The Mac as a viable gaming platform—who would've thought?

Apple's OS X platform was once viewed as a gaming wasteland, but the company's own Mac App Store and Valve's Steam platform have transformed the landscape. Windows, due to its monster install base, still possesses a far greater number and variety of games, but the best Mac games in the Apple's history are available right now.

Mac gaming—unlike console gaming where everything "just works"—requires you to be fully aware of your computer's capabilities. Before you purchase a game, make sure that your desktop or laptop's operating system, RAM, CPU, GPU, and available hard drive space matches (or surpasses) the title's minimum spec requirement. The best gaming experience, naturally, comes when your system's specs exceed the recommended spec requirements. You can find your Mac's system information by visiting the System Profiler or clicking Apple Menu > About this Mac > More information.

Unfortunately, Mac gaming doesn't come cheap. The cost has nothing to do with the games themselves, but with Apple's expensive hardware. The Mac Mini, Apple's budget desktop, comes in two models that retail for $599 and $799, but they house Intel HD Graphics 4000 graphic processing units—chipsets not designed for high-end gaming. If you want to play Batman: Arkham City of Deus Ex: Human Revolution, consider a Mac with an Nvidia GPUs like the15-inch MacBook Pro laptop (which starts at a rather pricey $1,799). To be fair, many people aren't purchasing Macs for gaming purposes—it's more of a bonus.

If you're ready to start gaming on your Mac (or you're an experienced Mac gamer looking for a new fix), check out our 10 favorite games on the platform. Come back often as we'll update this story with excellent titles as we discover them. Think we got the list wrong? Let us know what you consider to be the best Mac games in the comment section below.


1. Bastion $14.99

The critically acclaimed Bastion charmed reviewers and gamers alike with its RPG action, reactive narrator, and rich score when it hit digital marketplaces in 2011. This role-playing game, in which you learn the secret behind the world-wrecking Calamity, features more than 40 gorgeous hand-painted environments, numerous upgradeable weapons, and lots of enemies to tackle. A New Game Plus mode unlocks after you complete the adventure, giving you additional reason to play through Bastion again.

2. Braid $9.99

"Time, time, time, see what's become of me" open Simon and Garfunkel's "Hazy Shade of Winter" and perfectly sums up Jonathan Blow's indie darling. Braid's protagonist, Tim, attempts to rescue a princess from an evil monster using innovative platforming and puzzle solving courtesy of the game's hook: time manipulation. Braid, like any good time travel story, tinkers with expectations which make for an immensely satisfying gaming experience.

3. Deus Ex Human Revolution: Ultimate Edition $39.99

Human Revolution is the excellent prequel to Deus Ex, the conspiracy-laden PC gaming classic. This game revolves around ex-SWAT member Adam Jensen, a man outfitted with upgradeable cybernetics that transform him into a one-man army as he battles corporate villains and their minions. This Ultimate Edition includes the Missing Link DLC, and the Explosive Mission and Tactical Enhancement expansions. The game also contains a 44-minute "making-of" documentary, a 40-page book of design and concept art, motion comic, soundtrack, and multiple trailers.

4. Guild Wars 2 $59.99

ArenaNet's massively multiplayer online role-playing game is set in the world of Tyria, a land overrun by hulking dragons. Your mission? Reunite the troubled Destiny's Edge guild and combat the fire-breathing threat. Players select a race, profession, and skill set which they use to battle enemies in "PVE" and "PVP" combat. Guild Wars 2 also features "World vs. World" persistent battles that see players entering cross-server wars. Despite being a MMO, Guild Wars 2 has no monthly fee, meaning that your pockets will survive the online warfare.

5. Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas $14.99

Rockstar Games' final entry into its PlayStation 2 crime trilogy is easily the best of the bunch. San Andreas may lack Grand Theft Auto III's groundbreaking place in gaming history and Grand Theft Auto Vice City's '80s-era goofiness, but this take on '90s American gang culture offers the deepest gameplay. Protagonist Carl "CJ" Johnson—easily the most sympathetic lead in a GTA game—can learn multiple fighting styles, exercise to buff up his body, engage in turf wars with other gangs, mod cars, rob homes, and more. Third-person shooter fans, this is your game.

6. League of Legends Free to Play

Riot Games’s mega-popular MOBA (multiplayer online battle arena) games features two teams of "Champions" engaged in either 3 vs. 3 or 5 vs. 5 combat. Each player begins at opposing sides of a map with the mission to destroy the opposing side’s Nexus while plowing through Turrets, monsters, and minions. Earned experience points and gold lets you improve your fighters' abilities, and outfit warriors with better combat tools. LoL is a very team-oriented game, so find a crew of like-minded folk and have a blast.

7. Limbo $9.99

Limbo puts you in the role of a nameless boy with a simple mission: find his missing sister. PlayDead Studios’ puzzle-platformer is a work of black-and-white art that seeks to destroy you in a most beautiful and creative way. As you guide the lad through nightmarish forests, creepy industrial zones, and other desolate areas, you learn a bit about the journey—a journey which carries significant meaning when you reach the game's conclusion.

8. StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty $59.99

Blizzard Entertainment has a reputation for taking a long, long time to release titles, but military strategy fans were more than a little pleased that the developer displayed a slow hand with StarCraft II: Wings of Liberty. The sequel to the award winning StarCraft sees three factions—the Protoss, Terrans, and Zerg—battling it out with weapons both old and new. The $39.99 Heart of the Swarm expansion features close to two dozen maps, improved visuals, and new units.

9. Team Fortress 2 Free to Play

Valve's team-based first-person shooter is almost five years old, but the game's personality and comedic take on the FPS keeps it fresh. TF2 lets players play as one of nine offensive, defensive, and support classes—Scout, Soldier, Pyro, Demoman, Heavy, Engineer, Medic, Sniper, Spy—in a war between two organizations, RED (Reliable Excavation & Demolition) an BLU (Builders League United). The game's recently gone free-to-play, so you can jump into the shenanigans without opening your wallet.

10. The Witcher 2: Assassin of Kings Enhanced Edition $19.99

The updated second installment in The Witcher saga brings a load of goodies to the mature, non-linear RPG. Besides solid storytelling, Assassin of Kings delivers hard-hitting combat and outstanding graphics that stand as some of the best in recent years. The Witcher 2: Assassins of Kings Enhanced Edition includes an additional three hours of new content not found in vanilla The Witcher 2.

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