Macintosh Computer Games
We are mostly focused on PC computer games, but we thought we would write up our list of best Macintosh computer games ever. To show a little love to the Macintosh using public.
Now no doubt many of you think Macintosh users don’t have it as well, as PC users, when it comes to gaming. Well that is both true and false. PC users have a greater variety of games to pick from. But only the really good and popular games ever make it to the Macintosh platform. So Macintosh computer games tend to be of a higher quality than PC games.
Call of Duty 4 : World at War
release date: October 2008
Mac OS X
Stong Points:
- Thrilling and unexpected storyline
- Well-designed multiplayer progression
- Terrific sound and graphics
World at War is the fourth installment in the Call of Duty series and this is probably the best first person shooter ever made. Where the previous games were set in World War 2 this one moves us right to modern day warfare.
In the game you will get to play as a British SAS operative as well as a US Marine. The game will take you from combat at see to hunting down terrorists. I was glad to trade in my WW2 rifle for some modern day weapons.
My only criticism of the game is that the single player is a little short. Still the online gameplay more than makes up for it.
Neverwinter Nights 2
release date: February 2008
Mac OS X
Neverwinter Nights is one of my personal all time favourite games. It is a medieval fantasy roleplaying game not to dissimilar to Baldurs Gate and Icewind dale, but better.
I can’t say much about the game without giving away the main story line and it’s much more fun discovering it yourself. I can tell you that you can play the game as either a good or evil character, based on the decisions you make. For instance at one point in the game you come across a merchant. His bodyguards have decided to rob him on their journey. Will you save the merchant, help the guards and split the loot or kill them all and keep everything. These decisions may seem trivial but how you treat those around you especially your traveling companions will affect the outcome of the game.
The combat in Neverwinter Nights is based on Dungeons and Dragons. So if you are a dungeons and dragons fan you will recognise the races (elf, dwarf, half-orc, halfling and human) as well as the classes(cleric, ranger, barbarian, paladin, warrior, druid, wizard and sorcerer). Many of the spells like “magic missile” and skills like “lock picking” is also from Dungeons and Dragons.
There is a toolset for the game, which means once you are done with the game, you can download mods online. Some of these mods are as good if not better than the game itself.
Lego Star Wars II
release date: April 2007
Mac OS X
Lego Star Wars II is still primarily an action adventure computer game in which you control a group of characters as they blast their way through enemies and do some light puzzle-solving.
In my opinion the game is a cute easy to play computer game. I thinks it’s a good game for playing on your laptop when you are traveling or maybe for your kids to play at home.
War strategy games PC
If you enjoy war strategy games, you are in luck. There are some great titles on the market as well as some great games on the way.
Although strategy games have a single player element, I really love them for the multiplayer games. Computer AI becomes very predictable, while every human plays differently. Which means these games are a fresh challenge every time you play them.
Strategy games tend to have online communities form around them. Members of these communities then program special maps or mods for the community. These mods regularly become more popular than the campaigns and maps from the developers.
First lets look at the upcoming games.
Starcraft II
Starcraft II is the upcoming sequel from Blizzard. The same people who made Warcraft and World of Warcraft. Starcraft was arguably the best strategy game ever, so Blizzard has allot to live up to.
The game is set in the future. Humanity has set out to the stars. There they have come in contact with 2 very hostile races. The Zerg and the Protoss.
Protoss: The Protoss are an ancient and technologically advanced race. They use energy weapons and shields and so on. Basically the Protoss live for war. Their problem is that they don’t have the kind of numbers that the other 2 races have.
Zerg: The Zerg are a biologically centred race. Everything from their buildings to their ships are biological. They hatch basic creatures which then mutate into specialized buildings and combat monsters. The Zerg’s minions are weaker than the other 2 races, but they are far greater in number.
Human: The humans are a little further along technologically than we are. But they still use gatling guns, tanks and rockets. You might think this leaves them a little under armed, but they also have tactical nukes and stealth units to even the playing field.
My personal favourites are the Zerg, they are ugly but they get the job done.
Games that are currently out.
Command & Conquer 3: Tiberium Wars
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C&C 3 is set in the not too distant future. Earth has been poisoned with a self replicating crystal, Tiberium. This has broken the earth up into 3 types of zones. The red zones where the Tiberium has killed everything, The yellow zones that are fairly heavily poisoned and the green zones that are Tiberium free. Two factions the Nod and GDI fight each other for domination. The Nod is a rebel group, they favour hit and run tactics. The GDI is the world governing body, they favour overwhelming fire power. Enter into this alien invaders, come to conquer the earth and harvest the Tiberium.
What really sets C&C 3 apart from the competition is their use of cut scenes to move the story forward. They really make the single player games much more “real”.
C&C 3 uses the GameSpy engine to make playing online quick and easy.
The other strategy games are very resource hungry. With C&C 3 you don’t need a great system to enjoy it.
They have also released Command & Conquer 3: Kane’s Wrath the expansion in early 2008. So I you find yourself wanting more, you can get it.
Supreme Commander
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The Good:
- Huge battles with vast armies.
- Deep gameplay that provides countless ways to victory.
- Intense multiplayer action.
The Bad:
- The large battles in Supreme Commander can bring the best game systems to it’s knees.
Supreme commander is set in the distant future. Humanity has evolved into 3 different species and they go at it for control of the galaxy.
Where C&C is for the casual strategy gamer, Supreme Commander is for the hard core gamer.
There is also an expansion out for Supreme Commander, “Forged Alliance”.
Star Wars games PC Mac
Mostly games around a franchise, like Star Wars, is an attempt to make some easy cash off the brand. The games tend to be few and pretty weak. This is not the case with Star Wars. They really put in the time and effort to make sure every Star Wars game was really high quality stuff, before they put it out.
Star Wars Republic Commando
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2005(XP, 98, NT, ME)
The good
Action packed campaigns, really good squad command, great sound and graphics, good team AI.
The bad
It was too short for my liking.
Star Wars Republic Commando puts you in the shoes of an elite trooper during the height of the Clone Wars. You lead a three man team of elite troopers on a number of missions. Each trooper has specialties like explosives, sniping and so on.
The game takes you on three distinct campaigns during the Clone Wars. You’ll invade Geonosis, along with the rest of the Republic army, investigate a derelict starship, and assist the Wookiees in fending off Trandoshan slavers.
There is also a multi-player mode with deathmatch, team deathmatch, and capture the flag.
Star Wars: Battlefront II
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2005(XP, Me, 98, Mac OS X)
Battlefront II is a team-based shooter, like Battlefield 1942, only better. It does have single player missions, but really shines in multiplayer online mode. There you can join up with up to 63 other players and go head to head.
The biggest improvement over the original game is the huge ship maps. You will be able to jump into a small starfighter, fly out of the fighter bay of capital ships, and dogfight in outer space as naval combat rages between massive star destroyers, frigates, and the tiny fighters that buzz around them. The best part of the space combat is trying to bring down the huge capital ships. You can attack them from the outside using larger fighters like Y-Wings or TIE bombers, or you can attempt to land inside their fighter bay, after which you send out marines to destroy the ship from the inside.
After you have gained enough points in a map, the hero is unlocked. Each team can have only one hero at a time. Most of them are lightsaber-armed Jedi. Most Jedi can throw their light sabers, and some have Jedi powers. Certain maps will also let you play special characters like Boba Fett or Han Solo, who have special weapons.
All in all this is a great game.
Star Wars Knights of the Old Republic 2: The Sith Lords
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2005(XP, Me, 98, Mac OS X)
This is a role playing game set 4,000 years before Star Wars Episode I. The Sith Lords have hunted the Jedi to the edge of extinction and are on the verge of crushing the Old Republic. With the Jedi Order in ruin, you are the Republic’s only hope.
Throughout the game you will be able to make either good or evil decisions which will shape the outcome of the game. You travel from place to place discovering your Force powers and meeting companions to aid you.
The game is best described as a near-perfect blend of exploration, combat, and role-playing.
Diablo 3 - PC Mac Games
Blizzard is currently working on their much anticipated 3′d installment of Diablo.
The Graphics
From what we have seen of the graphics Blizzard plans to push way beyond anything else out there. The new game has much better and greater depth of colour. They have retained the gothic feel from Diablo 1 and 2. On the downside, you will need a top of the line game PC, to fully enjoy the game.
The Classes
Blizzard says that some of the classes won’t make it to Diablo 3. However we know that the Barbarian will be there as well as a new class the Witch Doctor. Also the Barbarian will still have his whirlwind and leap attacks. The Witch Doctor is a crowd controller, he uses summon and damage spells and they work best on large groups of enemies.
NPC
In Diablo 2 you only really had the one NPC helping you. Looks like Blizzard plans to expand the NPC help and you will be able to take a few allies with you. This will be important as your enemies will be using a better AI and their own strategies to kill you. The combat will be more strategic but still have the same hack and slash properties.
Game Play
As far as game play goes it looks like they are going to lean more heavily on use of skills and less so on quaffing lots of potions. The new player interface is setup to make using skills easier.
Diablo 3 will retain the random generation of dungeons, but there will be more side quests and these quests will also have random elements. The randomness of the game is partly responsible for the success of Diablo 1 and 2 and we are happy to see that Blizzard is retaining that.
The landscape in Diablo 3 plays a far greater role. It is not completely destructible, but you will definitely be able to use it in combat.
Blizzard is putting allot of work into the loot and we expect to see some great armor and devastating weapons.
Release Date
Blizzard does not give release dates for their games. They release the games when they are ready. I wish some other game companies would do this, instead of releasing half finished games.
I played both Diablo 1 and 2 and I will definitely buy Diablo 3.
You can watch the game’s trailer on the Official Diablo Site