LINUXGAMES

Version 0.4.3 of Vega Strike, an open source space combat sim, has been released; changes include:

• Introductory story campaign
• New screenshot system ( ~/.vegastrike043/textures/)
• New art
• Loki installer

Vega Strike 0.4.3 Download: [ sourceforge.net ]

calimer sent in word that his team has released Beta 0.2 of their DOOM 3 cooperative multiplayer modification, Last Man Standing:

Well here it is, our Beta 0.2 with content new including a bunch of new maps, and most importantly, Coop! Not only do we have our gameplay modes in there, but you can also play the Doom 3 SP levels though we don’t officially support it. As a note, we really tried to bring back the feel of Doom 1&2 in our mod, we hope we were able to accomplish this.

calimer also notes that they’d appreciate admins running servers for the mod.

Doom 3 Last Man Standing Beta 0.2 Download: [ filefront.com ]

The open source real-time strategy game project Globulation 2 is now at version 0.8.12; changes include a new in-game message history and the requisite bugfixes.

Globulation 2 v0.8.12 Download: [ ysagoon.com ]

Version 1.15.3 of Advanced Strategic Command, a game based on Battle Isle series, has been released. This release contains the following changes and fixes:

• Updated most campaign maps
• Updated unit cost calculation
• Fixed: view problems when starting a map by command line parameter
• Fixed: kamikaze units don’t defend any more
• Fixed: ships could not build ground turrets
• Fixed: several replay bugs
• Fixed: reaction fire could be evaded
• Fixed: mapeditor crash and limitations when resizing maps
• Fixed: AI crash
• Fixed: resource vanished after refuelling
• Fixed: wrong resource capacity display when resource input is disabled in buildings
• Fixed: more resources in buildings that storage capacity

Download: [ Advanced Strategic Command 1.15.3 ]

People who remember back to the NES day might remember the old game, Battle City. which is a tank style game.A beta release of Batalhao, a game with a similar playing style, has been released.
Download: [ Batalhão ]

Ryan “icculus” Gordon has updated his.planon hisUnrealEngine3and OpenAL work, as well as a fewspecific games:

Feeding Frenzy:
Now shipping for MacOSX: http://www.gamehouse.com/feedingfrenzy/

I’m taking an informal poll; if you are a Linux user that has access to aWindows or Mac system to try the free demo, I’d be curious to know:
     a) would you pay for a Linux version of this game and
     b) how much would you be willing to pay

Just curious what Linux gamers think of the casual game market, if anything.

[...]

Unreal Tournament 2003:
One more Linux build on its way, then I’m taking this out of my .plan, honest.

Unreal Tournament 2004:
Another patch coming soon for all platforms.

[...]

America’s Army:
ArmyOps 2.3.0 is marching onward.

The release of Postal2 (mentioned herepreviously)is also pointed out.

In an installment of Ask Slashdot last week, a reader solicited opinions from Linux gamers on which Linux distribution they favor.

What distributions do y’all use? What have you been happy (or unhappy) with in the past?

Version 6.8.2 of X.Org’s X Window System has been released; the release notes are available here, which includes the new feature list.

X.Org 6.8.2 Download: [ x.org ]

Scorched 3D, a game based on the classic Scorched Earth, has been updated to version 38.1b.Fixes and changes for version 38.1 and 38.1.b includes the following:

• Better AI
• Less lag (hopefully)
• Mod import and export support
• Players connect with their last used stats name
• Player names stored in stats correctly
• Outline font for player text has been improved
• Tooltip to tell the user they cannot change their avatar

Download: [ Scorched3D 38.1b ]

Lightkey let us know that the MMO game Puzzle Pirates, which will be published in the US by Ubisoft, has been available in Germany (the German title is Yohoho! Puzzle Piraten) from gamigo.de since last summer.

HomeLAN Fed interviewed Andrew Tepper of eGenesis about his recently announced MMORPG project, based on the Tales of the Alvin Maker novels by Orson Scott Card:

HomeLAN – For people who are not familiar with the novels, can you describe the setting for the Alvin Maker universe?

Andrew Tepper – A Colonial America that might have been, where magic really works, where knacks and hexes are real. An America that is destined for a war between the Reds and Whites, unless players can avoid that fate.

It’s also mentioned that the game will use a derivative of A Tale in the Desert’s engine, eGenesis’ first MMORPG which already runs in Linux.

The Vendetta Online site was updated earlier this month with a work in progress rundown, where upcoming feature additions for the space combat MMORPG are discussed, including capital ships. Thecommunity site list has also been updated.

Build 20050211 of the Win32 API implentation Wine has been released; changes include the usual bugfixes.

Wine 20050211 Download: [ winehq.com ]

Spirit of 85 let us know that he has conducted aninterview with Vermeulen of the Nexuiz project. Nexuiz is a deathmatch game which utilizes the Quake-derived DarkPlaces engine; the project’s origins, development, and release plans are discussed.

The author of Holotz’s Castle sent in word that version 1.3.1 of his open source platform game has been released. Changes included an improved level editor and story selector in the game menu.

Holotz’s Castle 1.3.1 Download: [ mainreactor.net ]

A reader pointed out this petition requesting that Blizzard consider porting their MMORPG World of Warcraft to Linux.

id Software has announced that the DOOM 3 expansion pack Resurrection of Evil will be released during the week of April 4, 2005:

SANTA MONICA, Calif., Feb. 9 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Make a date with death. id Software(TM) and Activision, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI – News) today confirmed the week of April 4 as the worldwide release of never-ending evil, with the arrivals of both DOOM 3(TM) for the Xbox(R) video game system from Microsoft and DOOM 3: Resurrection of Evil(TM), the official PC expansion pack to what critics and gamers have raved is one of the scariest games ever created: DOOM 3(TM).

[...]

Co-developed by Nerve Software and id Software, DOOM 3: Resurrection of Evil continues the terrifying and intense action of the top selling, critically acclaimed and instant classic DOOM 3 — awarded 94% from PC Gamer and five out of five stars from Computer Gaming World — in an all-new assault on humanity. Resurrection of Evil picks up two years following the events of the original in a once forgotten and remote UAC research facility on Mars. Players wage a brutal war against an army of new demons and zombies including Hell’s own Hunters, while utilizing incredible new weapons like the physics defying “grabber” and the return of the classic double-barreled shotgun. Featuring new locations, puzzles and mysterious powers like the ability to slow time, Resurrection of Evil will have players reloading for the bloodiest battle yet.

A reader forwarded this statement from Kerry Fraser-Robinson, president of Red Bedlam, concerning his company’s plans for a Linux port of Roma-Victor:

It’ll certainly be Windows-only at release but it’s always been our intention to provide linux and MacOS X clients as soon as we can.

Roma-Victor is a MMORPG set in second century AD Europe, and will focus on the Roman Empire and its barbarian enemies. Roma-Victor will also not feature a monthly fee to play, but will survive on an economic system based on converting real world currency to RV Sesterces used in the game.

ZDNet reports that 13 year old Elizabeth Garbee (daughter of HP Linux CTO and former Debian project leader Bdale Garbee) will be presenting a seminar on Tuxracer at linux.conf.au in Australia this April.

A new version of Kajaani Kombat, a Rampart-like multiplayer game, has been released. Changes:

• Client net communications to own threads.
• Chat.
• Options menu, configurable keys.
• Saving of options into a file.
• Timelimit on choosing a planet.

Kajaani Kombat 0.6.6.6 Download: [ kajaani.net ]