Quoting: Shmerl

Quoting: jensI know Feral/Aspyr games are not on your favorite distribution channel

I don't like Steam exclusivity any more than Windows exclusivity. But when DRM is thrown in, it makes it even worse.

That is a rather evasive response to my question. :)

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Quoting: Comandante ÑoñardoI was trying to install the Windows DRMFREE version on wine staging 2.19 64 bit...
The install process was fine until the setup was trying to install Microsoft Visual C ++ 2015 resulting in a series of errors

This is the punishment of the Linux Gods for buying the windows version instead of the one for Linux :):)

Sorry, no wine knowledge here, can't help you with this error.

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Quoting: Comandante Ñoñardo

Quoting: BeamboomThe whole problem here is that we call these releases "ports", when they in fact are "wrapped". Nobody expects a game run in Wine to be on par with Windows performance. We should apply that same expectation on these games.

They are not ported, the source code is not "translated" to run natively. They have had added an extra layer so that they don't NEED to be ported. This is a crucial difference.

And from THAT perspective, these releases are pretty damn impressive. They are like Wine on steroids, with a 100% smooth experience and pretty darn good performance.

They just are NOT ports.

Sadly, the actual Linux gaming porting scenario consist in legally crack a windows port of a console game for to make it work on a Linux machine.

Now, I don't want Linux game porters/crackers, I want true Linux game developers.

If someday I have a game "porting" company, my method will be this:
1. Get the publishing rights
2. Get the game assets and code
3. Develop a game using those assets that must look and behave identical to the original console/windows game.

The result will not be a Linux port of a Windows/console game; it will be a Linux version of that Windows/console game.

This method will take more time, but the result will be better and indeed it can be done at the same time of the console/windows development stage.

And, unlike a Linux port of a Windows port of a console game, a Linux version can include features that the original Windows/console don't have, such as better textures, better physics or even extra levels to play.

Yes, this is the perfect world. I would prefer that developers take Linux from the beginning into account too. But it won't happen for AAA games unless it will become realistic to sell something like 1 million copies (just a guess, but certainly not much less) of a game solemnly on Linux. That's still a long road to go (explained here https://www.gamingonlinux.com/articles/observer-is-a-fantastic-brain-hacking-horror-adventure-my-thoughts.10644/comment_id=107101 :) ).

For now we have to stick to games that are afterwards modified to run on Linux (and we need to buy them!!!). But to be honest, it is the result that counts. The quality of Feral/Aspyr/VP etc. reached an astonishing level. I don't mind the small performance penalty or the knowledge that it could be better. The games are rock solid, beautiful, very smooth and fast enough to keep me enjoyed for a long time.

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Quoting: Shmerl

Quoting: jensStated differently, wine shouldn't compete with Feral or Aspyr titles, that would hurt the Linux market.

For me it doesn't :) I barely see any Feral or Aspyr titles on GOG ;)

But you do know that it is kind of hypocrite if you are advocating Linux everywhere but would buy lets say Tomb Raider 2013 for Windows when there is a Linux port? I know Feral/Aspyr games are not on your favorite distribution channel, but would your Linux support end when it concerns a title like this?
Note that I didn't say that you did this ;)

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Quoting: adamhmI think there is a balance to be struck here though; it's not a problem IMO if people wait & buy such games when they're old & deeply discounted enough (and ideally DRM-free since DRM tends to cause a lot of hassle with Wine, plus getting such games DRM-free at least supports that cause), and save the full/high price purchases for titles that do support Linux.

Yes, I agree. Personally I don't buy any windows games anymore but I occasionally use dosbox for my nostalgic moments which is basically similar. The question then is how old is "old", 10 years would be my point of balance ;). Stated differently, wine shouldn't compete with Feral or Aspyr titles, that would hurt the Linux market.

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Quoting: Shmerl

Quoting: jensMost owners and Executives I have spoken have my deepest respects. It is really not so easy to ensure that a company survives and to bear their responsibility.

I have no respect for control freaks who push DRM everywhere, while knowing it has nothing to do with increasing profits. I suspect Linux situation falls in the same irrational behavior category.

Start your own company and do it better ;)

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Quoting: Shmerl

Quoting: jensBut from their point of view it is still about just making money, or in case of publishers: trying everything they think is needed to max out their investments.

Urge for power is different from urge for money. They can combine together, but they can actually be conflicting. I.e. these execs can even rationally understand, that something they do would mean lost profits, but they still would do it, to feel more control. That's quite irrational from the pure financial point of view. That's why I said, don't just use common sense logic with them - it won't explain their behaviors in certain cases.

Here is a good example of this [External Link].

Yeah ok, obviously CEO's are found of their positions and accept a short-term loss for a long-term win. There are always political fights and different agenda's at the top of an organisation. That said, they are still normal people that just want to make the best out of their lifes. Their viewpoint is just completely different :). Most owners and Executives I have spoken have my deepest respects. It is really not so easy to ensure that a company survives and to bear their responsibility.

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Quoting: edddeduck_feral

Quoting: wleoncio

Quoting: edddeduck_feralWe worked with Fanatec to get full support for their wheels on Mac and Linux starting with F1 2017, this includes Force Feedback, LED shift support and speed details on the LED display if you have an F1 style wheel. As far as we know we're the only game developer to have full Linux support for these wheels right now so we're pretty excited to see what everyone thinks!

That is such great news! I've been meaning to purchase a Fanatec wheel (mainly because of how easy they can be disassembled), but I wouldn't pull the trigger on such an expensive setup before being basically 100% sure it would work on all my racing games.

Right now only F1 2017 is supported with Force Feedback etc on Linux. But going forward we'll have it in our future racing games. :D

I have pretty cool Force Feedback effects on my G25 with Dirt Rally on Linux too :)

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Quoting: Shmerl

Quoting: jens

Quoting: ShmerlTheir mindset is not something you should evaluate using common sense.

It's actually pretty easy, it's just about making (lots of) money. Really, that's the only motivation. ;)

Not necessarily. You are again using common sense approach with them. Sure, normal business strives to make money. But legacy publishers are dominated by backwards thinking execs who more often than money covet control. Urge for power can lead them to do things that cost them money, rather than the opposite.

But from their point of view it is still about just making money, or in case of publishers: trying everything they think is needed to max out their investments.

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Quoting: Alm888The typical Windows-Joe does not have GTX 1080Ti, (s)he uses crappy laptop with integrated GPU and wants to play cool games now.

Yes, this is what I said. The average Joe is happy when the game is playable and enjoyable, they don't care (or care less) that not all settings are maxed out. Thus the current performance penalty with ports is not that tragic than one might think. And next to that performance will increase over time.

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