Vircadia , the open source successor to the former High Fidelity VR project, a 3D virtual world for VR and desktops is now going to be coming to your web browser. The founder and project lead, Kalila Lakeworth, emailed in the very interesting news on how they've teamed up with the Linux Professional Institute to make this happen.

They mentioned how requiring users to download it is a barrier to adoption, and so using the power of WebRTC, they plan to let the whole thing run in a browser tab. Much like you can do with full games already on services like Google Stadia, Amazon Luna and so on. They're calling this "Vircadia Web", the idea is to let people join worlds and events from any device they own - a nice goal worth supporting.

Confused on what Vircadia actually is? They explain how it's "an engine to build virtual worlds on" and "Vircadia can help you make a personal home world that houses an art gallery, movie theater, or games for your friends. The sky is the limit.". It's open source, decentralized and so no one corp controls what to do with it. The sky is effectively the limit.

WebXR support will be coming to allow VR on the web, but their first focus is just getting the thing running in a browser.

Read more about their plans on their blog post .

Exploring a romantically wretched city as a strange alien creature, Aolta is a thoroughly weird casual experience for those of you who like games aimed at an adult / mature audience.

"Aolta is a casual RPG where you play as an eponymous alien who lives in a romantically wretched city. Sit back and enjoy the game world... relax at the night club, stroll down the streets and meet interesting creatures and discover their stories. You can find a job that suites your abilities or you can skip work and resort to foraging. Meet someone to love, become the lord of the local music industry, retire to another planet, and/or maybe get married."

Features:

• Discover many activities around the city which includes dancing, loitering, smoking, drinking, getting high and fighting in the pits.
• Romance up to six main characters and unlock their endings.
• Befriend dozens of other characters and learn their secrets.
• Collect spirits for your bottle city!
• Develop your character by working on your stats which allow you to survive and ultimately get what you want.
• Features several animated sexual scenarios.
• Unlock several endings, collections and achievements.
• Engaging music and atmosphere.

You can buy Aolta for $10 from itch.io .

Every played the prop hunt games? Most players hide themselves as an object, with a seeker trying to pick them out. Run Prop, Run! plans to offer up another unique take on it. In development by PlayTogether Studio who previously released Mad Experiments: Escape Room.

While the basic idea is the same, it's been adjusted to have a bit more to it. There's some platforming involved and a few special skills too, like props having an ability of shooting out a cloud of smoke to confuse the seeker. Different phases of each game too with props hiding, trying to escape and then becoming an extra hunter.

Watch video on YouTube.com

It's not just enough to spot a player, the hunters actually need to capture them. The hunter seekers are, amusingly, a big hopping gun and you need to hit them with it and stay around them for three seconds for the capture. With everything having googly-eyes stuck to it, I have to say it looks truly hilarious.

Overall it really does sound like a fun and unique twist on prop hunting thanks to the platforming, skills and capture system. Looking forward to seeing the full thing.

You can wishlist / follow on Steam , and gather a few friends together to try the demo. The developer mentioned there's no time limit on the demo, it's staying up for the foreseeable future.

In the game qomp you are the ball, the ball that has been thrown around games like Pong for a very long time and you've had enough - it's time to escape. Note : personal purchase.

qomp is a small game about freedom. It won't take you long to get through, it's not complicated and it's absolutely brilliant. Using a single button, you will be changing the direction of the ball to get through various different challenges and overcome several different game mechanics. It really doesn't look or sound like much but its one of those times were the simplicity makes it so good.

Watch video on YouTube.com

For a game that has nothing but a single button and the same main mechanic all the way through, as you click click click to constantly change direction and avoid all sorts of hazards - it's surprisingly atmospheric. It gives off dungeon vibes with the camera effect and dark colouring, along with the pumping music to keep you going.

Difficult too. I've cursed at my screen and my slow clicking ability numerous times while bouncing through the various levels it offers. It's a good test of reaction timing and your ability to think quickly often, as well as understanding how the angles of everything you're bouncing off will affect your ball trajectory to plan ahead. I'm really not joking on the difficulty of some parts of it, I even held my breath a few times and hoped for a bit of luck. No punishments here though, just go back to a checkpoint and click around around and see if you can bounce to safety.

I will admit to the below section kicking my butt for a while but it shows the great design work that went into it.

So close!

You're an escaped pong ball trying to escape to freedom, what more could you want for a few hours? Honestly I think it's absolutely brilliant and well worth picking up.

A finely polished experience you won't forget.

You can buy it on itch.io and Steam .

Might and Delight have certainly created some unique experiences, with the Shelter series putting you directly into the shoes of various animals and it's back in Shelter 3.

It's a role-playing game but not one where you're fussing with skills and equipment, instead it's about the rawness of nature itself and animal survival. A game where wisdom, empathy and leadership play an important role in your survival, according to the developer.

"As a new mother you must protect your calf, but you must also take responsibility for the whole herd, protecting old and young from lurking predators and the threat of starvation. What’s more, the matriarch has given you the responsibility of steering the herd to an important destination and difficult choices will need to be made on the way."

Now with an aim to launch at the end of March, Might and Delight have shown off a brand new trailer that you can watch below:

Watch video on YouTube.com

"Landscapes and fauna are rendered in mesmerising patterns and scored with an enchanting soundtrack by Retro Family, conjuring a magical world to lose yourself in. From lynx cubs to elephant families, from the tundra to the jungle, the next Shelter incarnation migrates to new territory, evolving into a new, magical game world and an experience that you won’t forget. "

Looking really good, I'm not sure how much my heart will be able to take when one of the herd dies - it looks so damn sad. Elephants are truly majestic creatures so it's an intriguing animal to focus on. Once we see a confirmed release date we will let you know.

You can wishlist / follow Shelter 3 on Steam .

On a related note Might and Delight are also working on the 'TMORPG' (a tiny online RPG) called Book of Travels, check out some preview gameplay here .

Combining elements of the Wolfenstein 3D classic first-person shooter with the rolling gameplay of Super Monkey Ball, what could go wrong? Return to Castle Monkey Ball is quite hilarious. Pointed out by a reader earlier this week, it's a web game you can play on itch.io right in your browser so there's no downloading and the idea actually works quite well. Amusingly so and it's pretty challenging too.

The idea here is that you're rolling your way through some cramped hallways, while soldiers are trying their best to shoot you. Smash into them to hurt them, keep rolling and collect bananas to boost your score and hopefully make it out alive. Probably one of the most unique mashups I've seen lately. Check out their trailer:

Watch video on YouTube.com

"Fight your way through eight procedurally generated floors to escape the fortress! Collect bananas and treasure to maximize your score and defeat guards for time bonuses! Just get to the end before the timer runs out! Lose all three of your lives and it's game over for you.

Are you tough enough to take on this challenge and break free from the grips of your captors?"

The developer mentioned they're taking no money from it and it shall remain free.

Do give it a go on itch.io if you need a good laugh.

Remember the classic Sensible World of Soccer or the original Sensible Soccer? Classics from the 90s and Ballsy! World Cup 2020 is a wonderful take on it. Note: key provided by the developer.

I have seriously fond memories of SWOS, playing endless hours on the Amiga a long time ago. Ballsy really does feel like it both mechanically and visually although naturally it's more modern and looks a lot cleaner. After originally releasing in October 2020, the developer decided to port it in December 2020 to Linux.

"Tired of these sluggish, scripted modern football games? Still like some physics momentum in your retro footy game? Search no longer! Ballsy! offers that fluent feel for flowing football fans. The European football, that is, so, not handegg. Though truth be told, the term 'soccer' was actually invented by the English, so it doesn't deserve all the hate it gets."

Watch video on YouTube.com

A genuine surprise that it feels so great, if you've been after a simple pick up and play retro Football game, this is easily worth picking up. Play against AI, friends / family in local multiplayer and it also supports Steam Remote Play Together.

You can find Ballsy! World Cup 2020 on itch.io and Steam .

Unrailed! from Daedalic Entertainment and Indoor Astronaut released back in September 2020 and now you have a chance to play for free to end your week. Don't pass up on it either from now until January 25 you can download and play the full game on Steam, and there's a 50% discount if you decide you like it enough to keep it.

What do you actually do in Unrailed! and is it fun? You and up to three others need to keep a train going for as long as possible, by constantly building a track. It's pure chaos once it gets going and an absolute riot to play with friends. Plenty of communication breakdowns, shouting and laughing all bundled in together. The train will get faster as you go too, plus you can upgrade it with new carriages and all sorts.

Watch video on YouTube.com

Feature Highlight:

• An intense and chaotic railroad construction experience
• Online and local couch co-op multiplayer (also mixing both possible)
• Procedurally generated worlds with 4 different difficulty levels
• Dynamic weather system & day and night cycle
• Game modes: Endless, Quick, Sandbox (up to 4 players) and Versus (2 vs 2 players)
• Distinct biomes (5+)
• A bunch of upgradable wagons (10+) to modify your train in Endless mode
• Unlockable characters
• A replay system
• Online highscores with replays
• Simple controls & split keyboard and split controller mode

Find it and play free until January 25 on Steam .

Currently in development by a father and son team, Harvest Days is another fresh 3D take on the casual farming-life RPG and it will be coming to Linux too.

There's quite a few of these appearing in the last year or two both 2D and 3D, many like this being directly inspired by the likes of Stardew Valley, Harvest Moon and Animal Crossing, among others. Perhaps this one might catch your attention where others have not? It actually looks pretty darn charming.

You can find out more in their first development log video:

Watch video on YouTube.com

We spoke with Luis of the team Family Devs, who confirmed the game will be available for Linux. It's currently (as you can see above) in the early Alpha stages of development but it seems mighty promising especially with the big open world to travel around in.

Feature Highlight:

• Create and manage your farm. To grow your farm you must cultivate fruits and vegetables, take care of your beautiful animals or go deep into the forest to fish in its river.
• Explore an open world full of places for discover.Countless places are waiting to be discovered by you on Harvest Days: caves full of valuable minerals, a temple in ruins, a swamp with an abandoned treasure... and much more!
• Build relationships with villagers. Join the village community and make new friends. You can dialogue with them and decide the course of the conversation.
• Buy, sell or exchange products with the merchants. Thanks to commerce you can generate economic profits from the products you have obtained with agriculture, livestock and fishing. It is also possible to commerce with the resources you have collected on the map.
• Gather resources and craft your own tools and furniture. The open world of Harvest Days is full of resources to obtain: wood, rock, minerals, precious stones, magic mushrooms, berries...
• Move around the map with vehicles or horses. Ride on your horse and gallop into the mysterious forest to relax with the song of the birds... Although perhaps if you need to carry cargo, you should use one of the vehicles. You decide!
• The player is totally free about the decisions he makes and this will make each game unique since depending on how he interacts with other characters, his destiny will change.
• Unlike other farm-themed games Harvest Days includes RPG and Survival game features.

You can follow it on Steam and they also plan a Kickstarter campaign to launch this Summer.