ROCKFISH Games have now launched EVERSPACE 2 and it looks awesome! One of their original Kickstarter promises did not make it though, with Native Linux support being cancelled as they will support it with Proton instead.
Despite repeatedly mentioning a Native Linux build would come, even as recently as mid February, they decided not to go through with it. Why? They said Vulkan support in Unreal Engine 4 is "broken and incomplete" and it gave between "50% - 80%" of the performance compared with just running the Windows version in Proton. There were other issues, like VRAM leaks causing crashes. After they spoke with Epic Games, they said it's clear Unreal Engine 4 won't get fixed up with the focus now on Unreal Engine 5 and ROCKFISH don't have the time to fix up the game engine.
They shared a screenshot as a quick example showing the Native build with Vulkan, their Windows build with DXVK and the Windows build with VKD3D-Proton and the performance difference speaks for itself really:
The good news is they plan to ensure it does work well with Proton and they will continue to optimize it there. Any Kickstarter backers not happy can request a refund too which is good to see.
As for Steam Deck, dedicated optimizations for it are also still planned.
For players on other stores like GOG, it does make things more complicated, since Steam is the only store to officially support a translation layer like Proton. However, you can try with Heroic Games Launcher.
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InhaleOblivion Apr 10, 2023
Sitting on the fence with this one. Performance is trash currently and hopefully will improve over time. I'll pull the trigger when/if it does.
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For what it's worth, I'm REALLY having a lot of fun with the game. It truly scratches the outer-space-open-world/universe vibe. Yes it definitely has some perf issues, but even still, the game they've crafted is a ton of fun. Give it a try!
3 Likes, Who?
It's probably closest in bringing back Freelancer vibe (even if not quite fully) than any other game so far. I wonder how single player Star Citizen will compare in that sense.
2 Likes, Who?
Not sure if it's a game bug or something with radv or vkd3d-proton, but in this release version any time someone is shooting one of those red beam rail guns, whole screen becomes half covered in red and it gets stuck that way.
Last edited by Shmerl on 11 April 2023 at 7:26 am UTC
Last edited by Shmerl on 11 April 2023 at 7:26 am UTC
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ssj17vegeta Apr 11, 2023
One of the very first steps in any development project is ensuring the tools you plan to use are going to do their job. BEFORE starting to code. If Unreal Engine wasn't a satisfactory solution, they could've seen it way earlier (and then either ditch it or ditch Linux support).
Just to be clear, I'm not even mad (anymore) that a game studio gives up on Linux: after all, we're clearly a very small market not worth the investment. It's the hypocrisy, the surprise announcement on release that sounds a lot like a "woops! sorry nerds!".
You consider making a Linux version ? Use cross-platform engines and make sure they work. THEN make all the promises you want.
Just to be clear, I'm not even mad (anymore) that a game studio gives up on Linux: after all, we're clearly a very small market not worth the investment. It's the hypocrisy, the surprise announcement on release that sounds a lot like a "woops! sorry nerds!".
You consider making a Linux version ? Use cross-platform engines and make sure they work. THEN make all the promises you want.
2 Likes, Who?
And to show Rockfish Games know what they are doing, and they are actively supporting Linux via Proton:
The videos in Everspace 2 are using Media Foundation codecs, normally Valve does re-encode them for us, and ship them via pre-cache, so they don't run into legal issues. But those videos don't work at first, it needs some time for Valve to re-encode and ship them.
Not in Everspace 2, the videos (especially new ones that haven't been seen in Early Access, so nobody could have triggered the re-encoding process on Valve's end yet) work from the start! This is because RFG has re-encoded them, and checks if the game is running via Wine/Proton. If so, they use VP9 encoded videos via Unreal's WebM player. On Windows the WMF player is used.
Unfortunatly the WebM player in Unreal has a memory leak: https://steamcommunity.com/app/1128920/discussions/6/3823034248723581631
But even here they are actively working on resolving this issue! This is support for gaming on Linux!
https://steamcommunity.com/app/1128920/discussions/6/3823034248723581631?ctp=2#c3823034639980711061
Last edited by Corben on 11 April 2023 at 12:48 pm UTC
The videos in Everspace 2 are using Media Foundation codecs, normally Valve does re-encode them for us, and ship them via pre-cache, so they don't run into legal issues. But those videos don't work at first, it needs some time for Valve to re-encode and ship them.
Not in Everspace 2, the videos (especially new ones that haven't been seen in Early Access, so nobody could have triggered the re-encoding process on Valve's end yet) work from the start! This is because RFG has re-encoded them, and checks if the game is running via Wine/Proton. If so, they use VP9 encoded videos via Unreal's WebM player. On Windows the WMF player is used.
Unfortunatly the WebM player in Unreal has a memory leak: https://steamcommunity.com/app/1128920/discussions/6/3823034248723581631
But even here they are actively working on resolving this issue! This is support for gaming on Linux!
https://steamcommunity.com/app/1128920/discussions/6/3823034248723581631?ctp=2#c3823034639980711061
Last edited by Corben on 11 April 2023 at 12:48 pm UTC
5 Likes, Who?
EagleDelta Apr 11, 2023
Quoting: CatKillerQuoting: tgurrPromising something in a Kickstarter campaign and then not fulfulling the promise is another cup of tea though but at least they offer refunds.If they'd promised it, not delivered, and not given a refund, that would be fraud, so... they had to give refunds.
No, it's not. Come on now. Backing something on crowdfunding is just that, you're backing the work, whether it gets completed or not. Your taking the exact same risk that other investors take, just with much smaller amounts of money. Hell, a crowdfunding campaign is even setup just like an investment pitch:
1. Layout the project and what the investors can plan to get "rewarded" with upon completion.
2. Layout the amount needed.
3. Provide a list of "Risks" for investing in the campaign
4. Provide updates on progress.
In the real investing world, that includes unseen changes to the scope of the project. They didn't have to offer refunds.... which speaks more to the character and intent of the change. They didn't want to drop the Linux version, but Epic forced their hand and they cannot port the game to UE5 without delaying the game for months to years (a port of that nature for a small company is not fast). So, instead, they offered refunds to players who were affected and wanted a refund.
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EagleDelta Apr 11, 2023
Quoting: ArtenTotaly irelevant. From my point of view it's just buying without legal protection from state, so everythink is based solaly on my trust in developer. Legaly kickstarter can't call it buying, but by my internal definition it's still buying.
Not irrelevant at all. Venture funding is fundamentally different from purchasing. You aren't paying for the product, you're paying to help get the product made, whether it succeeds or not. Whether it makes it to completion or not.
Crowdfunding campaigns are laid out just like an funding pitch, just with product-based rewards instead of equity in the company. We don't get to walk into the situation and redefine what venture funding is, regardless if it's done by an Venture Capitalist firm or through crowdfunding. It's the same thing, the main difference is that crowdfunding allows companies, especially small ones, to get funding for projects a VC may not want to invest in b/c it's not the hot thing right now or the returns are relatively small. Instead, crowdfunding lets us put money into a project and hope we get our return (usually a product and/or some exclusives) while taking less risk overall.
The fact that they offered refunds is a sign that they didn't want to drop the Linux version, but felt they had no other choice since Epic was refusing to fix something that they had promised to fix. And sometimes, that's just the reality of life in software dev.
3 Likes, Who?
Quoting: EagleDeltaNo, it's not. Come on now.The term you're looking for is "material misrepresentation."
From the Kickstarter Terms Of Use:
"The creator is solely responsible for fulfilling the promises made in their project. If they’re unable to satisfy the terms of this agreement, they may be subject to legal action by backers."
2 Likes, Who?
Quoting: CorbenAnd to show Rockfish Games know what they are doing, and they are actively supporting Linux via Proton:
The videos in Everspace 2 are using Media Foundation codecs, normally Valve does re-encode them for us, and ship them via pre-cache, so they don't run into legal issues. But those videos don't work at first, it needs some time for Valve to re-encode and ship them.
Not in Everspace 2, the videos (especially new ones that haven't been seen in Early Access, so nobody could have triggered the re-encoding process on Valve's end yet) work from the start! This is because RFG has re-encoded them, and checks if the game is running via Wine/Proton. If so, they use VP9 encoded videos via Unreal's WebM player. On Windows the WMF player is used.
Unfortunatly the WebM player in Unreal has a memory leak: https://steamcommunity.com/app/1128920/discussions/6/3823034248723581631
But even here they are actively working on resolving this issue! This is support for gaming on Linux!
https://steamcommunity.com/app/1128920/discussions/6/3823034248723581631?ctp=2#c3823034639980711061
Didn't notice memory leaks in Wine 8.5. But video cutscenes didn't work at all in the past and started working in the pre-release version at some point.
Last edited by Shmerl on 11 April 2023 at 4:43 pm UTC
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