Latest Mac games
Andrew Hayward looks at this month’s best new releases
Been looking for a game to show off your powerful Mac? We’ve two of the year’s biggest releases so far: the cinematic adventure Rise of the Tomb Raider and the engrossing tactical mech game, Battletech. But there’s plenty more worth checking out. Minit and The Swords of Ditto are intriguing indie quests, plus RPG classic Neverwinter Nights is back in action with an updated Enhanced Edition. And that’s just half of the games included here.
1. Rise of the Tomb Raider
Price: £28.99 from fave.co/2hd0exz
After 2013’s Tomb Raider successfully rebooted the series in thrilling fashion, Rise of the Tomb Raider is here to continue Lara Croft’s evolution from rookie explorer to hardened adventurer. Rise is built in the same mold, packing in large, detailed environments to traverse, bad guys to pummel in tense encounters, and puzzling tombs to solve.
It’s heavily cinematic and engrossing, and the PC version received raves when it released a couple years back. This ‘20 Year Celebration’ edition packs in some extras, too, such as additional tombs and missions, throwback costumes, and the ability to explore Croft Manor in a very Gone Home-esque sort of way.
2. Battletech
Price: £34.99 from Steam (fave.co/2hddg3v)
Battletech is back. The classic tabletop gaming sensation, which spawned video game hits like Mechwarrior and Mechassault, has finally delivered an all-new turn-based tactics game under the direction of original creator Jordan Weisman. If you love giant robots and gripping battles, then you’ll probably get a big kick out of this. As the leader of a mercenary group, you’ll travel from planet to planet with your lance of mechs, dropping into conflicts to engage in tense matchups for cash. It’s Xcom-esque in both gameplay and the emotional pull of your squad over time, and it’s a fantastic combat experience, albeit one still saddled with performance issues and other needed tweaks.
3. Minit
Price: £6.99 from Steam (fave.co/2hivrjx)
Adventure games such as Rise of the Tomb tend to be sprawling epics that encourage extended play sessions. Minit isn’t that kind of game, and the clue is right there in the title. In Minit, every attempt you start ends 60 seconds later with your demise. You have one minute to speedily explore your surroundings, and then you’re toast. That might sound extraordinarily punishing and perhaps overwhelming, but clever world design and smart streamlining apparently make Minit compelling. The quests and fights fit within those short sessions, and you’ll gradually make progress as the timer pushes you to go faster and faster. And yes, it looks a lot like a classic Game Boy game.
4. The Swords of Ditto
Price: £14.99 from Steam (fave.co/2hxfhrq)
The Swords of Ditto shares some similarities with Minit, at least when it comes to making a largescale, classic Legend of Zelda-esque adventure more compact and approachable, but one glance shows that they attack this theme in very different ways. And Swords of Ditto doesn’t keep you to single-minute sessions. Devolver’s latest affair finds you as a fresh-faced hero of legend attempting to defeat the evil Mormo. When you eventually fall, you’ll pick up the quest as a descendant 100 years later, and things have changed in the meantime. Each new attempt feels distinct as a result, but your progress carries over across generations, which should soften the blow of defeat.