So far I gather from all this that people have their magnifying glasses out and are trying to put AMD, nVidia, Intel & Developers under a microscope to understand exactly why AMD Cards aren't selling well and how this will effect the future market landscape of PC Gaming Video Cards.

In my opinion those that are saying that AMD cards simply fail to deliver in performance and stability are painfully correct. This can be dissected to reveal AMD's Linux Drivers are said to be cumbersome & nonperformance. If you really wanna split a hair and dissect the situation further you can say that game developers producing butchered code makes unstable and nonperformance problem worse by making AMD Hardware do less than it was designed to do. (You'd be at least partially correct that that element is co-morbid to other primary issues.)

I think in the case of Alien Isolation it's safe to say that Ferrel Interactive probably had a discussion that went something like this

FI: "The base package is $80,000-$120,000 which includes a estimated X hours towards the port project."
FI: "This will get you nVidia support which covers about 70-80% of the market"
FI: "AMD & Intel optimizations will cost an extra $10,000 - $20,000 depending on the complexities which our team is ready to do if you'd like, however the market share is only 20% of gamers as of present."
Client: "Lets just start with the base package and if / when we need to add AMD support. We'll tackle that later after we get a better idea of the return on this investment."
FI: "You got it - 2 developers will begin the project as soon as we get payment."
[Client hands Ferrel Interactive $100,000 check]

I just bought a second nVidia GTX 970 for my other Steam Linux Rig - you know why? 1 ) It's stable, 2 ) I expect the 9xx series to be supported fully by nVidia as it'll launch with SteamOS 3 ) I don't wanna d1ck around fixing my GPU or hacking my games to work properly when Linux already requires high maintenance, 4 ) When a Windows Gamer tries to bash on Linux I can instantly make Linux look super bad-ass because of being built with bad-ass gaming hardware & running a 4k monitor with it. (No I'm not a nvidia fanboy or whatever, I just choose the best, and maybe some Linux people would dump Linux if they could afford to get Apples, but I for one use Linux because it's technically superior to OSX and Windows, not because its the economical choice.)

If AMD was further along in the race and had their driver at a more stable & reliable state I would have happily thrown my $800 into their bank account as I love to support the underdog. Hopefully, my next upgrade cycle will be AMD (2x Linux). Hopefully my Client (1x Linux) & Family's (3x Linux) gaming systems will be AMD (upgrading in 12 months). If AMD proves themselves worthy, they will be selected.

Time and again for the last 3 years I've contacted AMD's support pleading for better Linux drivers and after going through a 30 question contact form that was more difficult and cumbersome to fill out than a job application - I don't even recall getting a reply. Their overly complicated contact form was simply a symptom of major infrastructure issues which is now evident by their financial crisis & bad market consumer opinions. In fact, I hypothesize their recent chip maker leaving may have been contributed to by the infrastructure and internal politic issues of the company.

I just hope in 12 months the future is bright, we all have to vote with our wallets by buying steam games and video cards to make Linux & SteamOS succeed.

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WTP

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View video on youtube.com
RedLetterMedia Alien Isolation [External Link]

Rewatching this review now to see if I wanna get this or not sometime.

** potential spoilers.

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This always struct me as a Window Shopper game, one that looks good on display but isn't that fun, practical or awesome once you buy it.

I hope to hear feedback contrary as AOW3 looks very interesting but IRL I think that 0 A.D. is likely more fun and it's not even complete yet.

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Time to drop another $200 - $400 for another Linux PC in da house.

I have to admit that AMD has be tempted. These articles are really helpful its just sad that the sum AMD will be out is $600-800 by the end of this upgrade cycle for me.

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How do people not see the USB Micro connection @ Time Index 3:36?

Also, I recently am using Steam Big Picture on my ArchBox on a 43" 4k TV and it's truly amazing - It makes me want to go out and buy buy buy Steam Linux Games by the truck load.

The Experience has changed quite a bit, maybe we should have a post on that as it seems things like daisy wheel are hindsight at this time with the awesome improvements.

Bravo Steam, Lots of $$$ is in their future.

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Always was interested in XCOM but it never seemed like my kind of game - here goes nothing I guess.

(Anyone who wants to rave - tell me what its like, I just hope with every AAA game that its something 4 me.)

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Quoting: amonobeaxWell have you notice the "Custom Games" tab in the Screenshot?

Dota2 Reborn now have CUSTOM maps integrated with steam servers. You look for a map, install it and then queue for a match ALL INTEGRATED.

Overthrow Game Mode is super fun. You get 3 teams of 5 v 5 v 5 and you battle for a Team Kill Score of 45 to win.
View video on youtube.com
** It kindof feels slightly like Dominion from League of Legends probably because of the giant circle arena - however instead of capturing points you collect team kills.

You can also play overthrow in smaller teams (I think 3v3v3 and 2v2v2v2?)

There's also a Cat & Mouse mode like from StarCraft 1. among many other modes and a DOTA 2 Map Editor which is pretty badass.

Quoting: liamdaweI still don't recommend playing the game unless you have a full party of people you know, as the community is truly horrible.

I think what he means is add him on steam ;) ;)

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To me "no plans" is a very vague overstatement as Workshop Tools on Linux seems inevitable.

Being from California (where Valve operates) we often use language in a very minimalist and ellipsed way to communicate quickly instead of concisely. My interpretation of his statement is that he meant "no plans yet"

To me this is also about the chicken and the egg - are Game Developers 100% equipped to operate on a creative basis on Linux PCs for game development? Not 100%. To my knowledge there is no 3D Studio Max, Maya, Photoshop, etc that I imagine are core elements in producing Original Workshop Content.

Also, I don't think it would be a terrible thing to hold off pulling the plug on Windows just yet as Streaming Windows games within a LAN seems to be part of Valve's strategy in conjunction with their Steam Machines (until SteamOS can play 80-100% of Windows Games).

Half Life 3 - SteamOS Exclusive Early Access - We Need You! :)

I saw Steam Controllers & Steam AlienWare consoles for pre-sale in the mall yesterday and I admit I was really tempted to sign up, Steam Machines are going to change gaming forever.

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Quoting: PeciskBlender, Inkscape and GIMP are certainly real alternatives for today's developer, especially those without lot of initial cash investment to spend on expensive software. As for GIMP it is certainly good for basic to intermediate work and only special filters is something it lacks (and there's lot of sub based image services to fill that niche).

I appreciate that you have a accurate appraisal of the situation - GIMP certainly will accommodate basic & intermediate users needs.

For professionals, however, the truth is simply - not yet. However one day I wouldn't be surprised to see GIMP surpass Photoshop simply because the GIMP Registry [External Link] has free addons. Additionally, GIMP does have a plugin that lets you use Photoshop Brushed in GIMP which is fantastic.

I get the feeling Adobe has been paid off by Microsoft/Apple to never come to Linux so the only way we're gonna win this tug of war is with GIMP, Krita, Karbon, Blender, LightWorks and Inkscape.

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