We recently interviewed Carlos Castro León on how he uses Fedora. This is part of a series on the Fedora Magazine. The series profiles Fedora users and how they use Fedora to get things done. Contact us on the feedback form to express your interest in becoming a interviewee.

Who is Carlos Castro León?

Carlos Castro León is a computer engineer in northern Peru. He started using Linux in 2006 when another Linux user helped him install Ubuntu Edgy Eft. When Carlos attended college he decided to use a more stable distribution: “I already knew about Fedora 16 and decided to use it.” Castro León currently works as a computer engineer in Peru. His main task is to coordinate the activities of a team of individuals who manage the servers and networking at his company.

He loves food. He says his favorites are El Cabrito and La Caigua Rellena: “They are delicious and if you come to Peru I can give you very good recommendations.”

Carlos finds the most difficult thing is to get people interested in open source. He overcame resistance from his colleagues by building on the success of the first project. “My first project was implementing OpenVPN,” he says. After this he implemented the following servers: Zimbra, GLPI, DHCP, Rsync, Bacula, Owncloud, and Alfresco.

The Fedora Community

Castro León has some fantastic things to say about the Fedora Community: “They are always attentive to solve problems.”  He added, “the community documentation is available to everyone.” He would like to encourage the spread of open source. Carlos would like to create workshops, events and give presentations at universities. Castro León would like to see more people understand the full potential of having a computer engineering career within an open source project.

What Hardware?

Carlos owns a Dell Inspiron 15 5000 laptop with Fedora installed. He also uses a Brother DCP-T500W printer connected via wireless. “I have not had any issues with hardware or software compatibility,” he reports. For design work he uses a 20 inch monitor and extends the screen. At work he has a Lenovo M700 tiny. This computer has both Windows 10 and most importantly a Fedora install. Carlos says, “I prefer to use Fedora because it has better performance and I have not had problems connecting to shared resources within the office.”

What Software?

Castro León is currently running Fedora 29. For personal projects he uses GIMP, Inkscape, Kdenlive, Audacity, VLC and Simple Screen Recorder. At work he makes use of Shutter, Libre Office, GEdit, and Terminal.

After an extraordinary first year on the market, which saw it smash sales expectations and play host to some amazing games, the Nintendo Switch could have endured a torrid sophomore slump in 2018. However, that wasn’t the case and the console’s commercial success was maintained for the majority of the year, and while the blistering first-out output arguably slowed somewhat, we still had more than enough amazing games to savour on the unique hybrid system.

Join us as we take a look back over the past twelve months, recounting the highs, lows and bits in the middle that were Nintendo’s 2018.

January – A Bold Beginning

2017 may have shocked pretty much everyone – including Nintendo itself – but that didn’t stop the Kyoto veteran from kicking off the year with a bold prediction; president Tatsumi Kimishima stated that the company expected to shift a whopping 20 million Switch consoles in 2018. Given that the console was breaking all kinds of sales records – including beating the PlayStation 2 for the title of most year-one sales in Japan and becoming the fastest-selling console in U.S. history – the prediction didn’t seem all that outlandish.

While some were concerned that the Switch would struggle when it came to software thanks to Nintendo’s policy of ‘front-loading’ the system’s first year on sale with amazing games, news that the legendary Dark Souls series was Switch-bound restored some confidence, although the game ended up shipping later than other versions.

Perhaps the biggest news in the month of January was the unveiling of Labo, Nintendo’s ‘New Way to Play’ that involved cardboard model kits which connect to the Switch in interesting ways. We were lucky enough to be one of the few outlets in the UK that were afforded pre-announcement access; we were excited then, but after months of unsuccessfully finding space in the house to store all of these boxy monstrosities, we’re slightly less enthused by the whole thing.

In somewhat less global news, we paid a visit to Rare’s local video game store in the sleepy British Midlands, which was facing an uncertain future at the dawn of 2018 thanks to the rise of the internet and digital sales. The store had weathered storms in the past but sadly, it would shut later in the year.

We were also gifted with what has to rank as the silliest accessory the Switch – or perhaps any console – has ever seen. While we’re on the topic of silliness, check out our review of the first video game ‘mockumentary’, Going For GoldenEye. It’s a hoot!

Big-name releases were rather thin on the ground due to the time of year, but we still had the likes of Celeste, Pokémon Crystal Version, Lost Sphear, Darkest Dungeon, Blossom Tales: The Sleeping King, RXN -Raijin-, Furi, The Escapists 2, Romancing SaGa 2, InnerSpace, Super Meat Boy and Zero Gunner 2 to keep us happy.

February – Warming Up

The month kicked off with the confirmation that Mario would be getting his second shot at silver screen success thanks to the peeps behind Minions – something that wasn’t positive news for many people. We were also hit by the news that hackers had discovered an exploit in the Switch hardware which apparently cannot be patched. Naughty.

The same month saw Billy Mitchell’s famous Donkey Kong high scores come under scrutiny in a drama that would continue to unfold throughout the year. Mitchell eventually proved he was capable of hitting his previous best later in 2018, but it sadly seems like his name is forever tainted; a sad chapter in the life of a man who has become one of the most famous games players on the planet.

The month had a few juicy rumours, one of which related to the next entry in the Sonic racing series. The word on the grapevine was that the next speed-fest from Sega would focus solely on Sonic and his chums, rather than pulling in all manner of characters from other famous Sega IPs. This proved to be true as Sega would later announce Team Sonic Racing, which sadly would slip into 2019, missing its original launch window. Sticking on the topic of the Blue Blur for one second, we were also tickled by the idea of his creator doing an impression of the late, great Michael Jackson.

In the realm of retro gaming, the big news was the release of the Analogue Super Nt, a FPGA-based clone of the SNES which we can’t recommend highly enough. We also took a good, long look at how to get the best picture out of your N64 using an RGB mod.

Releases continued to be relatively thin on the ground; we saw Dragon Quest Builders, Owlboy, SteamWorld Dig 2, Bayonetta, Bayonetta 2 and Payday 2 all hit the console, as well as more than a few eShop releases, but it was clear that the best was yet to come.

March – Smash and Luigi Raise the Temperature

Those of you who are old enough to recall the days of the NES and SNES will no doubt have fond memories of Toys R Us, the toy giant which specialised in video games for what felt like forever. The company collapsed in March, triggering an outpouring of nostalgia. We’ll ignore the fact that the firm appears to be on the verge of relaunching and keep those rose-tinted specs firmly in place.

Dodgy hardware also made headlines in March, with the news that some third-party Switch docks had been bricking systems, with Nyko’s products coming in for serious criticism. The issue appears to have been related to the latest Switch system update, and caused headaches for those players who lost all of their progress thanks to the fault. Gulp.

Perhaps the biggest reveal of the month – if not the year – was the confirmation that yes, Switch would be getting a Smash sequel later in 2018. We also found that there was life in the 3DS yet, with the welcome news that the GameCube classic Luigi’s Mansion would be resurrected for the plucky handheld, giving players the chance to experience it in 3D – which Nintendo wanted back when the title was originally launched, but couldn’t achieve.

We also covered a few interesting topics in March, including the tragic tale of the man who helped to co-create Tetris, arguably one of the most significant games in the history of Nintendo thanks to the way in which it effortlessly sold the Game Boy to millions of people all over the world. Elsewhere, the games industry reacted passionately to a showreel issued by The White House on the hot topic of violence in video games.

Oh, and March was also the month in which Luigi’s crown jewels became a topic of conversation over the water cooler. Yes, video game journalism is very strange sometimes.

There were a few decent games to get stuck into in March, too. We were gifted with Outlast: Bundle of Terror, Subsurface Circular and Kirby Star Allies on Switch, while Detective Pikachu kept the memory of the 3DS alive.

April – Cardboard Craziness

April kicked off with plenty of jokes, and we joined the party by suggesting that Nintendo had gone cardboard-crazy with its next Labo efforts. Were you one of the few that were fooled? If so, you should feel utterly ashamed of yourself. Tut.

Meanwhile, rumours of new Nintendo hardware were sparked by Shinya Takahashi, and we took the time to speak to professional Smash Bros. players to see what they wanted from the upcoming Switch instalment. You may also remember that Nintendo got a new president in the form of Shuntaro Furukawa. Talk about stepping on board at the right time; in the same week, Nintendo revealed that Switch had sold over 15 million units since launch.

Sega also revealed it was bringing a host of classic games to Switch under the Sega Ages banner, and that it would be creating a Mega Drive Mini console to rival the likes of the NES and SNES Classic Editions. AtGames – which, if we’re being honest, does a pretty shoddy line in clone consoles despite having well over a decade of experience – claimed it was helping out before the tweet was deleted and the console delayed until 2019. SNK also got in the act, announcing it was making its own classic system based on the Neo Geo.

At the random end of the scale, F1 fans were overjoyed to learn that the Sonic trophy given to the legendary Ayrton Senna still exists – but they were less pleased to know it had been relegated to a dusty store cupboard at McLaren’s HQ. Given the current sorry state of this legendary racing team, you’d think McLaren would want to show off as many past glories as possible. Perhaps even more random was the news that drugs had been found inside NES cartridges. Eek.

The month was quite light on big-name releases, but Sky Rogue, Wild Guns Reloaded and Football Manager Touch 2018 were all worth a look.

Valve has launched a handful of end-of-year lists (and corresponding sales) that offer fellow game devs a peek at what games performed best on Steam across a variety of categories.

All in all, the year-end roundup lists the top sellers, top new releases, top-selling VR titles, top former Early Access games, and most played games in from 2018. 

However, as with past Steam lists, the specific rankings and actual revenue of each title isn’t disclosed. Instead, most top-seller lists are organized into four tiers: platinum for the 1st through 12th best-sellers, gold for 13th through 24th, silver for 25th through 40th, and bronze for 41st through 100th. 

So, in no particular order, the 12 games that earned the most gross revenue on Steam this year are The Elder Scrolls Online, Rocket League, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Rainbow Six Siege, Dota 2, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Monster Hunter: World, Civilization VI, Warframe, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey, FarCry 5, and Grand Theft Auto V. 

A bulk of those games are notably free-to-play or live games, which makes sense given that Valve says revenue from game sales, in-game transactions, and DLC all factor into what lands a game on that top seller’s list.

The top new releases category, however, takes a different approach and ranks the games released this year that generated the most revenue in 2018 according to the month they released. Since 150 games are included in this roundup, it’s best to head over to Steam to see the rankings in full, but games like Celeste, Beat Saber, Cultist Simulator, and Mutant: Road to Eden all make appearances on that list.

There are a lot of games released into the market every year.

And we cover this trend; this inundation of games filling the marketplace. It’s a trend that complicates the chance for success and recognition, from developer to developer, from game to game.

That was true as ever in 2018. But among our staff, there hasn’t been a real complaint about there being “too many games.” We get it — there are a lot of games, but no one would say “there are too many games” if there weren’t so many games that were great.

There were so many games that were great in 2018. Here are the 10 games that stood out in the minds of Gamasutra’s writers this year. (Selections in alphabetical order.)

When Celeste first came out this year, I played it for maybe a half hour, and then stopped. I just wasn’t in the mood for yet another hard-as-hell platformer.

It wasn’t until I picked it back up at the end of the year when I completely fell in love with it, and appreciated what it was doing. Yes, the game is difficult. But the way the story addresses that difficulty, and emboldens the player to keep climbing, is absolutely brilliant. Celeste shows us that we can be our own worst enemy, but that “enemy” is still an innate part of who we are. And having a friend or two help you realize that along the way never hurts.

Mechanically, it’s a simple concept for a player to understand. Jump, dash, and grab. The game masterfully introduces players to the traversal mechanics, then sprinkles in new level design elements where players have to use those basic skills in new ways. It all just feels perfect. – Kris Graft

Ben Esposito’s Donut County is the perfect amount of video game. It’s a funny, surreal story about remote control holes that’s a joy to play, one that doesn’t overstay its welcome. – Alex Wawro

Before diving into why Florence is a unique experience, the developers deserve credit for making a game that’s the perfect length of time. Clocking in at around two hours, Florence tells a story about love at a great pace.

The game takes the generic formula of a traditional relationship (meeting, falling in love, falling out of love) but tells it in such a different way through effective use of simple mechanics, powerful score, and unique art style.

Games without a lot of dialogue or text need to go the extra mile to convey an engaging and emotional story effectively, and Florence absolutely nails it.

No story spoilers will be given away, because it’s a game that needs to be played in order to fully grasp the impact it has. Florence is made for mobile and other short, narrative games would find themselves a great home on the platform. Mobile is confined to a very small subset of mechanics: Tapping, swiping, or holding an icon on your screen. Those constraints serve as powerful storytelling tools ripe for innovation.

The game in its entirety is made up of small, digestible vignettes of very personal and intimate moments in adult relationships where both the good and the bad are shared in a special way. – Emma Kidwell 

11 bit Studios’ Frostpunk was the 2018 game I could never stop thinking about. From the moment my poor survivors reached the totemic Generator sitting in the frozen Arctic north, every decision I spent with this society simulator helped me reckon with the demons of authoritarianism and how much control and the lies you can tell yourself in the name of the greater good. 

Frostpunk’s thoughtful design means that it’s not just an arbitrary moral messenger here to warn you of the woes of a police state or theocratic regime. It’s crafted to guide you on a path of different path of pain points to remind you that just because you didn’t commit higher crimes against freedom, your lesser decisions still infringed on the rights of your people. And as the pressure drops, and your city is freed from the frozen snow in a great sigh of relief, you’ll look at it’s become and see how even its physical shape was impacted by how much you’d give up in the name of survival. – Bryant Francis

The Hitman sequel drops the episodic format of that last rendition but keeps a firm grasp on Hitman 2016’s charm and quirks as it introduces just the right dose of new mechanics, new levels, and new content to the last game’s already tried and true formula. Hitman 2‘s magic is in each of the massive sandboxes that each main story mission of the game is set in and how it gives players the freedom to take complete ownership of their plans and assassinations, whether the steps they took to complete those objectives were laid out by the game’s suggested or plotted out completely from scratch.

While setting up a platform for another season’s worth of dev and user-made content is an impressive feat, the team at IO Interactive also remade every level, both DLC and base Season 1, from Hitman 2016 for Hitman 2. It’s an undertaking that no doubt took a considerable amount of work, especially since each Legacy level manages to embrace the new mechanics and AI of Hitman 2 without losing the feel of the original. Between the Legacy levels and the still-evolving agent-versus-agent multiplayer Ghost Mode, Hitman 2 has become a game that both builds on the successes of its predecessor without shying away from risk. – Alissa McAloon 

Nothing I’ve played conveys the sensation of snatching salvation from the jaws of failure quite like Into the Breach. There’s a lot to admire about Subset Games’ sophomore effort, but what’s most striking is how often it sets up tactical problems that seem first impossible, then survivable, then solvable. It’s my favorite strategy game since chess, and a remarkable follow-up to FTL. – Alex Wawro

Marvel’s Spider-Man is just one emotional pit stop for the web-headed hero who’s had a hell of a 2018. He gave his life in the film Infinity War, he’s reframing his own heroic origins in Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, and when given a shot, Insomniac Games doesn’t waste any time when granted use of one of the biggest icons in pop culture.

Not only does Marvel’s Spider-Man give breath to a dizzying and dynamic traversal system that takes advantage of New York’s iconic architecture, Insomniac also uses its mission design and gadget expertise to weave a narrative about the struggles of Peter Parker, and how his selfless nature and faith in other people can be used against him. 

But it’s still not a cynical game! It’s quippy, it’s cute and it gives Mary-Jane Watson something to do. If superheroes are becoming the modern-day mythological heroes, it’s great that Insomniac Games injects a meaningful experience in the middle of its well-honed, well-polished technical achievement. – Bryant Francis

Rockstar’s Red Dead Redemption 2 excels on the merits of its smallest moments. The massive open world is an ambitious undertaking, and a space you as a player spend a considerable amount of time traversing during and between missions. And that downtime is where Red Dead Redemption 2 shines. It’s captivating, or even just relaxing to just toss headphones on and exist in that world for a while, fishing, or hunting, or tracking down small oddities hidden out in the wilderness. 

The same is true for the moments spent catching up with the other members of the Van der Linde gang. Catching small conversation with a friend around camp or even just lingering among that cast of characters as they sing, drink, and celebrate after a heist well done makes such an endearing and heartwarming experience that I can’t say I’ve found in other games before.

It’s impossible to mention Red Dead Redemption 2 here however without calling out some of the controversy that’s surrounded the game in the leadup to its release regarding excessive crunch, mandatory or otherwise, during the development of Red Dead Redemption 2. Current and former Rockstar developers have spoken at length about their experiences while working on the game, and the stories on those perspectives should be mentioned with any discussion or praise of the game itself. – Alissa McAloon

In an indie scene where retro has become a cliche, a few games continue to remind us of why gaming’s past remains a valuable space to explore. Lucas Pope’s latest, a brilliant supernatural mass murder mystery-cum-insurance investigator simulator, uses its 80s-inspired graphics to reinforce core mechanics. First, your character uses an enchanted watch to see a deceased person’s moment of death in freeze-frame; no animation required, just an eye for detail. Second, that detail is brought into sharp relief by those same graphics. Where certain things might get lost in the haze of bloom and shaders, the unpretentiously-used bit graphics work in favor of clue-finding.

The story that evolves is an incredibly gripping spec-fic narrative in its own right. You only get snapshots of every life aboard the Obra Dinn, often at their lowest moments and their very ends, but you still come away knowing something all-too-human about them all as you piece together Pope’s grand puzzle. The end result is one for the ages. – Katherine Cross

In the run-up and launch of Tetris Effect, I formed a new pet peeve: people saying things like ‘it’s just re-skinned Tetris‘ or ‘do we really need another version of Tetris?’

For one, Tetris is a game that humankind will be playing in some shape or form for the next thousands of years, barring any near- to mid-term self-destruction of our species. To say something is “just Tetris” is like saying “just the Ancient Pyramids” or “just the moon landing” or “just penicillin.” Tetris is a monumental human achievement.

Ahem ok where were we? Oh yes, Tetris Effect. Yes we do need another version of Tetris — specifically this version. Tezuya Mizuguchi’s take on the game (which was directed by Takashi Ishihara) is surprisingly emotional, bringing together visuals, sound and music, and interactivity together perfectly, with a soulful sincerity unique to Mizuguchi’s work.

And don’t pass up on this if you don’t own PSVR — while that’s a great Tetris Effect experience, the game doesn’t lose its beauty on a regular screen. Just turn the lights down, turn the sound up, and play yet another version of Tetris. – Kris Graft

Xbox recently hosted a celebration of gaming with a #MyXbox holiday event at the Flagship Microsoft Store in New York City. I’m on the Xbox Community Team and had the pleasure of serving as event emcee and helped lead this gathering that, of course, included all of the usual holiday party standbys like games, music, food, and fun. It also provided the time and space for us to celebrate the importance of diversity and inclusion in our industry. It was a moment for myself and other members of the Black community of all ages to come together, much like any other community, through their love of gaming.

Now, more than ever, I am a firm believer in games as a great unifier. However, even as we all strive to be understanding, we still need to make a conscious effort to ensure everyone feels included. After all, we know that when everybody plays, we all win.

To that end, the team from Xbox welcomed actor, musician and avid Xbox gamer Trey Smith and Power 105.1 The Breakfast Club host Angela Yee to the Store to inspire and motivate younger gamers to get into games and bring their imaginations to life. Kids and their family members and mentors from the Harlem Children’s Zone, Royalty Project and Kips Bay Boys & Girls Club enjoyed playing some of the hottest games on Xbox and designing their own versions of the new Xbox Avatars.

In addition to giving away some great prizes, including Xbox One S consoles, games, and Xbox Game Pass memberships, other highlights included a photo booth and “Forza Horizon 4” stream with Trey Smith on the Xbox Ambassadors Mixer channel.

As a life-long Xbox fan, I cherish the opportunity to empower Xbox fans to help make the Xbox community not only the best on the planet, but also a place where everyone feels welcomed and included. If you are an Xbox fan and want to help celebrate the Xbox community and all the ways we make gaming for everyone, here are a few easy ways to jump in on the fun:

1. Become an Xbox Ambassador – Xbox Ambassadors are the leaders of the Xbox community. Whether they are welcoming a new Xbox gamer into the community or playing with a new friend from a different country, they represent all the best parts of gaming – fun and togetherness. If making Xbox fun for everyone is something that interests you (and you are 17 years or older), become an Xbox Ambassador today!
2. Create your Xbox Avatar – The new Xbox Avatars are expressive, creative and, most importantly, bring to life the community of fans they represent. They appear throughout the Xbox One dashboard, including on profiles, Gamerscore comparisons, community posts and more.
3. Join Clubs on Xbox Live – Clubs are groups on Xbox Live created by the Xbox community for people to play and socialize. You can join or create clubs that interest you, so that you can be sure to share the things you love with other like-minded gamers.
4. Create a “Looking for Group” (LFG) Post – It’s easy to make new friends and play the games you love by creating an LFG post or responding to one created by someone else on Xbox Live. With LFG you can looking for gaming sessions that fit your style.

The wondrous look on the faces of young gamers at the event was proof of the power of gaming to make everyone, everywhere have fun together and celebrate this holiday. Everyone’s #MyXbox story is different and unique to them. So, get out there and show us how YOU Xbox this holiday.

2018 has been another stellar year for gaming with a mixture of major releases, remakes, and more indie gems than we know what to do with all clamouring for our attention (and our hard-earned cash). To celebrate, Nintendo has put together this short video, showcasing some of the very best Nindies to grace the Switch this year.

Games featured include Dead Cells, Flat Heroes, The Messenger, The Gardens Between, Inside, Dust: An Elysian Tail, Gris, Mark of the Ninja: Remastered, Horizon Chase Turbo, Iconoclasts, Into The Breach, Wandersong, Crypt of the Necrodancer, and Flipping Death, some of which even managed to make a dent in our staff Game of the Year awards thanks to their amazing levels of quality.

Of course, 2019 is shaping up to be just as spectacular, with games like Travis Strikes Again: No More Heroes coming on 18th January, and Shovel Knight: King of Cards arriving on 9th April to name just a couple. We’ll also be getting our hands on one of our most highly anticipated titles of 2019 – Untitled Goose Game.

Have you enjoyed this year’s collection of indie hits? Feel free to share some of your favourites with us in the comments below.