Last Updated on August 11, 2021
We’ve received tons of feedback asking for more exposure to Linux’s open source gaming scene. We’re always wanting to make Linux more glamorous, sexy, and attractive. Or it could be that work is sometimes not as exciting as playing an addictive game.
CaveExpress is a classic 2D platform game set in prehistoric times. You play the hero masquerading as a caveman. Survival is paramount but there are beasties that want to change that. Dinosaurs, mammoths and giant fish to be precise.
CaveExpress is published under an open source license and it’s cross-platform software.
Installation
For Debian/Ubuntu systems, there’s a convenient package available in the repositories. Install the game with the command:
$ sudo apt install caveexpress
There’s the full source code available if you prefer the manual compilation route.
In action
In this game you control a pedal-drive flying machine fashioned from rope, leaves and sticks. You need to pick up crates and relocate them to a shredding station. You’ll need a modicum of skill to ensure that you control the flying machine without bumping too strongly into the cave floor, else you’ll receive a nasty bump to health. The game’s physics are nicely modelled.
Besides avoiding the beasties and making sure you don’t fall from too high a distance, you have to complete tasks which include carrying packages and passengers. Inevitably your health will run low. Fortunately there are stones available which when dropped on trees dislodge health-restoring fruit.
There’s a multiplayer mode which lets up to 4 players work together to solve the maps. There’s powerups and the ability to design your own campaigns and maps with a built-in map editor.
Summary
CaveExpress offers an original twist on the platform-style game. There’s a good range of objectives besides collecting crates. Some levels require you to transfer passengers, deliver something within a specified timescale, navigate through rocks, water, and much more.
The graphics are beautifully detailed and the stone-age sound effects adds atmosphere to gameplay. The only thing that’s missing is a Fred Flintstone cry of Yabba Dabba Doo.
There’s a useful tutorial to complete before you can be trusted to play the actual game. And you’ll need plenty of practice as the mastodons, pterodactyls, and other beasties are certainly not in the mood to make your existence a certainty.
Website: www.caveproductions.org
Support: GitHub Code Repository
Developer: Martin Gerhardy
License: GNU General Public License either version 3 of the License, or (at your option) any later version
CaveExpress is written in JavaScript and C. Learn JavaScript with our recommended free books and free tutorials. Learn C with our recommended free books and free tutorials.