I don't share the optimism, but if there's one moment I sincerely hope to be proven wrong, it's this time.

It has the potential to become of massive significance to Linux gaming as a whole, if - IF - it ever gains momentum in the mainstream. Or even if it just establish itself as a platform with a user base of 5-10% of the total Steam users.

But it could go both ways. I am worried it will just disappear again, like the Steam controller. And I hope that IF this flops, that it won't deflate their whole enthusiasm for Linux as a whole. That it not backfires.

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Quoting: EhvisTried a bit of VR today with SteamVR beta and the 470 driver. Async reprojection definitely works and is mostly positive. However, I'm now greeted with "Error -203" very quickly. I didn't even manage to start Talos before I got the error. Just messing around in SteamVR Home gave me the longest time before things bombed out with -203, about 20 minutes. Not sure if it's SteamVR beta, the 470 driver, or the combination of the two.

Ok this worries me, as it's primarily for VR I am excited about this driver.

I guess I'll wait for it to go out of beta. Thanks for the status report!

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Quoting: ObsidianBlkIt's actually no more or less difficult to pirate a game with or without the binary. Technically, just having any part the game is piracy, so, as far as distribution of files, it's six of one, half dozen of another whether it includes the binary or not. After all, the binary is useless without the assets and the assets are just interesting pictures and audio without the binary.

You missed the point of my post. You're now talking about the legalities. My comment was a response on the claim that "it only leads to more sales". Why would they take these actions if that was the *only* thinkable consequence?

It's much easier to just pirate asset files than cracking executable binaries to build a pirated copy of a game. That goes without saying. If one just bundled the (stolen) assets with this new alternative engine, that's a shortcut to piracy.

And like I said in the post you quote, I don't think they bother with this because of this particular game as it's so old (and practically free anyways). They just need to fight these initiatives because this might be a problem if it is done on newer titles with a higher market value (and a working DRM).

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No assets are included, which means to use the projects people need to actually buy a copy of the original game.

Just a thought, but won't this make piracy easier, and that's why they fight it? Sharing just the asset files in illegal ways should logically be way easier than to share the entire game w/implemented copyright protection.

I mean, not for THIS particular game, but in precedence in regards to future cases.
If they start allowing this practise they should logically then also have to allow a reverse engineered much more recent game with a working or tricky copyright protection.

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I'd rather pay for them just to get them in the steam collection instead, tbh. That's how much of a Steam addict I've become.

That, and the devs deserve the sale. They are good games.

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Quoting: EikeAnd before it, there were the single game handhelds...

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That's the ones! Notice the square logo on the upper left of the lower panel. Those are the "Game & Watch" games I mentioned. They were huuuuuge in the 80s. There were quite a few of them, both of the single and double screen types, and we traded them at school so that everyone could get to play all the games available.

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Quoting: HoriThey never entered the mainstream though, and it was long ago.

I guess you're very young.
The Nintendo Game Boy iterations were *massive*, like total world domination, for a long long time, to a greater degree that the Switch is today. If I remember correctly the market for Game Boy games were much bigger than the market for Playstation games, back then.
Nintendo created handheld gaming with the Game&Watch machines released back in 1980, and handheld gaming esblished itself in the mainstream from then on. They sold SHITLOADS of'em. Every kid I knew in the 80s had at least one.

I would summarise with handheld gaming being a mainstream thing - especially in Japan but also globally - all the way up until the smartphone took over that market. Then it died extremely abrupt.

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Quoting: elmapulAnyone trust valve to make an game console again after the steam machines flop?

Can not be compared.
The Steam Machine(s) were a train wreck of a launch partly due to it being announced way, waaaay too early (Valve may not have expected the instant response by the hardware manufacturers), but primarily because Valve did not make this game console. They just provided the (premature) OS. It was up to whoever out there to make whatever PC-in-a-console-hood they wanted to and put SteamOS on it. No directions, no restrictions, no plan whatsoever.

That was a horrible idea. Horrible!

So while I do share your pessimism it's for entirely different reasons.

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Quoting: MohandevirMobile gaming? You mean like in Android playstore games? Because these are two different breeds of players. I, for one, never ever considered mobile games. Candy crush, June's Journey and touch screens in general are not my kind of fix. My wife though... :)

You need to look into what's actually available for iPhone and Android. It's every single genre. There's RPGs, mmos, strategy games, adventure games, action, puzzle, you name it. Even ported PC games. For instance, Rockstar has put all their earlier Grand Theft Auto games on there. Republique (stealth, great game) is another example.

But this also boils down to what we actually want to play on small gaming devices. Back in the PSP days I had a TON of PSP games, all sorts. But my favourite games on that machine were indeed all small, quick, fun games that worked perfectly on a small device.

Quoting: MohandevirWhat about the Nintendo Switch? With the Wii U, Nintendo was on the verge of going under... The Switch saved them

This is why I wrote further up in my replies:

Quoting: BeamboomThe market will see this as yet another attempt to breath new life into an old market segment that's pretty much dead unless your name is Nintendo.

They are the one single instance that survived the fall of the market of handheld gaming devices. An amazing example, but there's an agreement that it was the insanely strong catalogue of IPs in their fold and their long standing rock solid reputation on portable gaming devices that made this to be even remotely possible.

Remember, Nintendo is primarily a handheld gaming company. That's their home turf. I'm not so sure that a bunch of PC games have that same ability to push handhelds. But we shall see!

Quoting: MohandevirImo the real deal is marketing... Mass products are requiring mass marketing (including support). This thing must be available everywhere it's possible and be advertised on every inches of all visible walls. That's how it usually works.

But the product must also resonate with the market. Sony pushed a hell of a massive marketing power behind the Vita. They had a 100% dedication on that device for years after the rest of us declared it dead in the water.
But they were not Nintendo. They didn't have that insanely strong brand for HANDHELD gaming devices. Even after the great success that were the PSP!

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Quoting: EikeI already own over 300 games that run on it.

Yeah that is as far as I can tell the one single argument for it. But the question remains: What PC game would someone with a full gaming rig at home (who I would presume is the case for any gamer with a solid Steam library) rather play on the portable? Because that's the real scenario here. What would we prefer to play on the small screen?

Sure, if on travel or holidays one could imagine wanting a unit like that. But would we really purchase one for those occasions where we sit on a bus or sleep at a hotel? Wouldn't we then rather just buy a game on our mobile phone for that temporary occasion? It's not like there is a lack of options.

If there's one case where I wish to be proven wrong, it's this one. I would love to see the resurrection of portable gaming consoles. I loved my PSP to bits. It was a machine I could not wait to play on again. A machine where I marvelled over the fact they were able to cram the entire Vice City into. A companion on all travels. An excuse in itself to travel!
But that was before mobile gaming took off. It was the PSP or nothing, I had no alternative. Would the average gamer invest in another gaming device when they already got a modern smart phone sitting right there?

Like I said, I'd love to be wrong. But my money is on that I'm not.

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