To: The Game Industry
From: Gen Katz, Editor
Topic: Mac Games
Date: March 2000

I thought that with all the hoopla, pretty colors and promises made by Apple last year that there surely would be an increase in the number of games for the Mac. In spite of the promises there wasn’t much. The legions of games didn’t appear. Linux almost has as many. What surprises me even more - is the scarcity of Mac games for kids above the age of five. For example, Lego Friends, a popular PC title among girls, will operate on Linux but not the Mac. What’s going on? Think of all the people who accepted the premise that everything except the Mac was too complicated for mere mortals and bought Macs. What about all the free Macs that are in schools and are the first computer that kids have experience with? There are a lot of Macs out there with no games. I know - I have a hard time finding girls with PC’s to review games.

Of all the many companies whose games we review - only five of them, Humongous, Lucas Learning, Creative Wonders, Wrebbit Interactive and Kutoka (the last two are Canadian companies) make games for both the PC and Mac. Broderbund, Purple Moon, and the Learning Company used to, but with their acquisition by Mattel, who no longer serves the Mac market - who knows? If Barbie isn’t on the Mac what hope is there for us? Will we be left with only Chessmaster Deluxe?