Linux SuperTuxKart (STK)

Introduction to SuperTuxKart

SuperTuxKart (STK) is a free and open-source 3D Arcade kart racing game. It includes a variety of characters, tracks, and modes to play. It is easily available on its official website under the terms of the GNU (General Public License), version 3. The game features mascots from various open-source projects and provides an enjoyable experience for game players. The best part of the game is you can play SuperTuxKart on Linux, macOS, Windows, and Android.

Game Modes

In SuperTuxKart, you have a number of game modes to play and experience the levels.

• Story Mode: You can embark on an adventure, completing challenges and unlocking new stages and levels as you progress.
• Single Player: In this mode of gaming, you can find Grand Prix,
• Time Trial, Lap Trial, Normal Race, Follow the Leader, Battle, Soccer, Egg Hunt, and Ghost reply race. Also, you have the option to select the difficulty modes: Novice, Intermediate, Expert, and SuperTux, allowing you to play with the level that you can play for now.
• Splitscreen Multiplayer: In this mode, you can find both local multiplayer or split-screen and online multiplayer. After choosing a kart, you can continue with the game.
• Online: In this mode, you have options such as Local Networking, Global Networking, and Enter server address. Additionally, going with the Local Networking, you have two options: Find Server and Create Server. Here, you can find an available server or can create a server manually to play.
• Addons: In this section of the SuperTuxKart, you can install an additional element into the game. You can install the elements of three fields: Karts, Tracks and Arenas, and can install them by double-clicking on them and hitting the Install button.

The gameplay consists of racing against up to 20 karts on different tracks. There are different tracks, from snowy mountains to tropical islands. Also, the players can collect power-ups during races, such as speed boosts, shields, and various other weapons, to always be one step ahead of the opponents. The game features mascots from various open-source projects, such as Tux the Penguin (from Linux) and others. The game includes amazing and colorful graphics with various environments and fascinating track designs.

Power-ups in SuperTuxKart

• Boost: It gives you a speed boost to move quickly ahead for a temporary time period.
• Rocket: You can fire a rocket at an opponent in front of you. It will make an easy race by losing your opponent to win.
• Oil Slick: You can drop an oil patch on the racing track. It will make the track slippy, causing your opponents to slip and lose control.
• Bubble Shield: It will provide a protective bubble around your kart and prevent incoming attacks from the opponent's side.
• Magnet: It will attract nearby power-ups and fetch toward you.
• Lightning Bolt: This feature will shrink all opponents and slow them down temporarily.
• Banana Peel: To triumph over opponents, drop it behind you.
• Turbo Boost Pad: Hit these pads while racing on the track; it will give you an extra level of speed.

Characters in SuperTuxKart

In the game, there are some main and additional characters available with unique karts and attributes. Each kart adds variety and strategy to the game. Here are the descriptions of the characters of the SuperTuxKart game, which you can see while playing the game.

1. Tux: It is the main character and the mascot of the Linux kernel. This is basically a Penguin, which is used as the official logo or symbol of the Linux operating system.
2. Gnu: It is based on the GNU Project mascot. It is a powerful and clever creature who drives a heavy kart.
3. Nolok: This character plays the role of the villain in this SuperTuxKart game. And always makes a conspiracy in its burning house.
4. Sara: This character has magical powers and is the ruler of the mascot kingdom. And it represents the OpenGameArt community.
5. Puffy: This character mainly wants to earn money to complete his desires by racing. He is the mascot of the OpenBSD project.
6. Pidgin: The mascot of the Pidgin.
7. Suzanne: In this SuperTuxKart game, Suzanne is a 3D monkey who has a playful and villain-type nature. Racing has been her dream since childhood. She is the mascot of the Blender project.
8. Emule: It is the mascot of the eMule project. He is a mechanical engineer who created his own Kart with a turbocharged engine.
9. Gavroche: He is a demon and makes horrible sounds to frighten people. He is the mascot of MediaGoblin.
10. Godette: She is known as a tech girl and also the mascot of the Godot. She has a friend named GDBot, who is a robot. Godette and GDBot always live together. Also, they race together on an amazing Kart named Tandem.
11. Amanda: The mascot of Window Maker. Basically, she was rescued by monks from a basket as a cub. Also, she teaches the ancient art of racing.
12. Xue: She is the mascot of XFCE. She has a special hovercraft, which is small and can be easily driven by a mouse.
13. Wilber: It is the mascot of the GIMP (GNU Image Manipulation Program). He is also the cameraman who records Kart races.
14. Hexley: It is the mascot of the Darwin. Ancestors of Hexley started the kart racing game many years ago.
15. Kiki: He is in the squirrel character, who is clever and quick.
16. Konqui: The mascot of the KDE project.
17. Adiumi: He started kart racing when he saw that he had short legs for playing soccer. He is the mascot of Adium.
18. Pepper: She is a little witch who loves playing with her cat Carrot. The main character of the Pepper & Carrot project.

Plot

In SuperTuxKart, you can experience the plot through the Story Mode. While the game is mainly focused on racing, the Story Mode describes a light narrative to give context to the races. The game's story is around Nolok. It is an evil antagonist who has kidnapped Gnu, a character in the game. Nolok challenges Tux, the main character of the game, and his friends to various races with the goal of stopping them from rescuing Gnu.

• Race and Win: To rescue Gnu, Tux and his friends must compete in races against Nolok and his minions across various tracks. Only winning these races is key to going ahead in the story.
• Unlocking Tracks and Characters: If players win the races, they advance to Story Mode. After winning the races and completing the levels, players can unlock new tracks, characters, and other elements of the game.
• Final Showdown: The story ends finally, where Tux faces Nolok in a decider race to lay down Gnu's fate.

Versions

The game SuperTuxKart release version is following:

History of SuperTuxKart

SuperTuxKart is based on the TuxKart project started by Steve Baker in April 2000. Due to some issues, this project was canceled in March 2004. This project was restarted by Joerg "Hiker" Henrichs in 2006. With the help of Eduardo "Coz" Hernandez Munoz, released the game as playable state. Marianne Gagnon (aka. "Auria") joined the project in 2008.

In 2008, the source code of the game was relicensed from version 2 of GPL to the GPLv3. The assets of the game are licensed under a mixture of free content and DFSG.

In 2010, SuperTuxKart stopped using SDL and PLIB libraries for graphics and started using the Irrlicht Engine in the place of those libraries.

In April 2015, version 0.9 of the game was released, which includes a highly modified version of Irrlicht and also included new graphics. This graphic enabled many features such as dynamic lighting, real-time shadow mapping, and much more. In 2018, Antarctica switched to using PBR in the git version of the game.

In March 2017, SuperTuxKart was available for its players on Steam, but as of July 2023, SuperTuxKart is not yet downloadable on Steam. In September 2021, SuperTuxKart 1.3 was released with supporting force feedback.

Installation

You are allowed to play this SuperTuxKart game on Windows, Linux, macOS, iOS and Android devices easily. Here are the steps provided on downloading, installing and enjoying the game on your desired device.

• Visit the official website of SuperTuxKart and navigate to the Download
• Click on Linux to download on your Linux machine.
  
• Now, run the installer and follow the instructions to proceed.
• After installing the game, launch it and enjoy playing SuperTuxKart.

Conclusion

SuperTuxKart is a standout in the open-source gaming community, offering an engaging and fun kart-racing experience with a variety of characters and tracks. Its charming graphics, accessible gameplay, and community-driven development make it a beloved title for both casual and dedicated gamers. Whether racing against friends or taking on the story mode to defeat Nolok, SuperTuxKart provides endless entertainment while showcasing the creativity and potential of open-source software in the gaming world.