Easy Anti-Cheat is actually still supported for Linux, a statement from Epic Games

Liam, I don't think you "jumped the gun" the way it was written would lead anyone to the same conclusion... Also, I agree with Rugaliz, even with the statement that was made by Epic in this post it still sounds "paused" as it were. Linux taking less of a priority imo is never good news.

Personally, I would prefer to see more studios making Linux a "high" priority. I remain optimistic even after all these years lol

OK, two things, good and bad... well, start with the bad I guess.

To clarify, Easy Anti-Cheat still provides native Linux support and will continue to do so. Earlier comments by a partner reflect ordinary day-to-day prioritization decisions on anti-cheat issues across all platforms and not any change in long-term priority for Linux.

.. that's an odd combination of lots of words to deny support hasn't 'paused'. Lets break them down.

Easy Anti-Cheat still provides native Linux support and will continue to do so.

Well, yes, technically, but doesn't necessarily mean that development hasn't paused.

Earlier comments by a partner reflect ordinary day-to-day prioritization decisions

Wait, whose decisions? Facepunch's or EAC's? Sounds like EAC's? It doesn't sound like they're denying this but just qualifying it..

not any change in long-term priority for Linux.

To me, to be honest, this sounds like 'the pause is only short term'.. which makes sense since that's what a pause is.

Well, enough of the bad, looking on the good side..

EAC/Wine compatibility is currently in a beta state with several games whose help we appreciate, but significantly more work is needed to get it to a suitably stable and hardened level for all.

Well. That could be a positive message? Maybe. If this implies work is ongoing between Valve and EAC, and compatibility is getting there, then we could have EAC compatibility in a few months? Which would be amazing of course.

I don't know, there's a lot of PR talk in this.


Last edited by gradyvuckovic on 7 May 2019 at 9:09 am UTC

Earlier comments by a partner reflect ordinary day-to-day prioritization decisions

Wait, whose decisions? Facepunch's or EAC's? Sounds like EAC's? It doesn't sound like they're denying this but just qualifying it..

Look at the twitter link. The text is from EAC guys, so partner can only really mean FP, not EAC ;)

Can't remember the EAC guys ever not having been supportive, no matter what platform issues arrived on.

Really glad to see this isn't the case and I'm glad it started a conversation about middleware and Linux compatibility. Also it's them that should've been clear on the subject. You did your due diligence Liam.

Lets hope that those words are worth a penny and not written by bullshit-sweeny ^^

And i don't think you should feel bad for "jumping the gun" - if nothing else, the outcry should show EAC and others that dropping Linux-Support will not go unnoticed...

These ongoing trade-offs in priorities don't mean there is any change in the long-term development of our Linux anti-cheat, and we remain committed to providing the support necessary for Linux as a gaming platform.

I hope this is just me being cynical, but does this statement come off as meaning nothing to anyone else?

They say that there are no long-term changes in their Linux development plan. Okay, but I can't tell what constitutes a change if I don't know what the original plans were. It could mean Linux will get an update later down the line. It could also mean that Linux support in the original plan was minimal or non-existent and that this won't benefit Linux gamers in any way whatsoever.

I suppose we will just have to wait and see.

Oh, for fuck sake, what do you people want? A written statement signed in Tim Sweeney's blood? They're not stopping anything and just being honest about prioritizing Windows over Linux because duh. Being critical of Epic is one thing, but being ridiculous tin foil wearer is just absurd.

Good for you for owning up the mistake Liam. Also thank you for the new info on the matter.

When the Reddit post appeared in the GoL Discord...

eh, gonna need a proper source tbh, not just angry ranting on reddit

and

all we have to go on is an angry dev's comment on reddit. <shrug emoji> (or whatever that garry guy is)
maybe not panic just yet

Aaaaand then there was panic. We should know better by now, really. :(

IMHO; Liam did the right thing by reporting something that could potentially have a dramatic impact on the future of Linux gaming. The actual sources have responded to his request for clarification and we can now remove our tinfoil hats and return to sanity.

At least until the next imaginary reason for panic emerges.

When the Reddit post appeared in the GoL Discord...


IMHO; Liam did the right thing by reporting something that could potentially have a dramatic impact on the future of Linux gaming. The actual sources have responded to his request for clarification and we can now remove our tinfoil hats and return to sanity.

At least until the next imaginary reason for panic emerges.

IMHO: Liam did a good job, but had he added some words to keep emotions in check (and we know he could), he would have done an even better job.
Also, reading the replies to the tweet: gosh, twitter is aweful.

i think it wouldnt be a good idea to stop linux support before stadia is released
of course stadia doesnt need anti cheat, but like Ashes of the Singularity some developers will release a linux port on steam, gog and itch if they already have it for stadia

When the Reddit post appeared in the GoL Discord...


IMHO; Liam did the right thing by reporting something that could potentially have a dramatic impact on the future of Linux gaming. The actual sources have responded to his request for clarification and we can now remove our tinfoil hats and return to sanity.

At least until the next imaginary reason for panic emerges.

IMHO: Liam did a good job, but had he added some words to keep emotions in check (and we know he could), he would have done an even better job.
Also, reading the replies to the tweet: gosh, twitter is aweful.

I can add as many words as people want, someone will always be unhappy with how I present something. Outrage culture is sadly a very real thing, even in our smaller community here.

Also, Garry said this on Reddit today:

Hey thanks for the nudge and trying to inject some clarity, I didn't know Epic was anti-linux and I've never had that impression from them or EAC, all this is the first I've heard about it.

As far as I remember it was mentioned in conversation (by us) that we had an increasing amount of cheats on Linux, and contemplated whether it was better off to just stop shipping the linux version (our decision). EAC said that the linux development was paused so it would be fine by them. I didn't get the impression they meant over all games they protect, but I can see how their development time would go into stopping the majority of cheats.

Personally, I've come to the conclusion that there are only negatives to shipping games to linux for us. It's a nice thing to do, but it's not financially viable to pay £100k+ a year in wages to support a linux version when it makes less than £5k- a year. So it's no good for us if we do it right, and it's no good for end users if we do it wrong. The argument is made that if we did it right and invested, there'd be a lot more sales and it'd be more sustainable.. but even if it sold 100x more than it did on linux, it'd still be 10x less than it did on macos, and 1000x less than it does on windows. The pragmatic thing to do is not ship games on linux.

So he's still saying EAC clearly told him it was paused. He's also trying to fan the flames on Twitter again *sigh*, I hope people don't fall into it this time and start throwing mud, just leave him to it, he loves the attention.

When the Reddit post appeared in the GoL Discord...


IMHO; Liam did the right thing by reporting something that could potentially have a dramatic impact on the future of Linux gaming. The actual sources have responded to his request for clarification and we can now remove our tinfoil hats and return to sanity.

At least until the next imaginary reason for panic emerges.

IMHO: Liam did a good job, but had he added some words to keep emotions in check (and we know he could), he would have done an even better job.
Also, reading the replies to the tweet: gosh, twitter is aweful.

I can add as many words as people want, someone will always be unhappy with how I present something. Outrage culture is sadly a very real thing, even in our smaller community here.

Also, Garry said this on Reddit today:

Hey thanks for the nudge and trying to inject some clarity, I didn't know Epic was anti-linux and I've never had that impression from them or EAC, all this is the first I've heard about it.

As far as I remember it was mentioned in conversation (by us) that we had an increasing amount of cheats on Linux, and contemplated whether it was better off to just stop shipping the linux version (our decision). EAC said that the linux development was paused so it would be fine by them. I didn't get the impression they meant over all games they protect, but I can see how their development time would go into stopping the majority of cheats.

Personally, I've come to the conclusion that there are only negatives to shipping games to linux for us. It's a nice thing to do, but it's not financially viable to pay £100k+ a year in wages to support a linux version when it makes less than £5k- a year. So it's no good for us if we do it right, and it's no good for end users if we do it wrong. The argument is made that if we did it right and invested, there'd be a lot more sales and it'd be more sustainable.. but even if it sold 100x more than it did on linux, it'd still be 10x less than it did on macos, and 1000x less than it does on windows. The pragmatic thing to do is not ship games on linux.

So he's still saying EAC clearly told him it was paused. He's also trying to fan the flames on Twitter again *sigh*, I hope people don't fall into it this time and start throwing mud, just leave him to it, he loves the attention.

Linux selling 50times worse then Mac? That's clearly showing we don't like his games ^^
Who knows, maybe he has a fair point. I'll take out my popcorn and watch the debate. And I hope there will be a debate. Middleware is just so important.


Last edited by const on 7 May 2019 at 11:26 am UTC

@liamdawe The mere fact that you apologize for "jumping the gun" is a proof to me that you want to build a transparent and honest community, and I praise you for that. Indeed you now have way more influence than a few years back, so now you need to be careful with that new responsibility ;)

Keep up the good work!

@liamdawe The mere fact that you apologize for "jumping the gun" is a proof to me that you want to build a transparent and honest community, and I praise you for that. Indeed you now have way more influence than a few years back, so now you need to be careful with that new responsibility ;)

Keep up the good work!

Sadly I'm already seeing people using it to give me grief but oh well, live and learn.

Well that's great news! I'm glad to hear it, and frankly I'm more than a bit relieved. For once Epic was nice to us.

But ooooo I hate it when Epic are nice! It makes despising then so damn awkward!

;)


Last edited by Nanobang on 7 May 2019 at 11:48 am UTC

Hey people, let's not be "these guys", please..

Whether we like it or not, Linux gaming is only a tiny fraction of the market share, and we have figures all over the place to prove that. I do hope this situation will change, but for now, it would be suicidal for any company to prioritize Linux over any other platforms just because... it's Linux and we deserve it.

Other platforms have bugs too (because software development is never over), and when a bug hits 1 million players vs 8100 players (Steam survey, it would be completely insane to prioritize the latter. I hope you can understand the logic here.

Does Street Fighter V uses EAC?

Also, Garry said this on Reddit today:

Ya I responded to him on that and it looks like he downvoted me. Its really sad tbh. A majority of his issues would be solved if he changed his attitude, but it doesnt seem like he's willing. Seems his development skills are lacking and his immaturity abundant.


Last edited by jardon on 7 May 2019 at 12:20 pm UTC

There might be nothing to see today, but through delays, ops and misunderstandings softwares can slowly die.

If there is one thing I appreciate of Epic is the transparency they have in saying exactly what they are going to do in the immediate. But when it comes to explain what the mid and long term effects of their actions are, they tend to manipulative... or "creative" at the very least.

I would keep EAC under observation in the coming months.

I don't see any gum jumping. A major developer cast aspersions on Linux support for a crucial piece of middleware affecting many games. I want that news reported.

If Liam sat on news like this, waiting for official communications, half the controversial stories would break elsewhere, without any community damage control, such as dredgepits like Reddit.

Please keep doing what you're doing, Liam. It's much appreciated.