Posts tagged Games
The Minifrag guide to enjoying games on your netbook
Jan 2nd
There are plenty of people out there – Intel included – who think that gaming on netbooks is just about one of the stupidest things you could ever do with your portable. Well, they’re wrong.
Netbook gaming is all about understanding what you’ve got to work with and getting the most out of it. The Atom (or CULV or AMD Neo) in your netbook isn’t as powerful as what runs larger notebook computers. And it’s nowhere near as beefy as the processor in a desktop computer.
That doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy playing games on a netbook. Far from it! Here are some guidelines that will help you get the most out of your netbook gaming experience.
(header image shows Spore running on an HP Mini 311, courtesy Liliputing)
Atom Arcade: Titanion is a stylish, old-school shoot’em up
Dec 27th
My parents didn’t dig the idea of having an actual gaming console in my house when I was a little shaver. We did, however, have a Commodore 64 – and I used to love playing ports of old-timey arcade games.
Two of my favorites were Gyruss and Galaga. Want a nice shooter for your netbook? Check out Titanion.
The graphics are stylish, simple, and awesome. 3D cubes and pyramids dance around in a frenzied fire-fight as you dodge and blast your way through each level. Different play modes offer you your choice of straight-up old school action or more “modern” battle action. As far as I could tell, the difference is the number of cannons your ship sports and the direction they fire (modern adds two 45 degree guns).
As my five-year-old son figured out, holding down the z (fire) key unleashes a death blossom-esque stream of hellfire upon your attackers. It feels very Last Starfighter.
Titanion is a ton of fun, and it’s silky-smooth even on older Atom netbooks.
Atom Arcade: Pawn 3 is a simple, fun 2D chess game
Dec 24th
Chess is one of those classic games that no thinking person’s computer should be without. It’s also a game that doesn’t necessarily require over-the-top graphics or processing power, making it a good choice for a little relaxing fun on your netbook.
Pawn 3 is an excellent option if you’re looking for a chess sim. It’s tiny – about 200Kb installed – and it’s as straightforward as chess can get. 2D graphics mean your Atom/GMA won’t be overworked, and the AI is smart enough to make things interesting.
You can also save and exit mid-game and restore later – handy for working a session into your lunch break or commute times.
Pawn 3 even allows you step forward and back to review moves. You know, in case you want to see at exactly what point your cunning strategy fell apart.
Again.
Atom arcade: Wormux is an open source take on classic Worms combat
Dec 18th
For the netbook gamer, Wormux has everything going for it. For starters, it’s free, it’s fun, and it runs on both Linux and Windows. Better yet, there’s a 1024×600 fullscreen mode available – just the right size for most netbook displays!
Wormux is loaded with turn-based cartoon combat goodness. Like the original classic Worms, Wormux is all about knowing your armaments and understanding trajectory and wind speed. Blow your opponent off a ledge or nail an adjacent oil barrel for big damage. It’s an uncomplicated, low-stress game and fun to play against either the computer or a friend.
In addition to providing downloads for Windows, Linux, Mac, Maemo, and Haiku, the official site also offers an expansion pack with more fun locations to stage your battles.
Running an Ubuntu-based distribution like Jolicloud or Easy Peasy on your ‘book? Just fire up terminal and sudo apt-get install wormux.
Your Atom and integrated Intel graphics won’t have any trouble at all handling this one, and it’s a heck of a lot of fun!