Linux Gaming Center

[whoololon]

Well, under this title, which could very well be that of some specific distro or a common application, I would like to discuss the current capacity of said environment (Linux) to offer itself as an alternative to demanding players.
Likewise, to evaluate the short-term options, if any, of this OS eventually equating to Windows.

Applications like Steam, the well-known Wine, together with tools like PlayOnLinux, or specialized distros like Manjaro or SteamOS, have paved the way quite a bit.

Yes, while the two graphics assemblers don't make things easier, there won't be much to scratch; and even with projects like RADV, things seem to still be a long way off.

Anyway, after stating that I don't have a clue about Linux, what do you guys think?

[cobito]

Linux has two advantages that no other operating system has: it is multi-architecture and can run on any device, from smartwatches to supercomputing centers. Neither Windows nor MacOS are capable of that. Those two advantages, along with the popularization of the ARM architecture, invite the emergence of new gaming platforms whose hardware is relatively inexpensive. An example is Nvidia's Tegra platform, which, by the way, will be the one used by Nintendo's next console. It is not known if it will use Linux as an operating system, but after reading things like this the possibility arises that it might.

On the other hand, we have a heavyweight who has come to the conclusion that Linux could be interesting for gaming: Valve. They have not only ported their most representative titles to Linux but have also created the infrastructure to port graphics engines programmed for Windows to Linux. Or, in other words, they have found a way to translate DirectX engines to OpenGL. In fact, Source works on Linux in this way; at first it had a poor performance but in a short time it almost equaled Windows.

It was precisely Valve that encountered the problem of using Linux for gaming: the lack of a competent infrastructure. And the fact that this subject has been pending for so long has led to the abandonment of certain aspects of OpenGL. We have Valve developers complaining about OpenGL and others criticizing the shortcomings of the free API. In summary: DirectX is superior to OpenGL in games.

On the other hand, Valve has promoted a hardware platform: the Steam Machine. It is a console-PC that anyone can actually manufacture. But there are assemblers who give you the finished product with the advantage that you can choose the hardware according to your gaming needs. This would not be too relevant if it were not because one of the specifications of the console is that it carries SteamOS, a distro derived from Debian that is maintained directly by Valve itself including adjustments to make games run better.

Speaking of games, for the moment the only platform with weight continues to be Steam, which has more than 5000 titles for Linux (according to its store). The vast majority are independent developments that are not worth much, but more and more AAA titles are being found. In this aspect there is still a long way to go, but in very few years the leap has been spectacular and the good thing is that the trend continues to be very upward.

And to finish, we have the drivers. Currently, Linux has very good support for the three big ones: Nvidia, AMD, and Intel. Leaving Intel aside because it is not representative in either performance or market share in gamers, Nvidia continues to offer a first-party proprietary driver. In fact, its performance is comparable to that of Windows. For its part, AMD is immersed in a kind of restructuring: Initially it had poor support with a proprietary driver and the free alternative left much to be desired. While its proprietary driver continued to be bad, it began to publish documentation that facilitated the development of quite competent alternative free drivers. The latest news on this is that AMD has abandoned the development of its classic proprietary drivers for Linux and has created AMDGPU, which is divided into two drivers: one free that offers 2D functionality and another proprietary with the advanced functions of 3D, both maintained by the company. But thanks to the documentation, a free driver with 3D acceleration that promises has appeared.

As a bonus: Vulkan. It would solve all the problems found in OpenGL but is not yet widely spread. If it succeeds, it would end one of the most important obstacles when developing cross-platform games. Time will tell.