Fallout: New Vegas PC Using Steamworks DRM

[FordGT90Concept]

Cost and hardware. Most computer games these days are XBox 360 ports and they can't have no slouch of hardware to run them. Mac has limited video card selection (most of which aren't enough to play new games) and systems that have Linux installed often are equiped with low-end hardware. If Linux and Mac are virtually the same from the ground design perspective, it may be somewhat aluring to developers but, when publishers take into consideration that combined, they represent less than 15% (~5% Linux, ~8% Mac) of the computer market, they'll shy away. It is expensive to develop for, most likely generates a lot of techsupport contacts due to inadequate hardware, and there really aren't enough potential customers to turn a profit.

Conclusion: Valve is taking a huge risk that only EA with huge franchises (namely, The Sims) dares to go there. We'll see how it turns out but the forecast doesn't look good.


@digibucc: Converting DirectX calls to OpenGL is the greatest hurdle.

 

[digibucc]

still - the trend is moving away from proprietary and portability becoming the norm. i think it's only a matter of time before the majority of games, including big name ones - are on "alternative" platforms.

then everyone can enjoy the awesomeness of ports.

 

[phanbuey]

still - the trend is moving away from proprietary and portability becoming the norm. i think it's only a matter of time before the majority of games, including big name ones - are on "alternative" platforms.

then everyone can enjoy the awesomeness of ports.

Totally agree there with you... pretty soon the concept of a 'port' will be eliminated altogether.

As it becomes more common, we will get better at it, and the flaws of ports will be ironed out. it will just be a 'game' and cross platform will be the norm. After all... why only have one when you can have them all?

 

[MilkyWay]

Every game on built on Direct X would need to be ported over to Open GL or emulated and i dont care what people say about whine its not near as efficient as native, its not an emulator its compatibility layers or something.

Ports can be buggy if they are not optimised for the PC, a few 360 ports are like that. If they optimised the game for pc it can run much better and look better on pc.

The steam client can be good because it has achievements, chat built in, a friends system ect so it is okay as far as features go but you are really relying on the steam platform its not like you can use the key elsewhere. If the platform has an issue you have an issue understand?

All you are doing is buying a code to use on steam; the disk holds the install but really its just a media to transport the install because as soon as the code is used you can easily download the data from the internet so there is more than one way to get the install. The install is just the game data, you need the serial to play it unless you use a crack. Your only buying a serial key to allow you to play the game! I think like a license of sorts.

I guess the advantage is that you can download it as many times as you like years ago if the physical media broke you no longer could play the game.

EDIT: I think without the individual and exclusive software the idea of a platform will just die out, if the ports where exactly the same then it would mean that the platform would become useless. Think the consoles all looking the same and doing the same thing there would be pretty much nothing to choose between them unless it had other features.

 

[digibucc]

EDIT: I think without the individual and exclusive software the idea of a platform will just die out, if the ports where exactly the same then it would mean that the platform would become useless. Think the consoles all looking the same and doing the same thing there would be pretty much nothing to choose between them unless it had other features.

yeah, no. standardized software and languages do not necessitate everything be the same.
that's like saying because we all are made of the same stuff AND speak english, we are all exactly the same.

things like style , performance, niche advertising will always give way to different options.
however i see what you mean - there will always have to be SOME kind of exclusive feature to make the differences actually mean anything.

 

[FordGT90Concept]

As it becomes more common, we will get better at it, and the flaws of ports will be ironed out. it will just be a 'game' and cross platform will be the norm. After all... why only have one when you can have them all?

That will only happen if console hardware duplicates computer hardware or computer hardware duplicates console hardware. All three of the last generation consoles used IBM processors. All computers use x86-derivatives. All consoles are short on RAM; computers are not. All consoles are using a 3+ year old design; computers use a 6 month old design at worst. The list is endless for one reason: cost.

Consoles are built to fulfill one role: play games. Computers are multirole. That singular objective of consoles, no matter the genre, is what makes them relatively cheap. A "port" is what spawns from taking software designed for specific hardware and you glue on the bits to make it hopefully work for thousands of hardware varieties. Basically, that isn't going to change in the foreseeable future.

There's only a handful of Mac and Linux titles that aren't ports from Windows. There's only a handful of titles on Windows that aren't ports from Xbox 360. As much as I hate to admit it, gaming is moving towards consoles and away from computers altogether. Because the console market is dominated by the console manufacturer in terms of supply and marketing, Valve can't move in that direction so instead, they try to grab up the other end of the spectrum--the minorities. It is a case of reaching down rather than up because, it would seem, up isn't an option for them.