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Review of Doom 3 on Linux
yamla writes "Doom 3 was released for Linux sometime last week. LinuxHardware.org decided to test how well it runs compared to the Windows version. Read the article here, including some technical information from the id Software employee who did the Linux port, Timothee Besset." AnandTech has a similar review available.
I got "nothing for you to see here". Does that mean it is still too dark?
Don't you realize that all the Linux Doom 3 advocates are busy playing it right now?
I mean, who has time to post on slashdot when there is all of humanity to save.
Now what we need is a way to post on /. from Linux via Doom 3!
"You're older than you've ever been, and now you're even older."
That's it folks. For more boring details, well RTFA :)
You forgot to mention that a large part of this performance difference is likely due to the lack of SSE2 instructions in the linux version. This will be fixed as he finishes porting the ASM from the windows source.
It was me, I did it, I moved your cheese
find it funny that the screenshots are near-total black!
(reading in a well lit office)
1) Does anyone know when will Linux nVidia drivers catch-up to the Windows versions, or why they are behind?
! !!!!!!" If Carmack wants to email me the source code, I'll happily get starting compiling it for 64-bit for him...
2) Any idea when 64-bit versions of the drivers will be available? (And what distro I need to take advantage of it)
3) Any idea when 64-bit version of Doom 3 will be available for either platform, or what priority that has over Linux-SSE2 instructions?
4) How is the Linux install? What package manager does it use? Or is it just an executable?
Oh, and "yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!!!
Both versions work about the same on my computer. One difference is that in linux xinerama is not supported, so I cannot play the game full screen while I have xinerama enabled. Actually, I'm using twinview, but as far as any apps are concerned its xinerama. Id said they would add support in a future release though, so it's all good.
The GeekNights podcast is going strong. Listen!
I've been asking, since Quake 3, for a mod to turn the in-game console into a full text terminal. You could post via elinks then..
No, they use OpenGL on both platforms
but they use DirectX for input and sound on Windows.
I'm fairly sure both versions use OpenGL for graphics, but Doom may use DirectX for audio/input/networking. Much of it is iD's own work however.
One thing more (you have to read all the way to the end):
Note to ACs: I usually delete AC replies without reading them. If you want to talk to me, log in.
id have been porting their games to Linux since the original Doom, and I'm sure that Linux gamers weren't that much of a market back then...
They look quite different on the different platforms anyway (in general the Linux version looks worse)
Maybe you should look again.
From the article:
The final graphics point we'd like to point out may be the most important, especially when comparing the Windows to Linux benchmarks. Going back to the full-size screenshots shown above, when comparing the Windows to Linux images, you can tell that at both low and medium quality settings the images seem to produce comparable results. When moving to high quality though, the Linux output does not match the Windows output. If you pay attention to the rock area highlighted by the flashlight, the image is much improved under Linux. When looking at the Windows output, the high quality image is indistinguishable from the medium quality output. This may explain some of the speed differences between Linux and Windows at high quality. It is unknown why the two operating systems are treating this setting differently.
So not only does the linux version look better, but that's part of the reason it's running slower.
As others have mentioned, this is not true: Doom3 uses OpenGL on both platforms. At the same time, Doom3 is also often mentioned as an example of 'Direct3D 9.0c' graphics performance. That's because it is one of the first, and right now arguable the most important, game using all the new nice features in the last DirectX. But without using Direct3D.
Confusing, eh?
Jan
But have id or anyone else ported games while they were still hot on the console/WinPC market? (dunno, just asking) Even if this isn't the first time a game was ported while it was still hot, every time it happens, it builds momentum to get Joe Casual Gamer to switch to Linux. If all else fails, it will eventually create a market for retro/nostalgia PC gamers like there is for ported console games.
When all of your wishes have been granted, many of your dreams will be destroyed - Marilyn Manson
ATI's are just not supported by ID at this point in time
You slightly misspelled "Linux is not (well) supported by ATI at this point of time", compared to the nVidia ones the ATI drivers tend to make huge rendering errors. This is not limited to ID games, e.g. UT2004 is nearly unplayable on some maps without lowering the texture details to "lowest": It looks like your Radeon is puking all over your screen if the scenery gets too complex.
Life is just nature's way of keeping meat fresh.
See the AC's comment above, and UT2004 came with Linux binaries right on the DVD/CDs.
Sera
Slashdot, where armchair scientists get shouted down and armchair theologians get modded up.
... one of mainstream games being ported to Linux, proving that there is a Linux gaming market? ...
Actually the "proof" is to the contrary. Id has previously stated in Game Deverloper Magazine that Linux games do not make sense from a business perspective, that they support Linux only because they think it is cool to do so. Bill will continue to sleep very very well.
Additionally, id is not in the business you think they are. Retail game sales are only part of their business, licensing engines to other game developers is another large part of their business. Here Linux can merely be a marketting tool, a potential bullet item that some developer might like. The licensee might prefer to have a Linux option should a Linux market actually develop during the years their game is in development. Whether that market actually materializes makes no difference to id, they already cashed the check.
Of course the above refers to clients, for servers Linux does make a lot of sense.
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Beginning OpenGL is a great book for getting you started in game programming...
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You can play Doom3 on fully Open Source system (without any binary drivers).
./doom3
All you need is:
- Radeon with R200 chip (8500, 9000, 9100, etc)
- latest DRI driver (from Mesa CVS)
- S3TC library (you can find it with google)
Just compile Mesa, copy file r200_dri.so to your X modules, make sure hardware acceleration is working, then... run Doom3 (with following env set):
LD_PRELOAD=libGL.so.1 R200_NO_TCL=1
(if you see no textures, make sure you have installed S3TC library!)
I have it working on my computer. Please don't repeat that nVidia and binary drivers are required. It is not true.
Why no ATI? Because it's not supported by id at this point for the Linux port WTF Oh well ill have to use my x800 pro on my win hd
RUN linux its just so much better