>3D graphics drivers used to have more debug options and visualization capabilities. However, unscrupulous individuals took advantage of these to cheat in video games so many vendors just ripped them out.
Why the duck would video card manufactures care if people cheat in video games?
Heck, why would even GAME manufactures care if people cheat in video games?
Can somebody clear up if that is the real reason those debug options etc were taken out?
> Why the duck would video card manufactures care if people cheat in video games?
They care because game makers care. If they want their logo in the pre-game splashes and similar they need to not be a problem to the people who decide what goes there or it'll end up costing more than it would cost the compatetion. Also they certainly don't want someone like EA coming out and explicitly saying they don't recommend their line of graphics systems.
> Heck, why would even GAME manufactures care if people cheat in video games?
Way back when, they didn't. Well they did, but only for the first X weeks after which any sectret and big ending reveals were public knowledge anyway afte3r which they'd leak out cheat codes themselves to increase interest inthe game from more casual players.
Now they care because their customer base cares. The perception that someone might get an advantage by using a particular card will put a lot of people off. Even if it isn't really possible (because the game is well enough designed that such hacks won't really give any advantage) the perseption amongst the general public that it might be is enough to be concerned about.
> Can somebody clear up if that is the real reason those debug options etc were taken out?
Not unlikely: they were probably pig sick of people breaking things and blaming them for the resulting mess (I tweaked X and your card overheated and my computer crashed and I lost three days of unsaved work, waah, waah, waaaaaahhh).
Or people tweaking the settings, making things far worse in some circumstances, and then assuming that the card is crap (and telling everyone) because to does X badly without thinking that their tweaks might have a little to do with that.
Or they were sick of getting many support queries about the options, or having to make an effort to monitor populat forums for people distributing blatently bad advice about them so they can nip the above problems in the bud. Time is money and reputation management can be expensive especially if you are having to do it retroactively.
Or all of the above. Basically people. People are a problem.
I never meant to imply it was the only reason, just that it was one of them. Another is the support considerations; each option you add to the drivers to tweak rendering output is yet another permutation of testing.
In addition, some of the options better fit the old fixed pipeline architecture of the early 2000s; forcing some of the rendering options older drivers used to have isn't really possible in a fully programmable world.
But to expound a bit on the cheating angle, one manufacturer (Asus) even went so far as to specifically market these features as a competitive advantage for customers of their products:
With that said, users that installed the debug versions of the windows DirectX framework (historically) and the various developer tools (such as nVidia insight) have some of the same capabilities that used to be built-in to older drivers.
Developers have combated this by using programs like punkbuster or rolling their own tools (Blizzard wrote "Warden").
Game makers care because if the game experience suffers because of cheaters, griefers and so forth, the customers won't come back. If you want to sell things to players in the game, the players have to want to play.
Anti-cheat is a big deal.
So I would say that undetectable debug features, ones that can be turned on without indicating this to the title (or cheat detection code on the platform) are bad for game economies.
Since card makers want to sell graphics cards, they have the same goal as the title developers. Not surprising they'd turn these off (or at least make them very visible).
> Heck, why would even GAME manufactures care if people cheat in video games?
Singleplayer, maybe. But Multiplayer? Very annoying for everybody involved. Having a multiplayer opponent cheat is like having a singleplayer bug that means you cannot advance in the game.
Game manufacturers care because their customers care, and because the same cheats often are related to copy-protection breaking. If you're going to cheat at videogames, why not do so in games you didn't buy?
Why the duck would video card manufactures care if people cheat in video games?
Heck, why would even GAME manufactures care if people cheat in video games?
Can somebody clear up if that is the real reason those debug options etc were taken out?