Valve has boosted their Linux ranks by hiring another developer to work on open source graphics

Quoting: EikePlaying Windows games on WINE is as opposite to native as playing on Linux can get...

This is going in circles, since same can be said about playing closed wrappers. Companies that funded those releases didn't want to make native ports because it was a cheap method. So decide whether you are OK with that or not.


Last edited by Shmerl on 9 February 2018 at 4:48 pm UTC

Quoting: Shmerl

Quoting: jensIt makes me sad to read that your own personal choice to avoid Steam doesn't let you see the value Feral and friends are doing for Linux gaming plus Linux adoption and that you are even prefer to compromise their efforts :(

I didn't say there is no value. I said I don't agree that it's wrong to have competition. I quite strongly disagree with that especially in case when their option is exclusive. Competition makes it accessible, rather than walled.

I'll repeat myself again:
"With our insignificant market share we should combine forces and not encourage competition. Lets do that again once we have reached 20% market share."

We can agree that we strongly disagree here. Growth in Linux adoption and cool games/big titles are my priorities, your priority seems to be DRM-free gaming.

Quoting: jens"With our insignificant market share we should combine forces and not encourage competition.

Closed projects don't encourage combining forces by their very nature. If Feral want to combine forces, let them contribute to Wine, or open source their own wrapper so it could be used by developers with any game, rather than ones they authorize.

Since that's unlikely to happen, I see Wine as an increasingly important competitor. And for the reference, Wine can be used as a source wrapper too, see https://wiki.winehq.org/Winelib_User%27s_Guide

TL;DR: If you want to see collaboration, make sure your effort is based on FOSS.


Last edited by Shmerl on 9 February 2018 at 5:10 pm UTC

Quoting: Firepini had two ideas on how to advance linux gaming and wanted to put the idea here up for discussion and to your attention.

1. Steam/valve take about 30% of a purchase as you know.

If valve would communicate to big companies that if they make a linux port, they would reduce their own % margin by a bit this could be an incentive to make the big companies make linux versions.

For example pubg or such games would think that a reduction of 30% to for example 29% (25% or whatever) would cover the cost of making their own linux port and even make them on their windows versions, more money because instead of 30% they must only give for example 29% or 25% to steam/valve.

Valve could make this offer to specific companies/for specific games "Valve's Linux Support Incentive" or something like that

When in the future by this incentiveprogram linuxgaming would grow Steam/valve could abandon the program because there would not be the need to have an incentive because their would be more and more linuxgamers and the companies themselves without extrafinancial incentive/subsidy would then port their AAA games to linux.

Valve and Steam could ask generally for 30% again as well and would have subsidized and grown linuxports this way.

Steam would give discount for windows versions as well in this way. Steam takes 30% of windows only version and in general 25 % for game which has linux port for example. The windows games would subsidize the linux ports. Just steam would make a little less money in the beginning but getting more linux ports of AAA Games.

Quality of the port would be a condition for the "Linux Port discount" as well so the game companies wouldnt make halfassed linux ports.


2. Another idea is a "kickstarter linux port coordination Homepage" to help feral interactive for example.

Japanese visual novels even use kickstarter to see if a game has support and when the campaign succeeds they translate the japanese game to english and release on steam without any company investment because of kickstarter funds. Examples are MuvLuv Alternate which made $1,255,444 in pledges. Other examples are Libra, Clannad etc. which got english ports because of kickstarter.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/muvluv/muv-luv-a-pretty-sweet-visual-novel-series

Many games like pillars of eternity got a linux port because of kickstarter "stretch goals" (much $ pledges) or else there wouldnt have been a linux port at all. So why dont make even more coordinated use of kickstarter help for linux ports in general and support for feral interactive for example.

I suppose you and liamdawe have perhaps the connections to communicate to Valve and Feral Interactive or the linux community to bring Valve's and Feral Interactive's attention to this plan which would help linuxgaming or open a discussion on the matter. Liamdewe could make an article on the main site perhaps as well to open a main discussion there as well if he wants.

Any comments?

The Wine talk has quite severely derailed the conversation so if anyone else has some hot takes I would please ask them to voice themselves over on the forum.

Quoting: FirepinAny comments?

Echoing what Samsai just said, maybe you want to reiterate your ideas on a forum thread? This article is already a day old and GoL's collective eyes are moving on at this point.

Quoting: ShmerlIf Feral want to combine forces, let them contribute to Wine, or open source their own wrapper so it could be used by developers with any game, rather than ones they authorize.

This is indeed the moment to stop ;)

Thanks for the discussion and have a good, depending on your timezone, day or evening.
(just to be sure, I do mean this honestly.)

Quoting: jensThanks for the discussion and have a good, depending on your timezone, day or evening.

You too.

Link to Forum Discussion Thread:

https://www.gamingonlinux.com/forum/topic/3177

Quoting: Shmerl

Quoting: KimyrielleNo matter how many devs they throw at it: On the NVidia end, people always will have to use the proprietary drivers, unless some sanity returns to NVidia management (which is highly unlikely), no?

Solution is quite easy and likely will be a common choice for many Linux gamers going forward. Ditch Nvidia and use AMD. It's a shame of course that Nvidia are being jerks when it comes to proper Linux support, but it's not our problem anymore.

See the problem I have is way back Nvidia was the only good supporter for Linux. So I have always stayed with them, even through their stupidity. ATI, what it was called at the time, just sucked and forget about Intel graphics.

However they funny thing is I have always been a huge fan of AMD cpu's. My computer right now has a quad core AMD FX. I have an older Nvidia Graphics card, can't afford much more at the moment, but it works for me.

However my patience is not infinite. How does AMD compare to Nvidia now in the graphics area? Price, speed, etc?