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Obsidian Entertainment Say Linux's Future Is Good With Pillars Of Eternity

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Recently, we accepted an article that quoted Obsidian Entertainment saying Linux wasn't worth it. That same developer now has nicer comments about it all.

Speaking on their official forum he said this (emphasis mine):
QuoteHey, guys. I probably could have chosen my words better than I did. I wasn't trying to upset any of our Linux supporters and I didn't mean to belittle their support. I love all of our backers and I appreciate all of their help.

We basically had to build our Linux infrastructure from scratch on our side. It wasn't something we were used to. It was also painful for us to develop in Linux because the Unity tools didn't support Linux at the time. This meant that we were unable to debug on the platform.

Now that we have gone through the process of creating these builds it is something that will be much easier for us in the future. Pair that with SteamOS, Steam Controller, and Steam Machine and I think Linux's future is good with PoE games.


It's now a little more clear what he meant, but now that Unity does have the tools available maybe it will be easier? If Unity developers are reading, take note, your customers do need the editor on Linux. This is another example of it!

It also seems like another developer is waiting on SteamOS, which isn't surprising. I really hope it works out for us all. Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
Tags: Editorial
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I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. Find me on Mastodon.
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MayeulC Sep 2, 2015
Glad they clarified their post :)

A bit off-topic : do you think the vulkan specs will be released simultaneously as the steam machines?


Last edited by MayeulC on 2 September 2015 at 6:00 am UTC
Eike Sep 2, 2015
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Quoting: MyeulCA bit off-topic : do you think the vulkan specs will be released simultaneously as the steam machines?

No. It's neither that closely related nor would they want to push such an expression. It's cross-platform.
omer666 Sep 2, 2015
Quoting: liamdawe
Quoting: omer666As I said earlier, that was the producer talking, which didn't mean much in fact. Now this is a more official statement so to speak, and it only confirms what many others stated about porting being more of a benefit in the long run.

It's the same guy.

Uh my bad.
Beamboom Sep 2, 2015
... Or is this just damage control?
STiAT Sep 2, 2015
I've had asked them on Twitter myself, since I bought the expansion pass... good to see that I'll still be supported in future expansions and this wasn't a waste of money ;-). Though; I pledged 130 Euros for PoE, so 24 for one addon wouldn't have been that much :p.

There is also a note on reddit from Darren about it (one of the founders).
https://www.reddit.com/r/linux_gaming/comments/3izxkn/obsidian_on_the_linux_version_for_poe_around_one/cumfr5j

From this point of view, having to learn it, building the infrastructure, limited debugging capabilities (very true, I've dabbled with Unity and Linux Support in the past, and the testing / debugging process was a pain in Linux) - ye, the Port was probably a loss. But it isn't. They have learned a bunch (skill can't be taken off you and is an investment in the team), they now do have a infrastructure in place (which can't be taken off them, except if somebody breaks in their offices and clears it .. which I hope won't happen :D). Ok, and the Unity testing process due to tools being available gets better now, but that's not their doing but Unity finally listening to the developers (as them, so to say) calling out for wanting debugging tools in Linux. But we really can't blame them for not having the skills and tools, but they should have known when they did the kickstarter goal that Unity is not just export & release :p. Well for some it is, but that won't work well, in this case: Cool they did go the extra-mile of testing/debugging it properly.

For now, I judge it that we're safe for PoE sequel. Even if Darren states there are no plans on dropping linux development, I doubt they wouldn't check before their next game. In the end, they want to generate money to generate their saleries. But I personally think that for especially content creators it's complicated: They want as many people to enjoy their content as possible. So if it's not a huge loss, you may see some "I think we can afford to do it and still profit a good deal" too.

Considering Linux a 2 % share means they still generated (roughly estimated) 20 milllions out of it, having ~4 Millions in pledges only calculating steam sales a revenue of 12-16 million (don't forget, the minimum pledge was less than the sales price). Before taxes of course, but still a bunch of money which should be enough to be working on some new stuff ;-). Ye, not by us Linux gamers... but I hope that gets better some day. I don't see the market share jumping up to 5 % despite Valves investments, but I can see the development costs reducing in future by better tools for developers, especially with Vulkan, Unity having Tools, UE4 etc. If the content creators cut even or do some profit, they might just do it more and more.

Feral & Co for some reason seem to be able to make a living out of porting as well. The majority may come from OSX ports, but the company still exists :D.


Last edited by STiAT on 2 September 2015 at 9:52 pm UTC
slaapliedje Sep 3, 2015
Almost sounds to me like they paid attention to the math that people posred in various places and decided they did make enough money for the support, so they apologized.
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