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Linux Games For Non-Gamers? 460

Nethead writes "Due to some down-time, I'm looking for some Linux games to pass the time. I've been playing BattleMaster, a PHP web game but it's only two turns a day, and I'd like something a bit faster. I've not really played PC games since the Doom era so I'm really out of touch here. I don't have a real gamer box, just a simple video card. What do Slashdotters think I should try? A simple FPS or some type of networked game would do. What's out there for Linux?"
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Linux Games For Non-Gamers?

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  • Whelp... (Score:5, Informative)

    by Anrego ( 830717 ) * on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:20PM (#29714917)

    I find xmoto is an excellent time waster ..

    http://xmoto.tuxfamily.org/ [tuxfamily.org]

    Also I occasionally delve into the "flash games" arena .. there's actually some decent stuff now days! (And there's always the classics like "defend the castle" and "Champion Archer")

  • flash games (Score:5, Informative)

    by Mishotaki ( 957104 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:21PM (#29714923)
    some flash games are quite decent, like gemcraft http://armorgames.com/play/3527/gemcraft-chapter-0 [armorgames.com]
  • by Anonymous Coward on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:21PM (#29714925)

    leisure suit larry

  • Linux games wiki (Score:5, Informative)

    by ljaszcza ( 741803 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:22PM (#29714927)
    Well, there is a wiki too: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Linux_games [wikipedia.org] I've played the Penumbra games, they are ... adventure games really but fairly atmospheric.
    • Re:Linux games wiki (Score:5, Informative)

      by RuBLed ( 995686 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:31PM (#29715009)
      You could also try the appsdb list of Wine. ~ http://appdb.winehq.org/ [winehq.org] If you browse the list you can find freeware windows games that runs quite well. (the last one I tried and had fun was Battleships Forever)
      • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

        by QuantumRiff ( 120817 )

        Also, most ID Software games work on both Linux and Windows. I've been playing "Enemy Terriroty:Quake Wars" for the last 2 years or so on my linux box, and it actually ran faster in linux than it did in windows when I used to Dual boot.

    • Re:Linux games wiki (Score:5, Informative)

      by apoc.famine ( 621563 ) <apoc.famine@gm[ ].com ['ail' in gap]> on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:58PM (#29715195) Journal

      I'll second the Penumbra games. They were FP without the S. Minimal amounts of killing, good atmosphere, with tons of moderately challenging puzzles to solve. Very reasonably priced as well.
       
      The World Of Goo has a very functional linux port, and is one of the better games I've played in years.
       
      I haven't been back to the Kingdom of Loathing for a year or so due to time constraints, but it's a pretty damn fun browser game. Free to play, but you can buy vanity items to help support it. And, of course.....TROGDOR!!!!!.......TROGDOR!!!!! [homestarrunner.com] ...ahem.

  • MUD! (Score:2, Informative)

    You could try MUDding :) See my sig
    • by Korin43 ( 881732 )
      Portal GT works perfectly in Wine. And seriously.. Portal is MUCH better than any other MUD client.
  • Yes (Score:5, Informative)

    by gbarules2999 ( 1440265 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:23PM (#29714935)
    Cube, OpenArena, Nexuiz are all fair FPS games. Not amazing, but fun diversions. Aside from that BZFlag, Battle for Wesnoth, and FreeCiv.

    A word of advice: Never play Frozen Bubble. I've lost days thanks to that bastard.
    • Re:Yes (Score:5, Interesting)

      by happygrue ( 1462757 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:50PM (#29715137)

      Battle for Wesnoth (open source: wesnoth.org) is a game that I started playing over 4 years ago. I looked far and wide for strategy games that could hold my interest with serious replay value. Once I found Wesnoth I got sucked in and I all but quit playing other games for quite some time, and I always keep coming back to Wesnoth, in a trend that players jokingly refer to as a "Wesbreak" - you just have to come back after a few months or a year to see what is new!

      It is simple yet, rich with both strategic and tactical depth. Lots (lots!) of user made content and it's own markup language with which to write your own. I started off thinking that I'd never play it multiplayer, but that is about all I do these days. There are some co-op multiplayer campaigns (a relatively recently introduced feature) that are tons of fun. And the 2v2 and 3v3 games can be epic and utterly gripping - provided you find serious folks to play with. Like any multiplayer experience you will find people you'd like to avoid...

      It's certainly not a game for everyone, but if you are into wargames, fantasy battle games, hex based games, rpg battle games or like to see thriving open source games you should take a look. Disclaimer: I am a (very minor!) contributor, so I am all kinds of biased. ;)

      • I've gotten drawn into Battle for Wesnoth twice before, and it sounds like it's about time for me to make it three.

        Awesome game!
      • I agree with Wesnoth. If you like Fire Emblem or Shining Force it is a must download. About my only complaint is that some teams are much better/worse than another when playing different teams.
      • Yeah, it started as a fantasy "Panzer General" but has really taken off. There are tons of units and the maps look good. I just wish someone would make a mod with Shermans and Panzers instead of spearmen and griffins! :)
      • +1 for BZFlag (Score:4, Informative)

        by KlaymenDK ( 713149 ) on Monday October 12, 2009 @02:08AM (#29716239) Journal

        The game, technically, is simple enough for almost any video card to handle (better ones don't add /that/ much extra). In the same way as checkers, it's quite easy to operate (mouse plus 4 keys or so) but takes a while to master.

        The simplistic graphics and simplistic controls focuses the game on something else: gameplay. That's why it's what I spend 90% of my gaming time on it.

    • Re:Yes (Score:4, Informative)

      by Larryish ( 1215510 ) <larryish@gmail.UMLAUTcom minus punct> on Sunday October 11, 2009 @11:20PM (#29715591)

      OpenArena, Warzone 2100, Urquan Masters, and Frozen Bubble should top your list of Linux games. Also check out Urban Terror, it is a close analog of CounterStrike.

      The Wesnoth game I have never played, but am going to check it out right now

  • It's my all-times favourite game, and I would play it on Windows, too, if only there was a port. It's somewhat addictve, but not too much.

  • happy penguin (Score:5, Informative)

    by micromegas ( 536234 ) <cbacigalupo@gmail.com> on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:25PM (#29714961) Homepage
    Check out http://www.happypenguin.org/ [happypenguin.org]. I've got the RSS enabled on the right side of /. If you ever up your video card, http://www.planeshift.it/ [planeshift.it] is an excellent open source mmorpg.
  • Depending on how capable your card is (decent 7-series NVidia or a good ATI), you may want to hit up HotHead Games and Penny Arcade Adventures' On The Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness [rainslick.com] (both episodes). This is a good 3D "It's your turn when you act first before anyone else" game, well worth $15 for each episode, and plays very well in Linux. Just turn off Compiz/Beryl; it interferes with anything 3D.

  • QuakeLive (Score:3, Informative)

    by richrumble ( 988398 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:26PM (#29714967)
    Quakelive works on linux now, have a go!
  • Travian (Score:2, Informative)

    Travian [travian.com] is a free browser-based strategy/resource game that works fine on any OS. From what I gather, it's not as fast as most of the other MMORPGs, but it does require a bit of attention.

  • Civ (Score:5, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:27PM (#29714979)

    Freeciv is a good game you can play and leave, then come back to later. It doesn't require a lot of hardware, and while complicated at first, it becomes remarkably simple to play once you've played for a while.

    Watch you don't get too addicted though! The urge to play 'just one more turn', or to go to bed 'after I've captured that city' is incredible.
    http://freeciv.wikia.com/wiki/Main_Page

    • Re:Civ (Score:5, Insightful)

      by palndrumm ( 416336 ) * on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:50PM (#29715139) Homepage

      while complicated at first, it becomes remarkably simple to play once you've played for a while.

      See, I'd prefer that the other way around - simple at first, then more and more complicated as you play it more and get deeper into it.

  • If you like FPS games there are many you can try. Sauerbraten [sauerbraten.org], Nexuiz [alientrap.org], Tremulous [tremulous.net], Warsow [warsow.net] are a few to get you started.

    It sucks for me, though, I hate FPS games. For my Linux gaming I've always used emulators. Install ePSXe, Mednafen and dgen, then eat your heart out on old games console titles.

  • Not really Linux, but worth the blast from the past.

    Fedora has a shocking number of games in the 'Everything' repository, including 'OpenArena' and many others.

  • by blool ( 798681 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:33PM (#29715021)
    Altitude [altitudegame.com] is my favorite game ever. It's a multiplayer airplane/dogfighting game with really satisfying combat.
  • OpenTTD (Score:5, Informative)

    by Bluecobra ( 906623 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:34PM (#29715025)

    OpenTTD (which is based on Transport Tycoon Deluxe) is a great game and you can quickly loose track of the time building intricate train networks. You do need the original game files but this is pretty easy to do with the help of Google.

      http://openttd.org/ [openttd.org]

  • Sauerbraten (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Trip Ericson ( 864747 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:36PM (#29715037) Homepage

    The only computer game I play is Sauerbraten [sauerbraten.org]. I'm very much not a gamer, but I find it to be quite enjoyable to play. The biggest plus is that since most people haven't played it, when I ask people to play it, we're on pretty even footing given how little I play.

    I definitely recommend it.

  • Vendetta (Score:3, Informative)

    by shawb ( 16347 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:38PM (#29715057)
    Vendetta [vendetta-online.com] works under Linux. More of a space shooter with role playing elements than the traditional FPS which you seem to be looking for, but the guys at Guild Software [guildsoftware.com] have spent a good amount of time making sure it works well under a wide variety of hardware configurations.
  • Quake Live [quakelive.com]
  • World of Goo (Score:4, Informative)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:40PM (#29715075)

    World of Goo - check it out!

    • I second that. My Friend showed me the demo, and my son loved it. I'll be buying the ($20) full version shortly.

  • Roguelikes (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Sir_Lewk ( 967686 ) <sirlewk AT gmail DOT com> on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:43PM (#29715095)

    Nethack.

    I know some mod is about to mod me 'funny' but I'm quite serious. If you are a casual gamer and not addicted to fast-paced games and high-rez graphics, give roguelikes a try. My personal favorite is nethack, but there are a lot out there and there is some good variety and inovation in the genre.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      by Sir_Lewk ( 967686 )

      Also, since you mentioned Doom I should add that Doom is still a quite good game. As a matter of fact I was playing it for about 45 minutes in linux on the train back home just a few hours ago. (well, Doom 2 technically)

    • Re:Roguelikes (Score:4, Informative)

      by vrmlguy ( 120854 ) <samwyse@nOSPAM.gmail.com> on Sunday October 11, 2009 @10:10PM (#29715269) Homepage Journal

      In order of my personal preferences, I'd suggest NetHack, Angband, NetHack, SLASH'EM, NetHack, ADOM, NetHack, and, oh yeah, NetHack.

      • by vrmlguy ( 120854 )

        And I almost forgot: telnet://nethack.alt.org/ [alt.org]

      • In order of my personal preferences, I'd suggest NetHack, Angband, NetHack, SLASH'EM, NetHack, ADOM, NetHack, and, oh yeah, NetHack.

        I've played all that (and in that proportion!), but I'm finding Linley's Dungeon Crawl to be my preferred poison these days.

        Try a Minotaur Gladiator serving Okawaru, then a Deep Elf Ice Elementalist serving Vehumet, then a Spriggan Assassin serving Xom, then (best of all, but rather challenging) a Sludge Elf Transmuter serving Sif Muna.

        It would be easier to learn than Nethack a

  • Cute games (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Burz ( 138833 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:44PM (#29715099) Homepage Journal

    Supertux 2
    Pingus
    Enigma
    Chromium BSU
    KSudoku (very nice under KDE4 if you can deal with that)
    Frozen Bubble

    Puppy Games also has some nice shoot-em-ups that run on Linux. Their titles are cheap, pretty fun to play and have good sized trial modes. My fav here is Ultratron (inspired by Robotron 2084) and also Titan Attacks.

  • http://tremulous.net/files/ [tremulous.net]

    Tremulous is a very unique FPS. Two sides: Humans and wall-climbing aliens. Check it out.

    http://www.wesnoth.org/ [wesnoth.org]

    Wesnoth is a hexagonal turn-based-strategy. I find it quite fun, though at times the random number generator can be annoying. (Don't ask...)

    http://www.playonlinux.com/en/ [playonlinux.com]

    If you've got any relatively new Windows games, check out PlayOnLinux. It manages multiple versions of Wine, and the installation of games. I've got it on an Ubuntu box, and it works great for stuff like

  • You could try getting a job and a girlfriend (or boyfriend). Between the two, your free time will disappear in a heartbeat.

    You say you have both? Ok, now get a fulltime job, and find a girlfriend who isn't cheating on you.

  • Playdeb.net (Score:2, Informative)

    by cadeon ( 977561 )

    Seriously, if it exists, you can find it here [playdeb.net].

  • by Erikderzweite ( 1146485 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:52PM (#29715147)

    Here is a short list of some Linux games I know of:

    3D Multiplayer Deathmatch:
    Alien Arena
    Warsow
    Openarena
    World of Padman
    Nexuiz
    Sauerbraten

    3D Multiplayer team DM:
    Tremulous (aliens vs. humans)
    Enemy Territory (allies vs. axis), freeware
    ET - True Combat Elite (terrorists vs. specops), freeware
    Urban Terror (terrorists vs. specops)

    2D Multiplayer Deathmatch:
    Teeworlds (HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!)

    Artillery:
    Scorched3D
    Hedgewars (Worms clone)
    Wormus (Worms clone with OS mascots)

    Real Time Strategy:
    Warzone2100
    Bos Wars
    The Spring Project and various mods

    Turn-based Strategy:
    Battle for Wesnoth (caution, addictive)
    Freeciv

    Racing (I'm not really into racing):
    Supertuxkart
    Trackmania

    Jump-n-run:
    Supertux
    Secret Maryo Chronicles

    Others:
    Neverball/Neverputt
    Foobillard
    Frozen-Bubble (multiplayer bubble-puzzle clone)
    OpenTTD

    These games require fairly simple hardware -- I have played most of them on my built-in intel X3100 (i965).

  • As the story tag says...NetHack.

    I've lost more productivity to NetHack in various forms and platforms since the late 80's (at that time on a VAX 780 running VMS) than any other game.
    I'm currently playing iNetHack on the iPhone.
    There's no reason to play in ascii any more - almost every port supports graphical tile-sets if the thought of ASCII puts you off.
    There are excellent guides available as well (http://nethack.wikia.com/).

    Its not the easiest game to "win" (I've only ascended 3 times in over 20 years), h

    • I've played Nethack on my GP2x many times but can never get into any of the PC versions. I don't know why but the controls just seem... funky to me. I suppose it was because I was raised on console and not PC games but are there any PC versions of nethack with nice, easy controls that are intuitive and don't take years to learn?
    • Mod parent up!

      telnet nethack.alt.org

  • ...since they're a) not Linux native and b) payware, but Telltale games has some of the best adventure games around. Right now I've been laughing myself silly of their Tales of Monkey Island remake. They run wonderful in WINE and is well worth the money.

  • by trb ( 8509 )

    If you like puzzles and you don't need dazzling graphics, these are fun:
    http://www.chiark.greenend.org.uk/~sgtatham/puzzles/ [greenend.org.uk]

  • http://www.kingdomofloathing.com/ [kingdomofloathing.com]

    If you don't have a decent video card don't bother looking for an FPS. But if you want a fairly deep, often subtly hilarious RPG with no more requirements than a basic web browser, give KoL a try.

  • enemy territory (Score:3, Informative)

    by Cycon ( 11899 ) <steve [at] thePr ... NBSDom minus bsd> on Sunday October 11, 2009 @09:58PM (#29715191) Homepage

    I've not really played PC games since the Doom era so I'm really out of touch here. I don't have a real gamer box, just a simple video card. What do Slashdotters think I should try? A simple FPS or some type of networked game would do.

    Sounds like you've missed a fair few generations of games then.

    Try giving Enemy Territory [wikipedia.org] a go.

    Quite addictive in its time and a nice cooperative element to online play.

    It was released back in 2003, and runs quite well on Linux. You did mention only having a "simple" video card but odds are better than even your system has sufficient support - even basic integrated video chipsets tend to have some degree of OpenGL support these day.

    System requirements are: 600 MHz CPU, 128 MB RAM, 32 MB OpenGL graphics card, 56.6k Modem/LAN

    Its not quite Open Source but it is (and always has been) free as in beer.

  • by davidwr ( 791652 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @10:00PM (#29715201) Homepage Journal

    In this race against time, players vie to be the first player to successfully install and fully patch Windows XP.

    Game equipment, per player:
    *Linux computer with CD burner and an Ethernet card that doesn't require additional drivers for Windows XP
    *Blank hard drive
    *Windows XP pre-service-pack CD
    *Ethernet connection
    *Unlimited supply of blank CDs
    *Unlimited supply of over the counter painkillers, including Aspirin, Tylenol, and Jack Daniels

    Goal: Get Windows installed on the spare hard drive before all other players. If you get a virus or other malware you have to take a painkiller and start over.
    Rules: Ethernet cable must be up at all times, and Ethernet protocols must not be disabled.

    Strategies:
    *Install it from CD and pray you don't get infected.
    *Use Linux to download Service Pack 3 and create a slipstream CD and install with that, and hope you don't get infected.
    *Use Linux to format the drive and copy the files one by one, and download or write a tool to build the registry, fake log files, and other files.
    *Ask CowboyNeal for help.

    • Re: (Score:3, Informative)

      by mcrbids ( 148650 )

      Strategies continued...

      * Use the Linux box to connect to the Internet and create a private network with NAT with default inbound deny, connect the Windows box to the NAT network so that worms don't infect it. Run all Windows updates on the relatively secured private network. (works every time, so far)

  • Quakelive is tons of fun. It's basically a port of Q3 arena to the browser. However you can play with your friends quite easily and theres a rudimentary skill matching to help you find people of your skill level.
    The requirements are actually quite modest since it's a 10 year old game, but it's very well made.

    I also have to say the more people who play quakelive on linux, the more linux support there will be from idsoftware in the future, and they are a top notch game developer. They pay attention to how

    • I've been stuck sick in my room for the past week and discovered quakelive. Wow. It's awesome to remember how much fun this game was. The in-browser features are actually quite cool. You can easily find friends, the match browser is very cool, and achievements are always fun (should have more...) The game itself is the same ol' quake 3. However there seems to have a wave of new players, which is cool for unskilled players like me.

      And it works *flawless* in linux, with firefox.

      And yes, having a god proportio
  • There are lots of Linux games for non-gamers: they're all 8 years old. Where's Dawn of War 2? Or Left 4 Dead?

  • FreeCiv? (Score:4, Informative)

    by GrouchoMarx ( 153170 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @10:03PM (#29715227) Homepage

    If you're into strategy and don't mind losing all of your free time and some of your work time, there's FreeCiv [wikia.com]. Think Civilization recast as a full-on client/server multi-player setup. I've not played it recently (no time to game at all lately, too much code to write!) but the graphics requirements should be fairly modest.

  • I like multiplayer networked games, especially games I can play with friends or my kids. Of course, not everyone is using Linux, so that's a hurdle too. So the 3 top ones I like to play also happen to be OSS and has multiplatform (Windows, Mac, Linux) releases.

    Favorites starting from my most are:
    Warzone 2100 [wz2100.net] - Think of a real-time war game such as Command and Conquer. It's not too technical, but technical enough. I like playing with a friend in a 4 on 4 game and tag-teaming the two computer players and

  • Don't forget online games. I've had many many hours of fun with Runescape, cybernations, and astroempires. All work fine on Debian and Ubuntu.

    Don't forget Wine, either. Many games designed for Windows run great with Wine. If you are able and willing to pay a few bucks, Cedega has what amounts to a customized Wine, along with support for getting many of the most popular games running correctly.

    I'm not a gamer either, but over the years, I have collected a few games, and the kids have more that we enjoy p

  • Netrek is pretty fun, and you can just drop in a server when you have 10 or 15 minutes to kill. It is the ORIGINAL on-line game, and still lots of fun.

    One of my recent favorites is just plain old desktop defender. Its flash based.

  • Try it. It's a strategy game, and FOSS. Unusual combination. http://glest.org/ [glest.org]
  • I'll probably get shot for this, but I found Same GNOME [gnome.org] ridiculously addictive. There are clones of it for other desktop environments, but there is something nice and polished about the GNOME version that I found lacking in the clones.
  • Dwarf Fortress (Score:5, Informative)

    by Erik Fish ( 106896 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @10:34PM (#29715401) Journal

    The deepest Roguelike ever. If you aren't sure why you might want to play it, start here [lparchive.org].

    Get the Linux 40d16 version from this page [bay12games.com]

    If you prefer graphical tiles to (nearly) pure ASCII (I certainly do) get the Mike Mayday tileset from this page [staszic.waw.pl] and use the instructions [staszic.waw.pl] to get it working.

    Then watch the 40 tutorial videos [archive.org] to ease the neigh vertical learning curve. You will of course supplement the videos with lots of careful reading of the wiki [dwarffortresswiki.net].

    This game is a time vampire, but lots of fun if you have a little patience and an attention span.

  • Slightly OT (Score:3, Insightful)

    by incubbus13 ( 1631009 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @10:35PM (#29715411)

    Seriously, if you want Linux to really take off and outnumber Windows on home PCs, one of the strategies I'd consider would be to create 4-5 really good games not available on MS/Mac products. *nix geeks do a lot of ragging on GUI users, but exert little real effort to give them motivation to change.

    All it would take is one superior game, one superior product and you'd get a massive influx of dual-booters. There's been a lot of work lately on making easy-to-install *nix flavors, Debian, CentOS, can both in my experience be installed by a child with no outside help (I even did it.) But unless you're running a server for something or just like to be confused, there's no motivation for it. If you gave people a game, an app, an experience they couldn't have on another OS, you'd provide real motivation.

    Despite the current trends, good games don't require super graphics or movie tie-ins or big name voice actors. The best games, have always just needed better-than-suck graphics, superior user interface, and/or something that makes the game hook. Generally a little quirk or wrinkle in the game playing experience that no one else has ever figured out how to iron out. Something about the UI that just works. There are whole series of games that really aren't all that great as far as games go, but just have such a great interface that people keep coming back to them. Then again, there was a game on Windows3.1 shareware that came pre-installed called CastleWin. Was one of the coolest games I've ever played, just a Rogue-clone with graphics, you could re-name your items, and do a few other neat tricks. Still can't find that one anywhere.

    K.

    • Re: (Score:3, Insightful)

      Don't you think its kind of wrong/impossible to prevent a windows or mac port of any peice free software if there is someone out there who wants to make one?

      And if perhaps you were thinking of making the game non-free, that seems like a rather ironic way of drawing people towards linux adoption.

      Greater linux adoption would be very nice (for better driver support and better compatability with others) but I think it needs to be achieved in ways other than killer apps. Enlightening people on the benefits of FO

  • by idsfa ( 58684 )

    Linux Games [linuxgames.com]
    Happy Penguin [happypenguin.org]
    LinuX Gamers [linux-gamers.net]

  • UQM, DOSBOX (Score:3, Informative)

    by Craig Ringer ( 302899 ) on Sunday October 11, 2009 @11:18PM (#29715581) Homepage Journal

    The Ur Quan Masters (was: Star Control 2) at http://sc2.sf.net/ [sf.net] is a masterpiece of a game, runs natively on Linux, and is free.

    You can also run a lot of great games under DOSBox. You can get the X-COM series ( UFO Defense, Terror from the Deep, and Apocalypse ) from various online sources for something like $5 US, just make sure they're not DRM-wrapped. I also highly recommend Master of Orion II. All these run great under DOSBox on Linux and require no 3D video capabilties at all. They're all long-running single player strategies, which may not be your kind of thing.

  • You can also pick up Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory for as a free download. It's an FPS that runs natively on Linux and isn't very demanding of a 3D video card, though it certainly does require a basic one. It's good fun, and while it's old there are lots of people still playing it.
  • Empire Deluxe ... Only speaking as a satisfied customer.... who also loved the original Empire. Found at http://www.killerbeesoftware.com/ [killerbeesoftware.com]
  • and after that was Earth 2025. [swirve.com]

    Don't bother starting without a build strategy [google.com]. ... the command line might actually be more fun.

  • If you like Risk, this is kind of similar but way better. Play online with others, on a wide variety of maps and variety of rules.

    Shameless referral link [conquerclub.com]

    You can play free, but only 4 games at a time. Subscribe for unlimited. :)

    Works great in Firefox on Linux. I have been utterly addicted to it for about 2 years now. I am yodermk on there, if anyone cares.

  • by smpoole7 ( 1467717 ) on Monday October 12, 2009 @12:08AM (#29715767) Homepage
    Why limit yourself to only that which runs natively on Linux? All that matters is killing time and having a little fun. DOSBox (www.dosbox.org) provides the emulator and Classic DOS Games (www.classicdosgames.com) has dozens of older DOS classics, from Keen to Duke Nukem to whatever. Enjoy it.
  • Uplink, Defcon (Score:3, Informative)

    by Reverant ( 581129 ) on Monday October 12, 2009 @01:44AM (#29716149) Homepage
    Both great games from Introversion. There is also Darwinia (which I didn't like so much), but the other two, highly recommended.
  • by Virak ( 897071 ) on Monday October 12, 2009 @02:44AM (#29716371) Homepage

    From the makers of the widely-acclaimed, award-winning hit Unix, comes Linux, an exciting game of patience and frustration!

    Risk your life to perform the sacred ritual of Installation to gain entry to the land of Linux, with the Dark Lord's minions Grub and Fdisk trying their hardest to stop you!
    Explore the fearsome depths of the labyrinthine cursed dungeon /etc in an attempt to find the ancient lost artifact, A Fucking Working Configuration!
    Engage in challenging battle with dozens of the Dark Lord's vile Sound Systems to free the people of the land of Linux from their oppressive tyranny and bring the joy of music to them!
    Uncover the true name of Linux itself through harrowing inane ideological debate, and use the vast trolling power of this to cause a major rift in the land over a fucking name!
    Face off against the Dark Lord Xorg himself in exciting one-on-one battle, and pry the holy twin swords of Multi-Monitor Support and Working 3D Acceleration from his cold, dead hands and bring peace to Linux at last--if you can!

    Linux promises upwards of 60 hours of unique and difficult gameplay, each moment full of exciting new threats and challenges in your attempt to free the land of Linux from the Dark Lord and his underlings at last and bring usability to all!

    (Warning: Linux should not be played by people with photosensitive epilepsy, pregnant woman, smokers, children shorter than this tall, BSD zealots, and anyone who doesn't actually want to fight Xorg and just wants their fucking computer to fucking work already)

  • by Qbertino ( 265505 ) <moiraNO@SPAMmodparlor.com> on Monday October 12, 2009 @04:20AM (#29716741)

    I work for a very successfull and rapidly growing browsergame publisher (currently the largest). We do have the one or other title that was acquired and isn't all that spectacular for geeks and nerds, but we have some very neat originals, some of which have made us big and have had gotten a facelift or two recently (aside of the regular improvements and bugfixes). Since they run on browsers they are naturally x-plattform and require no installation. All are free to play.

    Here's my personal favorites list from our portfolio:

    OGame [ogame.us], a classic 4X sci-fi/space game with a brand new pimped-out Ajax interface and fresh GFX. ... And a cool trailer. (Hint: Try a non-US server if the one you got has old boring table layouts - the community is large and most of us read and write a fluent english :-) )

    Ikariam [ikariam.us], a Settlers/Civilisation type Browsergame. Scored some prestigious awards recently, including 'Browsergame of the Year 2008'.

    Wild Guns [wildguns.co.uk], a BG with a Wild West setting. Just has gotten a total redo of the graphics by our art crew. Very neat.

    KingsAge [kingsage.com], a nice old-school BG, Defender of the Crow / Middle Ages Camelot style.

    OK, slashdoters, go flood our servers and have our admins do some extra shifts. Hehehe... *leans back and takes some popcorn*

    Have fun!

  • by oDDmON oUT ( 231200 ) on Monday October 12, 2009 @05:02AM (#29716871)

    You'll love Nexuiz [alientrap.org].

    When I want to pull away from MMORPG time sinks, this is where I go. Total in your face FPS action. Multiplayer as too, tho' the bots can be taxing enough.

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