Linux and Gaming

[Sol]

There seems to be quite a few Linux users on this forum as well as a number of gamers so it seems an apropriate place to ask this question.
What is Linux like for games?
Is there much support for games on Linux?
I've been hearing about a project to get DirectX games to work in Linux. Anyone seen that, know how it works?
Basically I'm looking at ways to set up a multiplayer games network cheaply and Microsofts OSs sound like a good place to skimp if possible, so anyone know if that would work?

 

[Prof.Wizard]

You're probably talking about the TransGaming Project. It is mainly tested on Mandrake distros (that's why I ordered 8.1 back in 2001 :wink: ), but beware: it's a subscription service and if your game is voted by many other subscribers (they have a rank) will be ported to Linux...

<sigh> Games... a pain in the ass for all Linux fans. Actually, if it wasn't for the games I would have passed to Linux a long time ago... :roll: And to hell with Sound Blaster Audigy and/or rushing to upgrade my equipment every 6 months... :evil:

 

[Mercutio]

I have a few commercial titles for my linux boxes. Quake 2,3, UT, Alpha Centauri. Those were mostly pretty easy to install and set up.
Your best bet for Linux gaming is probably a 3dfx or Matrox card - which is probably not what you have - for whatever reason, the people who work on mesa (the 3d library) seem to tune for those cards.

What things are like depends on the game. Alpha Centauri and Quake3 were both super-easy to install. UT crashed xfree the first few times I tried to run it. I updated Mesa and installed the latest patch for the game itself and it worked. No big deal.

Sound? I use SB AWE64s and Live!s. Both work well. No idea about others.

As far as things go, new commercial games ported to linux-native code don't come out very often, and often nearly a year after the windows release. Wolfenstein is probably out, yes, but before that the last big releases were Rune and Kohan: Immortal Sovereign.

Other stuff: Linux plays all my DOS games, as long as I don't need sound. DOSemu is the perfect home for my Master of Magic or Scorched Earth cravings.

Linux-native-free games: There are some good ones. FreeCiv (graphics aren't that great, but it's still fun) and TuxRacer are pretty cool.

I haven't looked at transgaming's stuff at all. I don't think I play many directx games (Total Annihilation, Mech Commander, Mechwarrior 3 - nothing terribly popular).

I'm not much of a gamer by most standards. I haven't bought a new game in probably a year, and I don't sit and play games for hours on end.

 

[Prof.Wizard]

I'm not much of a gamer by most standards. I haven't bought a new game in probably a year, and I don't sit and play games for hours on end.

That explains all. Unfortunately, Mercutio, with current generation hardware and the latest game titles the situation is very different.

You know, I'm waiting till the shit hits the fan (that is when I won't have any more time fooling around: around my 6th-year while preparing my MD thesis and having day-long clerkships...) to sell all my equipment and buy a laptop with only the needed... that is: a Linux distro, a word processor and a tuned Internet connection (even via dial-up)...

 

[Mercutio]

How is a Voodoo5 or a Matrox G450 not "current generation" hardware? The V5500 is at least equivalent to 7x00-series Radeons or low-end Geforce2s, and as far as I know there are no games out there for linux that stress those cards.

 

[Prof.Wizard]

I'm buying GeForce 3 Ti500 next month... I'm just waiting for prices to fall due to the release of GeForce 4... :wink:

 

[Prof.Wizard]

I know... nVIDIA products have Linux support out-of-the-box, but just to show you that buying a 6-month-old component isn't 100% sure it will be supported...