Coffs Ex-Services Computer Club

If you're anything like me, you appreciate the convenience of having the world at your fingerips via the Internet.  Every lunch break is an opportunity to learn something new and exercise the grey matter.  However, if you're very much like me, you'll find that sometimes this just isn't enough, and you feel an overpowering urge to blow something up.

There have been a few stories circulating around the blogosphere in recent weeks about free software games, so here is my short list of favourites.

Chromium

Chromium is a classic scrolling space shooter with a twist. Once you work out what all the colours and symbols mean, the game becomes quite strategic. It's not just a game of frantic mouse clicking, but as the game's creator says, "Frequent doses of explosions (even your own) can be very therapeutic."

The game was written for GNU/Linux systems, but there is a link to a contributed Windows version on the download page of the website.

Neverball

Neverball is something like the classic "Marble Madness", only in dizzying first-person perspactive 3D. More my speed is the included and relatively sedate variant, "NeverPutt" - putt-putt golf at it's most infuriatingly addictive.

Runs on GNU/Linux, Windows, Mac OS X, and FreeBSD.

FluboPuyo

Described as a "clone of the famous PuyoPuyo", the craze for which I somehow managed to miss, FluboPuyo is a horribly addictive Tetris type game.  Steer four or more balls of the same colour into close proximity and they explode, sending zombie balls raining on your opponents side of the screen, making his job harder.

This game cost me many hours before I'd perfected my strategy.  The computer-controlled opponents are nicely balanced, keeping you challenged, but never giving you the feeling that you're hopelessly outclassed.

Runs on GNU/Linux, Windows and Mac OS X.

FooBilliard

With a relatively decent graphics card, this game looks like a million bucks.  No explosions, but very pretty all the same.

Again, written for GNU/Linux but with a contributed Windows port.