And now, I buy Civilization IV... for the Mac
07/07/07 
17:25 
Mark Hogben 
6 comments
apple gaming games civ civilization iv 4 mac macintosh aspyr
Readers Comments 07/07/07 17:25 Mark Hogben
6 comments apple gaming games civ civilization iv 4 mac macintosh aspyr
Cheaper on the PC, possibly even less buggy.
So why, especially given my past posting on the "death" of OS X, would I buy this game on the Mac?
I have a shiny, relatively new, PC that plays all games I could ever dream of (I just acquired Outrun 2006 on it, because they don't provide an Xbox 360 version, damn them!!! I even bought a *cabled* 360 controller - i.e. PC compatible - just to play things like this... oh, and Geometry Wars ;)
The truth is, that if companies actually went to the trouble of releasing a Mac version of games at the same time as the Windows counterparts, I would never - yep, never - have bought a PC at all. Not even for work.
As I was deciding which version of Civ IV to get (after months of procrastination, I might add), I was as surprised as anyone that I decided to pay *more* - for the Mac version.
This implies that there should surely be huge market for anything better than the damn Windows platform, and the lumbering monster that is Vista. Oh yes, Vista... I know a bit about this. Not only do I have it here at home, but I am in actual fact - and I was told this by my "masters" - the bone fidé EXPERT on Vista at the rather big games company I work for.
For non-console gaming, we have no choice but to embrace the Windows platform. And in this, I would lay the blame squarely at the feet of Apple.
Ah! But the games industry is not exactly pro-Apple, is it? "Secondary Concern" wouldn't really begin to cover it...
As I witnessed with my own eyes since becoming a game industry slave, prejudice can be erased. When I first joined, the Wii was an absolute joke (Hmm, I wonder if I should be saying that? Well... it was).
A huge wave of support from the consumer changed all that very, very quickly - though I should add the tools the Big Nin provide are... less welcome. Codewarrior for God's sake... even the Mac doesn't use that these days!!
The iD and EA announcements at the Mac dev convention / freak show (delete as applicable) are welcome and all... but are really just a product of market forces (and may well be reversed, in my opinion).
Apple just don't get games. Particularly - heinous crime though it is for me to say - Saint Jobs.
But I am still buying Civ IV on the Mac. Anything that lets me leave the damn noisy, cumbersome PC off more often (XP and Vista on it, both depressing battle grounds), any such thing is a good thing in my view.
Don't underestimate the Playstation. I remember that. Never bought one myself.
But I would make the quote more general: don't underestimate Games. (Mr Jobs et al).
Open your eyes - and give us what we bloody well want!
So why, especially given my past posting on the "death" of OS X, would I buy this game on the Mac?
I have a shiny, relatively new, PC that plays all games I could ever dream of (I just acquired Outrun 2006 on it, because they don't provide an Xbox 360 version, damn them!!! I even bought a *cabled* 360 controller - i.e. PC compatible - just to play things like this... oh, and Geometry Wars ;)
The truth is, that if companies actually went to the trouble of releasing a Mac version of games at the same time as the Windows counterparts, I would never - yep, never - have bought a PC at all. Not even for work.
As I was deciding which version of Civ IV to get (after months of procrastination, I might add), I was as surprised as anyone that I decided to pay *more* - for the Mac version.
This implies that there should surely be huge market for anything better than the damn Windows platform, and the lumbering monster that is Vista. Oh yes, Vista... I know a bit about this. Not only do I have it here at home, but I am in actual fact - and I was told this by my "masters" - the bone fidé EXPERT on Vista at the rather big games company I work for.
For non-console gaming, we have no choice but to embrace the Windows platform. And in this, I would lay the blame squarely at the feet of Apple.
Ah! But the games industry is not exactly pro-Apple, is it? "Secondary Concern" wouldn't really begin to cover it...
As I witnessed with my own eyes since becoming a game industry slave, prejudice can be erased. When I first joined, the Wii was an absolute joke (Hmm, I wonder if I should be saying that? Well... it was).
A huge wave of support from the consumer changed all that very, very quickly - though I should add the tools the Big Nin provide are... less welcome. Codewarrior for God's sake... even the Mac doesn't use that these days!!
The iD and EA announcements at the Mac dev convention / freak show (delete as applicable) are welcome and all... but are really just a product of market forces (and may well be reversed, in my opinion).
Apple just don't get games. Particularly - heinous crime though it is for me to say - Saint Jobs.
But I am still buying Civ IV on the Mac. Anything that lets me leave the damn noisy, cumbersome PC off more often (XP and Vista on it, both depressing battle grounds), any such thing is a good thing in my view.
Don't underestimate the Playstation. I remember that. Never bought one myself.
But I would make the quote more general: don't underestimate Games. (Mr Jobs et al).
Open your eyes - and give us what we bloody well want!
07/07/07 23:04 hpoom
See I think the future of games is on consoles. Although I used to love my PC gaming I no longer game on a PC or even a Mac. I only game on consoles, Gamecube, DS, Wii and Dreamcast (which used to be yours Mark). I think the future of gaming is sitting on your sofa in with a nice TV and surround sound. But then I'm probably wrong!
08/07/07 15:12 Mark
Microsoft in fact agree with you in a way, with their "30 foot Experience" programme (Games For Windows certification requires that games install and run in Media Center, basically, with the living room aspects that entails).
However, I think you are confusing your *own* desires for gaming with the trends in general. In spite of the press often claiming the death of PC gaming, etc. there is no actual evidence of that at all.
And to be honest, my views on gaming are the exact opposite of yours - I prefer PC gaming to consoles, probably always have. Consoles are best for quick bashes, pick-up-put-down games - but I always prefer PCs for RTS or RPG games - and also, in my case, 1st person shooters.
However, I think you are confusing your *own* desires for gaming with the trends in general. In spite of the press often claiming the death of PC gaming, etc. there is no actual evidence of that at all.
And to be honest, my views on gaming are the exact opposite of yours - I prefer PC gaming to consoles, probably always have. Consoles are best for quick bashes, pick-up-put-down games - but I always prefer PCs for RTS or RPG games - and also, in my case, 1st person shooters.
12/07/07 21:39 Hurrah
So my copy has arrived. And now to see if it runs okay on the crappy graphics card I currently have in the Mac (otherwise the old Geforce 6800 Ultra is going back in... oh, the noise... no wait, it was SILENT compared to the damn PC!!!)
13/07/07 21:32 Mark H
Okay, final post on this subject / post since it is getting old (sorry!) - but I Microsoft have this day released a patch for the 360... that lets me run Outrun 2/2006 !!! In the same week I bought the PC version, and after all those months and months I had waited for the patch before doing so...
Hmm... I guess I will need to buy the Xbox version again, then :-O
Hmm... I guess I will need to buy the Xbox version again, then :-O
