Trine is a familiar Alternative Games (for Linux) release as part of the Humble Indie Bundle (third). An original FrozenByte product, it is for those gamers who want the logic of puzzle solving in their hardcore gaming environment. Add to it the fact that it is developed around popular concepts of physics and …that it is today offered as open source Linux game the joy of exploring it visibly doubles, triples!
Trine original made its appearance in 2009 for the blue-blood of closed software Windows and a few months later for PlayStation. As it quickly become popular it was offered on Mac OS X in 2010 and from April 12, 2011, on GNU/Linux.
Physical structure required for your Physics Puzzle
So, you have a wonderful puzzle or game on your hand if you have dual (2.0 GHz) processor and preferably with Shader Model 3.0 but the Radeon 2800 HD /GeForce 6800 are good enough. NVIDIA are compulsory and watch out if you have a Radeon 500series that will not be supported. Being both a Platform and Puzzle, it is built robustly for single player as well as rich multiple player (will require gamepads) environments. The E rating should help if your children would perhaps want to explore it after you give up trying to solve puzzles.
The Trine storyline and game-lines
The story as with all stories begins at the beginning. Three characters –a knight, a wizard and a thief are magically trapped in a single
body. At any one time, only one character can become the predominant player and the other two characters become dormant. The game is all about the characters struggle to free themselves from the magic spell and become themselves.
Trine being a 2 and a half Dimensional game on a side-wards scrolling platform, its wonderful mix of action, adventure that if when you want to put on a thinking cap becomes your bête noir as you solve level after increasing difficult level of puzzles to liberate the characters. Alternatively, you can navigate to a MMORG-type all power gaming with swords, skeletons and a list of other ammunition and warfare.
You have the freedom of pre-setting the level of difficulty and perhaps you could let the kids have a go at it with a lower difficulty level to explore the deep and abstract Physics concepts while they are having fun. This is one feature that truly makes it worth all of the $30 at the third Humble Indie Bundle (third). Maybe you could reset the difficulty level to harder when you get your hands on the console to liberate the three Zoya (the thief), Pontius (the Knight) and Amadeus (the Wizard).
The demo intro gives a complete lowdown on what to expect from the game and be warned that you are going to go to deuce within the first few minutes, because the game is marvelously entertaining and a faithful Physics concept learner by default.
The Post Script
Frozen byte is working hard on the sequel called Trine 2 and is planning for a late summer release.
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