LinuxGameCast Weekly 284: Pocket Hockey

Steam finally supports high-DPI displays! Rust exits Early Access, Paradox releases a nifty Bundle and Helium Rain brings the Vulkan. All this plus your hate mail.

Special thanks to:
Scott Michaud (increased pledge)
Freedom Penguin (new Patreon)
Grazen (welcome back)

Subscribe:
Linux Game Cast
Linux Game Cast
LinuxGameCast LLP

Morning zoo radio thinly disguised as a Linux gaming podcast. Whether you're a seasoned Linux gamer or just starting out, we have something for everyone. So join us on our journey into the world of Linux gaming!


Listen:

Download:

Colour key: Venn Jordan Pedro


Steam News:

M-O-O-N
https://www.vg247.com/2018/01/23/the-next-steam-sale-is-the-lunar-new-year-sale-coming-in-february-report/

  • When everything is on sale, nothing is
  • I’m pretty sure at this point Valve has just trained everyone pavlov style to just buy games on sale weeks.

 

DPi
http://steamcommunity.com/groups/SteamClientBeta#announcements/detail/1655505073049286411

 

Link to the arcade
https://imgur.com/a/vmBZl

  • Almost makes me wish I had picked one up for $3, almost.
  • Apparently DiY arcade sticks work with the steam link.   Who knew?
    • Steam’s controller configuration relies on SDL2.

 

Valve time
https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/313608/Valve_appeals_24M_fine_as_Australian_legal_battle_rages_on.php

  • If Valve was a publicly traded company I could understand why they would be fighting this in court.
  • You done goofed, pay the fine.
  • Valve doesn’t want to pay, Aussies want the set precedent that software companies gotta pay up.

Steam: Game Updates

No Tide
http://steamcommunity.com/app/552500/discussions/0/1483233503859850386/?tscn=1516491023

  • Unfortunate, considering most Warhammer games do have a linux version these days
  • “No immediate” means no, +- some NDA/we need money
  • I would like some Warhammer Left 4 Brad but it doesn’t look like it’ll happen.
  • Figures, this is the first WarHammertime game that looked interesting to me.

 

Dicks
http://www.pcgamer.com/rust-will-leave-early-access-in-february-but-its-not-finished-yet/

  • Still a broken mess that runs like poo but hey, why not.
    • Garry was never really in the business of making well performing games.   Just fucky interesting ones
  • Leaving prototyping and entering alpha means that he’s gonna be riding the EA train for years to come.
  • So they’re leaving the Early Access stigma in hopes it’ll drive sales.

 

Helium Vulkan (Steve 0)
http://steamcommunity.com/games/681330/announcements/detail/1660008672652086656

  • UE4 Vulkan?
  • Kinda want to see what that nightmare looks like.

 

GILF update
http://steamcommunity.com/games/431240/announcements/detail/1662260472459236990

  • Oh fuck. There’s a hockey mode now

Steam: New Games

Stroking
http://store.steampowered.com/app/336940/Basingstoke/

  • A one HP roguelike with stealth elements.   Honestly, it could go either way.
  • Not entirely sure how the crafting will work with the random nature of roguelikes.

 

Battle Chasers
http://community.airshipsyndicate.com/t/linux-test-branch-is-up/4068
http://store.steampowered.com/app/451020/Battle_Chasers_Nightwar/

  • Linux could use more JRPG style games.   Decent looking ones at that
  • It’s using SDL2, which is a good step
  • Hey! Check it out!
  • This was a game I actually wanted to come to Linux and they’re actually doing it.
  • Good on them!

 

Iconoclasts
http://store.steampowered.com/app/393520/Iconoclasts/

  • I’m always looking forward to metroidvanias.
  • Especially those who fall more on the vania side of that genre.
  • This one seems to have blown up, so I hope the dev does get back to me on my email about it.
  • Made by a single person.

 

Mass of cysts
http://store.steampowered.com/app/713220/Mass_O_Kyzt/

  • A game where you get to pick how you’re fucked
  • Kill aliens until the level ends.   Coming Feb 2
  • There’s also talk of a demo
  • The devs sent us some keys on the Curator Connect thing.

 

Starward Augments
http://store.steampowered.com/app/767650/Starward_Rogue_AuGMENTED/

  • 7 Bucks for a content pack seems reasonable.
    • A decent sized one at that.
  • They have a bundle too that gets you the whole kit and kaboodle for a buck more than the base asking price.  Good on them for that
  • I really liked Bionic Dues but, even though this reuses some of the same assets, it was a bit boring for me.
  • Still, it is good know they’re still alive and kicking.

News:

Paradox
https://www.humblebundle.com/games/paradox-bundle-2018

  • 5 titles from Paradox so at least you know they work.
  • Pillars and Stellaris are a pretty solid yoink for 12 bucks

 

Dismiss CRY
http://comicbook.com/gaming/2018/01/21/cryteks-legal-response-to-star-citizen-dismissal/

  • The slap fight continues.
  • Robert Space Industries filed a motion to dismiss, now CryTek says the motion is meritless.
  • This isn’t going anywhere anytime soon.
  • Only $75K?
  • That really makes things looks worse.
  • I mean, all this is really doing is sending a message to developers to never partner with crytek
  • If they ever change their minds, they get sued.  Sounds like a solid partnership

 

Passthrough patch
https://www.reddit.com/r/VFIO/comments/7slj72/threadripper_reset_patch/

  • On Thread Ripper, when you pass through any GPU to a virtual machine on Linux, you will not be able to gracefully shutdown the VM.
  • This sorts said issue.
  • This happened because Threadripper follows the PCIe spec to the letter and there is a bug without the spec is implemented in the Linux kernel.
  • It seems Intel handles the PCI reset in firmware while AMD tried to follow the spec as well as it could, to let the OS handle it.

 

Vulkan curious?
https://www.lunarg.com/extend-your-vulkan-test-coverage-with-free-lunarg-tool/

  • It won’t be as effective as actually testing on a physical device but, if you’re developing your Vulkan game on a shoestring budget, this could be a very good validation tool.

 

Xonotic 2017
http://xonotic.org/posts/2018/2017-by-the-numbers/

  • 3K Additional Players in 2017
  • Turns out the best time to look for a game is 8PM UTC
  • Everybody loves mortars, nobody loves the lightning gun

 

Still kicking
https://www.reddit.com/r/opensourcegames/comments/7qk6l3/falltergeist_fallout_2_engine_reimplementation/

  • A few weeks ago we were talking about abandoned open source engine re-implementations.   
  • This is apparently not one of those
  • It works but it doesn’t seem to be complete: https://i.imgur.com/iCeHPaU.png
  • It started a new game in Klamath – Trapper Town, skipping the whole Arroyo bit.
  • Also, it would be great to have support for the FO2 Restoration project mod.

 

Tux in a Snap
https://forum.snapcraft.io/t/call-for-testing-release-announcement-supertuxkart/3655?u=ziesmcdoom

  • They’re looking for some multiplayer and controller testing w/ze snaps
  • Supposedly everything’s working, but give it a try and give’em some feedback.   It’s the future of gaming

 

Open Mafia (RTheren)
https://github.com/OpenMafia/OpenMF

  • “We take inspiration in OpenMW
    • Gotcha.   Crazy people.
    • If they had been inspired by the RPCS3 project it would be done by now.
  • I remember seeing this game all over the place back in they day.  Never played it
    • I started to play it but while in GTA3 everything felt weightless, in mafia everything felt like it weighed way too much.

CHAIRQUISITION:
CHAIR– Nooope

CHAIRCHAIR– Not sure if want

CHAIRCHAIRCHAIR– Check it out

CHAIRCHAIRCHAIRCHAIR– Shutupandtakemymonies


Game: ERSATZ
Webzone: ERSATZ
Devel: Paris Stalker
Engine: GameMaker Studio
Price: £6.99 / US$8.99 / CA$9.99

Wazzat: ERSATZ is a speed focused, hardcore Action Platformer with Rhythm elements. Featuring a multiple genre Original Electronic Soundtrack which dynamically builds and changes based on your progression!

Mandatory Disclosure: Dev sent us keys


Makes with the working

V-CHAIRCHAIRCHAIRCHAIR

  • Starts in an itsy bitsy little window that thankfully expands.
  • Solid 60.Steam controlla worked out OOTB.
  • Missing out on sales by only listing Windows on the store page.

J-CHAIRCHAIRCHAIRCHAIR

P-CHAIRCHAIRCHAIRCHAIR

Total-CHAIRCHAIRCHAIRCHAIR


Shiny / Sounds

V-CHAIRCHAIR

  • Hipster ATARI pixel?
  • Character blindness is real.
  • Not a fan of the overall look but it was not lazly done.
  • Original Soundtrack reads like a list of audible NOPE.
  • I only listen to classical house wub.

J-CHAIRCHAIR

  • Oh man, they like their super saturated bright colours.
  • On the ice level boss fight with the chimp it straight up hurt my eyes

P-CHAIRCHAIR

  • Aesthetics should serve as a compliment to the mechanics, not to hinder them.
  • Ersatz is another perfect example of a game in which the visuals are highly detrimental to your ability to play it.
  • The backgrounds are made up of the same colorscheme as the actual level.
  • The character leaves ghosts of itself as it moves, which in the middle of boss fights becomes a crapshoot to figure out which of the semi-transparent splotches of pixels you’re actually controlling.
  • It encourages movement yet certain obstacles are damn near impossible to see while you’re trying to woosh past the levels.
  • The music was alright… nothing to write home about, but at least I didn’t feel the need to mute it.

Total-CHAIRCHAIR


Control

V-CHAIRCHAIR

  • Tighten that business up, yo.
  • Everything get compared to the Hollow Knight standard, this is no Hollow Knight.
  • Not busted, hell they are nicely laid out but I expect tight ridgid controls when I see pixels.
  • Serviceable

J-CHAIRCHAIR

  • Usually for a precision platformer I prefer to use the dualshock 4 cuz it has that nice d-pad
  • Wouldn’t get detected tho.   So that’s a shame
  • Xbox controller works

P-CHAIRCHAIR

  • The actual controls are fine save for the fact it doesn’t hide the mouse cursor.
  • That’s something I thought every engine let you do easily, these days.
  • But the big thing here is the camera… fuck this camera!
  • Every time you dash, the camera moves to where your character would be assuming a successful dash.
  • Problem is, when your character hits an enemy and gets pushed back slightly, the camera does this awkward jerk back to where you are.
  • It’s disorienting and makes certain levels a bit of a crapshoot whether or not you can actually make progress.

Total-CHAIRCHAIR


FUN

V-CHAIR

  • I really struggled to put an hour in this.
  • 10min in and I was all “yeah, I get it. You made a FK you hard game”
  • On top of that you race against a clock and loose time for regenerating health.
  • I like me some precision platformer but not with a heaping side of bulls*it Twitch bait game mechanics.
  • It’s not bad for a game created by one person but it belongs on itch, for free, or simply as an item in your portfolio.

J-CHAIR

  • Hyper precision focused speed based platformers have never really been my thing
  • Back as a wee child I was diagnosed with a medical condition which my old piano teacher Mrs Mellinger referred to as “stupid fingers”
  • Sliding around feels good and fast, but you’re you only have a set number of slides/attacks before you need to back off and recharge
  • The character blindness and the lack of consequence aside from meaningless time rankings I don’t care about basically turn this into a repetitive, frustrating heap of game I’m not all that interested in

P-CHAIR

  • Ersatz is trying to be a platformer with a focus on speed but, often, you end up getting stuck in certain levels because the camera is all over the place and you can barely tell where your character is.
  • It becomes much easier to play if you take your time.
  • “Oh, but then your score will be shit compared to your friends.”
  • That’s implying I have friends or that I care about the score, or even this game for that matter.

Total-CHAIR


Final –CHAIR


Hate Mail:

AMD
https://linuxgamecast.com/bradley/?S6AL7ml

  • If it is free with a product then no, it does not count as a heretic purchase.
  • That said, I gave my free copy of whateverthehellitwas from my 1700 to Frenchy.
0 Comments

Leave Your Reply