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⬅️ Previous capture (2023-04-26)

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Two completions and one notable retirement.

Absolute Drift

What is this game?

In Absolute Drift, you will master the art of drifting. Practice your skills in Free-Roam and compete in drift events such as Driftkhana and Mountain Drifting.

Tiny little racing game with a top-down perspective. Made by Funselektor, who later used similar driving physics in /art of rally/, which I'd covered before.

art of rally on gardenapple's Linux and low-spec-ish gaming

Did I enjoy playing it?

It was pretty good, though basic in comparison to their later game, both in gameplay and presentation. It feels more limiting to have a game dedicated exclusively to drifting, mostly on circular tracks. I don't wanna contain my car in this circle for your amusement, I wanna go free and crash into a tree! (seriously though, using those slidy/drifty physics for their future rally game was a great idea) It did test my skill, especially considering I played with a keyboard - this game requires quite precise input. I ended up enabling manual transmission, to at least have more control over acceleration - I'd definitely recommend doing this if you, like me, for some weird reason don't own a gamepad. Presentation-wise, the lush pastel-toned landscapes and amazing synthwave soundtrack of /art of rally/ is downgraded to very minimalist black-and-white looks and an only okay soundtrack. *7/10*, good for a cheap short bit of fun, but there are better games for that.

Playing it on Linux, or low-spec hardware?

Native Linux port, very lightweight game, works great.

Tametsi

What is this game?

Tametsi is Minesweeper on steroids. Oh, and without RNG.

Did I enjoy playing it?

The game is extremely cheap on Steam, and I'd played it for 50 hours, so I certainly got a lot of value out of this. First few levels gently introduce you to basic rules of Minesweeper, then the game gradually gets quite difficult, as mechanics are added: sudoku-like elements, wacky grid patterns, and so on. Puzzles are very cleverly designed, though for me Tametsi did get tediously hard by the time I completed all 100 base levels. The bonus puzzles are more fun but I just did not have it in me to keep playing for too much longer. *8/10*, definitely check this out if you've ever unironically enjoyed Minesweeper.

Playing it on Linux, or low-spec hardware?

This is the fun part. Basically, the game is written in Java, so even though it's only released for Windows, there is no reason for it not to run on Linux. Some smart folks at ProtonDB pointed out that 'tametsi.exe' can be executed directly as a Java JAR file. This works perfectly, and removes the need for a Windows compatibility layer. Sadly, the game is not without DRM, so you can't run it outside of Steam.

Tametsi on ProtonDB

Spiritfarer

Spiritfarer is a cozy management game about dying. As ferrymaster to the deceased, build a boat to explore the world, care for your spirit friends, and guide them across mystical seas to finally release them into the afterlife. What will you leave behind?

I bought this game from GOG, and found out that the Linux version simply does not work. What a joke. I could not find a quick solution, and was too lazy to download the Windows version, so I just refunded it. Now is not a good time to spend money on new games anyway.

Unanswered GOG support forums...

gardenapple - 2022-10-25

Linux and low-spec-ish gaming