Steamplay, what does it actually mean

[Tomin]

I have some questions about Steamplay:
How do you define "Steamplay"?
Will future Steamplay titles need to be Linux compatible?
What about current Steamplay games?

I'm sure I'll have more questions if and when these are answered.

[Whisperity]

SteamPlay means that "This released title has both an OSX and Windows version and if you buy this, you'll be able to play with both".

So like: you buy the game once, but you get shipped with both the OSX and Win files by Steam, and (if Steam Cloud is supported), your configuration and saves are kept consistent too.

I think if the Linux version goes live, there will be some place where the shop states that "this game is Windows only", "this game is OSX+Win", "this game is Win+Linux", etcetera.

[pseudo]

As I'm sure you're already aware of this: https://support.steampowered.com/kb_article.php?ref=9439-QHKN-1308

As for linux compatibility that of course is left to developers to decide whether a linux port is possible.

[Tomin]

Too bad that it's defined that way. I'd prefer "This title is released on all (computer?) platforms you can run Steam." But maybe there is some point considering the fact that save files and such are synchronized.

Edit:
From pseudo's link: "Steam Play allows you to purchase your games once and play anywhere." which basically means what I thought. Anyway I'd like to get some offical (or at least professional) answer from Valve employee.

And I haven't read that link before. My internet connection is quite slow so it's a bit annoying to download games and surf the net at the same time. Hopefully the fiber that I'll have at some point (sooner or later, hopefully not more than a month or two) will make things better. It's quite an improvement to get 100 Mb/s optical fiber connection over 1 Mb/s ADSL.

[SinSchism]

Originally posted by Tomin:

Too bad that it's defined that way. I'd prefer "This title is released on all (computer?) platforms you can run Steam." But maybe there is some point considering the fact that save files and such are synchronized.

Edit:
From pseudo's link: "Steam Play allows you to purchase your games once and play anywhere." which basically means what I thought. Anyway I'd like to get some offical (or at least professional) answer from Valve employee.

There are OS logos next to the word "Steamplay". Odds are that a little penguin will show up before too long and the correct logos will be applied to games. Someone found the penguin logo already uploaded, but I can't remember the link off the top of my head.

As for if a game will get linux support, that is not up to Valve (except in some cases). The developers have to have used an engine with the appropriate cross-platform support.

[Tomin]

You can find the penguin logo in the bottom of Serious Sam 3's page for example. It's right next to the system requirements.

[SinSchism]

Originally posted by Tomin:

You can find the penguin logo in the bottom of Serious Sam 3's page for example. It's right next to the system requirements.

Yeah. Someone presented the actual file location instead of the game, so I wasn't sure which games had it.

[Sandburg]

The linux penguin logo seems to have desapeared. Is it replaced by the SteamOS logo ?

[Mattio]

Originally posted by Sandburg:

The linux penguin logo seems to have desapeared. Is it replaced by the SteamOS logo ?

Yeah it was replaced, it still means the same thing.

[Jasen]

yeah, that round steam-os logo that almost looks like it's part of the steam-play logo ( means linux compatible,

[NascimentoR10]

..........

[sineс]

)))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))steammocking:

[Fesrobe]

OK

[harkor]

Oh. Always wondered.

[xarvh]

It's the second game I buy that has a "SteamPlay" icon and yet does not run on Linux.
Seriously, what are the icons for?

The only way to know if a game actually runs on Linux is to search around the page/webpage?
WTF Valve!?

[Nomad]

Originally posted by xarvh:

It's the second game I buy that has a "SteamPlay" icon and yet does not run on Linux.
Seriously, what are the icons for?

The only way to know if a game actually runs on Linux is to search around the page/webpage?
WTF Valve!?

Reading comprehension FTW! Go back and re-read the previous posts. SteamPlay does not mean Linux compatible. All SteamPlay means is that *IF* the game supports multiple platforms, then you get access to all the platforms with a single purchase (also allows cross-platform multiplayer (provided game versions match), and cloud save sync'ing). In order to know which platforms are actually supported by a game, you have to look at the system icons. Windows logo = Windows support, Mac logo = Mac support, and (counter-intuitively) the SteamOS logo = Linux support. As it stands, I don't like the use of the SteamOS logo. On games that have it, it looks too much like it's part of the SteamPlay icon, which it's not. The penguin "Tux" logo should be used to clear confusion, but what do I know.