Linux version?

[VAPORWAVE AESTHETICS]

Hi,

I usually use Linux and I don't like Windows (but I use it to play Portal 2 and Gnomoria). Do you have any plans on releasing Linux version? Thanks in advance :D

-Ryuuko!

EDIT: Typos :x

[fried bankman]

I don't think the XNA framework exists for Mono, so you'd have to run it through Wine. I don't think it'll lag much though, as Gnomoria is mostly CPU demanding, so there won't be as many complicated DirectX -> OpenGL translations as with more graphics-intensive games.

The developers could easily port the game to Linux by replacing XNA with MonoGame btw, but I think they have more important things to focus on right now.

[dwinblood]

Originalmente postado por рак ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥:

I don't think the XNA framework exists for Mono, so you'd have to run it through Wine. I don't think it'll lag much though, as Gnomoria is mostly CPU demanding, so there won't be as many complicated DirectX -> OpenGL translations as with more graphics-intensive games.

The developers could easily port the game to Linux by replacing XNA with MonoGame btw, but I think they have more important things to focus on right now.

Or instead of MonoGame they could even use Unity3D which is also built on Mono. They would be able to publish to Windows, Mac, and Linux simply by toggling a single setting.

This could be a tremendous amount of work though depending upon how they did things.


EDIT: I guess it's not really the same thing though since MonoGame is doing for XNA what Mono itself did for .NET. So, Unity and MonoGame are not really the same thing. The support for Unity is pretty incredible though. Gigantic community and if you come up with any cool systems you think other developers may want you have the option of reaching a lot of people and selling your scripts/code, and other things in the asset store.

[fried bankman]

Ugh no, MonoGame is an implementation of XNA for the Mono platform, an open source implementation of the .NET framework. Just because Unity uses Mono for its C# scripts doesn't mean it's "based" on it. Unity isn't even a framework like XNA.

MonoGame is so similar to XNA that they can just swap it out and keep everything else intact. Unity uses a completely different rendering, scene hierarchy, input, etc system that would require rewriting the game engine.

For example, Unity has no native support for 2D graphics (i.e. what the entire game is drawn in), so you'd either need to code that yourself or buy a plugin, and then rewrite ALL your drawing code to use that plugin.
Yes, yes it would be a tremendous amount of work.

[dwinblood]

Originalmente postado por рак ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥:

Ugh no, MonoGame is an implementation of XNA for the Mono platform, an open source implementation of the .NET framework. Just because Unity uses Mono for its C# scripts doesn't mean it's "based" on it. Unity isn't even a framework like XNA.

MonoGame is so similar to XNA that they can just swap it out and keep everything else intact. Unity uses a completely different rendering, scene hierarchy, input, etc system that would require rewriting the game engine.

For example, Unity has no native support for 2D graphics (i.e. what the entire game is drawn in), so you'd either need to code that yourself or buy a plugin, and then rewrite ALL your drawing code to use that plugin.
Yes, yes it would be a tremendous amount of work.

I already answered some of this while you were typing. I had determined the difference.

Your statements about 2D are incorrect though. Unity easily supports 2D graphics without any plugins, or downloads from the asset store. It just depends on how familiar with coding and changes in the last decade or so. DirectX stopped supporting 2D natively around Direct X 7. Everything is 3D. 2D is simply a 3D plane with a texture on it. This is also essentially all you need to know to make a 2D game.

You set the camera to orthographic view rather than perspective view which is accomplished by a few clicks, and you just put whatever 2D textures you want on your planes. This is what XNA essentially is doing as well since it was designed for DirectX.

Where XNA has strength is the built in support for sprites. 2D sprites can be implemented in Unity3D with very little hassle, and there are free add-ons that make it really easy, and some that you can purchase for what I consider "reasonable" that do far more. I tend to code the 2D stuff myself.

I have a project that is a mix of 3D objects and 2D that I made from the orthographic view. I was actually drifting more and more to texturing planes rather than making more complex 3D models.

So, it is very doable and it is not a tremendous amount of work.

In Unity there is another advantage. Go to google or youtube and do a search on how to do just about anything and you'll find not one person answering your question but, many.

It has a very extensive and growing community. I would hazard to say it may be the largest community of its kind now. (though I admit that is speculation)

I went and checked out MonoGame which in its current incarnation would require me going to GITHUB to get the latest documentation. It does offer a few tutorials. This isn't anywhere near the level of help that a person would get with Unity. This may not be an issue. If the person is very familiar with XNA and willing to work through their own problems with limited support then MonoGame would make sense. They wouldn't have to learn anything new.

2D in Unity is very easy. 3D in Unity is easier in some regards. 2D is much easier to handle in other ways.

There are a lot of people making 2D games in Unity. They are often doing it without the plugins. The plugins are not needed. They are there to give enhanced support and to remove most of the coding needs from developers. In fact some of them make it easier than XNA. XNA may be a bit easier without such an add-on, but not by a whole lot, and I personally think the community support trumps that.

Unity3D provides low level access to graphics and devices for people that need them also. It can be coded in C#, BOO (a variant of Python), or a weird Javascript that is more like full fledged Java. These languages can be used interchangeably.

Now if you really want a selling point for MonoGame. It appears currently to be FREE all the time. Unity3D is free for most of the features anyone would need until you make $100,000 in profit. Then you have to buy a license which can be as low as $75/month, or buy it outright for around $1500. It is more when you add on android, IOS. So, if you need to pick a reason to go MonoGame... this might be it for some people.

However, Unity3D is so well designed, and has so much support, then I'd happily shell out $1500 if I've made $100,000 off of using it. That is me, and I realize not all people agree.

Another reason to use MonoGame is if you are really set on using XNA and don't want to spend the short (it's really easy) time to learn to use Unity.

And finally your point about swapping everything out... for a conversion of something like Gnomoria (already written in XNA) that does indeed make a lot of sense. It would probably be the best path in this particular case depending on how well MonoGame currently works.

So, really I don't disagree with you. I already edited my other post before you posted yours and had found the difference. The only place I disagreed was Unity and 2D. It is incredibly easy, and I am not using anyone elses plugins.

[MettaurEX]

Steam needs a special wishlist or greenlight section for "I would buy this game if it was available on my platform". That way the devs can see there is demand, and if/when there is a port all the players who clicked it can be notified and buy the game.

Most of my wishlist is stuff I'm waiting for a linux port (including Gnomoria).

[Robten]

I would only buy if it runs under linux. Otherwise I still have Dwarf Fortress

[korhadris]

Having not done a search myself, has anyone had luck running this with Wine?

[Ky6uk]

I can buy one if linux would support.

[VAPORWAVE AESTHETICS]

Originalmente postado por korhadris:

Having not done a search myself, has anyone had luck running this with Wine?

I tried to run it with Wine and it works but it's so slow. (i3-380UM | 4GB DDR3, ArchLinux x64)

[danly]

I too would buy this if it ran on Linux.

Oh well.

[fried bankman]

It doesn't need as much documentation because it is literally an opensource implementation of XNA. All the classes all start with Microsoft.Xna.Framework. All they'd need to do is create a Monogame project and seriously just copy all the code files over.

[moops]

Any information on the linux version or still silence?

[seronis]

No 'linux version' but there is a post in the forums that had be running the game via wine enjoyably.

[Alzarath]

Disappointing that it isn't supporting Linux. If it did, they'd have another customer.

[kevinshow]

Sure, they could have maybe another 100,000 customers for Linux and Mac. But for Windows, they have maybe 3 million customers. Just some numbers I pulled out of the air to illustrate that more people means more money but the majority of people are using Windows-based machines.

We can also add in the number of people who have both a Mac and Windows, or Linux and Windows -- as well as the number of people who are willing to run Gnomoria in Linux using whatever hacks and changes they need to do. So in reality, the number of people on Mac or Linux who actually don't want to do all that ---- gets even smaller.