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The Best Linux Games of 2001?

Posted by Cliff on from the tis-the-season-form-making-lists dept.

Apostata asks: "As more and more people migrate (or consider migrating) to Linux, I'd like to know what Slashdot readers would vote for as their top picks for Linux-friendly games (either native or commercially ported) for 2001."

40 of 379 comments (clear)

  1. XBill!!! by PeeOnYou2 · · Score: 5, Funny

    XBill for life! Who needs quake 3?

  2. Only the best games ever! by digitalunity · · Score: 3, Informative

    Quake3 and UT, all the way.

    --
    You can't legislate goodness. Let each to his own destiny, by will of his freely made choices.
  3. M-x tetris by zyqqh · · Score: 3, Troll

    Emacs, meta-x tetris. Doesn't get any better than this...

    --
    // zyqqh
  4. Alpha Centauri by Vicegrip · · Score: 5, Informative

    This game is criminally responsible for the diversions of many many man hours that could have been spent learning useful aspects of Linux and directing them at gaming.

    --
    Do not spread "09 F9 11 02 9D 74 E3 5B D8 41 56 C5 63 56 88 C0" over the internet, thank you.
  5. Emulator by JollyTX · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The only way to get decent "real" games at the moment is through emulators. Therefore I recommend Xmame + lots and lots of arcade games! Pang, Twin Cobra, Spy vs Spy.. ;)

    'Course, the KDE games are coming along nicely...

    --
    Can you hear me, Major Tom? I'm not the man they think I am at home...
  6. TuxRacer's always good... by InterruptDescriptorT · · Score: 5, Insightful

    TuxRacer is good on two fronts: they are Linux-friendly and they have an Open Source version (although it is older than the commercial one).

    If I may be slightly off-topic here, I'd like to see more people involved in creating Linux games. Unlike developing for a console, there are plenty of freely available docs and tools to make it happen. Take a look for example at plib, a portable scene graph/geometry/network enabler/GUI/sound library intended for games. It's Open Source, GPLed, has a great, easy-to-understand C++ interface, and is overall a good thing. I've been using it for nearly six months, and I can't believe the ease with which I've been able to create a couple of little games. I'd love to see more Linux-based Open Source games based around plib.

    --
    Karma: Excellent Birds (mostly as a result of listening to Laurie Anderson)
  7. It's all been downhill since by Matey-O · · Score: 3, Flamebait

    X-eyes.

    --
    "Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus."
    1. Re:It's all been downhill since by DJerman · · Score: 5, Funny

      Actually, it's been all downhill since Tux Racer

      --
  8. The classics are classic for a reason by Syberghost · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Gnomehack.

  9. Everquest... by angst7 · · Score: 5, Funny

    This is absolutley my favorite linux friendly game. It single handedly frustrated me to the point of never wanting to boot into Windoze again.

    :)

    --
    StrategyTalk.com, PC Game Forums
  10. Easy one by jandrese · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Kohan from Loki is easily the best game I have bought for the past 3 years. Loki's newsgroup is filled with some of the best people from around the world who set up games weekly (or more often) to play online. Kohan is very stable and tons of fun to play, and has easily soaked up more of my time than I really want to admit. Loki even ports the patches so the Linux players can play against the WinSlaves (although there have been a couple of issues with the "sync error" that are mostly cleared up these days).

    If you like RTSes, but hate all of the MM, or are just looking for something that isn't yet another Warcraft clone, then I highly recommend checking out Kohan.

    --

    I read the internet for the articles.
  11. Um, ok by Wind_Walker · · Score: 5, Informative
    For Linux gaming, there's only one place to go: Linux Game Tome. They have good features, good reviews, and an extensive list of the games available for Linux.

    As for the games that were ported over from Windows, Why not just go and check a place like Gamerankings.com and see a good compilation of reviews? All you have to do is check on the games that have been ported to Linux and figure it out from there!

    For my money, though, Xbill is excellent :-)

  12. from the tis-the-season form-making-lists dept. ? by daeley · · Score: 3, Funny

    from the tis-the-season form-making-lists dept.

    Aw, Christ. Bureaucracy takes over /. Do we really have to fill out a making-lists form?

    --
    I watched C-beams glitter in the dark near the Tannhauser gate.
  13. Descent 3 by lessthan0 · · Score: 5, Informative

    I have purchased several Loki games over this year, but Descent 3 is the best! I am on my third run through (with higher difficulty). It is fast, the music is great, and the plot is fun. Nothing says FU like a black shark missile :)

  14. XMAME! by frostgiant · · Score: 3, Informative

    Come on... With XMAME we get thousands of arcade games at our finger tips. What's better than that?

  15. I hate to say it, but... by seebs · · Score: 4, Insightful

    The only Unix-based games I play much are Angband and pysol. I play Civ III on Windows, because that's where the current patches will be, and I play a few things on MacOS.

    The games that have been ported (with a few exceptions) are almost all shooters - which I simply don't enjoy playing.

    I like RPG's and turn-based strategy, for the most part.

    The commercial offerings just haven't appealed to me much yet.

    --
    My blog: http://www.seebs.net/log/ --- My iPhone/iPad app: http://www.seebs.net/seebsfrac/
  16. Kernel Panic by GutterBunny · · Score: 3, Funny

    Seems like that's the game I play the most...

    --
    managers...why god invented purgatory
  17. Moria/Angband by W.B.+Yeats · · Score: 3, Interesting

    I've played Moria/Angband since iMoria on the University of Washington VAX in 1987. Moria and its variants are truly the greatest computer games ever invented.

    --

    And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
    Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?

  18. Everyone knows the best game ever is: by Jamuraa · · Score: 4, Funny

    Nethack.

    'Nuff said.

    --
    You can't see this if you have sigs turned off.
  19. sokoban by ruszka · · Score: 4, Funny

    i got sucked into this damn game to the point where i was dreaming of gems and seeing outlines of gems on my carpets, walls, etc.. :\

  20. Creatures Linux by StarTux · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Has finally arrived, and will begin shipping to destinations just after xmas.

    Get to play with digital DNA and see evolution at work all on your Linux box.

    check ds.creatures.net and also of course www.tuxgames.com

    There is no best one as each Linux game brings soemthing new to Linux, perhaps if enough of these games sell we might see more of each catagory or the same.

    Matt

  21. Tribes2! by tjansen · · Score: 4, Informative

    Tribes2 is really bad for the Linux game market. I can't stop playing it and am simply not interrested in buying any other game since 6 months.

  22. best == most enjoyment, for me by Ender+Ryan · · Score: 5, Informative
    Hmmm... that's a tough question. There's starting to be quite a number of games that are available for Linux, the ones I've played are...

    1. Unreal Tournament
    2. Quake 3 Arena
    3. Rune
    4. Heavy Metal FAKK2
    5. Soldier of Fortune
    6. Heavy Gear
    7. Postal Plus

    Out of those, the ones I enjoyed the most, in order of how much I enjoyed them...

    1. Unreal Tournament (good lan party fun!)
    2. Soldier of Fortune
    3. Rune / Q3A (can't decide)
    4. Heavy Metal (good, but a bit buggy and quirky)

    I'm really looking forward to RTCW, supposed to be out in January says the guy doing the port.

    After that there doesn't appear to be too much on the horizon, anyone know of any good games coming out for Linux?

    --
    Sticking feathers up your butt does not make you a chicken - Tyler Durden
  23. Uplink... by binner1 · · Score: 4, Insightful

    Ok, I really love UT, but when I downloaded the demo for Uplink, my eyes were opened. So simple, yet so elegant. And the price...that's hard to beat.

    I highly recommend Uplink for anyone that is tired of the same old $#!+.

    -Ben

  24. If you grew up playing Atari 2600 games... by heffel · · Score: 3, Interesting

    There two great clones of classic
    games for that console:

    Mad Bomber, a Kaboom! clone

    and

    Circus Linux, a Circus Atari clone.

    Both are very good.

    Heffel

    --
    Expert Java EE Consulting
  25. The Sims/Mandrake Gaming!!! by joestar · · Score: 4, Interesting

    It's incredibly nice... (The Sims for Linux)

  26. FreeCiv!!! by llywrch · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Open Source or not, I have to admit to wasting more time on this game than any single one since Warcraft.

    And what I find nice about FreeCiv is that I can play it in one Virtual Window, go to another VW to do stuff, then return to where I left off in FreeCiv. It nicely works with the multi-tasking environment of Linux, unlike the Loki ports I have tried.

    Geoff

    --
    I think I see a trend here. Maybe for them it really would be easier to muzzle the entire internet than to produce p
  27. Re:I've read all the posts... by jfunk · · Score: 4, Interesting

    If you like Nethack, check out Falcon's Eye. It's an SDL-based fork of Nethack with an isometric view. The graphics are quite nice and it even has a soundtrack.

    I've wasted a *lot* of time with it.

  28. nethack! by gregor · · Score: 4, Informative

    My favorite game of all time just happens to also by favorite linux game as well! Nethack is a game I can play and replay (unlike Playstation 2 or your latest Windows game), and it still feels fresh after all these years.

    Useful links to learn more:

    http://www.nethack.org [The official Nethack site)

    http://www.nethack.de (A good all around reference)

    http://www.spod-central.org/~psmith/nh/ (the *best* place for spoilers)

    http://nethack.devnull.net (home of the recently mentioned-on-slashdot tourney where some incredible players put up some incredible scores).

    Happy hacking!

  29. Can't Beat Descent 3 by Whip-hero · · Score: 3, Informative

    I don't know if it was actually published in 2001, but that's when I bought it. Descent 3 for Linux is an excellent port of the Windows version, and it even adds a few features that the Windows version doesn't have (like no-mouse-grab and rendering in a window). You just can't beat 6DoF in a first person shooter, as long as you don't get motion sickness too easily. :) Multiplayer is incredible too, with lots of multiplayer game modes.

    Then again, I always said that Linux itself was the ultimate video game- it's the only one that's kept me playing continuously for 6 years.

    --
    --WH--
  30. Re:from the tis-the-season form-making-lists dept. by MrResistor · · Score: 5, Funny
    Of course you have to fill out the Making Lists Form. Of course, first you have to fill out the Form Request Form in order to request the Making Lists Form. Don't even bother to ask how you get a Form Request Form without first filling out a Form Request Form requesting a Form Request Form...

    Have a nice day, Citizen. The Computer is your friend! :)

    --
    Under capitalism man exploits man. Under communism it's the other way around.
  31. Re:RETURN TO CASTLE WOLFENSTIEN by Cryptnotic · · Score: 5, Interesting
    I must agree. The multiplayer RtCW is quite fast and stable on linux, whereas on WinXP on the same machine (athlon 1.4ghz, ddr, geforce 3), it is glitchy and sometimes slows down for no reason.


    Cryptnotic

    --
    My other first post is car post.
  32. MindRover by Rob+Seace · · Score: 3, Informative

    There are a bunch of good Linux games, but I think I have to go with MindRover being the absolute coolest, most original, most FUN game I've yet seen on Linux... (The all-time winner of that award in my book would be "The Incredible Machine", but unfortunately there's no Linux version of it or any of its sequels, yet...) If you like coding, you'll probably love MindRover... If you like BattleBots, you'll probably love MindRover... You basically build and program your own robotic vehicles to compete in a variety of missions... It's extremely cool... Check it out: The main site, and Loki's product page...

  33. Re:I like Ultima 7 Black Gate and Serpent Isle by Cryptnotic · · Score: 5, Informative
    I'm a big fan of the Exult project. I think they've done a great job on their interpreter for the old DOS games Ultima 7: The Black Gate and Ultima 7: Part 2, The Serpent Isle. They basically re-wrote the entire game engine from reverse engineered data file specs. And the game engine really is better than the original was.


    Probably the only thing left for them to do is a multiplayer game.


    Cryptnotic

    --
    My other first post is car post.
  34. Maelstrom by Tofu · · Score: 3, Funny
    Here is my list. Order is based on hours wasted.

    • Maelstrom
    • Tribes 2
    • fortune
    • ..


    .... but wait, I guess it is only tribes 2 because that is the only game that came out in 2001. Oh well. :)
    --



    Can you see Iron City here?
  35. Freeciv! by jdavidb · · Score: 3, Informative

    FreeCiv! Ever since I got RedHat 7.1 I've been an addict. Game is incredibly fun alone, even more fun online, and customizable to the extent that it's like having several games.

    --
    Secession is the right of all sentient beings.
  36. Top Linux Games - Freeciv, Kohan by Naum · · Score: 3, Interesting

    Here is my list:

    1. Freeciv - the open source flavor of the epic strategy game. I purchased Civ3 when it came out, but TBHWY, it doesn't provide a compelling reason to reboot into Win-doze, and I still opt to play freeciv. Freeciv is much more customizable and plays quicker, allows multitasking, and was set up specifically for mulitplayer (even if I haven't ventured online to play much MP). I hope the freeciv team is entertaining notions of a Civ3 ruleset, or some variation ...
    2. Kohan: Immortal Sovereigns - innovative, evolutionary RTS (real time strategy) game - instead of the "Age of Buildings", clickety-click nature of other RTS games in the genre, Kohan is the wargamer's RTS, with company-based battle, zone of supply, and zone of population constructs, and as opposed to the micromanagement of resource collection, resources are earned/spent on a per minute basis, and constructed companies have a maintenance cost. Plus you have magic wielding units that gain XP and cast some cool spells. Multiplayer with Windows gamers is possible (though with large maps you won't be able to view films after)
    3. Pysol - the vastly superior Linux alternative to solitaire
    4. Sid Meier Alpha Centauri Planetary Pack - great game, but I have a big beef with the multiplayer support - you can only MP against other Linux users, unlike Kohan. So it gets downgraded to the bottom of the list for that reason.
    --

    AZspot
  37. XSnow by booch · · Score: 3, Informative

    XSnow was much cooler than XEyes. (XSnow has snow falling in the background of the screen, and it piles up on the top ledge of windows and the bottom of the screen.) XPenguin isn't bad either.

    --
    Software sucks. Open Source sucks less.
  38. My Personal List... by CrusadeR · · Score: 5, Informative
    I'm pretty sure all of the above titles received A-category reviews across the board, so out of those four you should be able to find one you at least like.

    Another note: Linux Game Publishing is shipping a port of Creatures Internet Edition which should reach resellers after Xmas.

    --
    :wq
  39. Re:Bah Textmode Quake rules by vogel · · Score: 3, Informative

    You can play Unreal Tournament in textmode as well. Compile SDL with AALib support and use the software renderer :)