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Dota 2 is the first Valve game that will support the new Vulkan API and it could be as soon as next week.
Considering how early Valve had access to it, and even showed off a demo of it way before release of Vulkan I am still surprise Talos beat it to be the first public Vulkan game. Well, I say surprised, but "Valve Time" is a thing right?
It's exciting, as when Valve switched to Source 2 which had native OpenGL the performance was much better on Linux (in terms of smoothness and actual FPS figures) and Vulkan is supposed to improve it even more so.
Speaking on reddit, a Valve developer said this:
You can also see on SteamDB that Valve has added Vulkan content for both Windows and Linux, no Mac of course as Apple decided to go with their own Metal API.
Like I did with Dota 2 when Valve switched to Source 2, I will let you know how it runs when the Vulkan version is available. I imagine it will be possible to switch between OpenGL and Vulkan to compare it easily, as I can't imagine them instantly turning off an older and more stable API right away (that's just asking for trouble). Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Considering how early Valve had access to it, and even showed off a demo of it way before release of Vulkan I am still surprise Talos beat it to be the first public Vulkan game. Well, I say surprised, but "Valve Time" is a thing right?
It's exciting, as when Valve switched to Source 2 which had native OpenGL the performance was much better on Linux (in terms of smoothness and actual FPS figures) and Vulkan is supposed to improve it even more so.
Speaking on reddit, a Valve developer said this:
FletcherDunn, ValveWe're going to release vulkan support soon, probably sometime next week. That DLC checkbox is an error and shouldn't be visible yet. Sorry for the confusion.
You can also see on SteamDB that Valve has added Vulkan content for both Windows and Linux, no Mac of course as Apple decided to go with their own Metal API.
Like I did with Dota 2 when Valve switched to Source 2, I will let you know how it runs when the Vulkan version is available. I imagine it will be possible to switch between OpenGL and Vulkan to compare it easily, as I can't imagine them instantly turning off an older and more stable API right away (that's just asking for trouble). Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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GustyGhost May 19, 2016
Wasn't there a project in the works that would essentially act as a translation layer for Vulkan API --> Metal API? Back when Vulkan was released I remember somebody talking about this.
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Quoting: KristianDo you guys really see many games receiving Linux versions due to Vulkan, that wouldn't have otherwise?
One publisher that has made official comments on this is Stardock: They will not do OpenGL, they will do Vulkan, and only because of Vulkan Linux support for their games is under consideration, allthough make clear that they are not going to promise anything. (It's a shame, with their OS/2 roots, they should see the opportunity to publish on Linux as a golden chance to get rid of Microsoft, unfornately Stardock seems really Windows-minded.).
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Quoting: KristianYeah, I absolutely, wholeheartedly support Vulkan. I just wish Apple, Sony and Nintendo would all add Vulkan support to their platforms, which would mean that all major platforms except the Xbox One would have Vulkan support.
Edit:
On another note I am surprised no anti-trust authorities have done anything about DirectX. If MS had to open up DirectX, things could be quite different.
Rumor is that Nintendo's new console will support Vulkan. Xbox consoles will put DirectX as the priority, but it would be nice if Sony adds Vulkan to the PS4 considering it has a non-Windows operating system.
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But if Apple adds a Vulkan support to their platform, then they have just created a bit awkward situation. If i look from their perspective, then what's the point to have two graphics API's on the same platform? It looks like they have wasted time and money to create another version of graphics library which is closer to hardware and was released before Vulkan was even announced.
I don't believe that the success of Vulkan depends on Apple, i think it's more up to game developers to see it as quality and well documented alternative to DirectX 12. I would even recommend more aggressive advertising in games.
I don't believe that the success of Vulkan depends on Apple, i think it's more up to game developers to see it as quality and well documented alternative to DirectX 12. I would even recommend more aggressive advertising in games.
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Like it or not, Apple as gaming platform is dying and Linux soon will be on it's own. Said that, as many people pointed out, DirectX12 -> Vulkan path is much less costly than DirectX -> OpenGL, and many engines already adding or planning to add Vulkan support, decreasing required work even more.
It will all go down to numbers - if Steam Machines and Linux desktop machines combined and potential sales numbers will increase consistently, there's fair chance for games to be ported.
As for Blizzard - I don't think they even care about Mac anymore, they are owned by Activion now, which only sees green.
Anyhow, having DOTA 2 Vulkan port - on both platforms - is GREAT deal for us. And it will matter on Intel graphics than people realise.
It will all go down to numbers - if Steam Machines and Linux desktop machines combined and potential sales numbers will increase consistently, there's fair chance for games to be ported.
As for Blizzard - I don't think they even care about Mac anymore, they are owned by Activion now, which only sees green.
Anyhow, having DOTA 2 Vulkan port - on both platforms - is GREAT deal for us. And it will matter on Intel graphics than people realise.
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And yeah, Metal doesn't even support proper graphics shaders, and compute shaders are out of question...Apple really don't care about games outside iOS.
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Quoting: KristianNow as others point out, yes older Windows versions provide a reason. But that reason will dissappear.
Half of the Steam users wanted Windows 10 not even for free...!
Wonder what would make them change now. Even more so if (what I don't believe) MS would start to charge money from Windows 7/8 users for Windows 10.
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Is this discussion about Apple/Metal even remotely relevant to anything gaming related? I mean how many people buy Macs for the express purpose of gaming?
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natewardawg May 19, 2016
Quoting: KristianSurely we would see EVEN more AAA ports to Linux if Apple had Vulkan support in Mac OSX, right?
That's an excellent point. You're probably right. :)
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