Open-Source RPG Projects Worth Mentioning

Written by Michael Larabel in Linux Gaming on 10 January 2014 at 09:58 AM EST. 19 Comments
LINUX GAMING
Earlier this week on Phoronix I noted the new release of the GNU RPG Engine. To no surprise given its very rudimentary feature-set for a game engine in 2014, it was laughed at by many Phoronix readers and several were appalled it is even a GNU project.

Besides many being shocked at the GNU RPG Engine "Rpge" for its low quality and lack of completeness and "embarrassment to open-source" according to some Phoronix readers, there were several Phoronix readers that posted in the forums their recommendations of better open-source RPG'ish projects -- both engines and games themselves.

The RPG'ish work I had mentioned was Battle for Wesnoth and Flare, but Phoronix readers also recommend open-source RPG fans check out:

- The FIFE Engine as a open-source cross-platform game engine with hardware-accelerated 2D graphics, audio, lighting, and more. FIFE is written in C++ and supports Python-programmed games. This is a LGPL licensed engine and years ahead of the GNU RPG Engine.

- GemRB as an open-source implementation of Bioware's Infinity Engine. GemRB can run Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale, and other titles. The engine is open-source under the GPL and nearly feature-complete but depends upon the retail, closed-source art/game assets unless some free content were to be created for the engine.

- CatchChallenger is an "old-school open-source RPG/MMORPG" that supports fighting, farming, exploring, crafting, trading, and other activities. CatchChallenger is a pixel art game and is fully open-source under the GPLv3.

- FreedroidRPG is Pandora-compatible and is a game where you can play as Tux in a quest to save the world from rebel bots.

- LÖVE is an open-source 2D engine/framework for making 2D games in Lua. It's compatible with not only Linux but also OS X and Windows.

- Ryzom Core is an open-source MMORPG platform with adaptive 3D engine, cross-platform support, and many other modern features.

- OpenMW is the open-source engine implementation of Elderscrolls III: Morrowind. The game assets remain closed but a community-backed engine has been developed in place of the proprietary code.

- Mentioned a few days ago on Phoronix was also the MKXP open-source alternative to RPG Maker.

For open-source game developers and Linux game fans, all these projects are worth checking out and in checking out the pages myself they're all far more advanced in terms of graphics and features than the GNU's RPG Engine.
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Michael Larabel

Michael Larabel is the principal author of Phoronix.com and founded the site in 2004 with a focus on enriching the Linux hardware experience. Michael has written more than 20,000 articles covering the state of Linux hardware support, Linux performance, graphics drivers, and other topics. Michael is also the lead developer of the Phoronix Test Suite, Phoromatic, and OpenBenchmarking.org automated benchmarking software. He can be followed via Twitter, LinkedIn, or contacted via MichaelLarabel.com.

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