Not all open source software is Serious Business.

A project that caught my attention in the last couple of days is a port of the classic Infogrames / EA title SimCity — released for just about every platform known to man — into an open-source implementation named Micropolis.

Thank programmer Don Hopkins for his hard work.

Since the original SimCity source code has been released under the GPL, he decided to make a version that runs on Linux and port it to the OLPC.

Said port — named “Micropolis” for the same reason that community builds of Firefox are not called Firefox — has been heavily rewritten to run well as a modern application, and is still a bit of an ongoing project.

The whole thing is available either as a source package or a compiled Win32 binary, the latter of which isn’t itself an actual playable version of the game but just a demo — for the time being.

Bill Simser has been writing a series of posts documenting how to create a playable game from this code on Win32, and for anyone interested in programming — and not just game programming — it’s absorbing reading.

I also read with no small amount of fascination the long-term goals for Micropolis — things like multiplayer support and porting to many other languages are all in the works.

I think there’s a lot more than nostalgia at work here. Aside from SimCity being a hugely influential and fun game to begin with, I think game programming is one of the better ways for people to understand open source — either as a programmer or a user.

Once explained in that context, I’d think open source becomes that much easier to understand in other contexts — and concepts like the lvarious licensing schemes and whatnot can be related in a fairly straightforward way.

If there’s one thing about open source that remains something of a mystery to most people, it’s why open source development works the way it does.

You may not persuade people to become programmers, but you can at least make their job a little less mystifying.

On a side note, my longtime favorite open-source game remains NetHack. You’d never think a simple cursor and some ASCII graphics could still be so addictive in this day and age.

The most recent issue of Nintendo Power offers up some new information about BioWare’s RPG for the DS, Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood.

You can choose your party of four from 11 different characters, including the expected Sonic crew of Sonic, Tails, Knuckles, and Shadow, as well as Amy, Rouge, and Big the Cat.

You’ll be able to spot enemies on the field, giving you some flexibility in just when you engage in the turn-based combat. Control will be apparently be entirely stylus-based, a la Phantom Hourglass.

There will be team attacks and special attacks, which you can flat-out purchase or level up. Rings will naturally be the currency of the land and the game takes place in two acts: the first is in the more familiar Sonic environment while the second is a darker world.

JeuxFrance has scans of the screenshots from the article, and they look absolutely lovely. I tingle with anticipation and cross my fingers that this all works out for the best.

Microsoft is already adding to the Xbox Originals library, and the new title is a great one: Burnout 3 Takedown.

If, like me, you’re getting antsy waiting for Burnout Paradise, this might be just enough to tide you over, though 1200 points is still awfully pricey.

You can grab Burnout 3 starting on Monday. That’s assuming you can connect to Live to download it, of course.

Live service has been suffering lately due to “server strain” brought on by a huge upsurge in demand over the holidays.

The Xbox team has been scrambling ever since to get it back to normal, with varying degrees of success.

I’ve been getting mixed reports. Some of my friends say Live is smooth as pudding, while others are still frustrated.

I’m having trouble getting and staying connected. What’s it like for you?

For those of you who own Nvidia graphics cards and still somehow haven’t played Portal, Nvidia is now offering, free of charge, an extended Portal demo cleverly titled Portal: First Slice.

Much to my dismay, while First Slice does offer more gameplay than the previous demo, it offers no new content to those who have already played the full version of Portal.

To get your hands on First Slice, head to this webpage.

The site will automatically scan your PC for Nvidia products, and once you’ve been verified you’ll be given the option to download Portal: First Slice to your existing (or newly created) Steam account.

Additionally, Nvidia users can also download Peggle Extreme, Half-Life 2 Deathmatch, and the Half-Life 2 tech demonstration level The Lost Coast free of charge from that same site.

Activision has finally announced that they will be releasing standalone wireless controllers for all four versions of Guitar Hero III early next year.

Bit of a bummer that they couldn’t get it together for the holidays, but I’m sure they won’t mind if you choose to pick up a full bundle of the game instead of waiting.

Microsoft is offering an impressive little bribe to European 360 owners to get them to persuade their pals to follow the way of the console, too: ten free Xbox Live Arcade games.

The pal with the new console gets the free games, too, thanks to Microsoft’s “refer a friend” promotion, which runs until December 14th.

The freebies are:

• Every Extend Extra Extreme
• Sonic The Hedgehog
• Street Fighter II Hyper Fighting
• Bomberman Live
• Marble Blast Ultra
• Spyglass Boardgames
• 3D Mini Golf Adventures
• Small Arms
• Assault Heroes
• Zuma Deluxe

Uno and Worms, two of the Arcade’s most-played titles, are notably not included.

The relative age of most of the titles makes it likely that the existing 360 owner will only scoop up a few new games, but for someone just buying a 360, this is a huge bonus.

If the Nintendo Wii turns out to be as hard to get as predicted, casual players just might be tempted to go the Microsoft route instead.

Source: Next Generation