If you’ve been doing this ‘Linux’ thing for a while you may remember a time when the phrase “Linux gaming news” meant little more than a round of PyChess translation updates and a compilation fix for Tux Racer¹.
Today things are different. From the Humble Bundle and cross-platform gaming engine support, to the arrival of Steam for Linux: the acceleration in development studios getting cosy with the penguin continues to pick up pace.
Over the past year or two we’ve seen everything from top-tier AAA action titles and sprawling MMOPRGs, to first-class indie titles and retro-throwbacks arrive with first class support. Indulge the hyperbole with me for a moment because, honestly, native gaming support on Linux has never been this good.
In fact, it’s so good that we’re a little swamped by the latest bout of releases, teases and rumours! To help us (and you) get back on top of things, we’ll rattle off the biggest gaming stories of the past fortnight or so in one swoop.
Ready?
Sanctum 2 is the sequel to the world’s first Tower Defense/FPS hybrid game. Pick from four unique character classes and embark on a mission to protect the oxygen-producing Cores from hordes of deadly aliens who are threatened by their existence. Outfit your character exactly the way you want through the new and extensive customization system. In 2014 he ported the games Goat Simulator and Sanctum 2 to Linux and Mac OS X for Coffee Stain Studios. On June 19, 2014 he released a new Linux port of LIMBO, a game that had previously been released for Linux using a CrossOver wrapper as part of Humble Indie Bundle V, something that proved controversial at the time due to it not being a. Sanctum 2 is the sequel to the world’s first Tower Defense/FPS hybrid game! Pick from four unique character classes and take up the mission of protecting the Cores from hordes of mysterious aliens. In Sanctum 2 you play your character exactly the way you want through the new and extensive customization system.
Sanctum 2
Linux users can find out if Sanctum 2 is as ‘tough, smart and substantive’ as the reviews say it is, as the tower defence/FPS genre-melding game is finally available on Linux (and Mac, too).
Both ports have arrived later than planned (having been earmarked for an early 2014 release) but based on early feedback it sounds like it was well worth the wait.
You can bag a copy over on Steam for £10.99.
Borderlands 2
Action RPG Borderlands 2 is coming to Linux — and that’s official. The news follows last month’s confirmation that Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel will also see a native Linux release later this year.
No firm release date for it yet, but expect plenty more details on this as we hear ’em.
Dead Island
Is Techland’s zombie-filled action RPG ‘Dead Island’ shuffling onto Linux territory?
Owners of the Windows version of the game are reporting that an entry for it has appeared in their Linux games library on Steam, while the Steam Database proudly displays a tux head in the ‘supported systems’ column.
As of writing no one has managed to download anything that runs, so we can’t say for certain that it’s coming.
But circumstantial evidence is good. One of the game’s developers previously teased Linux support for the future, so there may be more at work here than just a computer glitch.
Wasteland 2
It’s been 25 years in the making but the long-awaited crowdfunded sequel to 1988 computer game classic Wasteland is almost here, with creator Brian Fargo confirming a release date of September 19 on Twitter.
Set in a dangerous, post-apocalyptic world, Wasteland 2 aims to weave a deep narrative, compelling gameplay and plenty of scope for making decisions, falling foul of consequences, and being layered in replay value.
The deluxe digital edition is already available to pre-buy on Steam priced at $60.
Sid Meier’s Civilization: Beyond Earth
The Linux (and Mac) release of Sid Meier’s Civilization: Beyond Earth, the next entry in the hugely successfully RTS franchise, has been delayed.
Originally scheduled for an “autumn” release alongside the Windows PC version the website now lists the title as coming ‘soon’ for Mac and Linux.
Hands behind the port have since sought to reassure gamers, telling TUAW that ‘coming soon’ really does mean ‘soon’. The Windows release remains on course for late October priced at $49.99.
Vendetta Online Update
Vendetta Online, a cross-platform 3D space combat MMORPG, received a modest set of bug fixes last week. Version 1.8.304 fixes a number of issues, including a station conquering fix, new coloured icons, and a multithreaded render crash.
The ‘Press the Activate key to leave the turret’ option now fully persists, and the ship sell menu shows local inventory only.
The Journey Down: Chapter 2
We’ll round off the list on an epic note: Journey Down: Chapter Two has been released on Windows, Mac, Linux and iOS.
The game, which has been more than a year in the making, picked right up where it left off: ”The plot thickens as our heroes plunge down into the mist below the Edge and wind up in the foggy and treacherous town of Port Artue where they find themselves cornered by pirates and on the run from the law.”
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1. Incidentally, this was the very first game I ever played on Linux.
Sanctum 2 For Mac Os
Also On: PC
Publisher: Reverb Publishing
Developer: Coffee Stain Studios
Medium: Digital
Players: 1-4
Online: Yes
ESRB: T
Sanctum 2 is a sequel to the PC and Mac only title Sanctum which combined two popular genres – first person shooter and tower defense – into a single game. I was intrigued to see how these two gameplay styles would combine, and once I began playing, I saw that while the idea of the overall game is sound, it doesn’t really do anything to hold the interest of the average player. If you are expecting an action packed FPS with the strategy of a good Tower Defense game, you won’t stick around here for very long.
Basically you can think of Sanctum 2 as a sort of “horde mode” game, like you would find in Gears of War, only not as intense. Once you being the game you are thrown right into an area with very little instruction on what to do and where to go. After a few minutes of wandering, you will find some weapons and process to the play field. At first it feels like a low-budget FPS, until you go to where your Oxygen generator is. It’s this Oxygen generator that the aliens want to destroy, and you must set up some defense towers to prevent them from reaching it.
Before the waves of baddies swarm your play field, you are given the chance to build up your defenses or upgrade an already placed sentry tower. You can also recycle towers and barriers to change the flow of the enemy waves to give you a better chance of making it through the attack. Some waves take longer to spawn than others, so you may have some extra time to set up a good defense. Other times, you may only have a few seconds to get ready so you may not have the back up you need, that is where you start running and shooting the enemies yourself to slow them down. Don’t rely on any of the CPU soldiers you begin each area with to help, as they will die right after the first wave starts, and I mean immediately. They give the term useless a whole new meaning.
After you survive about 7 to 10 waves of aliens, you move on to the next area and repeat the process again. In between the levels, you get a short storyline with comic panels depicting the 4 playable characters. The attempt at sticking in a story seems half-hearted as even after reading many of the panels, I didn’t really understand who these people are, and didn’t know why I was expected to care. Maybe it was from the fact that I never played the original Sanctum, but they whole story seemed unnecessary. There is an online mode where 4 players can set up defense and take on the hordes of aliens, but it was difficult to get a game going since the servers seemed void of players. The few games I did play were functional, but I was kicked out of play many times and had to reconnect. While the online worked for the most part, the game is more suited for a solo affair.
While the gameplay in Sanctum 2 seems stale, the visuals are nicely detailed. So much so, that they will keep you playing for longer than you should. Everything from the environments to the aliens themselves all look really nice, and help you get into what little action there is. Sound effects are fitting for the presentation, with all the zaps and explosions you’d expect from a game like this. There is an overall noticeable lack of music, with tunes playing only during a wave attack and most of the time you are surrounded by silence or the industrial sounds of building defense towers. Even though the visuals and sounds look and sound just fine, they aren’t anything that will get your blood pumping.
Sanctum 2 Mac Crash
Overall, Sanctum 2 is an interesting idea that doesn’t gel together. It’s only good for a very short time, then gets very tedious with the same tired gameplay in each level. While the visuals are fitting, the attempted shoehorned story and lackluster gameplay does little to hold anything together. I can only recommend the game if you were a fan of the first Sanctum. For new players and others who are curious as to how a tower defense game mixes with a first person shooter, I can say that Sanctum 2 may not be the best example. It does offer a small amount of action for a very short time, but ultimately will leave you wanting a lot more. If you are still curious, try out the demo to see if it’s something you can play for more than 20 minutes. I strongly suggest saving your cash for something else, as this is very below average.
Xbox LIVE 1600 Microsoft Points – Xbox 360 Digital Code (Software Download)
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