LINUXGAMES

Rarebyte has released a Linux beta oftheir Java-basedmultiplayer game which features dueling mini-submarines. You can read moreabout the game’s backstory, ships, and weapons here.

Screenshots: [ View ] Download:[ waterstorm-game.com ]

bit-tech.net took a look at gaming on the Linux platform earlier this month:

A lot of current or semi-current games either just work, or work with minimum effort, on Linux. While it is true that some distros (like Gentoo, for instance) require some work to get up and running, this isn’t a general rule. Ubuntu installs are arguably easier than Windows, and the fancy Vista Aero eye candy works with Beryl or Compiz on a low spec machine. So, why not give it a chance?

Regnum Online is a fantasy-themed massive multiplayer online role-playing game which focuses on warfare between three kingdoms. The core game is free to play, although there’s additional premium content you can purchase. The Linux launcher is considered experimental, but support can be found on the messageboards.

Screenshots: [ View ] Download: [ regnumonline.com.ar]

The Linux hardware review site Phoronixhas posted a review of the NVIDIA GeForce8500GT, a current-generation value-market graphics card which seems to performwell with demanding OpenGL-based titles like Quake 4.

I’ve been meaning to mention this project for a long time, but I only just gotit running myself: Spring, an opensource real-time strategy game inspired by Total Annihilation.The game itself is functional at present, but there’s no working native lobbyclient I’m aware of yet. There’s a considerable amount of user-created contentfor the engine – maps, mods, units (one archive site is spring.unknown-files.net).

If you give it a spin, this setup guide was immenselyhelpful; you can also learn how to contribute to the project at the messageboard.

Download: [ spring.clan-sy.com ]

Marv pointed out the Babelize project, alocalization utility for game projects. There are also language packs forthe games Alpha Centauri and Heroes of Might and Magic 3.

Download: [ babelize.org ]

Version 0.1.1 of the strategy-oriented RPG Tactical Rogue has been released. The authors warn that release is not very pretty, as there are broken features such as the minimap and light calculation. Changes include:

• Almost all game data is now stored in xml files (terrain, skills, maps, levels, classes, items etc.)
• Some game data is displayed on the website (classes, terrains)
• Maps now have terrains (as compared to “passable/inpassable” that we had before)
• Terrains can have variations, transitions and animations, although they won’t show yet.
• The player can now have a direction on the map.
• All playable classes now have values for requirements and class, level and master bonuses.

Download: [ tactical-rogue.mine.nu ]

Version 0.9.36 of Wine, the free implementation of Windows on Unix, has been released. Changes in this release include:

• Midi support in the CoreAudio driver.
• Mixer support in the Alsa driver.
• A lot of MSI fixes.
• Implementation for most D3DRM functions.
• The usual assortment of Direct3D fixes.
• Lots of bug fixes.

Download: [ Wine 0.9.36 ]

Version 0.78b of the Quake 4 Maximiser, acompetition mod for Quake 4, has beenreleased. The authors state that this fixes some critical issues and should bedeployed immediately by users of 0.78a. Problems resolved include:

• Too much damage caused on linux servers
• Projectile collisions not displayed at the correct positions
• Q4TV not displaying the time
• Unable to switch between players on Q4TV

Download: [ q4max.com ]

Slashdotposted a community interview of Sony’s PhilHarrison about the PlayStation3. One of the questions asked for his take on homebrew gaming:

When I started making games on the Commodore 64 in the 1980′s, the way Ilearned to make games was by re-writing games that appeared in magazines.Really the best bit about a C64 was when you turned it on it said “Ready?”with a flashing cursor – inviting you to experiment. You’d spend hours typingin the code, line-by-line, and then countless hours debugging it to make itwork and then you’d realise the game was rubbish after all that effort! Thenext step was to re-write aspects of the game to change the graphics, thesound, the control system or the speed of the gameplay until you’d createdsomething completely new. I might share this with a few friends but not forcommercial gain at that time. But the process itself was invaluable in helpingme learn to program, to design graphics, animations or sounds and was reallythe way I opened doors to get into the industry. Now, those industry doors arelargely closed by the nature of the video game systems themselves beingclosed. So, if we can make certain aspects of PS3 open to the independent gamedevelopment community, we will do our industry a service by providingopportunities for the next generation of creative and technical talent.

Linux is supported on the PS3, albeit without access to the GPU at present. There are developer resources around the intertubeswebnet, like this IBM tutorial (feel free to share any other documentation you’ve found in the comments!).

A reader pointed out this rundown from a technology panel where Joe Miller of Linden Labs mentioned that the server source code for Second Life will be open-sourced:

• We’ll be open-sourcing the back end so sims can run anywhere on any machine whether trusted by us or not.

• We’ll be delivering assets in a totally different method that won’t be such a burden on the simulators.

• Very soon we’ll be updating simulators to support multiple versions so that we don’t have to update the entire Grid at once.

• We’ll be using open protocols.

• SL cannot truly succeed as long as one company controls the Grid.

The Second Life client was released under the GPL earlier this year. While not technically a “game”, SL is a 3D virtual world that allows user-created entertainment (although some content stretches that definition considerably).

A tech demo of Crystal Core, an open source FPS/quest-based game written with Crystal Space and the Crystal Entity Layer, has been released. In this demo, you can walk around in two levels, fight two creatures and solve a small quest to access a locked part of the ship.

Download: [ CELstart package ] [ Crystal Core Data Pak ]

Ant let us know about nvidia posting some beta drivers for the GeForce 8600 GTS, GeForce 8600 GT, GeForce 8500 GT, GeForce 8400 GS, and GeForce 8300 GS.

Warzone 2.0.6, an enhanced version of Warzone 2100, has been updated to release 2.0.6. Major changes include:

• Warzone should save a diagnostic file when crashing.
• Cutscenes, while still being text only, were improved. They progress faster and should be more readable.
• You can now see the sky!

Download:[ Warzone 2.0.6]

With the press release announcement of Defcon version 1.4 for other platforms, introversion also mentioned:

…
Indie-developer Introversion Software today announced the release of version1.4 of their hit-title DEFCON, an online multiplayer strategy game, basedaround the theme of thermonuclear war. Significantly, the new patch providescross-platform interoperability, enabling Windows users to wage nuclearArmageddon against fellow Mac players. Linux users will also soon be able tojoin in the fun, with the release of the Linux version due around the end ofApril.
…

Version 0.6.0 of FreeCol, an open source project that aims to provide a free Colonization clone, has been released. Changes in this release include:

• The user interface has been improved.
• Reports have been added.
• Dialogs can now be resized and moved.
• Tons of other new features and bug fixes.

Download: [ FreeCol 0.6.0 ]

The ads on linuxgames.com have changed slightly, but you shouldn’t see any more pop-up ads. Please comment if you have any issues. Also, linux.com/OSTG have been spamming our user submitted news form constantly with non-linux gaming news. We politely asked them to stop, and got no reply. If anyone reads the site and works for them, please either get in contact with me (zakk@timedoctor.org), or just stop spamming our submit form. Also, Cold War is an awesome game. That is all.

Stendhal, a MMORPG which takes advantage of Marauroa, a multiplayer online engine server, has released a new version. Changes in version 0.59 of Stendhal includes:

• A scoring system was introduced in deathmatch instead of XP.
• A quest to deliver pizza to several NPCs was added
• A sunny island and a new quest on it were added.
• Blackjack gambling on the ferry was added.
• Adrow attack to nalwor was added.
• Fishing spots and a fishing rod were added.
• Gold sources, gold nuggets, and gold bars which can be cast by the goldsmith in Ados were added.
• A daily item quest from the Ados mayor and a quest to get the keyring were activated.

Download: [ Stendhal 0.59 ]

Version 1.2.4 of Battle for Wesnoth, a GPL’ed fantasy-themed turn-based strategy game, was released today. This is a maintenance release that fixes somes bugs with saved games and tSG should be playable again.The full changelog has the full details of this release.

Download: [ Battle for Wesnoth 1.2.4 ]

I apologize for anything listed here that might have had an updated release since I started making this list.
Name/Version: FlowFlowMania 0.6
Summary: FlowFlowMania is a remake of the classical puzzle game Pipe Mania on Linux with GP2X compliance.
Screenshots [ View ] Download [ FlowFlowMania 0.6 ]

Name/Version: Gdado 2.2
Summary: Gdado is a very simple application for rolling dice intended for roleplayers.
Screenshots [ View ] Download [ Gdado 2.2 ]

Name/Version: Goba 778
Summary: Goba is a remake of the classic game Flash Attack.
Screenshots [ View ] Download [ Goba 778 ]

Name/Version: Goblin Hack 1.0
Summary: Goblin Hack is an OpenGL-based smooth-scrolling ASCII graphics game! Inspired by the likes of NetHack, it opts for a simple interface that appears to appeal to kids (and adults) and fires the imagination in today’s world of over-rendered games.
Screenshots [ View ] Download [ Goblin Hack 1.0 ]

Name/Version: gZiNc 0.07-beta4
Summary: gZiNc is a Python / GTK+ front-end for the ZiNc arcade emulator.
Screenshots [ View ] Download [ gzinc 0.07-beta4 ]

Name/Version: QMC2 0.1.b9
Summary: QMC2 is a Qt 4 based UNIX MAME frontend supporting both xmame and SDLMAME.
Screenshots [ View ] Download [ QMC2 0.1.b9 ]

Name/Version: Save Scummer 002
Summary: Save Scummer is a Seven Day Roguelike
Download [ Save Scummer 002 ]

Name/Version: Sikaku 1
Summary: Shikaku is a japanese puzzle, where you have to mark squares and rectangles around numbered cells to fill all cells on the playing board.
Screenshots [ View ] Download [ Sikaku 1 ]

Name/Version: Zatacka 0.1.7
Summary: Zatacka is an arcade multiplayer game for 2-6 players on one keyboard, a clone of the classical DOS game Achtung die Kurve. You handle yor line and you must sidetrack lines of other players and of course walls. When some player dies, the survivers get one point. When only one player is left alive, the round is finished. Each game has eleven rounds.
Screenshots [ View ] Download [ Zatacka 0.1.7 ]