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Metro: Last Light's nuclear horror creeps to Mac in September, Linux later this year
Developer 4A Games is spreading Metro: Last Light's bleak vision of a nuclear future (is there any other kind?) to new digs starting September 10th. Next month it'll be available via Steam -- with Steam Play support -- and the App Store for Mac, but Linux fans have to wait until "sometime later" this year to play another high-profile title on Valve's favorite OS. If add-on content turns your crank, the extended love the Windows and console versions got will be available at launch, with future releases arriving simultaneously for all systems. If you haven't played Last Light's prequel on one of those other platforms and want to catch up on the story, give the book it's based on a shot in the meantime. You've finished all your feel-good beach novels by now, yeah?
Crytek hunting for developer who can bring CryEngine to Linux
The penguin has been getting awfully cozy with game developers lately. This time it's with the company known to make GPUs melt at the faintest whisper of its name: Crytek. According to a recent job listing, the German shooter shop is looking for a programmer to work on a Linux version of CryEngine. Of course, you need to relocate to Deutschland and have a few years experience in software development under your belt. Seeing another major PC studio devoting resources to the open-source OS only increases the growing momentum for Valve's Steambox ecosystem of choice. To answer the eternal question, it appears that yes, even the Tux can run Crysis.
Unity 4.0 game engine adds Linux support, Mecanim animation, Flash and DirectX 11 (video)
Unity is about to give a jolt to the Linux gaming community with version 4.0 of its engine. The Penguin has been "underserved," according to the game engine company, so it'll now join the list of supported operating systems alongside Windows, OS X, iOS, Android, Xbox, PS3 and Wii. Developers will also get the new Mecanim system for making character animation easier, on top of DirectX 11 for Windows and Flash publishing options. Details are in the video after the break, but it's good news considering how Linux's namesake just decried the lack of love for the platform.
Steam for Mac beta reveals possible Linux compatibility in the pipeline, penguins rejoice
Gaming on Linux? That's not something we hear every day just yet, but it looks like the good folks at Valve might be considering a penguin revolution. In one of the latest beta releases of Steam for Mac, Phoronix spotted a mention of the open-source platform in the launcher script, and we were also able to verify this code ourselves. Furthermore, the eagle-eyed Linux blog has previously seen a handful of evidence hinting Linux compatibility for Valve's Source gaming engine. We're probably still a ways off from any announcement (if ever) so for now, let's just leave the guys alone -- we don't want to distract them from bringing the Portal goodness to our Macs now, do we?
EVO Linux game console now up for pre-order
The last time we heard from Envizions, the company was just starting to get its game plan together -- but it looks like the gears are officially in motion on its Linux-based game console. The final specs for the box now seem to be in place, with off-the-shelf components like the Athlon 64x2 5600 CPU (clocked to 2.4GHz), an ATI HD 3200 graphics chipset, 2GB of DDR2 RAM, and a 120GB hard drive filling out what is essentially a standard PC housing. Envizions say that the console will run a modified, quick-boot distro of Fedora called Mirrors (which can be upgraded to a beefier build named Mirrors Evolution X), and will feature a "cloud" service stacked with Amiga (!) games and an Akimbo-based video service. Beyond that, proper titles will be sold online and on SD cards for around $20. Envizions is currently taking pre-orders for the box, and say beta units will be shipped on April 10th. Pricing for those consoles will run between $280-350, while the final retail version can be had for $380, and should be available sometime in June. We have just two words of advice for the fledgling company: get some killer games on there fast, and please, please update your site.[Via Digg, Linux Devices]
Linux alpha for Second Life released
Last month we tantalised you with the news that a Linux client for Second Life was under development; the good news is that it's now available to download and install. As the Second Life website warns, this client connects to the main grid, so be careful--there are definitely still bugs in the system, and any changes you make to the world are permanent.Our initial testing proved favourable; it installs and runs perfectly on our Fedora Core 3 box with NVidia binary graphics drivers. Although several features in the game client are missing or working poorly, they are known issues at this alpha stage, and the forums allow for discussion and feedback.Linux is often overlooked as a gaming platform, as the number of users and their demographic makes investing in Linux games less of a priority for developers. However, games like A Tale in the Desert and now this port of Second Life are being welcomed in the Linux community--reboots for gaming won't be tolerated for much longer by Linux users if viable alternatives are coming to the platform natively.[Via Jono Bacon]
