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stokkete, 123RF
Linux systems are well suited for use as a robust platform for computing work and software development. When it comes to gaming, however, most people prefer Windows. Current 3D games with and without Steam support show that this is no longer the case.
Modern 3D games under Linux used to be challenging even before the first round of play, with tricky settings in Wine or installation of its commercial version, Cedega. Crude hacks in the settings files required that gamers have a high level of experience with Linux. Numerous strange bugs kept appearing in the games, but the game providers didn't care because they occurred only on Linux, a strange niche operating system, instead of the officially supported Windows platform.
The year 2010 saw changes in this unpleasant state of affairs when some game developers started turning to Java as an operating-system-agnostic development language. Mojang's Minecraft enjoyed outstanding success as an independent title, running under Windows and Linux almost equally well – some even said it ran better under Linux. Around the same time, the game provider Valve decided to develop hardware in addition to its Steam platform [1]. When deciding on an operating system for their Steam Box, a gaming console, Valve chose Debian Linux. One of the many reasons for this choice was probably that highly technical 3D games native to Linux already existed at the time. The ego shooter Sauerbraten has been demonstrating since 2003 that a gamer can manage to roam smoothly around 3D landscapes, fight, and die under Linux.
Additionally, the Valve managing director and co-founder Gabe Newell was deeply disappointed with Microsoft Windows 8. He described it as a catastrophe for the PC as an open system for gamers and issued urgent recommendations for a change to Linux [2]. At the end of 2015, the search function for Steam [3] reported that more than 1,500 games on the Steam platform officially ran under Linux (Figure 1). At the same time, development of native Linux games forged ahead, and some of these games are also available with a free license. I tried out two Steam offerings under Linux – Cities: Skyliness [4] and ARK: Survival Evolved [5]. I also tried 0 A.D. [6], which is a native real-time strategy game with a free license. The "Test Equipment" box details the hardware used in the tests.
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