Best Linux Games To Try This Season {2024 Version}

Linux is generally not used for gaming purposes for various different reasons. Most common of which is the fact that most PC games are programmed with the DirectX API, which is a Microsoft property and works only on a Windows Operating System. However, if one were interested in using Linux for gaming, they do get a variety of options to choose from (though said variety is nowhere close to the wide range of gaming experience provided by Windows). We bring you an awesome collection of the best Linux games available.

We bring you an awesome collection of the best Linux games available.

Table of Contents

Best Linux Games in 2024

Here is the list of some of the most appreciated games on the Linux platform as of 2024.

See also: The Top 5 Best Free MAC Games

Valheim

Although it is still early access, the audience received this old Norse-themed game with Vikings and Monsters quite well. Addictive to the point that, though unfinished, some of its players have already banked up days’ worth of gameplay.

It has great graphics and smooth gameplay. Players get to build, craft and fight. They get to go on adventures through land and sea and discover the world around them through such exploration. Upon building a character to their own liking and setting up the world, players can then invite their friends to share the experience with them. Or if they wish to speed up the exploring, building, farming process. So that they can fight the evil mythical creatures with allies as fast as possible.

And for gaming YouTubers and Twitch streamers, this game makes up for amazing content if you know how to have fun with it. Without a doubt, Valheim is one of the best Linux games to play.

Visit: Valheim

Crusader Kings 3

This is a Medieval Dynasty Simulator, where the player gets to rule their land and interact with its royalties.

Fight with your neighboring country for their land, form a coup, plot to kill their monarch, or better yet bed and wed them to gain control. Form allies, destroy rebellions, position yourself as a god to your subjects and garner their faith to stroke your ego. Name your own land after your wildest of fantasies. Be a despicable ruler. Marry a child to form an alliance. Cause a scandal at the brothel. And die at the age of 34 from the Black Plague.

That’s the fun part about this game- its unexpectedness. The player can plot plan and form the greatest strategy to conquer the whole world. And then end up having their monarch dead by slipping off a flight of stairs, and being replaced by their incompetent middle child (the eldest child probably died of a mysterious ailment at the age of 12).

Visit: Crusader Kings 3

See also: Best Xbox One Mystery Games

Dead Cells

With a brilliant 2D art style and extremely fluid gaming animation and gameplay, Dead Cells is one of the best platformer games. And with a dash of combat in it. Although it lacks villains and bosses in this game, Dead Cells still can be quite brutal. We will highly recommend you to play Dead Cells as it is one of the best Linux games in terms of graphics and story.

Nevertheless, a lack of game bosses makes it a champion for speedrun content if you are a Youtuber or Twitch Streamer. Presently a Twitch Twitch Streamer named Rockstomb holds the record of 6 minutes to complete the entire game. And the cool part about a Dead Cells speedrun is that the castle, in which the game is situated, is procedurally generated. Therefore the player cannot hope to beat the speedrun by simply memorizing the path, as it changes every time upon reloading.

Dead Cells offers an ecstatic gaming experience with its great hero, amazing mechanics, and an ethereal colorful neon background.

Visit: Dead Cells

The Talos Principle

Talos was the Greek God of blacksmithing and invention, which is fitting considering this game is based on robots and the cybernetic world. Although it didn’t get many buyers and players when it came out, it is one of the most critically acclaimed and underrated games of its time.

This game is mostly puzzle-based. It requires the players to collect sigils through hints and clues to open certain numbered doors which give way to further obstacles and mazes. These problems increase in difficulty exponentially as the player progresses on in the game. And as the game progresses, so does the very thought-provoking philosophical story of this game. A puzzle-based story.

In a nutshell, its intricately crafted storyline, which fills the player with existential dread as the game advances, is its main attraction. It is because of this story that this game falls under a “must revisit” section of video games. And as a player, you might wanna check it out before Talos Principle 2 comes out sometime this year. It is one of the favorite Linux games among gamers. Check out this amazing game

Visit: The Talos Principle

See also: 6 Best Puzzle Games For Android

Dota 2

Now this game is an example of an “all-time favorite” and has the potential to become an “all-time classic.” This game, released in 2013, still garners a large audience of extremely faithful players. Dota 2 has been on top of the Steam charts for years now. There are hundreds, if not thousands of YouTube and Twitch Streamers who have registered months’ worth of gameplay on Dota 2. So it is safe to say the game is good to the point of being extremely addictive.

And why shan’t it be? When you have such marvelous graphics mixed with such majestic battles and high stakes gameplay. It is bound to trap your soul in it for quite a while. It is situated in a fantasy world. The player fights as the mythical heroes of this game in a Multiplayer Online Battle Arena (MOBA). They get to fight against monsters and dragons and other such creatures. It is really enjoyable to interact and compete against the other players as well.

Visit: Dota 2

Super Tux Kart

It is a free-kart racing game for variants of Linux and Linux itself. It is an arcade-style game that is open-source and free and offers various characters, gaming settings, and tracks. Playing the game is fun, and it feels pretty realistic.

You must defeat the Nolok in the game’s story mode if you want to defend the realm. Tux, a brave penguin that serves as SuperTuxKart’s hero, Gnu, Tux’s tutor, and Nolok, the antagonist, are the three main protagonists of the game.

Visit: Super Tux Kart

Alien Arena: Warriors of Mars

Alien Arena is the first-person shooting gameplay available on Steam for Linux. It was created by COR Entertainment and used the Open Dynamics and Quake II engines. Single-player and multiplayer gaming modes are available for this title.

The action-packed gameplay keeps things exciting to the very finish. The game also has amazing graphics and a range of battle settings. It is a highly well-liked game that is free to play on other operating systems, including Microsoft Windows and macOS.

Visit: Alien Arena: Warriors of Mars

Unknown Horizons

Do you enjoy city-building video games for their economies alone? Then I have a unique city-building and a game that simulates real economic theory for you. With features like urban building, diplomacy, commodities management, trade, strategy, and exploration, Unknown Horizons is the 2D simulator game for you.

It’s an interesting game where you can create a prestigious metropolis from scratch and discover new islands, trade routes, and diplomatic techniques to increase your city’s wealth.

Visit: Unknown Horizons

RimWorld

Not only is this science fiction colony simulator playable on Linux, but even on a basic Linux system. Possibly even without a GPU, but it depends on how well adapted your iGPU is. Don’t be deceived by the basic graphics; RimWorld is a very tangled game that spent ages in beta testing before becoming ready for final launch. It shows you in charge of a colony of people struggling to survive on a planet similar to Earth that is inhabited by other tribes.

It’s amazing to see your small people interact with, play with, and even start dating, each in-game character having a unique, complicated personality, relationships, and wants as you cope with assigning tasks around your colony. You not only go through building up your settlement, fundamentals of farming, and raiding others.

Visit: RimWorld

Factorio

Let’s remove people from RimWorld and replace them with industrial chains, processing plants, and conveyor belts. Factorio is about building intricate manufacturing chains and then watching them all become automated as a result of your hard work, similar to how RimWorld allows you to enjoy the small human tales while managing the greater picture.

It is large and intricate and revolves around obtaining resources and processing them as effectively as possible. The fact that the inhabitants of the planet will rebel against you as a result of your exploitation of it adds another unpredictable factor. Factorio is fun to play alone, but it also works well as a multiplayer online game.

Visit: Factorio

FAQ

Where can I find games to play on Linux?

It is the best platform for games and they provide many games which are available for both Windows and Linux. However, there are other platforms where you can find many other games as well.

Can I play the Windows-only games despite owning a Linux

However, it involves more of a hassle if a player wishes to run Windows-only games on a Linux platform. The new beta feature of Steam called ‘Steam Play’ has made the process a lot easier than it was earlier. It provides Linux users with the options to run even the Windows-only games on the Linux operating system.

Are there any other games that I can access on Linux apart from the ones offered by Steam?

Yes, of course. Any Linux user can find various different Linux native games on Humble Store, Penguspy, Linux Game Database, etc.

Conclusion

Apple products are usually, the last options player choose when they wish to play games professionally. For Gaming purposes, Linux is not much used. However, if someone wishes to utilize it in such a way, it makes way for that as well. It may not contain as wide of a range of games as Windows, but to say that the range they offer is small would be a lie. People who don’t want to participate in competitive gaming prefer to install them on Linux. So, as long as it satisfies your need as a player; it does not matter what kind of Personal Computer you may use. As long as it does the job, it is enough. We hope you will have a wonderful time playing the best Linux games we recommended.

Carly Earl

Carly Earl, Guardian Australia’s pic editor, was a photographer and pic editor in Sydney for 8 yrs. She worked for The Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph.