14 DAY TRIAL // 
Little Inferno is probably one of the weirdest puzzle games ever made and the good news is that Linux users can experience some of that weirdness.
The game was developed by the Tomorrow Corporation and it was initially launched for the Wii and Windows platforms. The game was later ported to Linux and offered to users of the open source platform with Humble Indie Bundle 8.
Even if the gameplay seems simplistic, the reception hasn't been quite what the developers were expecting. Even if some users have praised it for the innovations it brought in terms of gameplay, others didn’t’ actually enjoy setting things on fire just for the fun of it.
Installation
We installed the version from the Humble Indie Bundle 8, which is provided in both .deb and .sh format. Installing either one is rather easy. We used an Ubuntu 13.04 64-bit version and everything went without a hitch.
Download the deb file, open a terminal, navigate to the location of the file, and enter the following commands.
sudo apt-get install little-inferno_0_20130509-0ubuntu1_i386.deb
If the installation fails, enter the following command in the same terminal:
sudo apt-get install –f
The command should take care of any problems and resume the installation.
Little Inferno was also launched in Steam for Linux, so if you got the game through the Valve distribution service, the installation is much easier.
Story and Gameplay
Like most indie titles, the object of the game is not the story. There are some exceptions to this rule, but, for the most part, small titles like Little Inferno are usually all about gameplay.
Players will be placed in front of a very nice and cozy fireplace called “Little Inferno.” The world of the main character seems to be in the middle of an ice age.
The citizens have been encouraged to burn anything they can get their hands on, and the Tomorrow Corporation, which is also the builder of the Little Inferno fireplaces, is providing various items to burn.
The main character starts receiving some mysterious letters from someone who seems to know him (or her for that matter). Step by step, the player will uncover a conspiracy put together by the Tomorrow Corporation.
Without giving away any spoilers, I can tell you that the end of the story is so bizarre that you'll be left wondering why you even played it.
Gameplay wise, the principle of Little Inferno is pretty simple. You're given a choice of items and a list of puzzles that need solving.
Solving the puzzles usually means burning a few items together. The clues needed to solve the puzzles are given by the names of the challenges. If you're good with riddles, the game shouldn't occupy more than 2 hours of your time.
Each burned item gives the player some money, which in turn can be used to buy more items. If the right combination of items is placed in the fireplace, more money will be provided and more items will be unlocked.
The Bad
Unfortunately, the difficulty of the game has been increased artificially by making some of the puzzles extremely hard. Some outside help might be needed to advance further, if you know what I mean.
The Good
The Tomorrow Corporation has managed to deliver a new type of gameplay that hasn't been seen before, making Little Inferno a memorable game, at least for a small number of players.
The Conclusion
If you liked playing with matches when you were a kid, Little Inferno will be your perfect cup of tea. If you get passed the silly graphics, the game is actually targeted at an adult audience.
If it hadn't been for the very short gameplay time and the close-to-zero replay value, Little Inferno could have made a real impact.
