DXVK-Native Sees First Release For Easing Direct3D-To-Vulkan Game Porting On Linux

[phoronix]

Phoronix: DXVK-Native Sees First Release For Easing Direct3D-To-Vulkan Game Porting On Linux

DXVK has proven to be a huge success for improving the experience of running Windows Direct3D 9/10/11 games on Linux by translating those D3D calls to Vulkan. DXVK-Native meanwhile is the newer spin-off effort around providing a DXVK-based build native for Linux to help in game ports that still can then rely on their Direct3D renderer path...

https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=DXVK-Native-First-Release

[yoshi314]

so, basically you can use directx api in linux binaries, for easier porting.

That is interesting interesting, but only for recent game releases.

[jntesteves]

so, basically you can use directx api in linux binaries, for easier porting.

Actually, you can use the DXVK API, which is similar, but not exactly the same thing. It's a different implementation of the D3D API, so performance behaves in different ways, optimization work is different. This move gives further incentives for developers to target DXVK and optimize for it, so it could pay dividends for Linux gaming as a whole, even for non-ported games running on Wine, since game-engine codebases are often shared.

[rmfx]

Modern games engines all support Vulkan.
First question is why using DX in the first place then wrappers after, when you can just use the best API that’s crossplatform ?

[GruenSein]

Modern games engines all support Vulkan.
First question is why using DX in the first place then wrappers after, when you can just use the best API that’s crossplatform ?

Because your target audience might be using Windows (VK optional) and XBox (no VK to my knowledge). And the PS5 has its own thing.
Linux, Android, etc. pp. are just a drop in the bucket compared to those platforms.

[skeevy420]

Modern games engines all support Vulkan.
First question is why using DX in the first place then wrappers after, when you can just use the best API that’s crossplatform ?

With new stuff, sure, totally with you, but there are more use-cases like porting older stuff where Vulkan didn't exist when it was created so we need DirectXYZ to Vulkan layers. I imagine this is for games in that grey zone that still have their sources laying around somewhere. For games where they could support Linux if they didn't have to to recode it for Vulkan

[rmfx]

Because your target audience might be using Windows (VK optional) and XBox (no VK to my knowledge). And the PS5 has its own thing.
Linux, Android, etc. pp. are just a drop in the bucket compared to those platforms.

Vulkan is available on literally every Windows machine since the official drivers all gamers use pack a Vulkan driver.
If a game engine can export for PS5 and XBox, that means the game engine supports multiple renderer API targets, in this case, gamedevs can use Vulkan for PC easy.

I would like to see that only old games chose DirectX only, but there are still many modern games that still do that... by habit I guess. And it's quite a nonsense shame.
I wish the best success for SteamDeck so that Vulkan, and even better, Native Linux + Vulkan become a mainstream option.

[rabcor]

Because your target audience might be using Windows (VK optional) and XBox (no VK to my knowledge). And the PS5 has its own thing.
Linux, Android, etc. pp. are just a drop in the bucket compared to those platforms.

Android, drop in the bucket he says...

[tildearrow]

Modern games engines all support Vulkan.
First question is why using DX in the first place then wrappers after, when you can just use the best API that’s crossplatform ?

Marketing. That's it.
DirectX has decades of history as a well-settled name on Windows land.
Vulkan only has a few years of existence so people may be confused thinking "What's Vulkan?".

Plus I kind of feel it is easier to collaborate with Microsoft to create new standards (e.g. ray-tracing in the case of NVIDIA) than with Khronos (process is open, which would kill the "surprised" feeling of an audience).

[orzel]

I didn't understant anything in the article. I think the point is that DXVK-Native is somehow related to DXVK though different. But I didn't understand the difference. And i know what vulkan, direct3D and such are.