Officially Supported Linux Client

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Nhatorama wrote:

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I'm thinking we're more likely to see a game engine overhaul than a Linux client.

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You said a Linux port is something you'd love to see, but there isn't a good business case for it. What would have to change in order for a Linux port to be viable, business-wise?

I ask because I hate feeling trapped on Windows, and one of my favorite games being available natively on Linux would be a major factor in finally being able to make the switch I want to make. (WINE just isn't the same).

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To properly support linux, we'd need the development costs of either natively porting it (expensive), or fixing up problems so that it runs flawlessly under Wine (cheaper). This probably costs like 50-250k depending on the scope.

More importantly, we'd need to QA everything on linux builds. Potentially several distros. This would add a substantial amount of overhead to our QA process, probably in the region of $30k/year.

I'm not convinced that we'd make that extra revenue back, unfortunately. I would definitely love a linux build though. Starting development of Path of Exile is the reason that I moved from Linux to Windows in 2006.

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I don't want to contradict you but reading Ryan "Icculus" Gordon that seems a bit high: http://cheerfulghost.com/Travis/posts/771/interview-with-ryan-c-gordon-about-linux-gaming

why POE should be so hard to port?

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If you start off using cross-platform libraries, it's a lot easier. Very cheap if you're using OpenGL, for example! PoE was designed to be windows-only, so it uses DirectX, DXUT, etc. Would cost more to strip all that out.