7 Must‑Try Linux Command‑Line Games You Can Play Without a GPU

1. NetHack

NetHack, first released in 1987 and still actively developed (latest 3.6.6 released March 8 2020), is considered the granddaddy of rogue‑like games. Players create a character such as a knight or wizard and descend into a dungeon to collect amulets, with the goal of reaching the deepest level.

2. Dwarf Fortress

Dwarf Fortress is the only non‑open‑source title on the list, yet its influence and popularity earn it a place. It offers two modes: Fortress mode, where you manage dwarves building, farming, and defending a settlement, and Adventure mode, a procedurally generated world with towns, caves, and raids.

3. Frotz (Z‑Machine interpreter) and Zork

Frotz is an interpreter for Infocom’s Z‑machine games; Zork is one of the most famous text adventures, supporting complex commands such as “open door with crystal key”. The Zork series includes three episodes (Great Underground Empire, The Wizard of Frobozz, and Dungeon Master) available for free from Infocom’s site.

Other notable Z‑machine titles mentioned are “Lost Pig”, “Spider Web”, and “The Witness”, each offering unique puzzle‑oriented narratives.

4. BSD Games Collection

The BSD Games package bundles a large collection of classic terminal games, including Adventure, Arithmetic, Backgammon, Gomoku, Hack, Quiz, and Tetris. Launch any game by typing its name at the command prompt.

5. Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead

Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead is a turn‑based survival rogue‑like where survivors fight zombies, robots, giant insects, and other threats. The game can be played in pure terminal mode or with a graphical tileset, and runs on Linux, Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android.

6. 2048 (terminal client)

Created by Italian developer Gabriele Cirulli in 2014, the 2048 puzzle challenges players to slide numbered tiles until a tile with the value 2048 appears. The GitHub repository provides a simple install script; the game can be started with two shell commands, for example:

git clone https://github.com/gabrielecirulli/2048.git

cd 2048 && make install

7. Snake

Snake is a multiplayer terminal game inspired by classic coin‑op titles. Up to four snakes can be controlled simultaneously using WASD or vi‑style keys; press Escape or Ctrl‑C to quit.