LucidNightmare

Hi, everyone.

I've been running openSUSE Tumbleweed since the end of 2024. For awhile, it was good enough for me to stay on it and I left my Windows SSD alone.

That has changed recently with a newer game I want to play, just recently released. I've sudo zypper dup a couple of times now and it just won't play. I got tired of trying with my limited time, and booted back into Windows. I've been enjoying the game quite a lot, but I miss my Linux install. Luckily, I have everything backed up to a cloud provider so moving between the two, I don't lose or miss out on anything (EXCEPT MY PRIVACY).

So, with all this being said, I'd like to know what other think I should try out. Here are some of the distros I've got ready to try:

1. CachyOS - This SEEMS like it would be a perfect fit for me up until the point that it might also give me the same issues openSUSE Tumbleweed is giving me right now, but I am always willing to give it a try!

2. Debian - Stability is what I really want, but I also will need access to newer drivers and kernels since I play games both old and brand spanking new, so if I can get the newer drivers/kernel installed, this would honestly be my choice at this point.

3. Fedora - Fedora is also a close contender to Debian since they are both considered stable. I tried Fedora on 42 or something, and found it lacking in game performance compared to openSUSE. That might've been a fluke, but it was enough for me to immediately switch back to SUSE.

4. openSUSE Leap - This is just me wondering if using the not-so-bledding-edge version of openSUSE would be more up my alley. I have no idea on how hard or easy it would be to get newer GPU drivers and kernel on this, but surely it could be done?

Basically, I want both a stable system and a system that is updated enough to be able to play a brand new game on NVIDIA (I bought before I knew I'd be switching over to Linux full-time..). I am not into Linux for getting my hands dirty or for reading a manual on how to do something. I am mainly here to get away from Microsoft. The only thing I care about on this desktop is gaming. I also prefer KDE as the Desktop Environment, but will gladly use whatever will match the above!

Sorry for the long post, I just do not want to keep distro hopping hoping one will match my criteria above without any extra hassle (editing configs has ALWAYS busted my Linux systems, so since I'm just not smart enough to get weeds deep with Linux, I just want to boot it up, start a game, and play!). Hopefully some of you out there have similar needs for their machine and can help me out!

Thank you! :)

BONUS SCREENSHOT!

The last of the cool sights I saw on the train I found in Part 1 in the game Crimson Desert! (Part 2 is here!)

I seem to have stumbled upon a community or village that has electricity (?) or something akin to electricity. They also had a few robots (?) and "drone" robots flying around as the train was passing by. I really just like the glow of the lights with the "god rays" of the moon shining down through the clouds. It felt both cozy and strange at the same time. I will find out if my suspicions are right or wrong eventually!

As you can see from my bonus screenshot, there will be plenty more screenshot worthy moments I'm sure, but this was just a little share of a self-imposed trip on a train that led to me seeing lots of pretty and interesting things. If you've been following along, thank you! If you are just now seeing this, please take a look at the other posts linked above!

I just like taking cool or interesting screenshots. :-]

EDIT: Part 3 is here!

This is a continuation of my other post! The game is Crimson Desert.

After riding around for a few minutes, the sun started to go down and a thunderstorm started happening. Since it was darker and not as much to see at that point, I didn't get to take a lot of screenshots until it started to clear up a little.

This screenshot is after getting through the thunderstorm into a new chunk of the map. You can kind of see the same towers that were in my last screenshot on the left side. It may not seem like that far away, but the developers sure did know how to make things scale to large proportion. It would probably take me 10 minutes to continually sprint back to that area!

This screenshot is in my favorites because of how the atmosphere and lighting really enhance that sense of large scale open world. It's like in Skyrim where "if you see a mountain, you can probably climb that mountain", but actually more true than that. With the Breath of the Wild inspired climbing (and the stamina bar with drain, which I don't like personally), you can use a variety of skills to get so high above the map that travel becomes a breeze! As long as you watch your stamina bar anyway..!

I'll share the last screenshot of my train journey tomorrow! Hopefully you'll see it! :-]

EDIT: Part 2 is here! Part 3 is here!

I've been playing Crimson Desert since it came out. It didn't start out all that great story-wise, but the rest of the game was fun so I kept going. Eventually I got enough stuff to start free roaming, and exploration has always been my favorite thing to do in games that are rich with it.

I found a train while just going around getting fast travel spots unlocked for easier mission progress later. I got to the train and hopped aboard. It seems to be a steam train, and there was no one aboard, not even a conductor. I realized I could open the window, and then went into first person, eventually snapping this screenshot. It's one of my favorites just for how the whole thing came out while on a moving train!

I spent at least an hour or two atop the train, just to see where it would lead me. I've got a few more screenshots I'd like to share as the days go by of that train ride. For something so mundane, the sights I was able to see were pretty and very interesting.

I haven't played a game that sucked my attention so wholly since Elden Ring came out! Hopefully you'll see tomorrow's screenshot! :-]

Honestly, this really bums me out...

They've always been the go-to when there was a game I was looking for. If you have any recommendations, I will gladly take them.