If you want to see the rhythm-music platformer Runner3 on Linux, they need to see demand for it

I'd like to buy this game. Maybe if the devs show there's enough interest in me buying it, I'll consider it.

Quoting: nox

Quoting: Avehicle7887I really dislike this idea of having to prove I want to see the game on Linux though, Mac aren't far off and they get it without question.

I agree with you in a sense, but remember that mac is close to 3% steam market share, while linux is currently at 0.55%... It is going to be easier to justify dev and qa on mac than linux with those number :(

You're talking about the Steam hardware survey. Urgh. Actual dev sales are usually anywhere between 1% and 10%, depending on the game. Those figures come from this site actually asking devs for direct sales figures, not statistically neutered rounding errors from a random survey.

Some actual figures:
Helium Rain (interviewed 2018): 11%
Deep Sixed (2018): "More than 5%"
Shovel Knight (2018): 1.1%
Rise to Ruins (2018): 2.4%
Maia (multiple interviews, latest 2018): 4.9%
Planescape Torment (2017): 2% on Steam, 2.5% on their own client
Midboss (2017): 1.9%

Some titles are less than 1%, however. The most worrying is probably Stellaris, whose devs are usually very supportive of Linux, but who sounded pretty downbeat about the failure of Steam Machines and the Linux market as a whole.

Quoting: scaine

Quoting: nox

Quoting: Avehicle7887I really dislike this idea of having to prove I want to see the game on Linux though, Mac aren't far off and they get it without question.

I agree with you in a sense, but remember that mac is close to 3% steam market share, while linux is currently at 0.55%... It is going to be easier to justify dev and qa on mac than linux with those number :(

You're talking about the Steam hardware survey. Urgh. Actual dev sales are usually anywhere between 1% and 10%, depending on the game. Those figures come from this site actually asking devs for direct sales figures, not statistically neutered rounding errors from a random survey.

Some actual figures:
Helium Rain (interviewed 2018): 11%
Deep Sixed (2018): "More than 5%"
Shovel Knight (2018): 1.1%
Rise to Ruins (2018): 2.4%
Maia (multiple interviews, latest 2018): 4.9%
Planescape Torment (2017): 2% on Steam, 2.5% on their own client
Midboss (2017): 1.9%

Some titles are less than 1%, however. The most worrying is probably Stellaris, whose devs are usually very supportive of Linux, but who sounded pretty downbeat about the failure of Steam Machines and the Linux market as a whole.

Thank you for adding some good examples to counter my slightly negative comment. At no point did I say that native linux games cannot be profitable, however. My point is that them asking for interest is logical enough with those publicly available statistics, as a general point of view - rather than about a specific game or studio.

Quoting: GuestI don't like this attitude of developers who shun Linux and ask us to grovel in order to be able to give them money.

Maybe it is just some kind of PR to make Sites like GoL write an article about the game to create attention. Otherwise I'd agree that it is a stupid move since developers can already see in their steam statistics how many potential Linux customers have put the game on their wish list.

Quoting: WendigoOtherwise I'd agree that it is a stupid move since developers can already see in their steam statistics how many potential Linux customers have put the game on their wish list.

Of course this won't give them reliable data, but it might affect their motivation.

Wishlists are obviously not a good way to gauge interest though. I for one won't bother adding any games to my wishlist unless they're available or soon to be released for Linux, and people who haven't manually set Linux/SteamOS as their only platform in the Steam client won't even count.


Last edited by tuubi on 16 May 2018 at 8:42 am UTC

Quoting: nitroflowPretty disappointing comments here. Measuring interest is a perfectly valid thing to do especially when they've ported their previous games.

This seems to be most retarded approach to measure interest. I know others have done that before and accumulated hundreds of "+1" posts in Steam discussions. I wonder how many of these "+1" translate into purchases months or years after this discussion. There must be a more sane solution at hand, too - since there are so many Linux ports out there which came into being without that. Let me guess:

QuoteWe have to invest so many man hours into the port. We have to sell so and so many copies to break even. Looking at our past stats we can expect so and so many sales. If we sell less, it won't cost us a fortune, we can file it under experience gained.

Quoting: Wendigo

Quoting: GuestI don't like this attitude of developers who shun Linux and ask us to grovel in order to be able to give them money.

Maybe it is just some kind of PR to make Sites like GoL write an article about the game to create attention. Otherwise I'd agree that it is a stupid move since developers can already see in their steam statistics how many potential Linux customers have put the game on their wish list.

I highly doubt that, to any developer not already fully committing to a Linux version, we probably don't even exist to them. We're still a tiny site compared with RPS, Eurogamer and so on.

Quoting: TuxeeThis seems to be most retarded approach to measure interest. I know others have done that before and accumulated hundreds of "+1" posts in Steam discussions. I wonder how many of these "+1" translate into purchases months or years after this discussion. There must be a more sane solution at hand, too - since there are so many Linux ports out there which came into being without that. Let me guess:

QuoteWe have to invest so many man hours into the port. We have to sell so and so many copies to break even. Looking at our past stats we can expect so and so many sales. If we sell less, it won't cost us a fortune, we can file it under experience gained.

Let me guess: The did look at their past sells and it was hardly worth it. So they wonder themselves how to judge. If you'Ve got a better solution, make sure to propose it to them. (I do like the idea of kickstarting a Linux version. It would make sure to only make it when there's a set mimimum of sells.)

Quoting: Tuxee

Quoting: nitroflowPretty disappointing comments here. Measuring interest is a perfectly valid thing to do especially when they've ported their previous games.

This seems to be most retarded approach to measure interest. I know others have done that before and accumulated hundreds of "+1" posts in Steam discussions. I wonder how many of these "+1" translate into purchases months or years after this discussion. There must be a more sane solution at hand, too - since there are so many Linux ports out there which came into being without that. Let me guess:

QuoteWe have to invest so many man hours into the port. We have to sell so and so many copies to break even. Looking at our past stats we can expect so and so many sales. If we sell less, it won't cost us a fortune, we can file it under experience gained.

Still, it doesn't warrant some of the extreme comments here, such as an appeal to piracy that only benefits pirates.

EDIT: Quoted wrong comment.


Last edited by nitroflow on 16 May 2018 at 1:23 pm UTC

Quoting: nitroflowStill, it doesn't warrant some of the extreme comments here, such as an appeal to piracy that only benefits pirates.

Absolutely. My comments was replying directly to the "some kind of PR" comment.