Every week MacCentral brings readers the latest news from the Mac gaming world. Sometimes there are stories that don’t make the regular news pages, though, and that’s why we have this weekly retrospective called The Week in Games.
Brickles3000 v2.0.5 released
Ken Winograd has released Brickles3000 v2.0.5, a new update to the classic brickbashing ball and paddle game for the Mac. The new version is more processor-efficient, according to the developer.
Bubble Trouble X 1.0.2 fixes Panther problems
Ambrosia Software updated its classic arcade game hit Bubble Trouble X to version 1.0.2. The new version fixes a startup crash under Panther, supports a single license code for all users on a computer, and makes some other changes.
Centipede OS X version updated
A while back MacSoft, still under the aegis of old owner Infogrames (even before its Atari renaming), released Centipede — a Mac version of the 3D revival of the classic arcade game. Brad Oliver — now with Aspyr Media — was the Westlake programmer who worked on that conversion. It was very early in Mac OS X’s public life, and the game broke as Apple refined and improved the operating system. On his own time, he’s managed to update the game to work with recent releases of Mac OS X, but he cautions that this is a no-support deal. Still, if you want to revive this game on your Mac, here’s your chance.
Eric’s Ultimate Solitaire X alpha available
Venerable Mac game maker Delta Tao Software is now offering a playable alpha version of Eric’s Ultimate Solitaire, an updated version of the classic solitaire card game that found life as a demo version on Mac models way back in the day. The new version has bene updated for Mac OS X. Delta Tao acknowledges that some users have had trouble grabbing the release, but if you want, give it a shot. And what ever you do, don’t call their customer service number and make Joe’s mom cry, or you will unleash bad karma upon yourself.
Freeverse ‘Hearts’ sale thru Wednesday
Freeverse Software is celebrating Valentine’s Day with a sale on its 3D Hearts Deluxe game now through Wednesday, February 18. The game has been discounted to $9.95.
Republic: The Revolution hits beta
Feral Interactive noted that its Mac development of Republic: The Revolution recently reached its Beta development milestone. The game is on track for a second-quarter release. Republic puts you in the role of a rebel leader in a mythical breakaway Soviet republic called Novistrana. Your goal is to overthrow the President.
Rock Star tests your iTunes skills
If you have a newer iPod, you’re probably familiar with the built-in music quiz game that tests your knowledge of your own music library by playing snippets and making you select from multiple choices for points. Now Freshly Squeezed Software has adopted the concept for their new Mac OS X game Rock Star. It’s designed as a party game with multiplayer support (if you pay the $14 registration fee).
Tesl8 debuts from Alien Sands
It’s the first shareware product from “professional Windows developers who, quite frankly, like the Mac better.” It’s called Tesl8, and it’s an interesting new puzzle game from Alien Sands. The 24-level game has you restoring puzzles to their starting forms by flipping lines of adjacent tiles. It’s a bit like Rubik’s Cube, but more varied. The full game costs $11.95 but you can download it as a trial to check it out.
Elsewhere on the Web
MacGamer this week posted a review of Wakeboarding Unleashed from Aspyr Media. Inside Mac Games has posted a shootout of the Radeon 9600 Pro vs. GeForce FX 5200 Ultra. Apple’s Games site has posted a feature on Yohoho! Puzzle Pirates.
Closer to home
MacSoft released Halo 1.04 — later updated to 1.04.1 — to bring it into sync with the PC version (the 1.04.1 update purportedly fixes a W-backwards-walking problem reported with the earlier version). KidzMouse is planning on releasing new kid-friendly keyboards, mice and headphones soon. Feral Interactive posted details (and a new mini-site) for its forthcoming game XIII. MacSoft released a playable demo version of Unreal Tournament 2004, only a few hours after the PC version dropped.
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