Mac Gaming News

• Steam has come to iOS with their new mobile app.
• Apple hiring former Xbox product marketing chief hints at Apple getting even more serious about gaming.
• Here’s how the iPad 3 might stack up against the tablet PC newcomers in terms of gaming.
• Ever wonder how mobile games went from select few playing snake on their phones to the cultural phenomenon it is now?
• Spin Doctor bring retro Macgaming to the iPhone. Hooray for old school Mac gaming!
• Worries about the iPad 3 not being able to reach it’s true potential crop up.

Apple News

• Apple is now the 3rd largest cellphone vendor!
• Apple CEO,  Tim Cook, donates $100 million to charity. Staying classy Apple!
• Final Cut Pro gets updated a bunch of new features.
• Leaked photos shed some light on what the iPad 3 is capable of.
• Apple computers are getting more and more prevalent in the business world.
• There’s a nasty bug in iMessage that might let others spy on your texts if you aren’t careful.
• Apparently there is a “strange” event on the horizon for the iPad 3. Wonder what it’ll be?
• Apple is predicted to sell up to 40 million in China in 2013.
• To combat line scalpers, Apple set up an iPhone 4S lottery. They really love their Apple products in China.
• Ever wanted to go to an Mac Museum? Well there’s one in Missouri set up by a crazy collector of Macs!

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Aspyr Mac FAQs: Your RAGE Campaign Edition Questions Answered

RAGE: Campaign Edition Now Available on Mac

Tips and Tricks for Tropico 3: Gold Edition for Mac

Apple Reports Record Breaking Earnings for Q1 2012

Quicksave: 2011′s Biggest Mac Games are 20% Off

Macworld | iWorld 2012 Highlights

For those of you a little behind on the news, Apple’s Q1 2012 revealed last week that they started off their fiscal year with a bang. Numbers in the report showed they achieved all-time record sales for their iPhone, iPad, and Mac. Not to mention that this quarter had the highest quarterly revenue and earnings EVER. Congratulations to you Apple! Let’s delve into some numbers and see just how awesome they did. (more…)

With the year quickly coming to an end, Apple has released the list their favorite games and apps on the Mac App Store for 2011. The Mac App Store has blown up since its launch earlier this year and has made it easier than ever to purchase games and apps for Apple devices.

Among the games featured in the Best of Mac App Store 2011, Aspyr Media, Inc. and Feral Interactive led the pack with an array of strategy, puzzler and first-person shooter titles including the Mac App Game of the Year 2011 going to Aspyr Media’s empire-conquring Sid Meier’s Civilization V: Campaign Edition!

Aspyr Media is also the proud publisher of other games that made the list:

• Call of Duty 4—Get your best killing streak while experiencing intense cinematic scenes of this well-loved game.
• Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic—Play as your favorite Star Wars character as you lead a gang of rebel freedom fighters to save the galaxy from the dark side.
•  The Secret of Monkey Island—Re-mastered with new music and hand-drawn animations, this classic puzzle game takes you through the Caribbean to find the secrets of Monkey Island.

Not to go under the radar, Feral Interactive ranked an impressive number of titles on the Best of Mac App Store 2011 list, including the mutant-battling Bioshock, the role-playing shooter Borderlands, the off-road racing Colin McRae: Dirt 2 and the wizardly LEGO Harry Potter.

As the days barrel on into the New Year, Mac App Store is an easy way to finish your holiday shopping. With a wide selection of games, this year’s Best Mac App list is sure to have something for everyone. Head on over to the Mac App Store and check out the favorites today!

So, lemme introduce you to a friend of mine…

Make the journey from petty thief to made man without getting pinched by the feds in Mafia II: Director’s Cut for Mac, available at the GameAgent Store! Immerse yourself into the criminal underbelly of Empire Bay and prove that you will do what ever it takes to climb to the top, no matter the price.

Feral Interactive delivers Mafia II Director’s Cut on Mac, featuring the original game plus additional story packs to keep all up and coming mobsters entertained for hours on end.

The extra content packs include:

• Betrayal of Jimmy–Learn how he is double-crossed while exploring the city, driving, shooting and stealing.
• Jimmy’s Vendetta–Play as Jimmy, a former hit-man, and unleash revenge with new missions and achievements.
• Joe’s Adventures–Dive into new adventures with this DLC, while uncovering new items, story lines, and locations.

Loaded with intensely cinematic cutscenes and a griping mobster narrative, Mafia II will have you saying, “forgeddaboutit,” at this year’s holiday dinner. It makes a much better stocking stuffer than a severed horse’s head–trust us

All together, the game constitutes an offer you can’t refuse.  Download your copy today!

With all the big excitement yesterday about the announcement of the newest iPhone model (hello, iPhone 4S!), we got a little curious about just how many iPhones and other iOS devices Apple has sold over the years.  So we took a look at Apple’s quarterly financial statements–and we were blown away.

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Here’s a couple of fun infographics passed down to me from our community manager Russ about the age-old battle between Mac Users and PC Users. They correlate personality traits with your preferred choice of computing device. Where do you fit in? (more…)

Apple and Apple Related Gaming News

• Apple is in yet another lawsuit. This time over patents with Samsung, who is seeking a US import ban on Apple products.
• Apple adds TRIM support and fixes to improve graphic performance in OS X Snow Leopard.
• Bungie’s Marathon is headed for the iPad. FREE OF CHARGE!
• iPad sales are expected to hit 40 million this calendar year.
• Speculation that the iPhone 3GS price may drop to zero!
• Ever wanted to see the inside of the Thunderbolt Cable? iFixit tore one apart for your viewing pleasure.
• Professional Video Editors give their thoughts on the new Final Cut Pro X.
• Rumors of the iPhone 5’s features are cropping up.
• Mac OS X Lion is expected out on July 6th!
• Cars 2 video game races onto the Mac.

Gaming Stories in General

• Rejoice Gamers! Video games are now under the protection of the First Amendment!
• Bungie created a new social and mobile gaming venture called Bungie Aerospace.
• Warcraft is now free-to-play! Well, it’s free until level 20.
• Age of Conan is following in the steps of WoW and will soon to be free-to-play.
• Playstation Plus is one year old this week!
• Want to buy a Wii peripheral that costs more than the Wii itself?
• The British really love their Call of Duty Black Ops.
• Farmville creator, Zynga , is going public quite soon.
• How young is too young for kids to start video gaming.
• Angry Birds has found a new home in China.
• The next Xbox may be just around the corner.

Our Posts

The Legacy of Duke Nukem 3D

The GameAgent Store Just Got 400% More Awesome

Duke Nukem Forever: The Long Road to the Mac

Duke Nukem Forever Coming to the Mac

Mac OS X 10.7 Lion Preview, an Apple video game console, and the PSN outage.

Apple Computing and Gaming

• A game for the iPhone that apparently involves driving immigrants from Mexico into the United States has been rejected by Apple.
• Apple places dead last in Greenpeace report.
• Apple releases third build of Mac OS X 10.7 Lion Preview 2 to developers.
• Free games with in-App purchases make up 40% of App store game downloads.
• Is this the year Apple launches a video game console?
• Netflix and Apple lead disruption of entertainment industry.
• Mac and PC users think differently.
• Apple tops Microsoft’s quarterly sales and profits.

More Gaming Stories

• Sony: Hackers of PSN, Qriosity gained access to data of 77M users.
• Microsoft saw revenue from its core operating system software slip in the first three months of the year as consumers begin to shift to buying tablet computers.
• Zynga buys British-based games company.
• GameStop to bring streaming video games to Android.
• Redbox announced that it plans to begin renting video games for $2 a day this summer.
• Beyonce sued by videogames company.

Our Posts

Competitive Gaming: An Amateur’s View
A Marine’s Take on Historical First Person Shooters
How Call Of Duty 4 Exceeded My Expectations
Civilization IV is 40% Off at GameAgent.com!

The iPad 2 and kids, Portal and feminism, and the PSN outage.

Apple Computing and Gaming

Apple has started actively rejecting updates to apps that offer any kind of virtual currency in exchange for downloading another app.
The ratings board plans to allow machines to determine video games’ ESRB.
Apple has asked that a judge dismiss their antitrust case.
Toys ‘R Us is selling iPad 2s.
There are connections between the WoW Corrupted Blood outbreak and the real world of disease spread and prevention.
iPad 2 in kindergarten classrooms: A good idea?
How important gaming is to many buyers of mobile Apple devices.
What about iPhones and Androids?

More Gaming Stories

PlayStation Network outage continues.
In “The Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim,” the experience system has been modified significantly.
Video games can aid in stroke recovery.
Valve: Digital games charts are a “step backwards” for the industry.
Free-to-play is beginning to enter something of a golden age.
Chrono Trigger rated by the ESRB for PS3, PSP.
“Stream” is reportedly one of the possible names for Nintendo’s new system.
Sony Computer Entertainment has reportedly stopped manufacturing of its PSPgo portable video game console.
Portal’s GLaDOS as a feminist icon?

Our Posts

Latest Civilization V Mac Patch Released
An Interview with Omaha Sternberg of iGameRadio
Portal 2: Immediate Thoughts
How to Get Civilization IV 85% Off
Civilization V Mac Polynesia DLC Now Available
RTS Custom Map Experiences

Omaha is the executive producer of iGameRadio, “the original podcast about games on the Mac, iPhone/iPod Touch, and iPad.” She was gracious enough to allow me to prod her about her career within the gaming industry, social issues, and the future of Mac gaming.

Can you describe your journey from studying oceanography to breaking into gaming?
Omaha decided in fourth grade that she wanted to do something with the ocean. Everything she did through junior high and high school was about math and science to achieve that dream. Unfortunately, “college wasn’t as good as I expected,” and while in lab one day, “a friend came up and asked me if I wanted to write for a game company” because of her experience writing fantasy fiction. Omaha proceeded to work part-time and found that her job at the gaming company “got big and important” and that she “had an acumen for business and game design.” The game company was called “Pirate Software,” but they never released a game. From this experience, Omaha became knowledgeable and connected within the game industry, and found herself “less interested in oceanography.” At the turn of century and as the development studio was shutting down, “another friend came up to me for an internet radio show” and offered Omaha the chance to work on “the producer side of things.” Omaha responded, “Sure! I’ll do that!” and “ended up being a co-host and producer through 2003 and 2004.” She then “started up iGame radio” and “really enjoyed podcasting and internet radio,” expanding into new areas of technology and communicating with people.

How would you describe iGameRadio?
iGameRadio is the original podcast on Mac, iPad, and iPhone gaming. There is a weekly podcast that includes Mac news, new games, the app store, and what game development studio is or isn’t coming to the Mac. One to two times a week, Omaha reviews a Mac game. Between podcasts, Omaha conducts research and keeps her website updated. There is a section on the website entitled “Gamers Help Out.” This particular section was inspired by how the game industry steps up to the plate when funds for disaster relief are needed. She lists the game companies who have stepped up to the plate and how we can all help raise funds. Currently, Omaha is concentrating on relief efforts in Japan.

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