World of Goo shines light on Linux gaming
It's fair to say that Linux hasn't been doing well as a gaming platform lately. But World Of Goo is bringing Linux users clever, engaging gameplay, beautiful hand-drawn 2D artwork, and an enchanting, if somewhat bizarre, story.
A lot of great games were released last year, but none of them captivated me quite like World Of Goo.
As a small-budget independent project, World Of Goo lacks fancy 3D graphics, but makes up for it with its clever, engaging gameplay, beautiful hand-drawn 2D artwork, and its enchanting, if somewhat bizarre, story.
As a small-budget independent project, World Of Goo lacks fancy 3D graphics, but makes up for it in other ways. It was a huge critical success, even picking up a few "Game of the Year" awards, and now, you can play it on Linux.
The state of Linux gaming
It's fair to say that Linux hasn't been doing well as a gaming platform lately. We still get ports of id Software games, like Doom and Quake, but very few other developers see Linux as a worthwhile gaming platform.
It's not hard to see why, either -- porting a large game is a major task, especially with the differences between DirectX on Windows and OpenGL on Linux, and the costs involved would typically dwarf any extra revenue from Linux customers.
The equation is often different for independent games, though. If nothing else, without shareholders to answer to, independent developers can port to Linux just because they want to, without having to justify it financially.
However, the costs involved in porting are also much lower, partly because there's much less code to port, but also because independent developers often use open-source tools like SDL that are cross-platform by nature, rather than tying themselves to proprietary APIs like DirectX.
Independent games are also developed with quite modest sales targets in mind -- tens of thousands of sales, rather than millions -- so even a small increase in sales can be significant in percentage terms.
Creating buzz
One thing's for sure -- the Linux version of World Of Goo has already had an impact. According to a blog post from the developers, the day of the Linux release scored more direct sales than any other day in the game's history.
Within two days of the release, the Linux version had already accounted for nearly 5% of the game's total direct downloads. These figures don't include sales through third-party portals like Steam, but they're still very impressive.
Part of those extra sales must come from the fact that Linux is an under-served market for games. With so few games for the platform, Linux users are quick to take an interest, and thankfully just as quick to put their money down when they like what they see.
More importantly, though, a Linux release creates buzz. Within hours of the release, major Linux news sites like Slashdot had already picked up the story, and the news soon rang out across countless other news sites and blogs.
When Linux users find something that they like, or something that they think deserves support, they shout about it to anyone who'll listen, and increased exposure means increased sales. Releasing a Linux version, then, can end up boosting sales for other platforms as well.
Even with the positive early signs, it's perhaps too soon to say if World Of Goo's Linux port will be a financial success. The strategy has definitely worked well for another game, though: Lugaru, an independent combat action game.
A developer blog post from December last year revealed that while the Linux version has accounted for 5% of sales -- not huge, but certainly not insignificant -- the increased exposure that it brought has likely been responsible for countless extra sales.
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