In some circles games are regarded as a distraction and a time waster. However, there are many benefits to playing computer games other than the obvious simple unadulterated fun that they offer. Games can help break up the monotony of a hard day’s work, escaping from the harsh reality of real life. Some games offer cooperative gameplay, which focus on fun and interaction with others, encouraging participation and working as a team solving task-oriented goals. Other sorts of games help to exercise the grey matter instead. These are just a few examples of the positive attributes of computer games.
Gaming on Linux is alive and kicking. There is a good base of free and commercial games to play with a steady stream being released and enhanced each month, encompassing a wide range of game categories. The purpose of this article is to identify some more remarkable free Linux games which are definitely worth investigating. The article is not restricted to any particular genre, so hopefully there will be something of interest here for any type of gamer.
To be eligible for inclusion in this list each game needed to meet the following requirements:
- Free to play (no download charge, no monthly charge)
- Does not require Wine to run. Wine is a compatibility layer for running Windows software.
- Not in the early stages of development
Now, let’s scrutinize the 7 games at hand. For each game we have compiled its own portal page, providing screenshots of the game in action, a full description of the game, with an in-depth analysis of the features of the game, together with links to relevant resources and reviews.
| Notable Free Games | |
|---|---|
| Hive Rise | Real time strategy massively multiplayer online game |
| Counter-Strike 2D | More than just a freeware clone of the well known game Counter-Strike |
| Steel Storm: Episode 1 | Old school, action-packed top-down 3D arcade shooter |
| Kernel Panic | Frantically fast-paced, action-oriented game |
| CRRCsim | Charles River Radio Controllers Simulation |
| Legends | Fast-paced first-person-perspective online multiplayer game |
| GNOME Games | A collection of sixteen small "five-minute" games |
Read about the other 14 free games covered in this article: Part 2, Part 3.
Last Updated: June 2018
 Explore our carefully curated directory of recommended free and open source software, covering every major software category.The directory forms part of our extensive collection of articles for Linux enthusiasts. It includes hundreds of detailed reviews, together with free and open source alternatives to proprietary software from companies such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, Adobe, IBM, Cisco, Oracle, and Autodesk. LinuxLinks also covers interesting projects worth exploring, Linux-compatible hardware, free programming books and tutorials, and much more. Know a useful free and open source Linux application that we haven’t covered? Tell us about it using our submission form. |
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