Valve open-sources its DirectX to OpenGL translation software: Here come the SteamOS and Linux games

Boomstick777 · 12 Mar 2014 at 00:14

Valve has made Dota 2‘s Direct3D to OpenGL translation layer open source. This is the piece of code that allows Valve to take a standard DirectX Windows game that uses the Source engine (Dota 2, Team Fortress, Portal), and easily bring it over to Mac OS X or Linux/SteamOS. The code, with some tweaks, could also be made to work with other DirectX-based game engines as well. By open-sourcing this code, Valve is clearly encouraging developers to release OS X — and more importantly, SteamOS — ports of their Windows games.

http://www.extremetech.com/gaming/1...oftware-here-come-the-steamos-and-linux-games

More @ Anand - http://www.anandtech.com/show/7856/valve-releases-togl-direct3d-to-opengl-shim

(Incidentally, a fun fact: Titanfall, which is released today, uses the Source engine — and it’s the first game to use the Xbox One version of the Source engine.)

Click to expand...

shankly1985 · 12 Mar 2014 at 00:22

Interesting stuff, am all for steamos so long it gets the support.

Boomstick777 · 12 Mar 2014 at 00:24

Moving Your Games to OpenGL

humbug · 12 Mar 2014 at 02:09

Good stuff. its would be great to see DX games ported to OGL, it needs it, there is nothing of interest on OGL at this point.

triss · 12 Mar 2014 at 02:30

All in favour of porting games as it means less dependence on MS and windows

Silent_Scone · 12 Mar 2014 at 09:12

Well done Valve. The uptake on this will be quite slow though, and also remember the tools only support DX 9.0C before someone even adopts it to translate games outside of Source Engine. But it means we'll see a lot more SteamOS games being ported soon for definite.

Much like Mantle it's nice to see any progress that pushes away from DX constraints though, even if you game on Windows predominantly

Gregster · 12 Mar 2014 at 09:29

My issue with SteamOS is its rawness but definitely something I could get used to.

Stick HL3 as SteamOS/OGL only and I will definitely get used to that

Silent_Scone · 12 Mar 2014 at 09:50

There is a lot of work to be done especially at the high end of the scale. In Metro for example the settings are slider based, so you've no real idea of how much MultiSampling your applying etc. Looks identical to the DX11 version though.

Martini1991 · 12 Mar 2014 at 09:50

My low hopes of SteamOS have risen slightly.

Still really see no point in it.

The steam streaming though, that's really good, I loved taking my laptop downstairs, plugging it into the 42" and streaming 1080p gaming.

tommybhoy · 12 Mar 2014 at 10:05

Good, long term high end PC gaming is going to depend on Steam OS imo, especially if MS get there way, in the long term it will be windows market we'll be stuck with.

Gregster said:
Stick HL3 as SteamOS/OGL only and I will definitely get used to that

Steam OS exclusives aren't going to happen according to Gabe.

andybird123 · 12 Mar 2014 at 10:23

Crytek are also demoing Linux Cryengine at GDC

tommybhoy · 12 Mar 2014 at 10:56

andybird123 said:
Crytek are also demoing Linux Cryengine at GDC

Another step away from MS, which is nothing but positive as it drives competition.

OGL/SteamOS/Mantle have made MS take notice, if it makes Dx12 soo much better than any thing they can deliver, us gamers will be the true winners.

Boomstick777 · 12 Mar 2014 at 12:15

tommybhoy said:
Another step away from MS, which is nothing but positive as it drives competition.

OGL/SteamOS/Mantle have made MS take notice, if it makes Dx12 soo much better than any thing they can deliver, us gamers will be the true winners.

Agreed, all the competition forces MS to take action to keep Windows as the best / most relevant platform for gaming. They need people to have an incentive to move up to the latest Windows, hopefully Windows 9 and Direct X12 will be made all the better for it.

Zethor · 12 Mar 2014 at 13:07

All we need now is to wait for the rest of the game pedlars to release their own operating systems. I'm sure developers dream of coding the same game for 10 platforms just as gamers dream of 10 versions of the same bloody game.

Stupid me for not realising that the future of gaming is SteamOS, OriginOS, GogOS, GmgOS etc.

Go, Valve! :rolleyes:

Silent_Scone · 12 Mar 2014 at 13:17

Zethor said:
All we need now is to wait for the rest of the game pedlars to release their own operating systems. I'm sure developers dream of coding the same game for 10 platforms just as gamers dream of 10 versions of the same bloody game.

Stupid me for not realising that the future of gaming is SteamOS, OriginOS, GogOS, GmgOS etc.

Go, Valve!

SteamOS is currently the only competing operating system to Windows being aimed at gamers so not sure where all these magical ones you're inventing are coming from.

If you're not keen on the idea you don't have to use it

Boomstick777 · 12 Mar 2014 at 13:27

MjFrosty said:
SteamOS is currently the only competing operating system to Windows being aimed at gamers so not sure where all these magical ones you're inventing are coming from.

If you're not keen on the idea you don't have to use it

Exactly +1

SteamOS is free as well so really is a good thing. Valve want to push for OpenGL across the board. If that happened developers would only have to code for that API and could be used on multiple systems. Valve are trying to push for an open unified platform. It's Microsoft, AMD and Nvidia that prefer to close down things in favor of proprietary content.

So indeed go Valve !!

Martini1991 · 12 Mar 2014 at 13:30

Has anyone actually tried SteamOS for consistent gaming? It's currently a no go (Unless you only play Indie games

)

There's also no native Linux Origin client (So there goes a bunch of heavy hitting PC titles)

Mantle COULD be ported to Linux, meaning you can natively play any Mantle titles, that'd be a big plus 1 to SteamOS (Assuming Mantle gets sustained support, which so far, we've only had one game)

It's going to take a lot of sustained work from Valve and developers to get future titles with native Linux/SteamOS playability in a sustained environment, but it's very likely that using SteamOS means you lose the vast majority of your gaming library as you see it now.

Silent_Scone · 12 Mar 2014 at 13:39

No way, I wouldn't mind dual booting it soon but as you say very little content at the moment. Very much in it's infancy

Zethor · 12 Mar 2014 at 13:41

MjFrosty said:
SteamOS is currently the only competing operating system to Windows being aimed at gamers so not sure where all these magical ones you're inventing are coming from.

If you're not keen on the idea you don't have to use it

What is the Playstation operating system aimed at? Dentists? What about the Xbox one? MacOS may not be aimed at gamers but developers often have to write code for that as well, instead of, you know, actually making games.

Can you give me examples of a few benefits I would have, as a gamer, once we get yet another platform, with all the inevitable hassle and porting issues?

Boomstick777 · 12 Mar 2014 at 13:46

Martini1991 said:
Has anyone actually tried SteamOS for consistent gaming? It's currently a no go (Unless you only play Indie games )

There's also no native Linux Origin client (So there goes a bunch of heavy hitting PC titles)

Mantle COULD be ported to Linux, meaning you can natively play any Mantle titles, that'd be a big plus 1 to SteamOS (Assuming Mantle gets sustained support, which so far, we've only had one game)

It's going to take a lot of sustained work from Valve and developers to get future titles with native Linux/SteamOS playability in a sustained environment, but it's very likely that using SteamOS means you lose the vast majority of your gaming library as you see it now.

MjFrosty said:
No way, I wouldn't mind dual booting it soon but as you say very little content at the moment. Very much in it's infancy

I think Valve are playing the long game with SteamOS. Over the next few years we will see it evolve. If more developers utilize OpenGL and decide to bring older games to SteamOS as well, along with community support. In the next 3-5 years we could see a platform that is worth making the jump from Windows to.

Valve know what there doing, as they have proven with Steam and the initial negative reactions that received, to Steam then becoming the number game delivery service on PC. SteamOS isn't ready for prime time yet but I certainly wouldn't count it out.