Some new (Free!) PC Games
I’ve been playing a few new PC games, and I thought I’ld mention them here for all those interested. Both of these games I’ve been playing under Linux, but they have Windows ports too. And most importantly, they’re free! (As in Speech, and as in beer).
First, I’ve been playing some Scorched Earth 3d. It’s a remake of the classic Scorched Earth, but it has OpenGL hardware acceleration, and a true 3d landscape. It uses ROAM for the terrain, a pet project of mine back at the university, and is fully finished playable game with 3d graphics, sounds effects, and internet multiplayer. JeremyCaton, VirajAlankar, and myself have played it for a good while, and I think we’re pretty hooked.
The other one I’ve been playing is Beneath the Steel Sky on ScummVM. ScummVM is a virtual emulator for all those classics like Maniac Mansion and Sam & Max: Hit the Road. I used to love these adventure games, and the market for adventure games has waned over the last few years in the wake of the Doom/Quake/Unreal generation. But the folks who make Beneath the Steel Sky were nice enough to release the scripts for the game for free, for use with ScummVM. So i’ve played that constantly over the weekend, and just finally beat it. Great game! Now I’m gonna have to dig up my old CD’s of Day of the Tentacle (Maniac Mansion’s sequel) and Sam & Max.
Yah for open source!
