later that can (usually) run those games on Linux.
What it’s running on and the specific game matters though, since some hardware isn’t always compatible or requires additional work to get running, and some games won’t work on Linux. Usually the latter is due to Windows-specific anti-cheat or DRM (ironically,often the same DRM also f***s up Windows systems or causes performance issues).
Regarding hardware: AMD graphics cards are the easiest to get up and running with. Nvidia is getting better with newer devices. Intel is generally pretty good for compatibility though I’ve had to mess around for some of the Arc based cards in some cases.
It’s usually peripherals that can be a pain and especially with newer stuff. For example, there is no built-in kernel module for the Ethernet card on my current motherboard. Getting it up required finding source for the driver online, and running some commands to compile it for my kernel. Annoyingly, the vendor’s code doesn’t work with DKMS (which would do this automatically on kernel updates) so I need to re-run this whenever a newer kernel comes out. Eventually the driver will likely make it’s way to the mainstream kernel and then not require manual work. My previous several boards never required such manual intervention, but this one came out recently and I hadn’t checked in the specific hardware.
One other issue is games on Steam that require a 3rd-party launcher (EA, Ubisoft, etc). These sometimes break when updated and often aren’t so friendly with offline play without an Internet connection. That said I’ve played through plenty of EA/Origin games and an Ubisoft (at home with wifi) just fine.
Most games say whether they’re Deck compatible. If they are, that should also mean they’re Linux compatible.
You can also check https://www.protondb.com/ for compatibility ratings.
While this all sounds like there’s a lot of BUT’s, I’ve been using Linux as a desktop for years and since the Deck came out compatibility has gone up FAST. I used to dual-boot Windows for a few games - mostly VR - but now even those games tend to run fine on Linux. It’s mostly the 3rd-party stuff or shooters with heavy anti-cheat that area an issue. You won’t be playing the newest Battlefield or Fortnite, but there are plenty of AAA games and others that run just fine on Linux (and again, sometimes better than Windows at least on my devices)
Honestly - depending on the hardware and the specific game - sometimes better than on Windows.
For Steam itself, the experience is functionally identical up to a point. There’s a “start” menu entry, it checks for updates and it has a tray icon that allows navigating the standard library/store/chat dialogs. In order to run games that aren’t native to Linux, you need to essentially check a box in the master settings to allow the Proton compatibility later that can (usually) run those games on Linux.
What it’s running on and the specific game matters though, since some hardware isn’t always compatible or requires additional work to get running, and some games won’t work on Linux. Usually the latter is due to Windows-specific anti-cheat or DRM (ironically,often the same DRM also f***s up Windows systems or causes performance issues). Regarding hardware: AMD graphics cards are the easiest to get up and running with. Nvidia is getting better with newer devices. Intel is generally pretty good for compatibility though I’ve had to mess around for some of the Arc based cards in some cases.
It’s usually peripherals that can be a pain and especially with newer stuff. For example, there is no built-in kernel module for the Ethernet card on my current motherboard. Getting it up required finding source for the driver online, and running some commands to compile it for my kernel. Annoyingly, the vendor’s code doesn’t work with DKMS (which would do this automatically on kernel updates) so I need to re-run this whenever a newer kernel comes out. Eventually the driver will likely make it’s way to the mainstream kernel and then not require manual work. My previous several boards never required such manual intervention, but this one came out recently and I hadn’t checked in the specific hardware.
One other issue is games on Steam that require a 3rd-party launcher (EA, Ubisoft, etc). These sometimes break when updated and often aren’t so friendly with offline play without an Internet connection. That said I’ve played through plenty of EA/Origin games and an Ubisoft (at home with wifi) just fine.
Most games say whether they’re Deck compatible. If they are, that should also mean they’re Linux compatible. You can also check https://www.protondb.com/ for compatibility ratings.
While this all sounds like there’s a lot of BUT’s, I’ve been using Linux as a desktop for years and since the Deck came out compatibility has gone up FAST. I used to dual-boot Windows for a few games - mostly VR - but now even those games tend to run fine on Linux. It’s mostly the 3rd-party stuff or shooters with heavy anti-cheat that area an issue. You won’t be playing the newest Battlefield or Fortnite, but there are plenty of AAA games and others that run just fine on Linux (and again, sometimes better than Windows at least on my devices)