Game + Penguin = Fun

If you're anything like me, you often find yourself with 5-10 minutes to kill while sitting at your computer. You know: waiting for something to download, waiting for a new kernel or some other software to compile. Anyway, there are two games I highly recommend for anyone with a computer and some time to kill. Anybody who runs Linux is probably already familiar with these games (they are pretty popular by now), Windows folks have probably never heard of them (although both games are now available for Windows). Before I start, let me assure you that, besides the Linux connection, the fact that both games I'm mentioning include penguins is purely coincidental.

1. Frozen Bubble:
I'm not a big fan of Tetris-style games, but I've gotta say: this one is pretty good. Note: I said Tetris-style, not Tetris clone - this is definitely not Tetris. This came could very well be a direct clone of something else, I'd never know (not a big puzzle game fan), but in this case I don't think it would matter if it was. Frozen bubble is seriously just that fun, give it a try.

2. Tux Racer:
Now, the link above is Tux Racer's newer commercial site, which I wouldn't know much about. I'm only familiar with the older, open-source version which is still available. If the commercial version maintains the fun-level of the open-source version, it's probably worth the money. Anyway, the basic premise of Tux Racer is to get a penguin from the top of a mountain to the bottom of that very same mountain, collecting all the herring possible in the process. It may not sound as fun as it actually is, but believe me, it's worth checking out.

Update: I was just looking at the screenshots of the commercial Tux Racer, and I usually don't say things like this but, it actually looks like the game has improved so much it just might warrant a purchase.