So what do you get for $380 on a linux console gaming system? Here’s what I read on a recent post from Linux Devices:

• an Athlon 2.4Ghz 64X2 processor
• 2GB of RAM
• ATI HD 3200 graphics processor
• supports up to 1080i or 1080p for HD Hi-Def gaming
• DVI and HDMI outputs
• 120 GB Hard drive
• CD/DVD ROM
• Biometric scanner
• Two 10/100 ethernet jacks
• Six USB ports
• Mirrors Evolution linux (based on Fedora)
• Video on Demand
• Nearly unlimited storage through cloud computing

Here’s a video commercial I found on YouTube from December 2008:

With those specs, it seems to blow traditional main stream gaming consoles away – doesn’t it? Well after I watched the video I went to the EVO Smart Console web site to get the lastest info. The web site boasts a DVR to pause and record live TV, video on demand, and streaming of TV, photos, or music to any web enabled device. The web site says you can get “extras”, such as a logitech wireless keyboard and mouse, biometric fingerprint scanner, 10GB of online cloud storage, and play HD video games.

Then I click for “more specs” on the EVO web site to find that you can get the EVO smart console with all the “extras” for $599, but the big shocker was that you could get loaded with Windows Vista Home for $799!! WTF!? I guess the almightly dollar reigns supreme showing that (to stay viable) even people working 5 long hard years on a Linux gaming systems offer a Windows PC version in the end! It does list a “DVD burner” in both of these versions. I click one more time to find a smart console “HD” option for $699 that includes an SD card reader and wireless network, in addition to an HD tuner so you can record in Hi-Def with the DVR. You even get “Windows emulation plug and play software” to play PC games in HD. The EVO Game Store is now online as well.

I have to hand it to them, the EVO has come a long way in 5 years – but is it really competition to the XBox 360 and Playstation 3? It certainly doesn’t have game studios with million dollar budgets behind it. And really – it’s not a gaming console at as is it? It’s a fully fledged Linux PC in a small form factor box. The fact that it has windows emulation software to play PC games and makes it so. I think it’s a great idea, but maybe it should be marketed as the “Linux Living Room PC” or something like that.

So I’m watching “Attack of the Show” the other day and they showed this new site called “InstantAction.com“. They hailed it as “Xbox live for the PC”, and if someone is ballsy enough to make that kind of claim – well, I just have to check it out. When they showed it on t.v. they said it was “social gaming network”. When you get an account, of course you’ll have an “inbox”, a “profile”, and a list of “friends” to play whenever you logon. The service is free (for now), and they have 4 full games that you can play in a web browser. There’s one game coming they showed on tv that’s not on there yet that looked an awful lot like a Metroid Prime ripoff. I don’t care if it’s a ripoff or not, as long as it’s free to play and cool.

So, I went to instantaction.com and created a new account. I logged in for the first time and just picked a random game to try. “Think Tanks” was the first game I checked out. It’s pretty simple, you can “start a game” or “join a game” (and of course play with others). You start with a little “My Party” box on top right where you can in effect “host your own room” and invite friends to play.

I decided to try “single game” – I mean, who wants to get slaughtered by real people the first time they play? I took about 3-4 minutes to download the game on broadband cable the first time, but once you have it – it loads right up. Also – I used Firefox, and it had to install a game launcher “add-on” extension and restart the browser the very first time. There are 12 worlds or “levels” you can play, I just opted for the default level 1 “Medulla Mesa”. When the game started I was impressed with the detail of the terrain. Your player is a short and stout little tank with turret on top. The arrows move you around the level, and your mouse aims the crosshairs of the turret, the mouse button fires. There are 7 other thanks, and you basically roam around the level and shoot at them and take them out before they do you. When you die, you come back after 3 seconds. This fact, and how the other players are shown on the map reminded me sooooo much of Halo it wasn’t funny. There are “powerups” throughout the level. I had a lot of fun playing, but really sucked because of the fact that I was on my laptop. You really need a real mouse and not a touchpad to stand a chance in this game. Here’s a snap of the gameplay action:

So the next game I tried was “Marble Blast” which was of course a blatant ripoff of Marble Mania. Neverless, a fun game in which you navigate your marble through different levels by avoiding pitfalls, jumping, and trying not to fall off ledges and down holes. In this game you have an “individual challege” where you “beat the clock” – or you can do the “realtime multiplayer”, which seems like it would be kind of weird for this kind of game. I guess you race other players when you play that way. If this type of “maze game” is your bag, you’ll love Marble Blast, especially ’cause it free! Here’s a pic of the action when I completed level 1:

The third game I tried was “Cyclomite” – which I don’t really have anything to compare it to. Seems pretty original. You control a wheel in the center of the screen that has spokes, and each half is a different color. From the outer edges of the screen come these “meteorite” things that you have to “intercept” with the wheel. If the color of the meteor matches the color of the “spoke” in the wheel it touches, it is absorbed, otherwise, it “stack” on the edge. If you get the wrong color stacked too high – game stops and you lose. I’m sure there’s more to this game once you get going, but I didn’t play it much longer than to figure out how it worked. Here’s a pic of “Cyclomite” during gameplay:

All in all Instant Action wasn’t a bad experience, and it does say “beta” on their logo. If they think they’re going to build up a community of “free” games and then douse a membership fee on it like gasoline, they’re just doomed for failure. Also – they’re going to have to step it up a bit to be able to compete with Xbox live and online console gaming. They may need to get more servers too, I never did get to play “Screw Jumpers” at all, since it would never fully load. It’s either the most popular game, or it was just bogged down from their mention on G4 TV. In any event, you’ll have some downtime over the holiday weekend – you should check out these “free online games” when you’re at the relatives house with nothing to do! They should work just as well in Internet Explorer if they don’t have Firefox where you’re going….but if they don’t – install it for them!

The first game I was addicted to was Bowhunter Prelude. In this medieval skill based game, basically you use a bow and arrow to kill you enemies. But you have to not only aim your arrow, but how far back you pull determines how far the arrow flies. That’s where the skill comes into play. As you play (if you win) you earn gold and experience, and you can “upgrade” to buy better arrows and weapons of mass destruction! You can easily waste hours and hours and hours on this game! I think I’m now at level 22, but I’m afraid to play again since each level is taking 30-45 minutes+ at this point.

The other game I played a lot at first was Boxhead 2Play. It reminds me a lot of some of the old school FPS arcade games where you just shoot things and get better weapons over time the longer you last. Another game I wasted hours and hours and hours playing.

Do you have favorite online flash games you play and waste hours at? Comment now and let us all know!

America’s Army: Apparently this game is owned by the US Government and has been out since 2002? WTF! It’s a “recruiting tool” to get people to join the army? I guess it’s very popular with 4,500 people playing at any given time.

True Combat Elite: This is a Castle Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory mod? It supports widescreen and letterbox, and has anti-cheat software!

Open Racing Car Simulator: This one really surprised me, mostly because it’s a racing game. Well – a simulator. Nearly all of the games I was familiar with for Linux were First Person Shooters, basically all like Quake copies. This is awesome, a racing game for Linux!

Frets on Fire: Now here’s a game I actually knew about, and played on Windows, but I didn’t know there was a Linux version. Frets on Fire is basically the Open Source version of Guitar Hero, and is just as fun to play! And there are tons of songs for it because it’s open source! This one I’m going to have to put on my Ubuntu box for sure!

Track Mania: is another car game, but this one has crazy short tracks with acrobatics and tricks. Very cool, another driving game for Linux I didn’t know about!

Again, be sure to visit the full list for all 10 games! Read the comments too, because there were lots of games listed there I didn’t know about as well, like Digital Painball 2, Gillo, and Sauerbraten!

Play Bejeweled
Wow, did I ever waste countless hours on end with this game. Probably one of my all-time favorites. I actually like this game more than I did Tetris back in the day because it seems a bit more fun and fast paced. My favorite type of “puzzle” game.

Play Bowman
This game is a bit more skillful. I can remember spending hours on end with this thing to try and get the perfect shot. Calculating that pefect angle and power combination was extremely difficult.

Play LineRider
This game has a cult following all it’s own. Linerider is insanely addictive, and I’ve previously written many articles about it here on The Smorgasbord.

Play Portal
There is an incredible amount of sophistication built into this game, it reminds me of the old days of the Nintendo.

Yeti Sports
This reminds of a bunch of ‘Snowman’ games I played before. I good one to test your skill level.

There you have it – the 5 online flash or java games I love best (out of c|Net’s list of 10). I’m sure I’m forgetting something that didn’t make their list. Can you remember any that we didn’t? Post your favorite online browser games in the comments now and share with everyone!