Serious gaming on Linux has become a reality, with modern games showing impressive performance. A performance comparison was conducted between Windows 11 (25H2 build) and CachyOS (March 2026 build), a Linux distribution optimized for gaming. The test system specifications included a Cooler Master GA27127-inch monitor, Intel Core i5 12400F CPU, 24GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD, 1TB HDD, AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT GPU, and the respective operating systems with their drivers.
In gaming performance benchmarks, CachyOS outperformed Windows 11 by an average of 8.6% across five tested games. Specific game performances included:
- Dead Space Remake: 70 FPS (Windows 11) vs 76 FPS (CachyOS)
- Resident Evil 4 Remake: 84 FPS (Windows 11) vs 95 FPS (CachyOS)
- Scorn: 118 FPS (Windows 11) vs 120 FPS (CachyOS)
- Silent Hill 2 Remake: 53 FPS (Windows 11) vs 54 FPS (CachyOS)
- The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt Next-Gen: 95 FPS (Windows 11) vs 111 FPS (CachyOS)
In ray tracing (RT) enabled games, performance varied:
- Resident Evil 4 Remake: 77 FPS (Windows 11) vs 83 FPS (CachyOS)
- Silent Hill 2 Remake: 30 FPS (Windows 11) vs 24 FPS (CachyOS)
- The Witcher 3: 51 FPS (both systems)
Most PC games are designed for Windows, while Linux games require the Proton compatibility layer, which can complicate performance. Multiplayer titles often face compatibility issues on Linux, particularly due to anti-cheat systems. Linux has matched or surpassed Windows 11 in single-player scenarios for users with AMD GPUs, while NVIDIA users face challenges due to proprietary drivers.