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Tux Racer

 
AMG AllGame Guide:

Tux Racer

Home > Library > Entertainment & Arts > Games Guide
  • Platform: IBM PC Compatible
  • Release Date: January 16, 2002
  • Genre: Racing
  • Style: Miscellaneous Racing
  • Similar Games: PenPen TriIcelon (Dreamcast)

Game Description

Originally slated for the Linux-based Indrema console, Tux Racer is a racing title starring the Linux mascot, Tux the Penguin. Along with his friends Boris, Neva, and Samuel, Tux slides his way through a series of downhill courses while collecting herring and avoiding the many obstacles that dot the sloped tracks. Each character is capable of performing a jump maneuver that, when charged, propels the animal farther. The longer the button is held, the more the "EnergoMeter" that governs the strength of the jump increases. Players can compete in Practice or Cup events, the latter offering a gauntlet of courses for players to complete. The Cup events are made up of a series of three races, each with specific requirements such as time, herring collected, and score to achieve.

The score is based upon the amount of herring collected, as well as a comparison to the par time for the course. Four lives are provided to complete each Cup, with a life deducted for each unsuccessful race attempt. The Practice mode allows players to race on any course of their choosing, with customized options such as weather, time, and whether or not the course will be mirrored. The eighteen tracks offered encompass terrain that includes snow, ice, rock, and dirt. A Head-to-Head mode permits two players to compete against one another in split-screen competition. Tux Racer can be installed in one of five languages: French, Italian, German, Spanish and English.
~ Gavin Frankle, All Game Guide
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Wikipedia on Answers.com:

Tux Racer

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Home > Library > Miscellaneous > Wikipedia
Tux Racer
Tuxracer.png
Gameplay of Tux Racer featuring the main character, Tux.
Developer(s) Sunspire Studios (Jasmin Patry, Patrick Gilhuly, Eric Hall, Rick Knowles, Vincent Ma, and Mark Riddell)
Publisher(s) Sunspire Studios
Distributor(s) Sunspire Studios
Director(s) Jasmin Patry
Producer(s) Jasmin Patry
Designer(s) Rick Knowles
Mark Riddell
Programmer(s) Jasmin Patry
Patrick Gilhuly
Eric Hall
Rick Knowles
Vincent Ma
Mark Riddell
Artist(s) Roger Fernandez
Composer(s) Joseph Toscano
Engine OpenGL
Platform(s) Linux, Mac OS, Microsoft Windows
Release date(s)
Genre(s) Racing
Mode(s) Single-player
Media/distribution Download

Tux Racer is a Free Software 3D computer game starring the Linux mascot, Tux the penguin. In the game, the player controls Tux (or one of three other characters) as he slides down a course of snow and ice collecting herring. Sliding on ice makes Tux go faster, while sliding on snow allows for more maneuverability and sliding on rocky patches will slow Tux down. There are also trees to block Tux's path and flags for the sake of marking out the course.

Contents

Gameplay

The left/right steering controls are typical of a racing simulation game, except that the up arrow key causes Tux to “paddle” with his flippers. Correct use of the paddle command is essential to getting good race times. Paddling slows Tux down when at a high speed but speeds him up at slow speeds. Paddling when in mid-air may also be used to increase the length of a jump. Jumps can be caused by the shape of the landscape or by holding down the "energy" key (usually e) and releasing it. Releasing the key when a jump is imminent will naturally make a larger jump. Versions with other controls instead of keyboard exist; for example, wiimote[2] and an arcade version with a steering wheel.

Points are also scored by collecting herring that are scattered along the various courses. In order to progress to the next level of the game you have to both collect sufficient herring and reach the end of the course within a preset time limit. Like many open-source games, the replay value of Tux Racer is extended by easy modification of the game. New maps can be created by making three raster images to indicate height, surface, and object placement.

Development

Tux Racer was developed in the University of Waterloo Computer Graphics Lab.

Tux Racer was originally developed by Jasmin Patry, a student attending the University of Waterloo (UW) in Ontario, Canada, where he aimed to begin a career in the video game industry by pursuing a computer systems analyst (CSA) degree.[3] Development of the game as a project began in August 1999 as a final computer graphics project in Computer Graphics Lab (CGL).[3][4][5] The game was completed and presented in three days; a webpage for the game was then started, when one of Patry's classmates, having enjoyed the presentation, suggested he released the software as open source.[3][5] Patry felt releasing the game as open source "made sense" due to Tux being the mascot for Linux, an open source software, and continued to work on the game throughout the year, hoping fellow students would join in on developing the game.[3]

In December 1999, Patry and his former classmates Patrick Gilhuly, Eric Hall, Rick Knowles, Mark Riddell, and Rob Kroeger announced the foundation of the company Sunspire Studios to develop a video game project.[3] Patry stated the game "would feature a massively multiplayer, persistent universe with real-time strategy and first-person shooter components," "[...] something that would make the Quake 3 or Unreal engine look tame in comparison."[3] Fine arts undergraduate classmate Roger Fernandez was chosen as the artist; however, the project was eventually abandoned due to limitations in current graphical software.[5] In August 2000, Knowles suggested the company resume working on Tux Racer, which became their first official project.[3][5] The game was released as free software under the GNU General Public License on October 2, 2000.[1]

Commercial version

Tux Racer
Tux Racer Cover.jpg
North American cover art.
Developer(s) Sunspire Studios (Jasmin Patry, Eric Hall, Rick Knowles, and Mark Riddell)
Publisher(s) Sunspire Studios
Distributor(s) Sunspire Studios
Director(s) Jasmin Patry
Producer(s) Jasmin Patry
Designer(s) Rick Knowles
Mark Riddell
Programmer(s) Jasmin Patry
Eric Hall
Rick Knowles
Mark Riddell
Artist(s) Roger Fernandez
Composer(s) Joseph Toscano
George Sanger
Engine OpenGL
Platform(s) Linux, Mac OS, Microsoft Windows
Release date(s)
Genre(s) Racing
Mode(s) Single-player
Media/distribution CD

In August 2000, Patry and his two friends Rick Knowles and Mark Riddell announced the development of an enhanced version of Tux Racer under a closed source commercial license.[3][5] In 2001, a demo version of the software was included with a January 2001 issue of PC Gamer.[5] In 2002, the game was released for Linux, Mac OS X, and Microsoft Windows operating systems. Patry states that had the game sold better, ports for the Nintendo GameCube and Xbox would be "fairly logical" choices.[3]

In 2003, Sunspire Studios ceased business. Their Internet domains[6] are now commercially cybersquatted. According to archive.org, there had been no significant changes to their site since September 22, 2002, when the Tux Racer 1.1.1 Linux Patch was released.[7] It appears that the site continued to exist almost unchanged until 2004. Their demo of version 1.1 can still be downloaded.[8]

Legacy

Despite the game ceasing production, certain forks of Tux Racer exist, including Open Racer, an open source fork of the original Tux Racer created by Nathan Matias for SourceForge in 2001;[9] this version was eventually abandoned. A fork entitled PlanetPenguin Racer, an enhanced version of the GPL-licensed version of Tux Racer, was created;[10] however, it was discontinued in 2006, with the latest release being in 2005.[11] Another project based on PlanetPenguin Racer entitled Extreme Tux Racer was developed on March 2007, but the last change to the SVN repository was in January 2011.[12] An arcade redemption game entitled Tux Racer Arcade has been released by Roxor Games; a sequel entitled Tux 2 Arcade has also been released, featuring four courses and four characters from the commercial version, namely Tux, his friend Trixi, a female penguin, Boris, a bear, and Samuel, a seal.

See also

Portal icon Free software portal

References

Question book-new.svg
 This article relies on references to primary sources or sources affiliated with the subject, rather than references from independent authors and third-party publications. Please add citations from reliable sources. (June 2007)
  1. ^ a b c "Tux Racer for PC". IGN. http://pc.ign.com/objects/017/017434.html. Retrieved March 24, 2010. 
  2. ^ Rosenlund, Roger (2008-10-15). "World of Vårdcraft" (in Swedish). NyTeknik. http://www.nyteknik.se/nyheter/it_telekom/dataspel/article427827.ece. 
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Yarwood, Arthur J. (2002). "Interview with Jasmin Patry from Sunspire Studios". Tuxracer Belly Rub. http://tuxracer.fubaby.com/articles.php?ArticleID=4. Retrieved 2010-03-29. 
  4. ^ "University of Waterloo CS488/688 1998-1999 Gallery". University of Waterloo. 2000-03-09. http://www.student.cs.uwaterloo.ca/~cs488/gallery-A5-98-99.html. Retrieved 2010-03-22. 
  5. ^ a b c d e f Ganthan, Durshan (2000-11-03). "An equation for success - Waterloo grads create fun-filled game for all". Imprint. Archived from the original on 2001-01-27. http://web.archive.org/web/20010127144700/http://imprint.uwaterloo.ca/issues/110300/3Science/science01.shtml. Retrieved 2010-03-23. 
  6. ^ Sunspire Studios
  7. ^ Tux Racer
  8. ^ FilePlanet: Tux Racer 1.1 Demo (Linux)
  9. ^ Matias, Nathan J. (2001-08-02). "Tux Racer to be closed source - GPL Project Continues". Linux Today. http://www.linuxtoday.com/news_story.php3?ltsn=2001-08-02-011-20-NW-GM. Retrieved 2010-03-27. 
  10. ^ Jackson, Jerry, O'Brien, Kevin & Baxter, Andrew (2007-10-25). "Asus Eee PC Initial Hands On and Video Review". Notebook Review. http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=4044. Retrieved 2010-03-29. 
  11. ^ Projects@PlanetPenguin :: Racer
  12. ^ Extreme Tux Racer

External links


This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
 

 

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