Steambox is real

[RCBH928]

I am so confused...

Steam catalogue is something like 90% windows games, but they releases a SteamBox that will not be able to play 90% of their games? That does not even make sense

[marurun]

They are trying to establish Linux as a valid gaming OS, and they are trying to avoid dealing with Microsoft's hegemony. You'll notice that Valve has been releasing Linux versions of all their games for a couple years now, including releasing Linux versions of older titles. The Humble Bundle has got many indie developers releasing their games on Linux as well. In fact, with Valve and now Intel, NVidia, and AMD focusing more on their Linux video drivers, Linux is starting to achieve a kind of performance parity. If this keeps up, more and more devs will be able to make Linux versions of games more easily, and they will be more incentivised to do so.

Make no mistake, this is as much a political move on Valve's part as anything else, but if it is successful it can only be good for the games industry and gamers.

[Ack]

Make no mistake, this is as much a political move on Valve's part as anything else, but if it is successful it can only be good for the games industry and gamers.

Not only that, but as Microsoft becomes more and more focused on tablets, it might be necessary for PC gaming to make the jump away from a Microsoft OS.

[GSZX1337]

It's nice to get up in the morning to see that two other posters have already said what you were going to say. Really appeals to my laziness.

[RCBH928]

If Valve is trying to walk that road... then it is a very long road to take . Microsoft has been kind of the PC for like 20 years or more, I really have a hard time seeing people switching their computer to Linux just to play the games .

I do not understand programming , but I understand that it will take serious work to make any game released on Linux and Windows. For some one who has been following Linux news for a long time, my jaw will be breaking the ground I am standing on if I see the next block-buster game as a Linux exclusive.

What is bothering Valve about Microsoft any way?

[Xonticus]

What is bothering Valve about Microsoft any way?

A first thought is that many of Valve's founders were ex-Microsoft employees, so there could still be some bad air between them, also Gabe Newell openly criticized Windows 8 as one step closer to bringing PC's to a walled-garden environment.

I personally believe Valve should make more of an effort to make some deals with Microsoft, or at least come to some sort of common ground (or maybe this is Microsoft's fault? possibly...) before Steam OS launches and gamers are possibly split between two Pc gaming platforms.

I really hope Steam Boxes and Steam OS do more to unify the PC gaming market and experience without alienating Windows PC gamers.

[marurun]

I do not understand programming , but I understand that it will take serious work to make any game released on Linux and Windows. For some one who has been following Linux news for a long time, my jaw will be breaking the ground I am standing on if I see the next block-buster game as a Linux exclusive.

Valve isn't shooting for Linux exclusives, really. Certainly not any time soon. They just want to present a viable alternative.

That said, how difficult it is to port code to Linux completely depends. If you make a game working exclusively in Virtual Studio and using DirectX for all your libraries, yeah, it's going to be a time-consuming PITA. If you start out working with more cross-compatible tools, aiming for cross-platform at the beginning, it saves tons of time and energy. There is OpenGL, OpenAL (and descendants), SDL, etc...

Indie developers typically have an easier time because these tools tend to be easier to use with indie-styled games. The AAA games will have the most trouble, because those developers usually have very tight toolchains and any deviation slows them down a lot and makes them nervous. I should note, however, that the UnrealEngine is Linux compatible and works with Linux libraries. There are other major engines that are inherently Linux compatible as well, including Valve's own Source engine. So if you're working with a well-recognized engine, the pain will be lessened significantly.

[RCBH928]

Are you saying that we could see games like GTA 5, Assassin's Creed, and Doom 4 released on Linux and Mac simultaneously with Windows ?

Even if they could I guess they will not be putting the effort into doing so because its not a lucrative business. I am guessing the Linux market is very small, and within that small market are a very small number of gamers, since most Linux users are probably doing some serious networking/programming material and are not casual users/gamers . Given that the Linux community is a one where they highly regard open and FREE software , maybe they will not be so much into paying for Triple A games. Although I could see it happening if Valve releases some sort of a Linux flavour that could be a "gamer's linux" just like Google released Linux for smart-phones and called it Android ... maybe?

As for mac users, well... I am guessing most mac users will be with hardware that is unable to run the game in the first place

[isiolia]

Are you saying that we could see games like GTA 5, Assassin's Creed, and Doom 4 released on Linux and Mac simultaneously with Windows ?

The PS4 is using a version of UNIX that would, theoretically, be easier to port to Linux and OS X from.

Obviously, there'd still be a matter testing, marketing, support, and so on.

[RCBH928]

Are you saying that we could see games like GTA 5, Assassin's Creed, and Doom 4 released on Linux and Mac simultaneously with Windows ?

The PS4 is using a version of UNIX that would, theoretically, be easier to port to Linux and OS X from.

Obviously, there'd still be a matter testing, marketing, support, and so on.

very interesting...