Myth II Linux Demo

CrysMeth writes "Loki has just released a demo version of Myth II for both x86 and PPC Linux. Get it here. I'm getting closer and closer to just reformating my Windows drive to ext2fs (to hold all the new Linux games. ;) " Now that I've downloaded it, I have no issues Slashdotting it :) This will be the first Loki game I've tried - I'm curious to see what it's like. And while we're on the subject, Loki seems to have redone their website..

Comments

Re:X/Linux Software still sucks...

[8Complex]

No offense guys but I am yet to see apps for X that are decently designed. Most are either good looking and bad functioning or vice versa.

Honestly, if someone came out with a (don't shoot me) Visual Basic type app where you can design your interface smoothly, it would make a world of difference.

If you want to compare take a look at the best of the best apps for Windows for Usenet downloading (text AND files), Forte' Agent. Now compare that to the best Usenet program for X (I forget the name - it's been so long since I actually used linux it's not even funny). You'll see a major major difference in both look, functionality, speed, and even features.

If there IS some sort of Visual Basic type app for X, please someone speak up so I can learn this language and get myself OUT of Windows.

8Complex

clarification

[Captain Chaos]

FYI FASA itself wasn't purchased by Microsoft. Microsoft only purchased the computer games division - FASA Interactive Technologies (FIT) and it's parent company VWEG (makers of the Virtual World pods). FASA was a major shareholder in them, but FASA themselves is not owned by Microsoft. Though they did just announce a deal to be acquired by Decipher so they can become a bigger force in the gaming industry. So M$ may have the rights to the computer game versions of FASA's games, but at least the paper versions won't be tainted by Redmond. I do agree though that the chance of MW3 or any game based on a FASA license being ported to Linux now is extremely slim as is a port to any OS not made by M$. It's really a shame though as I'd bet that games based on Battletech such as MW3 and the Shadowrun universe (cyberpunk with magic) would probably be popular with Linux users.

Linux for games

[Bill Henning]

Yet another sign of the push for the desktop... actually I would be quite pleased if Linux took off as a gaming platform; it would increase the availability of (a) sound card drivers (b) 3d drivers (c) good Linux games.

Now if only someone would port MechWarrior3 to Linux...


Currently it looks like Mesa/GLX will be the default 3D API for Linux; it will be nice to have just one 3D API to support.


I expect some enterprising souls made an 'inverse wrapper' i.e. wrapped a Direct3D layer on top of Mesa.

Re:Linux for games

[Fizgig]

There isn't a great deal of difference between "not cross-platform" and "proprietary" when the company that makes the platform makes the API. Of course, someone could write a wrapper, but they better have a good lawyer. It's much like saying, "No, Glide isn't proprietary; it's just not cross-chipset." No one would say this. You can write a game with Glide, but it's still proprietary.

As far as being able to write a driver for Direct3D, you would get in some serious trouble writing a Direct3D driver for Linux (if such a thing were possible). I'm not sure you're even allowed to call something Direct3D without MS's permission, much like you can't call something OpenGL compliant without passing SGI's tests (why Mesa isn't called OpenGL).

In short, being tied to the product of the company that created it makes Direct3D proprietary, much like Glide is proprietary to 3dfx.

Wish List

[Skyshadow]

Here's a wish list of things that could (and should) be ported over to Linux. These are the remaining "musts" before I lose my Windows box:

Alpha Centauri

Adaptec's Easy-CD Creator software

MS Money (hey, you want snow, go to the arctic, right?)

Photoshop

All of these still don't have a Linux equivalent (yeah, I like GIMP, but it's still not in the same league as Photoshop). The big one for me is MS Money, though; I really like how powerful it is and all the features it has (lemme alone). I left off Starcraft 'cause that plays reasonably well under WINE. I also didn't include future games that I'm waiting on 'cause I'm hoping that Loki will catch all of the really good ones (or that they'll be by id).

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Re:..tshirts (Warning: drifting further offtopic!)

[Sun Tzu]

How about "/.'ed and alive (but, alas, not the server)" for those who were /.'ed off the net...

or "Linux-driven, proven /. resistant to 100 HPS" for those survivors with battle-tested operating systems (replace "Linux" with FreeBSD, etc, as needed).

or "Stress-tested by the /. effect" for that network administrator harried look (must muss hair and miss a night's sleep to wear this one).

or, for the wayward journalist, "Flame and /. resistent". Journalists will want to wear this for the photo that accompanies the column to intimidate the would-be flamer. ;)

great linux games

[Xkill_]

i got the demo and i was really impressed, it was quality and it looks really nice. I have also purchased Civ3 lately, and even though i dont really like the game, it was put together really well. Now lets see, ill have Myth 2 (when it comes out), Civ3, Quake, Quake 2; that is 4 games. hrummm, plus StarCraft which runs very well under wine. That is basically 5 games that are of very good quality (well starcraft is only pretty good quality due to the fact that you have to run it with wine). I am glad to see Linux becoming more of a gameing platform, im sure it wont be long before someone makes a distro tuned for gameing. Now only if support for openGL was improved upon.

Yep, there are mirrors Re:Mirrors?

[Ethelred Unraed]

Sure, there are mirrors--they are listed on Loki's site, which keeps getting /.'ed like crazy. But here are the FTP sites listed:

ftp://ftp.linuxberg.com/pub/Loki/

ftp://happypenguin.org/pub/loki/myth2/

ftp://download.linuxlords.com/pub/de mos/myth2/

Loki is going to be adding more as time goes by. If you have a good connection free, e-mail them and let 'em know...and if you have a spare Origin2, send it to 'em, too--their server needs a break... :-/

Kinda sucks, too. Spent all that effort redoing the Loki site, and nobody gets to see it. *sigh*

Ethelred

Re:Linux bundled with the game?

[watanabe]

This is a horrible idea.

Many early PC games did this. (I'm talking
like early..Sierra's first game, oh I forget
the name. It involved crossing a desert, and
finding a magic pair of shoes with the word
Shazam on them.

Also I recall a game for the XT called "BigTop"
which had its own OS.

The reason it's a horrible idea is...you're
stuck with their OS!

Why lose all the benefits of your
shiny new kernel and system? Do you really expect
your game publisher to provide updates for your
TNT2.9a, which has a compatibility problem with
your ATA/66 controller and celerons? They
will not. I'll just burst your bubble now.

Especially because Games tend to push technology,
it's hard to imagine a game publisher keeping up
on drivers and OS issues enough to create their
own distribution. Really Hard.

Additionally, you may want to reboot, but the
vast majority of Linux users love linux
(in part) because frequent reboots are not
necessary.

In short this is like replacing a horse's front
legs with wheels. It looks cool, but won't
get you where you want to go.

Re: Easy to learn != Easy to use (Wish List)

[tatara]

PPS If you don't like the interface, buy a mouse with the right number of
buttons, and repeat after me "Easy to learn != Easy to use".

I'd be the last person to criticize a free software project, since I'm long overdue to do some serious contributing, but I only agree with your statement above if you allow '!=' to be "isn't necessarily". Just reading the posts in this thread, it seems that there's a consensus that while Gimp and Photoshop are in the same league, the interface for Gimp is holding it back. It isn't more powerful by being obscure.

I've never used Photoshop personally, but I've seen it used (a web guy at work is showing me some of the tricks), and I have tried to use Gimp. I have a right-mouse button, but the menus within menus within menus is error prone when you're not careful. It's a very impressive program, but a bit confusing to find things in. There's something to be said for using a program, not using it for a while, and not having to re-learn it again when you go back to it. But hey, I'm biased, I'm a UI developer :).

Feel free to mail me for my thoughts specifically; I wish I had time to help out somewhere, but where I work my time is completely used up right now. I'd love to give feedback and advice, but I don't have time to write code. Take that at whatever value you want to give it.

Rick Sanders (a.k.a. Tatara)
rsanders@csli.stanford.edu

PS: That having been said, it's still a damned cool program.

PPS: Dumb question: are there tools in Gimp for really basic stuff like a rectangles or circles? Feel free to respond with an 'RTFM', because I haven't, I just tried hunting around for it and failed to find it.

Time to reformat your HD... or not?

[Eg0r]

Sorry if my post sounds like a flamewar waiting to happen, but what is this formating thing all about?

As much as I dislike microosft, I always keep in mind that computers are supposed to be tools! (is that because I'm older than the average /. reader? ;)

Sure I wouldn't use win95 to setup masquerading or any other service for that matter (even if those private networks or something like that are now officially a microsoft invention), but there's a reason why most games work in DOS DPMI, that's how you can expect the fastest resuts without the operating system being bothered about the way you mess with hardware.

Oh well, if I don't get it, then let it be a -1 comment :-)

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Linux bundled with the game?

[Hanno]

Don't know if anybody else thought of this already, but I'd like to see something like a true "boot and play" game CD. One that brings its own OS, so to speak.

The CD would include a stripped-down Linux distribution with all the libraries and drivers needed for the game. No installation of a complete system is necessairy - all you need to do is boot the CD (or copy a few files on your system's harddrive and run it with loadlin or lilo).

When new drivers come along, the game manufacturer could update the files of its "distribution".

ftp://ftp.linuxgames.com/myth2_demo/

[mplex]

says it all, I got 120k/sec...