i would always reccomend nvchad as a start, then create your own nvim config to suit your needs. all of your text editor features can be achieved through vim/nvim through some setup, tho i reccomend nvim because it uses lua for scripting.
3. reccomend checking out lutris for compatibility
4. the drivers are built in to the kernel, so yes
8. all keyboard shortcuts are customizable, but it depends on the distro, so i cqnt help you on that
9. usually using the package manager will work, but .appimage is mostly universal if you dont use a niche distro, this shouldnt really be a worry. some files are specifically for only some distros, but just use appimage if they dont provide one for yours.
10. because of the config file thing, id just reccomend sticking to linux mint or even plain debian, it sounds like you would want it to work, and thats it. both these distros are stable with the former having great driver support, and the latter having an extensive community. id not reccomend ubuntu bc the company sucks and prokotes nonfree software like flatpack
i would always reccomend nvchad as a start, then create your own nvim config to suit your needs. all of your text editor features can be achieved through vim/nvim through some setup, tho i reccomend nvim because it uses lua for scripting. 3. reccomend checking out lutris for compatibility 4. the drivers are built in to the kernel, so yes 8. all keyboard shortcuts are customizable, but it depends on the distro, so i cqnt help you on that 9. usually using the package manager will work, but .appimage is mostly universal if you dont use a niche distro, this shouldnt really be a worry. some files are specifically for only some distros, but just use appimage if they dont provide one for yours. 10. because of the config file thing, id just reccomend sticking to linux mint or even plain debian, it sounds like you would want it to work, and thats it. both these distros are stable with the former having great driver support, and the latter having an extensive community. id not reccomend ubuntu bc the company sucks and prokotes nonfree software like flatpack