Linux

I don't know where you draw the line for hardcore gamer but I play a lot of games and so does my friend, who is nontechnical and also plays on linux, and we both have very few issues and love the experience more than Windows. It really depends on what games you wanna play but there are very few games that aren't working OOTB. Protondb is a good site that I'm sure other people will link but if you're looking to switch I recommend taking a look at this site for the major games that will/won't work: https://areweanticheatyet.com/