Every week MacCentral brings readers game news and info alongside our other headlines, but inevitably there are stories that we aren’t able to get to in the course of the day. As a result, we’ve created this weekly retrospective, which we call The Week in Games.
id Software CEO cautions against piracy
In light of news this week about a big government crackdown on warezers, id Software CEO Todd Hollenshead posted a cautionary note to his .plan file. In it, Hollenshead warned Return to Castle Wolfenstein users that if they’re running a “cracked” Wolf server, they can and very well may be contacted by the company to question what’s going on. Return to Castle Wolfenstein just shipped for the PC; a full Mac version is yet to be released, but is expected.
Harpoon 3.3.7 released
Jesse Spears has released a new version of Harpoon 3: version 3.3.7. The new version sports various bug fixes and improvements, including some improvements to the game’s math functions to help improve performance. Harpoon 3 is a naval warfare simulator for the Mac and Windows.
New Centurions released
Fantasoft has released New Centurions, a new role playing game with science fiction elements. For details, visit their Web site.
Redneck Rampage CD free with IFD purchase
Ideas from the Deep has announced a new deal that might appeal to some bargain hunters. To celebrate the holidays, the company is giving away a copy of Redneck Rampage — the Duke Nukem engine-based 3D shooter — with any copy of Astrorock 2000 (an Asteroids-style game), Jazz Jackrabbit 2/Bean Bag Bunny bundle (it’s a 2D side scrolling arcade game), or Tempest 2000 (a revisitation of the arcade classic). Quantities are limited, and IFD noted that PayPal is now accepted as a payment option.
Unreal Tournament for Mac OS X Preview 1.1 released
Westlake Interactive boss Mark Adams noted the release of a new preview version of Unreal Tournament for Mac OS X. It isn’t being released as a “full official preview” because, frankly, Adams has very little faith it’ll work (early reports suggest that many gamers *are* having problems with it). But, if you’re someone who has to have the latest version of everything, you can give it a try. Just make sure to have a version you can restore, just in case.
WingNuts free with Mac OS X purchase at J&R
Freeverse Software’s co-founder Colin Lynch Smith noted that New York City Mac retailer J&R Computer World is giving away copies of Freeverse’s recently released arcade game WingNuts with an order for Mac OS X (while supplies last). You don’t need to be in New York to get the deal — you can order online too.
Elsewhere on the Web
Writing for Apple, Brad Cook takes a look at Bold By Destineer’s forthcoming game Links Championship Edition. Inside Mac Games has interviewed Alex Seropian, head of Bungie Studios — among other things, he answers definitively if Halo will be released for the Mac. MacGamer.com takes a look at Jiggy, the new shareware game from Maverick Software (it’s what Westlake prez Mark Adams does in his spare time). MacGamez.com takes a look at Mac First Person Shooters.
Closer to home
This past week’s crop of MacCentral game news: MacPlay announced that Sacrifice has gone gold master and is now in production. Graphics chip and card maker ATI confirmed that the Radeon 8500 Mac Edition card will be unveiled at Macworld Expo in San Francisco next month. Spiderweb Software has released Geneforge, a new role playing game. Titan Computer said that its Mac conversion of JoWood Productions’ AlienNations real time strategy game is almost done; the company is now accepting preorders. MacSoft production coordinator Nate Birkholz indicated that Myth III: The Wolf Age won’t make it for Christmas. BusinessWeek columnist Charles Haddad talks about Macs and gaming, which provoked a response from Yours Truly. That’s not all. Check out our News Archive Web page for more game-related coverage from last week and beyond.
As always, if you have ideas for how we can improve our games-related coverage on MacCentral, or if you’d like to see your own Mac game products or services featured on our site, please drop us a line.