In a recent post to the Battle.net discussion forums, Blizzard Entertainment technical support noted that the company will change minimum system requirements for online games to Mac OS X v10.3.9.
The company is doing so specifically for games that support online play, including popular legacy titles like StarCraft and its expansion pack, Brood War, Diablo II and the Lord of Destruction expansion, and Warcraft III and its expansion pack, The Frozen Throne.
“As a result, when the next major patch is released for each of these titles, Mac OS X 10.3.9 (or higher) will be required in order to apply the patch and play online,” said Blizzard support. Blizzard may also apply new installer technology for discs sold at retailers.
This effectively ends Blizzard’s continued development for these older titles for older versions of the operating systems, including Macs that may be running “classic” Mac OS or older versions of Mac OS X.
The company said that “the overwhelming majority” of its Mac players have migrated to Mac OS X v10.3 or later, so that’s where it will focus its upcoming development efforts and support.
Support isn’t completely being shut off for users who have older systems, the company noted. “After the transition, Mac players who remain on System 7, Mac OS 8 or 9, or Mac OS X 10.0-10.3.8 will be able to continue playing our Battle.net-based games on their Macs in single-player mode and on a LAN with other players running the same version of the game,” read the statement.
“Making this change now will help us maintain our commitment to quality on the Mac platform for years to come,” said Blizzard.
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