Category: Retro

One I've been meaning to point out for a while now is Zoom Platform. A games store that tries to appeal to "Generation X" with both new and classic games, DRM-free and they're continuing to build up their Linux support.

The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past, the 1991 classic from Nintendo has been reverse-engineered to bring it natively to more platforms.

Oh the nostalgia is heavy with this one! Gem Worlds is inspired directly by the likes of Boulder Dash and Supaplex.

If you look at the commercial Linux gaming catalogue at the turn of the millennium, in amongst all of the 3D shooters and strategic simulations being released, one glaring omission seems to have been the lack of any racing games. Loki Software never ported any to Linux, nor did any of the other porting houses. This left a void for the free gaming community to fill.

Another revamp of a classic is on the way with Atari once again teaming up with SneakyBox, as the 1981 title Caverns of Mars is releasing as Caverns of Mars: Recharged.

Some of my first real experiences of using Linux as a child came through the use of Knoppix, one of the first distributions to popularize the use of Live CDs. This allowed me to explore a wide swath of Linux applications. One of these was a role playing game which I recall I never got to work well, but lingered on in my imagination regardless.

While their foray into interactive storybooks did fail to impress, it did help remind me of BlackHoleSun Software, one of the earliest Indie developers to create games with Linux in mind. Their most famous game Bunnies was released as shareware in 2001, providing a demo version you could later update through use of a retail key. Thankfully, the story does not have to end there.

DOSBox Staging is a favourite of mine to follow that expands on the original DOSBox but with a focus on implementing new features and fixes. A new major update went out in December 2022 with some big additions.

Sold as interactive storybooks, these took the form of narrated picture books which went over the story from the film while allowing for a certain degree of user agency, typically by allowing a selection of quirky animations to play by clicking around with the mouse. UAV must have wanted in on this craze as well, and so Atlantis: The Underwater City - Interactive Storybook was born.

CatacombGL is an open source project to run Catacomb 3D (1991), The Catacomb Abyss (1992), The Catacomb Armageddon (1992) and The Catacomb Apocalypse (1993).

Given the the company's current focus, the name Hyperion Entertainment seems an odd fit for the modern maintainer of AmigaOS, betraying its earlier status as an Amiga focused video game porting house. One of their ports, that of SiN, to this day remains from them an elusive Linux exclusive.

Selaco, an upcoming GZDoom-based shooter from Altered Orbit Studios has been featured before and I'm bringing it back again here because of the huge upgrade to the demo. It's simply fantastic.

Another chance for you to get a free game, and perhaps take a look at some tasty discounts too with the GOG Winter Sale 2022 now giving away Broken Sword: Director's Cut.

Atari and Adamvision Studios have taken down the original Missile Command: Recharged, and replaced it with another Missile Command: Recharged of the same name but it has been upgraded.

Anyone else remember Dark Reign: The Future of War? Released back in 1997, it's a real classic and at the time it had some pretty favourable reviews too. The good news is that it's being rebuilt by fans using OpenRA.

Recently I mentioned GB Operator a little USB gadget that reads cartridges of the Game Boy, Game Boy Colour and Game Boy Advance. After giving it a go myself, I'm impressed and a little in love.

GB Operator excites the collector in me, giving you a small device to plug into your PC or Steam Deck, allowing you to play real Game Boy cartridges.

Love your classic racing games with low-poly visuals? Keep an eye on Formula Retro Racing - World Tour which releases next year and has a demo available along with Native Linux support.

Augustus is a game engine reimplementation for the classic Caesar III, enabling you to play on modern platforms (like Linux / Steam Deck).

A new retro-powered first-person shooter to fill your time with? It's free too! A.W.O.L. looks like it could be fun for your weekend.