November 2, 2007 6:57 PMA post on the EVE Online forums reveals that the next update to the game will "contain formal support for Mac OS X and Linux." The Revelations 2.3 update is planned for November 6. Also, Macworld's Game Room is offering a new article detailing a developer discussion about the Mac and Linux versions of CCP Game's online multiplayer space adventure.From CCP forums:This update, Revelations 2.3, contains formal support for Mac OS X and Linux. It also includes a few fixes for all platforms. Stay tuned for the release notes.From Macworld's Game Room:“Very little of the code base is Windows-specific,” explained Shay McAulay of CCP Games, whose QA team is responsible for vetting the Mac version of EVE Online. “Most of our code depends on Python.” To manage the actual conversion work, CCP recruited TransGaming Technologies, developers of the Cider technology that EA has used to bring its games to the Macintosh. Cider enables Intel-based Macs to run Windows applications without needing Windows installed. Essentially, it’s a translation layer that runs on Mac OS X, explained Lucas Smithen, TransGaming’s product manager for Cider.“It takes the onus off the game developers to have to maintain different branches of code for different platforms,” he explained. “The game is still running the same core instruction set, regardless of platform,” said Sean Langley, TransGaming’s producer for EVE Online. “We’re simply providing an environment for the Windows product to run in. There’s no translation of code.” “In fact, we’ve found that in some cases, such as model loading, the Mac version actually runs a bit faster than the Windows version, because of efficiencies in the Mac file system,” said McAuley.EVE Online Forums: Revelations 2.3 Patch Coming November 6EVE Online
November 2, 2007 4:11 PMInside Mac Games has posted a review of Monopoly Here & Now, a modern version of the classic board game. Here's a clip from the review:Past Monopoly video games have suffered slowdowns but this one doesn't. The AI is not the best when it comes to trades. Sometimes they refuse acceptable trades for them that would give them a property they need. Other times they readily accept to give you a property you need for almost nothing.To check out the full review, please follow the link below.Inside Mac Games Review: Monopoly Here & NowGameHouseMonopoly Here & Now
November 2, 2007 7:00 AMMacgamestore.com has added Sandlot Games' Cake Mania to its list of downloadable titles. In the game Players help the protagonist Jill save her grandparents' bakery by building a successful business. Players upgrade equipment, set up 4 different types of bakeries in exotic locales, and serve up confectionary delights to a variety of customers in the game's 48 levels.Help a young baker show big bad business who's boss in this fast-paced treat. When the retail behemoth "Mega-Mart" moves in, Jill's beloved family bakery is forced to close. But she's determined to get the business back on its feet with delicious sweets. Help Jill open her own bakery, bring in customers, and earn enough money to re-open her grandparents' bakery. Featuring 48 levels and four different bakeries, Cake Mania is full of mouth-watering fun. Let's get cookin'!Cake Mania costs $19.95 and requires OS X 10.3.9.Head over to Macgamestore site to learn more.Buy Cake Mania
November 2, 2007 7:00 AMApple Games' most recent feature takes a swing at reviewing Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2008, one of several Cider powered EA titles available for Intel Macs. This version of the game includes more of all the features and settings fans of the golf sim series have come to appreciate. The article includes a review of the game and a run down of some of the included golf courses.When you embark on a Tiger Challenge, you guide an amateur golfer through a series of progressively difficult tasks, such as driving the ball farther than your opponents or completing all the par-three holes on a certain course. Finish a challenge with at least a bronze medal and unlock the adjacent ones on the hex grid. Each group of challenges culminates in an 18-hole head-to-head match with a pro; the finale pits you against Tiger. You can also embark on the PGA Tour with your amateur golfer, whose physical appearance you customize from their face to their shoes. Play up to 30 years of a career, competing in each season’s 16 events and earning points toward qualification for the FedExCup Championship. The top 144 golfers gain the right to tee off in the first of the FedExCup’s four tournaments, with the field cut down to 120, 70, and 30 for the next three tournaments. If you’d rather head straight to the FedExCup Championship with one of the game’s 23 pro golfers, you can do that too. Choose from Tiger, Annika Sorenstam, Vijay Singh, John Daly, and other top golfers from around the world. Each player earns points depending on their success in each of the four tournaments; the grand champion is the golfer with the highest cumulative total after the final hole has been played.The full article is available at the link below.Apple Games: Tiger Woods 2008Electronic ArtsTiger Woods PGA Tour 2008
November 2, 2007 7:00 AMVirtual Programming has announced the digital download release of Championship Manager 2008, released the same time as the PC version. The box product will follow in a couple of weeks. The football (soccer) sim features team stats updated to the end of the August transfer window, 25% more players and staff, 27 playable nations, and multiplayer action for players using one Mac.Think you can do better? It's your decisions that count: your budget, your buys, your formation, your tactics... your chance to prove it! Use your skills and knowledge to manage your club the way you feel it should be — now it's your turn. All football fans around the world, believe they know more about football than anybody else. More than the guy sat next to them at the match, more than the people commentating on the game, more than the manager of their local team. Championship Manager is the closest you'll ever come to the highs and lows of real football management. Championship Manager 2008 costs $39.99 and requires OSX 10.3.9, a PPC or Intel CPU, 256MB RAM, a GeForce 2MX/Radeon 9200 or better, 64Mb VRAM, 400Mb free disk space, and an Internet connection for product registration.Follow the links below to learn more about the game and to download the demo.Championship Manager 2008Championship Manager 2008 Demo
November 2, 2007 7:00 AMThis week's desktop, courtesy as always of IMG's own Brad Custer, focuses on the upcoming expansion pack World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King from Blizzard Entertainment which is greatly anticipated by many in the Mac gaming community.Here's what Brad had to say:With our recent first look of World of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich King from Blizzard Entertainment my inbox has been flooded with emails for eye candy from the upcoming title. Of course, I enjoy honoring all your requests and venturing back into the realm we all love so much. I was able to make this week's wallpaper with the help of Blizzard Entertainment and the newly released fan site kit. I simply entitled this selection, "Wrath", and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did making it. :)Custer's latest is available in a variety of sizes at Custer's Desktops.Custer's Desktops
November 2, 2007 7:00 AMPerhaps not wishing to steal the thunder from the current Leopard freight train, Apple has quietly updated their MacBook line of laptops. The bump this time around is minor, with the main shift being the move to the Santa Rosa platform. The new platform architecture includes an 800MHz FSB (up from 667) and an Intel GMA X3100 integrated graphic chip with 144MB of DDR2 SDRAM (up from a GMA 950 graphics processor with 64MB of DDR2 SDRAM).Processors remain the Core2Duos, with a 2.2GHz processor replacing the older 2.16GHz one. The 2.0GHz is also still available. In addition, the laptops now feature support for up to 4GB of memory. For those looking for more storage space, a 250GB 5400rpm HD is now an option across the board and goes for $150.The MacBook Pro received an even smaller update, and now offers a BTO option for a 2.6GHz Core2Duo processor for an additional $250.MacBook (13-inch)
November 2, 2007 7:00 AMVirtual Programming has announced the digital download format release of Europa Universalis III, with a boxed version following soon. EU 3 is a new chapter in the popular Paradox Interactive world domination strategy series. The game delves into the areas of exploration, trade, warfare and diplomacy. Players take command of a nation and guide it through the ages with the goal of becoming a great global empire. EU 3 gives players a great deal of freedom in how they choose to rule the nation of their choice, selected from one of over 250 historically accurate countries.Some features of Europa Universalis III:o Players can enjoy over 300 years of game play by starting at ANY date between 1453 and 1789 o Nation building is flexible: decide your own form of government, the structure of your society, trade politics and much more. The possibilities are endless o A lush topographic map in full 3D allows for a rich and complete world view, and contains more than 1700 provinces and sea zones o Have more than a thousand historical leaders and over 4000 historical Monarchs at your disposal o Manage more than 100 individual unit troops to secure as much power as possible o Co-operative multiplayer mode allows several players to work together to controla single nation o Customize your game: Europa Universalis III gives you the chance to customizeand mod practically anything your heart may desire.Join the constantly growing and incredibly talented Paradox modding community! o Play online via LAN, Internet or Metaserver, take on fellow Mac or PC users!System Requirements: - OS X 10.3.9 or higher - Intel or PPC G5 - GeForce 5200, Radeon 9600 or GMA950 - 64 MB VRAM, 512 MB RAM - 700 MB hard disk space - Broadband connection for Internet play - Internet connection for registration Europa Universalis III costs $39.99. Click over to the site below for a chance to learn more about the game.Virtual ProgrammingEuropa Universalis III
November 1, 2007 7:00 AMMacgamestore.com has added the Universal Binary version of Bookworm Deluxe to its catalog of downloadable games. In the game players link letters to form words in a vocabulary challenge that features enhanced graphics, music, and effects.Words! Words! Words! This classic vocabulary challenge really knows how to spell f-u-n. Link letters and build words to feed Lex, the insatiable bookworm. But watch out for burning red tiles... they'll send your library up in flames!Bookworm Deluxe costs $19.99 and requires Mac OS 10.3.9, 128 MB RAM, and a G4 or G5 processor.Buy Bookworm Deluxe
November 1, 2007 7:00 AMIsotope 244 has released the Atomic Cannon 3.0 Beta for download. A ballistics game in the tradition of Scorched Earth, Atomic Cannon lets players choose from a variety of weapon types to unleash on their tank based enemies. The update offers a variety of changes to the game including the introduction of cross platform network multiplayer action.Changes in Beta 3.0:- Online cross platform multiplayer with 16 players- Supply drops which contain credits, health, weapons, or traps- Game lobby with chat- 18 all new weapons- Walls and bunkers- Airburst weapons- Jetpacks- Mines- Sentry turrets- Hazmat armor- Balanced weapons- Fixed beam weaponsClick on the links below for more information.Isotope 244Atomic Cannon
November 1, 2007 7:00 AMAspyr Media's latest newsletter offers a snapshot of progress on the company's upcoming Mac game titles. Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock will come with a Gibson X-Plorer USB guitar and will feature a mouse and keyboard play option. Enemy Territory Quake Wars is nearing the last round of testing, with online play against Windows machines working well. Progress on Neverwinter Nights 2 continues despite difficulties with the game's graphics engine. Finally, Aspyr has just started work on The Sims 2 Bon Voyage.GUITAR HERO III: Legends of RockWe've spent the last month adding extra optimization for the graphics engine under OS X, and making sure the game will work under Apple's new OS update, Leopard. The PC & Mac version will come with a Gibson X-Plorer Model USB guitar, giving you the full Guitar Hero experience. We've also gone through the extra effort to make a very fun keyboard & mouse control option, in case you want to play the game on your Mac Book Pro when you don't have the guitar handy.ENEMY TERRITORY QUAKE WARSWe've been working on compatibility with OS X Leopard, and tuning performance on the broadest range of Intel Macs we can. The online part of the game is playing very well against PC's, and as soon as we polish up a few more optimizations and bug fixes the game should be ready to go off for the last round of testing and approvals.NEVERWINTER NIGHTS 2The completely reworked graphics engine in Neverwinter Nights 2 has proven a challenge to get running well on a broad range of Intel Macs and versions of OS X. We're focusing on compatibility with some of the older Intel iMac video cards and Apple's upcoming OS X release, Leopard, and this has unfortunately delayed development on NWN2. We're unsure if the game will be done before the end of the year, but Aspyr Studios' engineers are busy working with Apple, nVidia and ATI to get the game running the best it can. THE SIMS 2 BON VOYAGEWe've just started work on the latest Sims 2 expansion pack for Mac, Bon Voyage. We are working as quick as we can to get this game on shelves, stay tuned for more information.To read the rest of the newsletter click over to the link listed below.Aspyr October 07 NewsletterAspyr MediaEnemy Territory: Quake WarsThe Sims 2: Bon Voyage
November 1, 2007 7:00 AMAspyr Media has announced the finalized system requirements for Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock. The game allows players to unleash their inner rock stars, challenging their skills against a star-studded soundtrack of more than 70 songs. Here are the final requirements:MINIMUM SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS: * Operating System: 10.4.10 (Tiger), 10.5 (Leopard) * CPU Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo * CPU Speed: 2 GHz * Memory: 1 GB RAM * Hard Disk Space: 5.1 GB + 1 GB Swap File * Video Card (ATI): Radeon X1600 * Video Card (NVidia): Geforce 7300 * Video Memory (VRam): 128 MB * Media Required: DVD-ROM * Macintosh mouse and keyboard * Official Guitar Hero X-Plorer Guitar Controller MULTIPLAYER REQUIREMENTS: * Internet(TCP/IP) play supported * Internet play requires broadband connection RECOMMENDED SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS * CPU Speed: 2.33 GHz * Memory:2 GB RAM * Video Memory (VRam): 256 MBSupported Video cards: * NVIDIA GeForce 7300, 7600, 8600 * NVIDIA Quadro FX 4500 * ATI Radeon X1600, X1900, HD 2400, HD 2600Guitar Hero III does not support Intel integrated video chipsets. The game also contains technology intended to prevent copying that may conflict with some disk and virtual disk drives.Head over to Aspyr's site for more information about the upcoming game. Aspyr Media
November 1, 2007 7:00 AMDisney Online has announced that Pirates of the Caribbean Online, an immersive massively multiplayer online game and virtual world inspired by the popular film franchise, has launched for the PC and Mac platforms. Pirates of the Caribbean Online allows thousands of players to experience the adventures made famous in the films and explore beyond these boundaries in a quest to become the most legendary pirate on the high seas.“The launch of Pirates of the Caribbean Online opens up an entirely new world of pirate adventures to thousands of fans who can now play alongside their favorite characters in a fully-immersive environment that builds on and goes beyond the epic stories created in the films,” said Paul Yanover, Executive Vice President and Managing Director, Disney Online. "We believe the game’s focus on action and adventure, combined with many customization options will appeal to a broad audience of both gamers and fans of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise as they set out on their own course to live the legend.” In Pirates of the Caribbean Online, players create and customize their own pirate, captain their own ship, and assemble a crew of their fellow rogues in an effort to become the Caribbean’s most legendary Pirate. Along the way, players will interact with characters made popular by the films, like Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, and will also encounter a host of new characters and enemies unique to the game. To become the most notorious pirate, players must forge alliances, hunt for buried treasure, battle evil undead forces, and use cunning and strategy to outwit their foes.Pirates of the Caribbean Online is rated E10+ and requires OS X 10.4.6, a G4 or Intel processor, 512MB RAM, 700MB hard disk space, and a broadband internet connection.A portion of the game is available for free and players can get unlimited access for a monthly subscription fee. At launch, Disney Online is offering new players subscriptions to Unlimited Access for a first-month fee of $4.95 and a $9.95 fee for following months.Players can download the game directly and access additional information at the game’s web site. Pirates of the Caribbean Online
October 31, 2007 2:19 PMInside Mac Games has posted a review of Runesoft's Chicago 1930. Here's a clip from the review:Here’s the game in a nutshell. You can play through the game as a Mobster trying to take over the city, or as a cop trying to clean it up. The city map is broken into segments. Controlling a certain area gives you bonuses… for example, if the cops control a map segment with a police station, then they can recruit more cops to help the cause. Control an armory and you’ll have access to additional weapons.To check out the full review, please follow the link below.Inside Mac Games Review: Chicago 1930RunesoftChicago 1930
October 31, 2007 7:00 AMBlizzplanet has noted that Blizzard Entertainment's recently updated Job Openings page lists several positions for a Top Secret game project. Two of the openings are for work on a "Next Gen MMO" title. Blizzard has yet to reveal any specifics about the game or games in progress. Some jobs tagged as "Top Secret" refer to a Next-Gen MMO. Another job requires knowledge of Game Physics/Collision programming for a Next-Gen MMO and familiarity with Havok, Ageia, and O.D.E. physics packages. Same technology used by Starcraft II, and other recent non-Blizzard games.Blizzard also recently released a new Fansite Kit for the ever popular World of Warcraft's next expansion, Wrath of the Lich King. The kit includes everything web designers might need to get their own Lich King site up and running.We are pleased to announce that our new fansite kit is available for download. This kit should provide you with some basic assets to create a cool Wrath of the Lich King fansite. In it, you'll find... - Concept art for Wrath of the Lich King- Wrath of the Lich King avatar pictures- Sample HTML to help you with your page layout- Logos for Wrath of the Lich King, Blizzard, and Battle.net- Wallpapers- Wrath of the Lich King fact sheet and FAQ- A sample Wrath of the Lich King article- Graphics source files to help you with your own designsFollow the links below for more information.Blizzplanet: Blizzard's Top Secret GameBlizzard Job OpportunitiesWorld of Warcraft: Wrath of the Lich KingBlizzard Entertainment