Nightdive Studios confirm Linux and macOS ports of System Shock are cancelled

Very disappointing. Especially with the lack of communication all this time. :/

And again one more reason not to buy from that Studio. Not that they made any good games to begin with anyway....

This is exactly why I have never and will never support Kickstarter or any other crowdfunding platform, including Steam's early access: developers are free to break their promises after taking your money, and there's nothing the consumer can do about it.

This encompasses perfectly why I gave up on Kickstarter years ago. Particularly disappointing given how much I advocated for it in its early days. Absolutely zero accountability from KS.

My last backed project was December 2014.

I would've had no problems if they said from the start that instead of native versions they will make sure or at least try to make the game work with Proton but as it is they basically lied to get more money. "Hey Linux and Mac gamers! We didn't forget you but need a little funding to bring the game to you", *gets well above the goal*, "lol no, we ain't doing it". Nightdives trustworthiness just dived for me like for a lot of big publishers/devs.

Now can I make a snarky comment? I assume no publisher will honor their promise of a Linux version unless they have a proven track record like Revolution with the Broken Sword series.

Previously, Previously, Previously, ...

Given that the ONLY linux native version of any game to never give me problems that I can remember has been Stellaris..... this might be for the best.

This is exactly why I have never and will never support Kickstarter or any other crowdfunding platform, including Steam's early access: developers are free to break their promises after taking your money, and there's nothing the consumer can do about it.

Yeah is a same reason because i never buy bloodstained*

*them use same situation, promise linux version but when them have required money proceed to cancel linux version

Given that the ONLY linux native version of any game to never give me problems that I can remember has been Stellaris..... this might be for the best.

This. I mean, the only bad part about this is that it was a goal, or a promise or whatever, that they're now throwing away or "giving up" on. Which is still pretty bad, don't get me wrong, not downplaying that part, especially for MacOS users, I don't think they have a Proton equivalent to play the game there? MacOS backers should get refunded.

But on Linux, I booted the game up yesterday, and it just works.... like, who the hell cares beyond this point? I asked the other day on this website what could the actual, real world disadvantages of playing through Proton vs Native, bearing in mind that Proton is slowly becoming the defacto Linux-supported method from game developers side, and other than large prefix folders potentially eating up space over time, it's pretty much nothing to bring up.

I asked the other day on this website what could the actual, real world disadvantages of playing through Proton vs Native, bearing in mind that Proton is slowly becoming the defacto Linux-supported method from game developers side, and other than large prefix folders potentially eating up space over time, it's pretty much nothing to bring up.

I'd like to say that a native Linux port means developers will officially support the game when there are issues, but in practice ports may be abandoned afterward, and even when developers are told about fixes, they might not get around to doing them as every Linux user can just work around it.

Native games are more prone to breakage if developers don't bundle all the right versions of libraries and end up depending on dynamic libraries on the system. And sometimes old libraries don't work anymore but newer ones do because something on the system they depend on has changed in a breaking way (e.g. fontconfig, yes really). Native games should really be shipped through Flatpak, like Dr. Robotnik's Ring Racers. That guarantees non-breakage.

Putting aside distribution, you also need to consider the engine. For example, Unity writes worse Vulkan calls than DXVK, which means it will perform worse than Proton: https://www.gamingonlinux.com/2023/08/heart-of-the-machine-from-arcen-games-dropping-native-linux-for-proton/

The final issue with native ports, as I mentioned earlier, is developers abandoning them later. It is apparently not uncommon for developers to update the Windows version but forget about the Mac and Linux versions for weeks. It's not unique to OSes; developers might also not bother to update their builds on GOG but keep their Steam builds up-to-date.

So, if a game is affected by one or more of these issues, Proton is a better option. But Proton isn't perfect. Not every feature has been implemented, and those that are may not be correctly implemented. So you'll run into bugs that impact performance or cause crashes. But on the other hand, Valve are generally quicker to fix bugs than some developers with second-class Linux ports.

Native ports are still better if they are well-maintained and tested, and built in an engine that cares about high performance on Linux. Factorio comes to mind.

But as you said, it isn't about any of that. Nightdive Studios made a promise and they broke it. It's a promise several studios on Kickstarter have made and broken. I don't think "having a native Linux port" is a selling point anymore. "Having a well-maintained and tested Linux version we promise to support for as long as the Windows version, built for performance" is the new bar.


Last edited by pleasereadthemanual on 22 May 2024 at 1:24 pm UTC

Typical Nightdive move. They continue to suck.

there are tons of open source projects that already deliver a lot of things...
and tons of kickstarter projects with broken promisses...

yet people only fund the second

I have removed the game from my wish list as will not support a studio who refuses to keep to their promises.

I have noticed a lot of publishers drop support for Linux and mac since the rise of Valves Proton (PDX as prime example). As much as I love what Proton has done for Linux gaming, I am now getting worried with the big decline in official Linux support through native builds.

I think the Linux gaming community needs to make a push for official support using Proton as an option. I don't like relying on Proton simply because the publisher can simply wash their hands and claim no support was guaranteed unless on windows. I have no problem using Proton but I want official support should a problem arise.

F

You know, I saw the writing on the wall for the Linux port cancellation ever since they switched to Unreal Engine. Many developers, especially the larger studios, are very fickle when it comes to promises of Linux support, so much so that unless a game is open source, I wouldn't trust them to support Linux.

There won't be much backlash over a cancelled Linux port. How much of the money in this Kickstarter campaign comes from Linux people? Probably about 7% or less. With that kind of number, it's easy to throw Linux people under the bus, especially when Linux gamers can run a lot of Windows games easily through WINE/Proton.

I expect this will be the norm until Linux gets to about 20% or 30% market share.

However, if Nightdive had pissed off >=60% of the backers, things would definitely change. For example, after all the backlash Sony received for trying to force PSN account linking in Helldivers 2, they gave up on it, even though Helldivers 2 is still unavailable to purchase in all the countries that were locked out of purchases when Sony first pulled this enshittification BS on their users.

If you're still livid about this, it may be worth trying to ask for a refund. I've never backed any Kickstarter campaigns myself, so I can't tell you how well this will work.

This encompasses perfectly why I gave up on Kickstarter years ago. Particularly disappointing given how much I advocated for it in its early days. Absolutely zero accountability from KS.

My last backed project was December 2014.

It depends on what you use it for:

1. Kickstarter/Gamefound/Backerkit are great for Board Games/TTRPGs. There are very few failures in that arena relative to video games.
2. Never go into Crowdfunding of any kind thinking you're money is related to being a customer. It's NOT, you're an investor that doesn't get any stake in the company or payout. Instead you get exclusive content and (usually for physical products) earlier access to the product than the rest of the public.

I mean, it's in the name - Crowdfunding, not Preorder.

As for those dissing on Early Access games. Without Early Access, a vast majority of video games will either then come only from Major Publishers, most of which have proven they can't be trusted, or from indie devs that are published by major publishers..... which leads to the same problem.

This is typical from them. DONT. EVER. SUPPORT. NIGHTDIVE. Horrible developer that somehow continues to exist despite lots of other good devs going under :(

This is typical from them. DONT. EVER. SUPPORT. NIGHTDIVE. Horrible developer that somehow continues to exist despite lots of other good devs going under :(

What else have they done wrong?

The Remasters they've worked on have all been well received.

Big god damn F

Never go into Crowdfunding of any kind thinking you're money is related to being a customer. It's NOT, you're an investor that doesn't get any stake in the company or payout. Instead you get exclusive content and (usually for physical products) earlier access to the product than the rest of the public.

That's just practically quoting Kickstarter's entire cop-out line. And it would be fine if it was actually even vaguely structured like that. But it's not. It's "pledge at this level, get these rewards". Or "meet this goal, we make this promise". At that point, there needs to be accountability. But KS hide behind their "you're an investor" line and shirk all responsibility.