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Valve's Steam coming to Mac OS X?
As we covered yesterday, there's a new, massively-overhauled Steam client currently in beta testing. As always with enthusiastic gamers, it didn't take long for someone to hack at the files of the new software and discover signs of a potential Mac OS X client. If the screenshot above isn't big enough to make out the Mac OS X widgets, check out some larger images: screenshot 1, screenshot 2. Pretty damning evidence of an in-the-works Mac client, in my opinion!
Will the beta that they're currently running eventually extend to Mac users? More importantly, will Steam start stocking more than just a handful of games that will run on Mac OS X?
Comments
22
Subscribe to commentsMarshall WilliamsFeb 26th 2010 1:10PM
Steam finally going to OSX? Not all that surprised. Let's be clear about something though. Strictly software here (We are not going to get started on the hardware aspect), Windows will still be the definitive gaming platform.
You can port Steam to OSX, Linux, BSD, Android, pretty much anything you want. Why? All Steam is is a stripped web-browser with a few controls specifically for Steam.
Steam =/= games. For the games in the Steam marketplace to work on OSX they are going to have to get developers to port their games over to OSX. That is going to require a lot of work, especially if they are written in DirectX which there is not a chance in hell Microsoft is giving over their killer API to their rivals developers. OpenGL games may be ported but only if the developer wants to. Thats a lot of man-power and money required.
If this is real (Brings back this http://tinyurl.com/5hho9v) then I don't expect it to be a big game collection. Maybe a few games that are already ported (World of Goo, pretty much any game by id Software, etc)
This is not going to be a game changer
NickFeb 26th 2010 1:19PM
With less distributing costs (afaik Steam is free for distributing), developers have more funds to build and maintain titles for alternative platforms.
That alone can increase Mac/*BSD/Linux game sales, and increased sales accelerates the development of OpenGL, OpenCL, drivers, etc.
Breaking the circular dependency process solved the chicken-egg problem.
Tripwire Interactive, one of the first (if not the first) developing companies to release their game on Steam has promised a Mac and Linux client if Steam was to be released for those platforms.
And I'm confident most other indie developers will do the same.
Sebastian AnthonyFeb 26th 2010 1:22PM
Ya, as Nick says, I'm sure Steam for OS X would REALLY accelerate the (almost completely non-existent) gaming market on Mac.
The whole rigmarole of publishing makes it very prohibitive to move into such a small market -- why risk everything for an OS with 3% of the market, when you could develop for the other 95%...?
Steam means much less risk.
kojo87Feb 26th 2010 1:52PM
the problem is far too many people think that Steam on OSX means they will be able to play Battlefield Bad Company 2 on their Macbook. sorry but Steam is just a distribution platform.
EvenioFeb 26th 2010 3:22PM
On the TUAW counterpart to this article, one commenter mentioned that what really matters is the Mac's share of the consumer market, not just all computers everywhere. Apparently, its share of that game-friendly chunk of the market is substantially higher. (http://www.tuaw.com/2010/02/26/rumor-steam-coming-to-the-mac/#comments 3rd comment by Aaron)
In any case, I think the real question is whether the smaller expense of Steam distribution is enough to offset the colossal amount of work required to do a proper port to OS X (HAHAHA, as if everyone wouldn't just slap a craptastic, semi-broken Cider wrapper around their game and call it a day). I'll admit I'm no developer, but I don't see how it would be worth all the effort even then. As I said in the other article about the Steam update, all we'd have is a place to keep together a list of the few crappy little "casual" games we already have, and we can do that already (although stacks don't keep track of how much time we've spent in each game, I'll give Steam that).
Sebastian AnthonyFeb 26th 2010 7:09PM
Man, I live and BREATHE for bad PC ports of Xbox games. It's about time Mac got a taste of that medicine...
Marshall WilliamsFeb 26th 2010 1:52PM
@Nick
But do you really think major devs will take up on this? Sure, your indie companies will be in a gold rush for this, but what about some of the bigger ones? Something tells me the big publishers are not going to go for this. Sure, EA will sell The Sims, Quake, Rage, Doom, etc but those have already all be ported (Well, Rage is...you know).
I dont expect to see a slew of new games ported. Just old ones uniting in one place.
DA623Feb 26th 2010 1:56PM
Mac OS is open to many games, except well, its far the platforms strong suit (well, to give it credit, its doing better than Linux in gaming which when it comes to major developers, gets a game maybe once in a blue moon. I personally think Steam should also aim to expand to Linux as well). However, I can easily see them porting Steam using Cider (aka a customised-for-the-program version of WINE) instead of making a native port to OS X sadly.
Though, I can easily see why Valve would want to do this. All of the Mac computers being sold today could be a big market for more common and casual gamers because their all in some way gaming capable (now the minimum GPU is the 9400M, which isn't half bad for a lower end GPU, far better than the GMA GPUs). I see Valve also doing this to try to expand to people just wanting to play a game on their MacBook on the go or something similar. (Altough I already do this on my MacBook Pro under Windows 7 in BootCamp).
However, obviously their not going to even stand a chance to someone's Duel-SLI GTX 295 with 3.8GHz Core i7 overclock setup (My desktop PC is similar, except its a single 280) but I don't see this being the aim for Valve here since they pretty much dominate that market. Again, I just see this as Valve trying to expand their horizons. Even if they just port games like Half Life 2 using Cider.
GIRFeb 26th 2010 3:26PM
Why do people always spell Mac as MAC? It's not an abbreviation for something...
KurtFeb 26th 2010 3:32PM
Just because it's expensive doesn't mean it isn't a gaming platform. With that logic, you should just stick to marbles, because they are so much cheaper than $800 lol.
GeckFeb 26th 2010 4:03PM
You're making an assumption that someone would by a mac for gaming. I have a mac pro for doing real work, you know, that thing that pays the bills. I play games on it on a fairly regularly basis, I however do not play enough games to warrant spending another $800 on a gaming system (I did just spend $800 on an HTPC though..), steam would be *awesome* for me.
Also, a $2k mac would be able to run those high end games for much longer than two years... I have a first-gen intel mac pro, and it's still a crapload more powerful than an $800 PC. Sure i've had to buy better video cards along the way.. but that would be true of a PC as well.
And what's so wrong with cider ports? If they're supported.. who cares? tons of games on mac are done this way and work fine.
EvenioFeb 26th 2010 5:00PM
You sure must have a loose definition of "fine".
cookiebitsFeb 26th 2010 5:23PM
Wait, what? That's awesome!
Saves me from installing Windows onto another partition, then boot into Windows if I want to play most of the PC games I play. :)
Sebastian AnthonyFeb 26th 2010 7:07PM
But are you a Linux or Mac user... you could be either, or both :P
cookiebitsFeb 26th 2010 7:17PM
I'm prominently a Mac user :)
Tim LovellFeb 26th 2010 6:29PM
I may be naive but I don't see any definitive evidence for Steam on OSX through this post. I've not done my reseach so I shall receive shout downs with grace, but the images and screen shots above are clearly from a PC, or possibly an Apple machine running Windows.
It doesn't look anything unlike someone opening up a few images in Photoshop and renaming them...
However for the discussion, I think Steam on OSX would be the only long term final competition for PC in the gaming world. On the other hand, everyone of my friends with a Mac has installed windows on it as a secondary boot option.
KenFeb 26th 2010 6:58PM
Tim, the screenshot is showing the maximize/minimize/close buttons used in OS X applications hidden in the steam files.
Sebastian AnthonyFeb 26th 2010 7:07PM
I think that must be the first use of 'tautology' here on Download Squad.
And what a good day it is!
gratteFeb 26th 2010 9:21PM
>Apple doesn't make a secret of their distaste for games either -- at least on their desktops and laptops.
Not true, sir. Steve Jobs has brought John Carmack out for the keynote speech before and Apple gave stage time to Bungie when the first Halo was expected to be Mac-exclusive. There was also the Pippin game console.
So I wouldn't say that Apple is "distateful" of games. I'd say the problem is likely that Steve Jobs is not a gamer, and so doesn't take a particular interest in them.
chillinfartFeb 28th 2010 11:39PM
This means that you should be connected to internet all time to you are playing (even for single player sessions). This sucks.