Source Goes 64-bit

[CSN NewsBot]

Coming both from the weekly news update and the official press release, Valve has announced the release of their 64-bit version of Source.

Available Now: 64-Bit Half-Life® 2 and Lost Coast™



Bellevue, WA. - December 22, 2005 - Valve, a leading entertainment and technology studio, unveiled a 64-bit version of its Source game engine technology today. The first 64-bit Valve games released will be native 64-bit versions of Half-Life 2 and Lost Coast, and have been developed to take advantage of AMD Athlonâ„¢ 64 FX processor-based systems - the ultimate 64-bit gaming platform for PC enthusiasts.



The 64-bit versions of these games are being offered to all Half-Life 2 owners via Steam™, Valve’s online platform for delivering games and digital content directly to users around the world.



"Bringing the Source technology to the AMD64 processor platform is an important step in the evolution of our game content and tools," said Gabe Newell, Valve’s co-founder and president. "This investment in future processing will allow us, and third party developers working with Source, to push the boundaries of the gaming experience."



"AMD Athlon 64 FX processors are targeted for systems designed to provide the ultimate experience for a new generation of power users running demanding applications " said Bob Brewer, corporate vice president, Desktop Division, AMD’s Microprocessor Solutions Sector. "Combining the performance of AMD64 processors with the 64-bit version of Valve’s technology results in advanced and powerful games. This winning collaboration brings customers an amazing product based on the best of AMD64 technology and Valve’s software development."

There are no reports of significant performance increases, but users of 64-bit CPU's and 64-bit Windows should find a marginal performance gain and added stability.

[Ryosuke T]

yeahh =) but too bad i dont have amd fx ><` only amd x2 4400+ heh. as usual valve is pushing it. hopefully the game would run smoother for us 64bit cpu owners. even though it's proven to increase performance and etc. it shouldn't make much difference to the human eyes. thumbs up good job valve. happy holidays.

[[CyW]-=BigBear=-]

I wonder if it really gives a performance boost.. I guess, we'll learn soon enough when people try it..

[johnny knoxville]

shame xp x64 doesn't work with nearly all the driver i need or i'd be very happy

[farmer brown]

Do you need a 64 bit version of windows too?

[Gluttonus]

johnny knoxville wrote..

shame xp x64 doesn't work with nearly all the driver i need or i'd be very happy

This will give a kick in the @$$ to help get us the drivers

farmer brown wrote..

Do you need a 64 bit version of windows too?

Yes windows xp pro 64bit and the CPU to go with it

[thepingofdeath]

Ryosuke T wrote..

yeahh =) but too bad i dont have amd fx ><` only amd x2 4400+ heh. as usual valve is pushing it. hopefully the game would run smoother for us 64bit cpu owners. even though it's proven to increase performance and etc. it shouldn't make much difference to the human eyes. thumbs up good job valve. happy holidays.

You have a 64-bit processor if you have an X2. In fact, you have two of them. There are no major optimizations available for the FX processors that can't be made for the regular AMD64s as well. Valve just put the FX in there as some form of bullshit marketing. Kind of like their bullshit release dates.

Oh, and kudos to Valve for releasing this long, long after everyone has beaten HL2. If this allows you to play games like DoD:S or CS:S online in 64-bits, then maybe I'll get excited.

[Zips]

... Given that this is a free bonus to those with 64bit CPU's and OS's, getting it at any time is quite welcome. Especially if there is a performance gain, even if it's quite small.



I still can't fathom how people complain about free content. Far Cry is the only game that I can think of that also offers native 64bit support. Right now, HL2 and Lost Coast are well ahead of the curve.

[Syx]

thepingofdeath wrote..

You have a 64-bit processor if you have an X2. In fact, you have two of them. There are no major optimizations available for the FX processors that can't be made for the regular AMD64s as well. Valve just put the FX in there as some form of bullshit marketing. Kind of like their bullshit release dates.



Oh, and kudos to Valve for releasing this long, long after everyone has beaten HL2. If this allows you to play games like DoD:S or CS:S online in 64-bits, then maybe I'll get excited.

Uhh, it has two CORES, not two PROCESSORS.

Big difference =)



Anyways, I WANT TO SEE SOME GODDAMN BENCHMARKS.

Zips wrote..

... Given that this is a free bonus to those with 64bit CPU's and OS's, getting it at any time is quite welcome. Especially if there is a performance gain, even if it's quite small.



I still can't fathom how people complain about free content. Far Cry is the only game that I can think of that also offers native 64bit support. Right now, HL2 and Lost Coast are well ahead of the curve.

Far Cry doesn't offer native 64-bit. It was added in a patch that came out this year.

[Ryosuke T]

yea X2 is just 2 core not cpu. its really no difference between amd 64 3800+ vs my x2 4400+ it's build for multi(tasking) as in burn dvd+r and play games no problem =D. wonder when will games be multi(threaded) oh well.



i suggest everyone NOT TO GET XP 64bit =). not many drivers support it =P` except ati and MAYBE nvidia? so if you want your dvd-rw to work i suggest dont install that OS =P`



its worthless as of now. wait for windows vista to finish.

[Zips]

Syx wrote..

Far Cry doesn't offer native 64-bit. It was added in a patch that came out this year.

By "native" I meant that it supports it instead of pretending like it doesn't exist yet. Poor word choice, but that's what I meant :).

[Syx]

Ryosuke T wrote..

yea X2 is just 2 core not cpu. its really no difference between amd 64 3800+ vs my x2 4400+ it's build for multi(tasking) as in burn dvd+r and play games no problem =D. wonder when will games be multi(threaded) oh well.



i suggest everyone NOT TO GET XP 64bit =). not many drivers support it =P` except ati and MAYBE nvidia? so if you want your dvd-rw to work i suggest dont install that OS =P`



its worthless as of now. wait for windows vista to finish.

Another reason not to get XP 64-bit is that you can't install Steam in a directory with spaces(C:\Program Files\), it might have been fixed, but I'm not 100% sure.

Then there's that whole thing about your computer spontaniously combusting because microsoft is the C:\ of all evil(lol i said c:\ instead of root omg i are fun-e)

[Zips]

Ever since the engine update, there's been some ultra reflective streets in Italy, and super-glazed walls in Office...



http://img490.exs.cx/img490/3771/italy6sx.jpg

http://img490.exs.cx/img490/2591/italy27od.jpg



32-bit CPU and OS here... Just looks like they upped the percentage amount of 3D skybox reflectivity or something of that nature...

[SubNeoN]

i know valve like to put a coat of gloss on everything, but wtf happened to all the textures:S they put a few too many coats of varnish on the walls n floors.. what's going on?! this can't be the way they want it to look.. it's like the whole place has been super varnished and polished...

[abysmal]

Syx wrote..

Another reason not to get XP 64-bit is that you can't install Steam in a directory with spaces(C:\Program Files\), it might have been fixed, but I'm not 100% sure.

Then there's that whole thing about your computer spontaniously combusting because microsoft is the C:\ of all evil(lol i said c:\ instead of root omg i are fun-e)

It wasn't the fact that it had spaces, its just that the installer didn't support ( and ) in its installdir. This was a fault of the installer, not x64 windows, and it has since been fixed.



And technically your wrong with your C:\ thing, C: is the drive letter, \ is the directory, ie root. Stil the same as *nix. Try it in a dos window poncho.