Doom 2016 supports Vulkan and at GDC this year developers from id Software talked a little about it, including how easy a Linux version could have been.
In response to this question from Alon Or-bach (Samsung) around 45:40 in the below video: "One of the hot topics around Vulkan in terms of cross-platform and how much benefit do you find of having one API that's targetting both mobile and desktop platforms".
Dustin Land, a developer at id Software said this in reply:
"So we did Linux dedicated servers for Doom 2016 and a few of us who are Linux heads in the studio decided, let's take it the full way. All we had to do was change the surface that we are creating for the Linux version and it just ran, out of the box and performance was equivalent. Having a small driver actually helps a lot there."
This does beg the question: Why isn't it actually on Linux, if it worked as well as it sounds? Most likely a management decision from someone within id Software or ZeniMax Media. However, it's also possible the developers didn't pitch it of course. We just don't know, either way it's a real shame.
You can see the full video below:
Direct Link
What are your thoughts? I would absolutely buy a copy of Doom if it was on Linux.
Slightly related, on the topic of Vulkan: In these slides from Khronos Dev Day: The Vulkan Sessions, when showing off games using Vulkan a bunch of them are actually from Feral Interactive. It even includes the upcoming Rise of the Tomb Raider as well as their previous Linux ports which have Vulkan support. It's pleasing to see Feral get more recognition for their hard work both in terms of Linux gaming and using Vulkan.
Thanks for the tip mirv!
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
I suspect it has to do with them failing to see enormous profits the last time they tried Linux as a platform. I don't know which game it was they tried, but it seems to had been years before Valve stepped up and showed that, actually, Linux IS a viable gaming platform despite all the FUD. It also doesn't help they tried it with one of their side games from the Elder Scrolls series, and those games barely sold well even on Windows.
I like Bethesda, but between refusing to even start work on TES6 and support non-Windows PCs are their worst problems.
Quoting: YaroKasearEh, Bethesda/Zenimax have pretty consistently been hostile to Linux and OS X. None of their excuses for why they don't port their games to these platforms hold water when you consider they actually invested resources in porting Skyrim to platforms it belongs on even less than Linux (VR and Switch), or that they already would have been required to do 90% of the work to support OS X or Linux when they ported their games to PS4 since PS4 uses a BSD fork. It really would be trivial at this point for games like Doom or Skyrim or Fallout 4 to be ported to Linux, they just don't want to do it.
I suspect it has to do with them failing to see enormous profits the last time they tried Linux as a platform. I don't know which game it was they tried, but it seems to had been years before Valve stepped up and showed that, actually, Linux IS a viable gaming platform despite all the FUD. It also doesn't help they tried it with one of their side games from the Elder Scrolls series, and those games barely sold well even on Windows.
I like Bethesda, but between refusing to even start work on TES6 and support non-Windows PCs are their worst problems.
Bethesda is not specificially hostile to Linux or MacOS. They're hostile to platforms with low revenue possibilities.
They don't have a cause like building or supporting a platform , they just publish games for strong platforms.
They did PS Vr version of Skyrim , because they love to squezee out of their IP's.
They did Switch version because they foresaw , Switch will become a thing all of a sudden. And it did so they made the right choice for their business.
Maxing out revenue.
Platforms like Linux or MacOS are there for years and they won't boom at one night from population wise.
Quoting: LeopardMaxing out revenue.
I would say Valve is maxing out revenue by collecting every cent.
Take care of the pennies and the pounds look after themsleves.
Quoting: 1xokQuoting: LeopardMaxing out revenue.
I would say Valve is maxing out revenue by collecting every cent.
Take care of the pennies and the pounds look after themsleves.
I don't get it.
Last time i saw , Valve was not a charity.It was a company Like GOG , EA, Sony , Bethesda etc.
TheRiddick Mar 24, 2018
Quoting: LeopardQuoting: 1xokQuoting: LeopardMaxing out revenue.
I would say Valve is maxing out revenue by collecting every cent.
Take care of the pennies and the pounds look after themsleves.
I don't get it.
Last time i saw , Valve was not a charity.It was a company Like GOG , EA, Sony , Bethesda etc.
Yes, Valve makes money with everything also with Linux and MacOS. That's clever.
I don't see it as a strength if a company can only earn money in the current mainstream as is the case with Bethesta. Take a game like Alien: Isolation from SEGA. Without the Linux and Mac sales it would not even have been profitable. Five percent extra income can mean a lot. Bethesta waives it. Bethesda not going broke because of this. But I don't see why it is so clever to not support a platform. SEGA, 2k or Warner also make a deal with Mac and Linux sales. Why not?
Last edited by 1xok on 24 March 2018 at 10:42 pm UTC
TheRiddick Mar 24, 2018
Last edited by TheRiddick on 24 March 2018 at 10:43 pm UTC
UnixOutlaw Mar 24, 2018
I think Quake 4 was the last product they released with a Linux version... The Linux gaming market has grown exponentially since then, if the build for our platform of choice is so easy, then surely its a marketing decision...
I blame Bethesda! There was some Linux rumours and code floating around for Rage way back when, but that never got released. It's a marketing decision, not engineering... I say a big F--K YOU to Bethesda!
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