The Interesting Banshee Game Engine Now Officially Supports Linux

[phoronix]

Phoronix: The Interesting Banshee Game Engine Now Officially Supports Linux

We previously covered Banshee as one of the interesting Vulkan-based projects with this open-source game engine supporting OpenGL / Direct3D 11 and as of January added Vulkan support. They had been planning to firm up Linux support for Q4 and they have managed to strike that goal...

http://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=news_item&px=Banshee-Engine-Linux-Support

[schmidtbag]

I'm not surprised Linux support came first - it's probably easier to implement than it is for Mac. Despite the relative consistency of Macs, I get the impression Mac is somewhat difficult to make games for, due to outdated drivers, outdated libraries, dealing with Quartz, and I'm sure Metal doesn't make life any easier (though I don't know why Vulkan couldn't be used instead).

[starshipeleven]

I'm not surprised Linux support came first - it's probably easier to implement than it is for Mac. Despite the relative consistency of Macs, I get the impression Mac is somewhat difficult to make games for, due to outdated drivers, outdated libraries, dealing with Quartz, and I'm sure Metal doesn't make life any easier (though I don't know why Vulkan couldn't be used instead).

I'm more of the impression that Apple devices don't have the hardware to actually run anything heavier than MOBA/MMORPG crap.

If we exclude the Mac Pros anyway.

[schmidtbag]

I'm more of the impression that Apple devices don't have the hardware to actually run anything heavier than MOBA/MMORPG crap.

If we exclude the Mac Pros anyway.

True but when you consider the average PC gamer also uses stuff like Intel graphics or a thermal-throttled GTX 960(M), the average modern Mac suddenly doesn't look so terrible. So when you take mediocre hardware and stack that on top of the difficulties of developing for Mac, you've got an unattractive platform. The only reason Linux is usually deemed more unappealing to devs for so long is because of how horribly inconsistent or fragmented it is, whether that be the GUI used, drivers (open vs closed source), distros with their own upstream kernels, and so on. Sometimes I get why devs prefer Windows (aside from its popularity).

[theriddick]

I think some of the newer Mac PC's coming out are actually looking at putting in a decent GPU. So perhaps things will look different in the future for Mac gaming and more higher end graphics engines that have higher requirements. Will be interesting to see someone release a decent game on Mac with MetalVK.

PS. Not a Mac fan, but with better games coming to Mac, it seems to encourage developers to also release a Linux version to pick up a few extra sales on top.

[feregember]

The only reason Linux is usually deemed more unappealing to devs for so long is because of how horribly inconsistent or fragmented it is, whether that be the GUI used, drivers (open vs closed source), distros with their own upstream kernels, and so on. Sometimes I get why devs prefer Windows (aside from its popularity).

I dont believe its the fragmentation. Linux seems fragmented only for those who develop system software. Normal desktop applications can be built on libraries like Qt, SDL, OpenGL.

[schmidtbag]

I dont believe its the fragmentation. Linux seems fragmented only for those who develop system software. Normal desktop applications can be built on libraries like Qt, SDL, OpenGL.

You are mostly right, but unfortunately most commercial software companies don't realize this. However, I think the real problem comes down to customer support. It becomes nearly impossible once you have so much variation.

[Ikaris]

Dev studio support also becomes an issue fast. Need a patch for an Open Source solution? Ok, here's a $15.000 bill, see you in a week (before accounting for variations...) Need a patch for DirectX 12? Ok, here's a relatively affordable bill, get your patch in under 24h.

This also matters to companies. Vulkan being backed by AMD helps the API a lot compared to OpenGL.

[V1tol]

... I'm sure Metal doesn't make life any easier (though I don't know why Vulkan couldn't be used instead).

The problem is that Vulkan is not available on Macs right now. And I think it will never be available, because Apple don't want to see a competitor to their Metal (and I agree that this is a stupid position).