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Neverwinter Nights Tidbits
WWWWolf writes "The fine folks at Bioware have opened a new For Developers section, aimed for people who make external tools for the game. At the moment they have a forum and description of one of the crucial file formats, used for packaging data in the game, with more coming." This looks pretty cool. It's been several months since I loaded up the Aurora Toolset. I might have to get back into it again. In related news, Apostata writes "It seems there's even more steam under the lid of the NWN Linux community now: the Linux client won't be shipping with any ability to play the narrative cutaway movies between chapters, due to licensing/porting problems with Bink. Many are outraged, as this obviously makes for an incomprehensible game." Apostata also notes that the Aurora toolset also won't be ported.
From what I can piece together, "licensing/porting problems" means
(a) There is no Bink codec for Linux, and
(b) Bink's license w/ NWN forbids BioWare from converting the cinematics to any other format.
While this sucks, it should be said in BioWare's defense that a Linux port was not originally planned. Bink was a fine choice at the time--it's not BioWare's fault that they're pioneers in the Linux retail gaming market. Instead, fault Bink for not having their shit together.
the Linux client won't be shipping with any ability to play the narrative cutaway movies between chapters, due to licensing/porting problems with Bink
:), that rules out a lot of proprietary, vendor-locked solutions.
So much for adopting proprietary movie format while they had choices. 'Vendor-locked' is a curse for many existing legacy system nowaday and whenever we design a system we put openness in high priority(next to budget
Just as I speak we ruled out acrobat for our electronic form submission project and seek some pure Java solutions.
Keep cool.
If we blow our collective tops about this, what do you think that will accomplish?
I seriously doubt it'll encourage them to develop for Linux when they are planning the next game.
I hope they have learned a lot from this and will realise that the proper way to go about multi-platform support is to do so from the beginning.
This user account is inactive account replaced by the PDA
A shabby Linux client is infinitely better than no client at all. Efforts are being made in good faith, and while that doesn't exactly satisfy me as a gamer, it is comforting in the larger sense.
NWN2 will be done a lot better and will, hopefully, open the door for more Linux ports of retail games.
"You don't get to demand shit. They owe you nothing. You should be grateful they put any effort at all into porting to Linux-- it's not like they're going to make any money doing it."
Many of us bought the game because they promised that a Linux client would be released. So they do "owe me shit" as you put it. I might have never purchased the game if they hadn't said they were going to release a Linux client. I followed this game for a long time because of it. It would be one thing if they hadn't been saying for a year or so before the game came out that they were going to have a Linux port, but they did. It's their responsibility to live up to their words.
They claimed they were building Mac and Linux versions simultaneously with Windows. They reported that all three versions were "coming along nicely".
When the Windows version was released and they had to go hire someone else to start the Mac port, it became clear that they were lying. Furthermore, I bet they're going to demand that Mac and Linux users pay full price even though we won't get any of the DM tools.
Well, screw that. The main reason I was interested in NWN in the first place was the ability to run campaigns. If all they're offering is another RPG, I'll go play one by a company that doesn't lie to me and try to rip me off.
GCHQ Quantum Insert installed. If only our tongues were made of glass, how much more careful we would be when we speak
Nod, I've been patiently waiting for NWN to come out of beta for linux. When it does I'll gladly swing on over to some linux specific site to purchase it.
When I see games that come out on linux I try to pick them up to support the companies doing it. So, while it may not be as feature rich (no movies, no editor) in linux, I am telling the company they are moving in the right direction.
Personally I'd love to see Blizzard do some linux ports.
You see, I bought win2k last fall, but it will be my last MS purchase. If I do not support companies to port games to linux, there won't be any. Companies need to see a profitable reason to enter a sector, and each game I purchase makes that sector more profitable.
Extremism is not going to get games to linux. If NWN had be perfect and on time in linux, people would bitch that it wasn't open source. So its late, you bitch about that. So its not full featured, you bitch. So it isn't shipped with an installer, you bitch. I say, hey, its a start, and I like the direction you are moving in, I'll support you.
Norris/Palin 2012
Fact: We deserve leaders who can kick your ass and field dress your carcass.
All I want is some honesty at this point.
I have been very quiet and patient at this point. I was upset when no linux support was given out of box. "I'll wait", I said. I felt confident that I would not be long for a release because Bioware had been very good about keeping linux users up-to-date as to the "status" of the linux port. I was not shocked when it did not come out right away, because I figured that it was indeed not the highest on thier list of priorities. But I never suspected that I was lied to. I never felt that they were stringing me along just to get my purchase.
Now, I feel offended. I am upset because I was _Blatently_ lied to. I'm happy about the current status of the game in linux (it runs, its being tweaked). But never have I been this offended by the PR dept of a company. At this point, yes, it has become painfully obvious that they had no intentions of releasing the game for mac/linux concurrently with the windows version. In fact they had done little to no work at all on these ports. Yet they continued to tell us that they were. I hold honesty in high regard, and had I been told that linux support had ceased and that they would work on it post release, I would have been fine with that. I would have gone out and purchased a copy right away. The only thing I demand from a company is honesty. I will not purchase any more bioware games (and I own all of thier D&D games) and will be asking my friends to do the same until they release an apology for having been so dishonest in this matter. I love the games Bioware produces. I play them and replay them all the time. But I will not condone a company that lies so terribly to its customers. If they never put out another linux game, I can live with that (dual-booting works for me), but I will not tolerate such behavior.
I think NWN is great. I think their port to linux is awesome. I dont care if they cease development. But I care if they continue to lie to me. It makes me wonder if they could be sued for false advertising or something (misrepresentation?).
"I have great faith in fools: Self confidence my friends call it." ~Edgar Allan Poe