Quoting: pilkQuestion, has anyone else noticed the game defaulting to DirectX 11 on Linux instead of Vulkan? I was wondering why a native Linux game was taking that long to process shaders, and that seemed to be the culprit. Swapped it over to Vulkan.

It's not native (yet?).

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Quoting: NexxticWe've already sold more units than expected just making the game that we want to make and sticking with our own vision.

Since you're here, I'll repeat what I've said in the comments for every article about Selaco (of which there have been plenty, because we're very interested in the game): I'm really looking forward to this coming out of Early Access (since I don't buy Early Access games), when I'll buy the game at full price (because Linux is natively supported), and I'll play it on my Deck (yay, green tick!).

Good luck with the remainder of the game's development and release.

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Quoting: drdindu2why would microsoft do that? this helps microsoft. every game that doesn't run on linux is one less user leaving windows for linux.

Because one bad update to something with kernel access can BSoD 8.5 million Windows machines worldwide [External Link] in one go.

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Quoting: MohandevirThere is another thing to take into account, though. I do not have statistics to back this, but many PC gamers are DIY builders. Windows doesn't come preinstalled on these PC. If Valve releases a desktop version of SteamOS, it might lure a couple of them to our side. It's already begun.

Yeah, I don't have statistics either, but the impression that I get is that fewer gamers DIY build than they used to: back in the day, building your own machine, tweaking settings and config files, and doing all sorts of fiddling to get the maximum out of it was part-and-parcel of PC gaming; my understanding is that that kind of knowledge and experimentation is much less prevalent amongst gamers these days, which might mean that DIY building is also less prevalent.

But, yeah, if people are in a position to choose their OS (because they're going to have to install something regardless) then some may well choose Linux - especially if they're chafing from things like the enforced Microsoft account.

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What have you been enjoying the most on Steam Deck recently?

I've been streaming Death Stranding [External Link] off and on from my desktop even though I've completed the game, played quite a bit of Sail Forth [External Link], completed Contrast [External Link], and just started Dex [External Link]. I've also done a few runs through of Metal Gear Solid with RetroDeck.

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Quoting: MohandevirBad wording from my part, I should have used "Windows" instead of "Microsoft", I admit. My bad.

On the happy side, Linux has advantages over Windows for gaming. Games can run better on Linux even when they aren't built, or optimised, or tested, for Linux, and it's much easier to put together a controller-friendly interface using the abstractions of the Linux ecosystem than it is to do the same in the integrated Windows ecosystem.

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Quoting: MohandevirYeah ok. We were talking about OS only, technologically speaking, but yeah, in a business sense, MS is much bigger than that. Still, MS games are on Steam and are quite nearly all playable on the Steam Deck, last time I checked? This is what we were talking about.

For now.

After they've got their iOS and Android stores to tie in with their DirectX box store and their Windows store, seeded with the biggest games in the industry, with an Epic-matching publisher cut, everyone who buys a computer already having the Microsoft store and a Microsoft account, and Microsoft having all the money? Who can say for sure? Valve feared that outcome, which is why they invested in Linux in the first place. If the battle between Microsoft and Valve over PC gaming does kick off there's no guarantee that Linux gamers will still have access to all the new games, anti-cheat or not.

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Quoting: MohandevirUnfortunately, you are right about that. It's probably the only advantage that Microsoft still got over Linux, in gaming.

It's not the only advantage. They've also got a subscription service, their own console line, and hundreds of game studios (including the - by far - largest ever gaming industry acquisition) to lock people into Windows-only stuff, as well as being the default on essentially every computer people might buy.

Quoting: MohandevirThey will probably cling to it as long as possible even if giving kernel access to a game, which is absolutely not an essential service, doesn't make sense.

That was such a terrible solution. The proper response to "Microsoft's AV gets special access to the kernel that other AVs don't" isn't "everyone gets to futz with the kernel," it's "Microsoft's AV doesn't get to futz with the kernel, either."

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Love the Darkside Detective games. I played through both of them on the Deck and had a whale of a time.

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Quoting: BeemerI can't seem to find a definitive "Snap was announced/started at <somedate>"

It wasn't "snap" at the start. It was "click" for the Ubuntu Phone in 2013, then "snappy" for containers and IoT around 2014/2015, then became "snap" at some point after - potentially around the time it was made available on other distros.

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