LINUXGAMES

Michael Simms of Tux Games sent in the following update with the results of their WINE retail game survey:

Tux Games would like to thank all of you who sent us your views on Tux Games selling win32 games bundled with versions of WINE or other emulators to allow them to work on Linux.The community response was a resounding NO. Over 90% of the responses urged us not to follow this path, for fear of damaging the prospects of Loki and other Linux games companies.Tux Games agrees wholeheartedly with your opinions, and intends to follow the general concensus of the community, and remain purely native Linux.Instead of expanding our product-line to include games that run under emulation, we have decided to branch into areas of Linux gaming that only help to support the cause.We have begun to stock strategy guides for Linux games. Whilst these are the same as the windows versions, we make it quite clear at every purchase that the guides are purchased to sell with Linux versions of the games, and we are ONLY buying the strategy guides that go with the games made for Linux.We will, over the next few months, begin to stock game-related hardware (3D cards, soundcards, joysticks, etc) that have full Linux support from the manufacturer.

These ideas, we feel, will continue to add benefit to the community, whilst allowing Tux Games to expand its product-line and retain its focus on gaming for Linux.

We welcome any further comments from members of the Linux community, and thank you all for participating!

Release 20000227 of Wine has been announced. Major changes in this version include:

• Most builtin DLLs are now separate shared libraries
• Tons of code merged from the Corel tree
• Many more common controls and shell stuff
• Lots of bug fixes

Downloads:

• metalab.unc.edu
• tsx-11.mit.edu
• ftp.infomagic.com
• orcus.progsoc.uts.edu.au

Version 9a0226 of the classic console system emulator DarcNES has been released. Changes in this version are:

• Fixed bug in cd_unix.c that prevented compiling
• Fixed some problems with GG sprite clipping and tile rendering (only affects 8-bit mode).
• Fixed X toplevel window to resize properly.
• Cleaned up some of the X video code.
• Added (untested) 24bpp support to X video code.
• Cleaned up the FDS emulation code.
• Added a lot of (inaccessible) extra FDS functionality.

DarcNES Source: dn9a0226.tgz

Version 0.5.4b of the Advanced Linux Sound Archetecture driver has been released. This version includes Intel i8x0/MX440 driver fixes. As usual, the various packages available can be downloaded from ftp.alsa-project.org/pub/driver/

The XRacer page has been updated addressing complaints that have been submitted to the author regarding the overall regression of the project. The project’s author, Rich Jones, points out that he has been spending a large amount of his spare time working on integrating Blender support and working on making a strong foundation for a good game. Since his update, he’s brought the development version of XRacer up to version 0.96.3. Changes since 0.96.0 are:

• More physics tweaks
• Slightly smoother track
• Lots of debug added to track down problems with the physics model.

Brandon Reinhart of Epic Games made a .plan entry today to comment on Zoid’s departure from id, and reflects on how CTF forged the mod community which exists today (which is the subject of further commentary in the article mentioned in his .plan update):

I gotta say “Good Luck Zoid!”

I remember when Quake 2 CTF was first released I stayed up allnight playing it. I had a comp sci test the next day. I was30 minutes late for the test, but was the first one done. A coupleweeks later I decided to drop out of college and dedicate allmy time to working on games.

Zoid has definitely had some very visible achievements in theFirst Person Shooter arena. You can see the influence of hisideas in UT. Four of the Relics in the bonus pack were basedoff of Zoid’s original Runes.

Zoid’s original Quake CTF mod more or less demonstrated that a goodmodification could be of top notch professional quality. GameSpy.comis running “mod author week” this week and the opening paper is by me,about the problems that face mod authors. Give it a read. The modscene has come a long way and has a long way left to go.

So hats off to Zoid and hats off to all the mod authors currentlyout there walking in his footsteps!

Ragnar Ouchterlony wrote in to announce that Version 1.0.3 of RealTimeBattle has been released. This version is a bugfix release fixing:

• bug occuring sometimes when using a different language than english
• bug that caused RTB to crash sometimes when using messagefiles
• command line option ‘–debug-mode’ should work now.

Source Downloads:
Bzipped: RealTimeBattle-1.0.3.tar.bz2
Gzipped: RealTimeBattle-1.0.3.tar.gz

Gareth Hughes, one of the primary developers working on the Utah-GLX effort, wrote in to the project’s mailing list to announce he will be joining Precision Insight to develop Linux 3D support full time:

I have some news, and it`s about time I shared it :)

I`ve resigned from Bell Labs Australia to take up a position a PrecisionInsight Inc. starting sometime in March. I will be relocating to the Statesas soon as the appropriate visas are acquired, and will be working fromAustralia until then.

My new email address is gareth@precisioninsight.com, so please direct allpersonal email to that address.

I`m looking forward to working with everyone at PI, as well as continuing mywork on Mesa and the Utah-GLX drivers. It will be great to be working onthis full time – during the day _and_ all night :)

Since version 1.10.0 of Freeciv was released a couple days ago, a couple more happenings have popped up. First of all, there is a plethora of new screenshots taken from the new client(s) available for your viewing pleasure. Besides those, a pair of new 1.10.0 packages have been released: a Mandrake binary RPM and a Linuix-PPC tarball.

Vicarious Visions’ Karthik Bala has been busy of late respondingto interview and information requests regarding the imminent release of Terminus, which will be available with the Linux binary in the retail box:

• Computer Games Online has posted a two-part interview with Karthik (the second segment is located here), which includes discussion on animosity from publishers towards the possibility of making a retail Linux version available.
• Karthik has also commented on A Talent for War’s forums to address (among other things) concerns that developing Terminus for 3 OSplatforms delayed the game’s release.
• Finally, Karthik updated the Station TerminusDeveloper Journal with informationon the recent cutscene filming.

Loki’s Sam Lantinga has released version 1.0.6 of his Simple DirectMedia Layer library; changes include:

• Relative mouse motion works automatically in X11 fullscreen mode.
• DGA mouse support is now selectable via environment variable.
• SDL now opens /dev/dsp by default instead of ESD, unless you set the ESPEAKER environment variable.
• SDL now detects audio cards which are misconfigured on Linux and disables audio at runtime if it detects that audio isn’t playing.
• Alt-Enter functionality has been disabled by default. It is still available programmatically – see the WhatsNew file for details.

Sam also notes:

This will hopefully be the last in the SDL 1.0 series – I want tofocus on our new open-source pirate role-playing game and gettingSDL 1.1 done.

SDL 1.0.6 Source:
http://www.devolution.com/~slouken/SDL/release/SDL-1.0.6.tar.gz

Dan Olson wrote in to announce the release of QuakeForge version 0.1.1. Changes in this release of the Quake 1 source modification project:

• Segfault fixed
• GL noclip fixed (you might want to set gl_clear 0 if you get someartifacts as a result)
• sbar problems fixed
• Small change to the UQuake console version

QuakeForge 0.1.1 Source Download:
http://quake.sourceforge.net/devfiles.php

Epic’s Brandon Reinhart wrote in to the Open Unreal Tournament mailing list twice this week with information on how the version 406 release will incorporate the project’s separate development.

On the 406 release:

I’ll release a Linux patch of 406 straight up and then try and do some kindof 406a that includes code from the modified CVS.

On adding SDL support:

I think the SDL driver should definitely be included in future official UTreleases. I need to figure out a way to get the time to integrateeverything or work out some plan of attack on this.

S3 issued a press release earlier this week regarding their Linux 3D co-presentation with Corel at the German trade show CeBIT. Mentioned in the release are the beta FireGL 3D Linux drivers based on the XFree86 4.0 pre-release snapshots (the final version of which is stated as being expected in April); a driver bundling deal with Corel Linux has also been arranged.

Version 0.5 of Q-LAMP, a QuakeWorld server statisticsgenerator, has been released. Sample output is available to preview here.

Q-LAMP 0.5 Download:
http://www.edeal.de/q-lamp/q-lamp.tar.gz

Voodoo Extreme received word from 3dfx’s Brian Burke giving an update on the Voodoo 4 and 5 chipsets prompted by feedback from their presentation at CeBIT. Burke states that despite problems with their alpha board’s silicon at CeBIT, the VSA-100 chipset products are still on schedule for a spring 2000 release.

id Software’s John Carmack posted a clarificationon Slashdot yesterday concerningDavid “Zoid” Kirsch’s departure; of note is Carmack’s statement that Loki(as well as Carmack himself) will be responsible for maintaining the Q3A Linux port:

I had talked with Zoid about it a few times over the years, and I think he is making a pretty good decision.

It wasn’t always clear from the outside, but Zoid was a remote contractor, not an employee. It was a low key relationship that worked out well for all of us. He stayed in canada and basically worked on whatever he liked, because I thought he had pretty good judgement. He had responsibility for the linux ports and the CTF code, but much of his time was his to allocate as he wanted.

With Loki now picking up the maintenance of the linux port (as well as my steadily increasing involvement with linux), and a new game design starting at Id, his choice was basically to either go develop a brand new Q3 mod by himself, or go work for one of the many gaming companies that had been trying to hire him.

We weren’t interested in bringin on another core programmer at id, especially another one with immigration hassles (we have had enough issues with that for a small company). We would have been happy to continue the current arrangement indefinately, but he wanted to get out of the holding pattern.

Another thing he mentioned that I am sympathetic to is the desire to get a bit out of the community limelight. Being a public figure of some note isn’t always all it is cracked up to be.

We are parting on the best of terms (leaving right AFTER a project completes is the considerate way to go). He is going to finish up the Quake2 linux updates (better X/GLX support), even if he has to complete the work from his new job.

John Carmack

TwinTRIS version 0.99 has been made available; TwinTRISis a multiplayer Tetris-style game (note that the game is developed by French coders, so point your browser toBabelfish if you can’t parse French). Changes include bugfixes andthe addition of handicap support and a time counter.

TwinTRIS 0.99 Source:
ftp://ftp.linux-france.org/pub/prj/twintris/twin.tar.gz”

Epic Games’ Brandon Reinhart fired off a .plan updateto note that the Unreal Tournament Bonus Pack has been released; the README is availablehere. As the released package is a Windows zip file, Myron Da’Chumphas assembled a tarball containing the Bonus Pack, along with an unrealtournament.ini which contains the lines that must be placed in your localunrealtournament.ini to enable the new skins and relics (thanks to zero of Unrealismfor the heads up).

Unreal Tournament Bonus Pack Linux Package:
3D Downloads Mirror

Moreover, Alan Willard posted information on a bonus pack map easter egg in his .plan yesterday:

FINALLY! Its out, after a long testing process :) The Bonus Pack is out, andcan be found at your favorite news site by now I hope. Just a bit of a secretgot shipped with this… If you rename DM-Cybrosis][ to DOM-Cybrosis][, the mapwill play as a Domination map, with named control points and the works! Ifigured if I slipped the Control Points in like this, it would save a littlebit on the download size, so go forth and enjoy.

• Nicholas Vining sent in a follow-up to his previousrequest:
  

  Cryptic? Cryptic?! … well, I suppose it was a bit cryptic, and reallydidn’t tell you all that much. But then again, it worked for Transmeta ;-)

  Anyways, the web side of Kosmos Online has been taken care of. (My mailboxfloodeth over!) We’re still looking for modellers and skinners with Linuxbackgrounds, if you’re out there. The URL for the web site will be revealedfairly soon. Thanks to everybody who responded.

• Rory Hart sent in this query for aidwith regard to his sci-fi strategy game project:
  

  I am a member of a group creating a Stars! clone (much like the newSupernova that is being ported to Linux as we speak). We have lost a lotof our momentum and so I thought it would be good if we could get somenew talent on board. Programmers are badly needed but anyone andeveryone is welcome to help with game design and graphics etc…

  If you are interested please mail me at hartror@pembrokesc.vic.edu.au and check out our web site (soon to be updated)
  http://www.stellarlegacy.tsx.org.

  UPDATE: Rory Hart wrote in with this correction:
  

  The request for help I sent in the other day had a bit of misinformationin it. I have been told that only the server for Stars! Supernova isbeing ported not the entire game, information got a little crossedthere, sorry!

  However if we petition them (empire interactive) then they mightconsider doing a full port … or handing over some or all the code ofone of the old versions of Stars!