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The game is called Neopendulous, taken from the orphaned Pendulous
that originally ran on Windows machines. The author, Vincenzo Buttazzo, has
released the source code for it on GitHub: https://github.com/caribe/Neopendolous
under GPL3. It's written in C and uses the Allegro Gaming Library http://www.allegro.cc/ so it should compile without problems on Linux, Windows and others. Some further development is needed on the AI algorithms needed for skilled play by the computer as an opponent. The original Pendulous had a fairly strong computer player routine. I would like help in getting it packaged for delivery with other games for various distros. My interest stems from a standard game I used to code to learn new languages, that I called WHAM (Winning the Hearts and Minds). It was a competitive diffusion game, like Pendulous (although not as cool-looking), in which one played to gain control of territory with moves that could spread influence to neighboring points (or squares or hexagons) on the board. The general idea is to simulate the ways ideas, diseases, innovations, or other such diffusion processes spread. It was inspired by my insight into the Viet Nam war and the way there were two competing diffusion processes: nationalism vs. constitutional government. Nationalism won because it had a higher coefficient of diffusion. Had the Pentagon strategists had such an insight-producing tool we might have been able to avoid a useless war that cost more than a million lives. Having a general game like this, with other kinds of scenarios than just warfare simulations, could be helpful to many other people in trying to decide how best to spread innovations of all kinds, from some new product to some new political reform, or some candidate for public office. Imagine being able to play on a board consisting of an actual map of some market or electoral jurisdiction to decide where and how to best devote the campaign resources to maximize the spread of support for whatever one is selling, or perhaps to prevent the spread of some contagious disease, by playing disease-control efforts, such as quarantines or vaccinations, to points on a map. So my aim is to eventually enable the player to set up a board with real maps, and rules of play that resemble all kinds of competitive diffusion processes. This is not just about having fun. There is a serious social purpose involved. -- Jon ---------------------------------------------------------- Constitution Society http://constitution.org 2900 W Anderson Ln C-200-322 twitter.com/lex_rex Austin, TX 78757 512/299-5001 jon roland constitution org ---------------------------------------------------------- -- ---------------------------------------------------------- Jon Roland http://pynthan.com/jr_summ.htm 2900 W Anderson Ln C-200-322 Austin, TX 78757 512/299-5001 jdr pynthan com ---------------------------------------------------------- |