AAA games and GPU drivers - gaming discussion

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MintyMorkyMindy
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AAA games and GPU drivers - gaming discussion

Post by MintyMorkyMindy »

Linux has two challenges when it comes to gaming, the lack of AAA titles and the the lack of GPU software to run them.

On gaming sites one often sees screenshot comparisons between the PC version and the console versions. If and when Linux is added to that comparison, as it now stands, the Linux version may well be the equivalent of the lowest possible GPU setting compared to the PC, such as Windows 7.

Having recently installed amd-catalyst-14-9-linux-x86-x86-64.zip, it doesn't compare to the Windows 7 version, which is stunning.

It is one thing for Steam to provide more AAA games for Linux, but without the proper drivers, the games aren't as much fun.

...

What AAA or AA games look as good on Linut Mint 17 as they do on Windows 7,8,8.1 ?

What is the way these challenges will be addressed? Better GPU drivers or a different approach, or a mix thereof?

Will Wine/Play On Linux or Virtual Box running Windows ever be a realistic alternative? With a powerful enough computer, would such be feasible?

What will the near future hold for Linux gamers?
Last edited by LockBot on Wed Dec 28, 2022 7:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Linux Mint since 5 October 2014 :D
Booman

Re: AAA games and GPU drivers - gaming discussion

Post by Booman »

My setup is Mint 17 64-bit
GeForce 550 Ti
I stick with the stable Nvidia drivers provided through Mint

Its true there isn't a "lot" of AAA games for Linux like Battlefield 3, Call of Duty Series, Destiny, Titanfall, etc
I don't even play a lot of those games because they cost way too much. I'll normally wait a year or so to purchase them during a sale.
But, recently I have played Portal 2 and Brutal legend native ports in Linux and they look BEAUTIFUL!
I can not deny that OpenGL and developers have done a good job at proving Linux is comparable as a desktop gaming system.
Yeah, still falls short with the "numbers" and "communities" but we are so happy to be right at the beginning.

I personally play some of those older AAA games with PlayOnLinux
I've had a lot of success
Some still don't compare to Window$ graphically, but still impressive.
I've played games like:
Crysis 1, 2 & Spearhead
Fallout 3
Skyrim, Oblivion
Assassin's Creed I, II, Brotherhood and Revelations
Bioshock I & II
Two Worlds I & II
Tomb Raider 2013
Far Cry 1 & 2
Mirror's Edge
Game of Thrones
Rage
Warcraft III
Dead Space
Mass Effect I & II

The list goes on... and these aren't even made for Linux. Wine has come a long way, and though not perfect, does a great job getting our games running.

I personally hope that more publishers and developers see some profit and gain from the Linux platform and start porting their older games, then porting newer games to Linux.
Right now Linux is a niche, where mostly enthusiasts and hobbyists are trying to get away from Window$, viruses, malware, wasting money, limitations of windows.
But soon SteamOS will be the "common man's" operating system for a media center/gaming PC/console in the living room.
The rest of us using Linux will continue using Steam for our games as well.
Bad Boy Bubby

Re: AAA games and GPU drivers - gaming discussion

Post by Bad Boy Bubby »

I don't play a lot of games but I do run several steam games and all run equally as well as they do on windows using the mint appproved AMD drivers for my card. On counter strike source I would even say it gets slightly higher FPS than on windows and swapping in/out of game to desktop is much smoother than on windows.

Since I started using Mint over a year ago the AMD drivers seem to have improved a lot and I don't get any errors anymore it all just works.

The more people who move to Linux for gaming the better because this will make the hardware manufacturers offer more support in that area.

Another game I am waiting on now is Elite Dangerous only spotted it this weekend but it looks great and they have hinted they may port it ot linux.

Bubby
Booman

Re: AAA games and GPU drivers - gaming discussion

Post by Booman »

I'm glad the AMD drivers are getting better.
That has always been a discouraging factor for people wanting to play games in Linux.

Once Aspyr ported the Borderlands games to Linux, I almost have all of my multi-player cooperative games native to Linux.
I would love to see the Battlefield series get ported, but that will never happen.
I have always played all of them:
Battlefield 1942
Battlefield Vietnam
Battlefield 2
Battlefield 2142
Battlefield 3
Battlefield 4
JohnBobSmith

Re: AAA games and GPU drivers - gaming discussion

Post by JohnBobSmith »

I believe most, if not all, valve titles run natively in Linux now. I play Counter Strike: Source/Global Offensive natively. :D

Other than that, a lot of indie games support Linux. Just dig around, and you wiill find some good Linux games.

I also plan on making some retro-ish games too. Will be sure to post once I actually get somewhere, and not just segmentation faults after SDL Invalid Renderer error after error...
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