SimCity Finally Launches on the Mac With Native Version and Cross-Platform Servers

After being delayed for six months, EA has finally released the Mac version of the newSimCity. The game was originally set to come out in February of this year, but EA decided to delay it to "ensure a great experience" for players.

EA has repeatedly emphasized that the Mac version of SimCity is not a "port" of the PC game, but a fully native version designed specifically for the Mac using OpenGL. However, the game will include full cross-platform support to facilitate 'region play' where the cities of multiple players are connected to share utilities and citizenry, with PC and Mac Mayors able to play in the same regions...

Read the full story here... Source: Mac Rumours

SimCity update 2.0 hits April 22, offers bug fixes, enhancements -- still no offline mode

Although SimCity has become relatively stable following its problematic launch, there are naturally still ongoing bugs that the folks at EA Maxis have been working to fix. Thankfully, that version 2.0 update that was teased just over a week ago now has an arrival date of April 22 at 4PM ET. Included in the update are 26 bug fixes, along with data map color filters, a color-correct HUD for the colorblind setting and the action of mayors traveling from their mansions to their jobs. Sadly, an offline mode is still no more than wishful thinking, but at least that OS X version should still be on track for a June 11th release. You'll find all the details about your virtual city's soon-to-arrive enhancements at the source link -- expect some server downtime, by the way, when the update itself hits.

[Source: Engadget]

SimCity Mac out on 11 June, as 'Cheetah Speed' returns

Owners of Apple's aluminium computers won't be denied their urban-planning kicks, as EA has confirmed its recent SimCity game is headed to Mac on 11 June.

SimCity for Mac will only be available to download, via EA's Origin service. Although you don't get the disc for your collection, you'll still be paying £45 for the digital download -- the same price as the PC version, although if you've already bought it for PC you're entitled to download it again for Mac for nothing. 

June is a long time to wait, but with any luck EA will have ironed out the technical kinks thatruined SimCity when it launched in March. EA told me that, "The team has been working round the clock to smooth out the launch issues," so fingers crossed.

SimCity's insistence on a constant Internet connection was to blame, as gamers piled in to the new title, putting strain on EA's unprepared servers. Days later, an anonymous developerreportedly claimed that the always-on system wasn't even necessary to keep a single-player mode up and running.

The disastrous debut prompted us to ask whether gamers could claim a refund, while EA's response was to offer disgruntled customers a free game.

One feature EA powered down in order to keep SimCity afloat was 'Cheetah Mode', which lets you speed up time to ignore the boring bits of building a metropolis.

EA has confirmed via Facebook that Cheetah Mode is now back in play -- surely a relief to would-be mayors bored of watching virtual skyscrapers creep slowly toward the sky.

[Source: CNET]

EA SimCity 'sorry' games include Battlefield 3, Mass Effect 3

Free games! Getcher free games! If you're still smarting from the disastrous launch of SimCity, the game's developer EA is offering a free game to say sorry, including Battlefield 3, Mass Effect 3 and Dead Space 3.

And you can claim your free game even if you weren't affected by the server issues ofSimCity's launch. Just buy it this week and you can get a choice of these games for nowt:

• Battlefield 3
• Bejeweled 3
• Dead Space 3
• Mass Effect 3
• Medal of Honor: Warfighter
• Need For Speed: Most Wanted
• Plants vs Zombies
• SimCity 4 Deluxe Edition

If you're not a fan of blowing foreign people up or shooting aliens' heads off in extreme close-up, you may well be feeling hard-done-by: Bejeweled or Plants vs Zombies, anyone?

Several games on the list are rated 18, so if you're under 18 you get both Bejeweled andSimCity 4. Woo!

Your free game is available on Thursday 21 March if you're in the UK and you have until next Friday, 30 March, to claim it. To grab your gratis game, load up Origin and look for the free games in the Featured Today section.

You only have to have activated SimCity by next Monday, so you can claim a free game even if you haven't already bought it -- it's basically a week-long buy one-get-one-free offer.

Meanwhile, EA boss John Riccitiello has resigned, not specifically over the SimCity debacle, but rather the company's poor financial results. Other controversies in his six-year tenure as CEO include the failure of MMORPG Star Wars: The Old Republic, the botched ending of Mass Effect 3, and the closure of its UK studio.

The disastrous launch hasn't stopped SimCity doing boffo business, though, shifting 1.1 million copies in two weeks -- not bad for a PC game with no head-shooting.

[Source: CNET]