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The Mac Games Machine
Congratulations. You are this site's hit number since its debut in June 2, 1998.
So you want some free Mac games, huh? I knew that this page would be useful one of those days. All 40 games here were NOT made by me. How's that for quality assurance? The games here are freeware: you are not required to pay for the full versions or to satisfy shareware costs. It's not that I don't like shareware--I love them--but to my knowledge, there aren't any sites dedicated to freeware Macintosh games. That is the reason for this page's genesis. The worst you will have to do for some of the games here is to e-mail their creators and let them know what you think of their work.
Important note here: all the games used to be archived in my iDisk. That was when iDisk was free. Apple launched its .Mac service last fall to replace its free iTools (which iDisk was a part of). That left me a choice: pay $99 a year for my iDisk or say bye-bye to everything that was in there. I have not paid one cent to maintain this site (this AOL space came with the account that my mom pays for, heh) and I didn't want to start now. Too much work and too little free time caused all those dead links to the games for the past month. I decided that the advertising banner on the top of this page is a reasonable price to pay for upgrading my AOL disk space from 2 to 20 MB.
I now have room for all my games, but I want some space for future games. SO: I will house "homeless" games. I consider a game "homeless" if it does not have an official site where interested people can go to to download them. I will keep the games that already have sites in this page, but you will have to go to the official sites to get the games. If the official site dies or moves, I'll either change the address of the site or upload the newly homeless game to my server. For the perfectionists out there, if you know that the game has a new version or if the site has moved, please, PLEASE be kind enough to take a minute to let me know. This page isn't just for me. It's for all of us.
Finally, if you don't already have StuffIt Expander in your computer, get it. It's free and you'll need it to open the .sit files that you'll be downloading here.
Annihilation Pro This is a fast and furious adaption of the perennial arcade classics Breakout and Super Breakout. Simply put, you move a bat left and right with your mouse and attempt to deflect the ball with it so that the ball will hit the colored bricks above you. Destroy all the bricks and you move on to the next level. If a brick falls instead of going boom, catching it will give you a power-up such as super-sizing and the ability to fire shots. Let the ball go past your bat and you lose a bat, and the game is over when you lose all your bats. Here's a tip: be sure to set your monitor to 256 colors before you run the game for the cool star field effect. For some reason, using any number of colors greater than 256 causes you to play in a black void. The only complaint about this great game is that because the mouse is needed to control the bat, a two-player mode is not possible.
Version: 0.9.2 Beta
Author: Stuart Snaddon
File Size: 324K compressed, 420K expanded
RAM Needed: 512K
Known Requirements: 256 or more colors and System 7.0 or later
AntiQuadra This is an electronic version of the solitaire game Patience. Four cards at a time are taken out of the deck, and a card can only be removed if there is another card of the same suit that is of a greater value visible. The goal of the game is to have all four aces visible, but you can also play by the pursuit rule--there can be no card under the aces. The game is simple enough to be played with an actual deck of cards, but this program keeps track of your win/loss record and will inform you if you have put yourself in a position that makes it impossible to win. And just like in the real world, you can even cheat.
Version: 2.02
Author: George Stepanek
File Size: 132K compressed, 523K expanded
RAM Needed: 710K
Arashi This game is adapted from an arcade game called Tempest and an earlier Macintosh release called STORM. I have never played the titles that I just mentioned, but Arashi's gameplay is any indication, I get to save my quarters. You are a claw, and you can only move clockwise or counterclockwise in the geometrically shaped battlefields. Blow away all the enemies before they get you to advance to the next level. The polygon sprites may be soooo 1992, but it helps to keep the action fast and furious even on a slower computer. Moving the claw with the mouse takes some getting used to. If you're looking for a different kind of arcade action, as opposed to moving a spaceship left and right and shooting the bad guys above you, look no further.
Version: 1.1.1
Author: Project STORM Team
File Size: 220K compressed, 360K expanded
RAM Needed: 1400K
Known Requirements: 256 colors or grays
Big Brother This is one of the most disgusting things that I have ever seen. And for some reason, I can't get enough of it. Launch one of the several "Brothers", move the mouse around the screen, and see for yourself how much fun a mindless little program can be. Additional brothers are available in the following link. And if you still can't get enough, there is even a BrotherMaker so you can make your very own Brother!
Version: 2.0
Author: John Briggs
File Size: 304K compressed, 1.2MB expanded
RAM Needed: 400K for the Big Brothers, 300K for the Little Brothers, and 2048K for the BrotherMaker
Web Site
Bill the Demon In his classic Inferno (part of The Divine Comedy) Dante Alighieri imagined himself descending through the Nine Circles of Hell to discover the fates of sinners. As Bill the demon, you must descend through the Nine Circles of Hell to get Satan's autograph and impress the cool demons. Dante had Vergil to guide and protect him. You have Bill's special power, his girlish scream that stuns the other monsters and break down obstacles. Dante had to confort the sinners himself to learn from their errors and to assure himself a place in Paradiso. Bill must feed on others' souls to keep himself from such a horrible fate. Inferno is, in my opinion, the best of Dante's works. Bill the Demon is, also in my opinion, one of the best freeware games available for the Mac in terms of graphics, play control, and challenge. Don't let the word "challenge" throw you off if you're not much of a gamer--you have six "lives" and you can also save your progress by using save points. The file you can download from here is the color version of the game. A black-and-white version is also available from the following link if you want to conserve RAM or if you are using a (gasp!) black-and-white Macintosh.
Version: 1.0 (I think)
Author: James Burton
File Size: 612K compressed, 1.4 MB expanded
RAM Needed: 2250K
Known Requirements: System 7.0 or later
Web Site: Strange Games
Card Table This file is more of an application than a game--it runs card game modules. The current version only comes with blackjack because the author assumed that whoever downloaded it would also have the previous version, which has solitaire, easy solitaire, and double solitaire. So he released the latter three games as a separate file. As the voice of sanity here, I put all four games in one folder. Other games on this page play solitaire better, but I love blackjack and I finally have a game that plays it on this page.
Version: 2.0.1
Author: Anthony Theisen
File Size: 156K compressed, 584K expanded
RAM Needed: 1536K
Chrysanthemum One of the more interesting puzzle games for the Mac revolves around ikebana, the Japanese art of flower arrangement. One flower at a time is launched from one of the four doorways. You need to move the flower so that it lands on a solid place other than the green wall. You will also have to arrange the flowers so that they match the patterns shown on the left side of the picture above. If you are successful, the flowers will be replaced by yin-yang symbols. Make enough arrangements and you can advance to the next of the game's twenty rounds. Let the flower hit the wall or take too long to finish the round and the garden will be crawling with insects. It will then only be a matter of time before you see the cool "Game Over" screen.
Version: 1.01
Author: Ryan Koopmans
File Size: 492K compressed, 780K expanded
RAM Needed: 850K
Concentrate Now it is time to "concentrate" on a different game. Yes, I know. Lame joke. This simple game requires you to click on the blank white spaces to reveal the picture underneath. Just as in the ageless game Memory, you need to match all of the hidden pictures in pairs. If the last two pictures you uncovered do not match, the spaces go white again and you will, hopefully, remember which pictures are where. You are timed to clear the board. This game was designed for one player, but more than one persons can take turns playing the game and comparing each other's times. There is also an option for larger and more complex playing boards for the people with very good memories--and a lot of time to kill.
Version: 2.0
Author: Tom White
File Size: 48K compressed, 100K expanded
RAM Needed: 256K
Connect 4 Yet another classic board game (well, sort of) gets ported for the Mac. This time, it is Milton Bradley's Connect Four. The rules are the same. Each player takes turns dropping a game piece down one of the seven columns. The first player to "connect four" horizontally, vertically, or diagonally wins. I absolutely can't beat the computer in this game. How about you? There is a PowerPC-only version... if you want it, find it. The icon you have to double-click to launch the game has "Connect 4 PPC v1.1.5" on it, but the game does run on 680x machines. It still runs on PPCs anyway--behold the magic of FAT binary applications.
Version: 1.1.5
Author: Miles Michelson
File Size: 100K compressed, 248K expanded
RAM Needed: 800K
Known Requirements: System 7.0 or later
Daleks Longtime Mac users might remember this one. I have heard that the original version was the first freeware game EVER made for the Mac. It was programmed waaay back in 1984 (the year the Mac developed) by Johan Strandberg. Two years later, Bob Arning revised the original release and what we have now is a Mac classic with many imitators. "But what about the game?", you ask. Daleks are, as I gather, mindless robots from the British TV cult favorite "Doctor Who". I know nothing about the show except that it was an American geekdom favorite in the mid-1980's, but such knowledge is not necessary to enjoy the game. You are the player, and you can take turns with all the Daleks by moving in any of the eight directions (or not moving at all). You move first, then all the Daleks at the same time, then you, and so on. The Daleks will always move toward you, but they are stupid enough that they will crash into each other and leave behind a pile that is hazardous to the other Daleks if you know where to move. Kill all the Daleks and you go on to a new and tougher level. If they catch you, you die. You are far from helpless, as all good underdog heroes are. Your Sonic Screwdriver, which can only be used once per round, totally eliminates all Daleks within one space of you. You can also teleport to a random location as often as you wish, but you better hope that a Dalek isn't waiting for you when you land! This game is more user-friendly than many of today's games. If you want, the game will tell you which adjacent spaces won't be Dalek-controlled. You can control yourself with the keyboard of a mouse. And the Mac will even play yourself if you just like to watch. A note: there will be two high-score windows hidden under the main window.
Version: 2.0
Authors: revision by Bob Arning, original version by Johan Strandberg
File Size: 16K compressed, 56K expanded
RAM Needed: 512K
F.A.R.M. Patrol One of my favorite games to play when I was in elementary school, back in the old days when Apple ][s and Colecos were the hot computers, was Moon Patrol for the Commodore 64K. I have heard that it was also an arcade favorite, but the only version I ever played was for that obsolete computer. How fortunate for me that the PC classic has been ported for the Macintosh as F.A.R.M. Patrol. Made by five Stanford students as their senior project, this is a side-scrolling driving game in which you have to jump over the potholes and hit the fire button to launch rockets ahead and above you. It is far more advanced than Moon Patrol ever was, particularly because of the fact that it is a Macintosh game. Heh. In this game, the bad guys (such as street thugs and mutant squirrels) shoot at you, and you also have to worry about the velocity of your Funky All-Terrain Reconnaissance Machine (F.A.R.M.) Patrol cart as well as its remaining fuel. Here is an important tip which served me well when I was playing Moon Patrol: if you have to do both, shoot BEFORE you jump.
Version: 1.0
Authors: Mike Barron, Curtis Chen, Felix Chuang, Ravi Konchigeri, and Justin Palm
File Size: 872K compressed, 1.8 MB expanded
RAM Needed: 3000K
Known Requirements: 256 colors
Web Site
Flipper Sorry, no TV dolphins here. The game reminds me of Othello (or Reversi, if you prefer), although there are supposed to be Flippers for other platforms. You have two blue disks on opposing corners of an adjustable rectangular playing field, your opponent (another player or the computer under one of the two difficulty levels) has the other two corners. Move a disk one space, keep the original position of the disk. Move it two spaces and you can't keep the original position. Move to a space adjacent to the opposing disks and win control of them. The only ways to win in this turn-based game is to completely eliminate your opponent's disks or to have more disks by the time there isn't any room left. A game variation is random stationary barriers that cannot be driven out of the game board. This is the kind of game that makes more sense once you're actually playing it. It is also fun. Be sure not to panic after you go to the options under the Apple Menu--the "OK" buttons are invisible.
Version: 1.2
Author: Joe Strout
File Size: 64K compressed, 172K expanded
RAM Needed: 1024K RAM
Version: 2.0
Author: Victor Franco
File Size: 20K compressed, 60K expanded
RAM Needed: 64K
Known Requirements: System 6.0.5 or later (earlier Systems may work)
Follow I remember a fun electronic toy made by Milton Bradley called, I think, Simon. There are four large colored buttons, and you have to memorize the sequence the buttons light up and "follow" it (hence the name of this game). One of the four buttons will light up in a sequence, and you will have to point-and-click with the mouse to copy the computer's actions. Click on the wrong button or let time run out on you and the game is over. If you are successful, you get to memorize a longer sequence. And so on. There are eleven levels of difficulty--the higher the level, the more carefully you will have to pay attention to the computer's sequences.
Version: 1.0 Beta
Author: Eelco van Beek
File Size: 80K compressed, 148K expanded
RAM Needed: 399K
Glypha III This version of the arcade classic Joust is actually a surprising improvement. The Ancient Egyptian graphics give the game a different feel, the characters are much bigger and more detailed, and the gameplay is faster. The only thing lacking in this game is a two-player option. Oh, the point of the game itself? You control a flying ostrich, and you must disable the flying enemies by hitting them from above. Otherwise the attack will kill you, and you don't have an infinite number of lives. After disabling the bad guys, you have to squash the eggs they leave behind to ensure that they do not hatch into smarter and tougher jousters. Why give them a second chance at life when most of us don't get the same? Take too long and you will get a most unwelcome visitor. This game came from the same creative mind behind the "Glider" games.
Version: 1.0.2
Author: John Calhoun
File Size: 240K compressed, 650K expanded
RAM Needed: 1400K
Known Requirements: System 6.0.5 or later (earlier Systems may work), 256 colors, and 13" or larger monitor
GNU Chess Mac GNU isn't just a type of antelope. It is also a nonprofit organization which supports publicly-owned computer games. GNU games are distributed for every kind of operating systems at no charge and modifications to improve them are not only allowed, they are encouraged. Think "open source". This Macintosh port isn't very fancy, but it is a solid chess game that should pose a challenge for even skillful players.
Version: 4.0
Authors: Rolf Exner, Dan Oetting, Tom Gerardy, and Erich Oetting
File Size: 168K compressed, 560K expanded
RAM Needed: 1500K
HeartQuest If you guessed from the title that you would be playing the role of a psycho who must kill innocent people and score extra points by ripping their hearts out, then you are... wrong. Where did I get the idea to write that sentence, anyway? Actually, this is a really nice little game made by the great Mac games author, Ingemar Ragnemalm, as a Valentine's Day present for his wife, Eva. I guess one thing led to another, and it turned out to be a present for everybody else, too. You control a butterfly with the mouse, collect all the hearts before the time (measured as Bonus) runs out, and keep away from the twisting flypapers lest that you touch them and become immobile for a few precious seconds. For those who hate to lose, there is an easy mode in which you only get to play for three levels and the Bonus cannot run out on you. HeartQuest is a nice alternative to just about every other Macintosh game ever made.
Version: 1.1
Author: Ingemar Ragnemalm
File Size: 204K compressed, 392K expanded
RAM Needed: 1500K
Web Site: Ingemar's Games
Ingemar's Skiing Game Woo-hoo! Another Ingemar Ragnemalm game--his best one--was recently re-released as a freeware. Sure, the only reason to pay the $10 for it was to unlock the course editor, but I still couldn't bring myself to put it on this page... until now. It is the best skiing game for the Mac. Yes, even better than the shareware MacSki. The graphics are awesome, the gameplay is fast and unforgiving (trip over a flag and you're disqualifed), and up to 12 human and robot (three skill levels) players can engage in a competition or a World Cup tour. You can also practice or, thanks to the now-free editor, design your dream course. I really do think that this was the best sports game for the Macintosh until Aspyr's Madden 2000 came out. Either ISG is THAT good, or it took way too long for more people to make great sport games for the Mac.
Version: 1.0.3
Author: Ingemar Ragnemalm
File Size: 208K compressed, 426K expanded
RAM Needed: 512K
Web Site: Ingemar's Games
Insult Generator Uh... what's a puttock? I'm sure that there are a number of Web pages which generates random Shakespearian insults with the click of a button. This application does the same thing, and there is no need to fire up the ol' Web browser. You should get a chuckle out of this, as long as your feelings aren't easily hurt.
Version: 1.0
Author: Todd Clements
File Size: 40K compressed, 112K expanded
RAM Needed: 384K
Jigsaw Puzzle I know what most of you are thinking: "Don't I already have that in the Apple Menu?" Yes, you probably do, but a while back I realized that this dandy little game isn't included in Mac OS 9 and later. I don't know why. This fun timekiller has three difficulty levels and a default picture (a map of the world). Here's a neat trick: you can copy any image you prefer and paste it in the puzzle--you will be able to play with it instead. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you haven't been using a Mac long enough. Use the Edit menu in both the puzzle and whatever you're using to view images, or click-and-drag an image from your browser and "drop" it on puzzle. I'm sure a map of the world would be too easy for most of you, anyway.
Version: 1.0.1
Authors: Captain's Software and Apple Computer
File Size: 56K compressed, 104K expanded
RAM Needed: 500K
Keibot Here is a fun game that I can't seem to win at, despite its three difficulty levels. It is a board game with unique rules. Each side has four pieces at opposing corners. Each piece moves in a L-shape like chess's knight piece. If a piece moves anywhere with one space between that piece and an opposing piece, then the moved piece will leave a disk in its color. Get three disks in a row to win. Other ways to win is to capture three of your opponent's pieces (you have to move to occupy their spaces and they cannot have already moved in the previous turn) and to place all ten of your disks in the board. The game has several settings, including two board sizes, three difficulty levels, and the option to play against another human. If you like board games but are sick of chess, checkers, or Chutes and Ladder, give this one a try. Go to the developer's site below for a better rule book (with pictures) in PDF format.
Version: 1.6
Author: Glen Solosky
File Size: 236K compressed, 540K expanded
RAM Needed: 384K
Glensologic Home Page
MacChess Your computer software collection is forever incomplete if you are without a chess game. What better way is there to personally interact with your computer than to pretend that you are Garry Kasparov taking on Big Blue... again? If money is an object to you, then you should look into this game. It is commercial-quality, yet it is free for any Mac-using chess fans. Pretty much everything that you want in a chess simulation is there, including an computer opponent that is difficult to beat. Of course, you can also challenge another human or, since it's your computer, darn it, play yourself like eccentric geniuses do.
Version: 2.5.1 (68K) and 5.0.1 (PowerPC)
Author: Wim van Beusekom
File Size: 336K (68K) and 392K (PPC) compressed, 1.2 MB (68K) and 1.1 MB (PPC) expanded
RAM Needed: 6300K (68K) and 8000K (PPC)
Known Requirements: 68020 processor or better (for 68K) or any PowerPC (for PowerPC) and System 7.0 or later
Web Site
MacStones If you have played the Linux game Same Gnome or Sega's Shockwave offering Swirls, then you don't need to read any further. For the rest of you out there, this is a colorful puzzler. You get a screen full of stones (or marbles or planets, you can change at the Preferences). Move the cursor to a stone of your choosing and it and any other stones which are adjacent to it (horizontally or vertically) will rotate. By clicking on that stone, it and all the adjacent ones will disappear. The more you can eliminate with one click, the more you will score. Your session ends when all the stones are cleared or if no stones of the same colors are adjacent to each other. The goal is, of course, to beat your own high score. This is a fun game and it is a real eye candy, too.
Version: 1.2
Author: Craig Landrum
File Size: 360K compressed, 692K expanded
RAM Needed: 2000K
Mines If you have ever encountered any version of Windows that is and after 3.1, you probably know of the classic game Mine Sweeper. It is a small and very simple game. You have this grid. By clicking on a square, you will either "clear" an area of mines, uncover a number which tells you how many squares adjacent to it horizontally, vertically, or diagonally are rigged with a mine, or step on a mine itself. Do that and the game is over. If you can figure out which square is mined, you can place a flag on it to "mark" it. You win if all the mined squares are marked. There are three levels of difficulty, and you are scored for the difficulty level you are on according to how quickly you can finish a grid. Now you can enjoy one of the few good things to come from Microsoft on any Mac!
Version: 1.0
Author: Paul Cunningham
File Size: 56K compressed, 128K expanded
RAM Needed: 128K
µLife This virtual simulation of life came from the man behind Ambrosia Software, Andrew Welch. A colony of "cells" (the lavender things in the above picture) exists for your viewing pleasure. Cells live, die, and are born by the strict rules of the universe. At three cells, a new cell is born. At four, they die of overcrowding. And at two, they die of loneliness. They move like crazy, too. When all of the cells die, a brand-new colony begins. It is sort of like those virtual pets, only you just watch the cells. It makes for a really fascinating show, though. The screen shot doesn't do this application justice. Colonies can last for as little as a few second or as long as infinity (only if the hardy cells are really, really fortunate). This would make a great screen saver if only somebody would take the time to port it. Hint, hint...
Version: 1.01
Author: Andrew Welch
File Size: 8K compressed, 12K expanded
RAM Needed: 384K
Known Requirements: 256 colors, 13" or larger monitor
Par Pyramid This is another great solitaire game. Some cards are arranged in a pyramid and the rest are in a deck. You can only move a card that has no other card on any part of it. To remove a card, two movable cards (one from a deck and another from the pyramid, or both from the pyramid) must be paired off in one of three ways decided by using the Game Options: 13s (both cards must total 13), the same value, or higher and lower (one card has one value that is either higher or lower than the other). To keep your eyes as well as your mind interested, you can choose from different color schemes for the back of the cards and the game's background.
Version: 1.1.1
Author: Grayson Myers
File Size: 196K compressed, 684K expanded
RAM Needed: 1600K
Known Requirements: System 7.0 or later, 16 or more colors, and 12" or larger monitor
Pentominoes If you like puzzlers that are insanely difficult, I may have found your toughest challenge yet. First off, pentominoes is the practice of arranging 12 shapes (all of them formed by interconnecting five squares together, sort of like the four-square-shapes deal in Tetris) so that they all will fit in a given space. Each shape can only be used once, although you can flip, rotate, and remove them as needed and you don't have to take up all of your given space. The above screen shot is the only time (so far) that I have succeeded in solving the puzzle. And with 90 different spaces to play with and more than one correct solution for most (if not all) of them, this game will either give your brain a serious workout or leave you wondering when I'll ever find a freeware adaption of Tetris.
Version: 2.0
Author: Mark Pilgrim
File Size: 156K compressed, 332K expanded
RAM Needed: 1024K
RChess You are probably wondering, "Why three chess games on one page?" MacChess and GNU Chess Mac are great and all, but I'm sure that there are people out there who don't mind black-and-white graphics, smaller file size (faster download and less RAM), and a much more beatable computer opponent. If you are one of them, then this game is for you. RChess offers a more humorous chess experience that should appeal to anybody who don't take the world's greatest board game THAT seriously.
Version: 2.2.3
Author: Robert Purves
File Size: 104K compressed, 276K expanded
RAM Needed: 1865K
Re-Pete Another Simon-type game, this time you can play along with either a mouse or a numerical keypad. You can deal with four, six, or nine keys, as well as three speed settings and "wandering" buttons. Both Follow and Re-Pete are good games, but if I had to choose between the two, Re-Pete would have my vote just because I can use my keyboard, which I prefer more than mouse control.
Version: 2.2 (an OS X version is also available)
Author: Tom Bender
File Size: 52K compressed, 72K expanded
RAM Needed: 130K
Web Site: Trans-Tex Software
Rogue Quick--name the greatest role-playing game EVER. Diablo? Dungeons & Dragons? Final Fantasy? Ultima? Zork? You may have your favorites, but to me and I'm certain many other computer geeks, Rogue is the greatest of them all. Originally developed for Unix almost two decades ago, it has been ported for just about every operating systems out there, inspired two generations of game developers, and established a distinct gaming category: "Roguelike" games. You don't assume the role of a specific type of character, like warrior, cleric, or thief. Rather, you are you. More specifically, you are a graduate of the fighters' guild, and you have been sent to the Dungeons of Doom for your first adventure. Your goal: go to the very bottom of the dungeons, recover the Amulet of Yendor, and get out alive. There is a great, great catch. Every time you play the game, you will enter a randomly generated dungeon. And you (represented by @ in the above picture) will find enemies (represented by letters--E is for Eagle and S is for Snake), items (*s are gold pieces and the / is a magical staff), weapons, armors, potions, scrolls of magic, stairs (%), and the Amulet itself in different locations every time you play. That alone gives the game endless replayability value. And despite the Unix keyboard commands that takes some getting used to and the makeshift graphics, the game is incredibly fun. This is easily one of the greatest computer games EVER. You won't find a better recommendation for a game than that.
Version: 5.3
Authors: Ken Arnold, Michael Toy, Glenn Wichman, Timothy Stoehr, and Rick Holzgrafe
File Size: 68K compressed, 188K expanded
RAM Needed: 384K
Web Site: Semicolon Software
SingleNumber The type of puzzle shown in the above picture is commonly found in Japanese newspapers and magazines. The numbers in bold are provided, and the rest of the squares have to be filled out with numbers ranging from one to nine. The same number cannot be used twice for each rank or file, nor for the nine 3x3 areas. Looking a little more carefully at the above picture (a puzzle that I was unable to complete, unfortunately) might help the rule to make a lot more sense. This concept is interesting and challenging--at least it is to me. The game has many puzzles and adjustable difficulty. The user interface leaves a lot to be desired--you have to click on a number and then click on where you want the number to be written, rather than simply click on the square and type in the number that you want. I guess they do things a little bit differently in the Land of the Rising Sun. The game's author, Yoshimitsu Kanai, also made a $10 shareware version for the Palm Pilot. It can be found in the next link. This one on this page is still free, so the closest you can get without paying for this kind of game is playing it on a PowerBook.
Version: 1.1.8
Author: Yoshimitsu Kanai
File Size: 196K compressed, 632K expanded
RAM Needed: 1024K for the "Fat" version and 384K for the "Light" one
Known Requirements: System 7.0 or later and Courier font
Slime Invaders This is pretty much Space Invaders, only the Invaders are Slime and they move all over the screen, dropping various projectiles on you. Not only are those suckers hard to hit, but if you take too long to clear a wave of them, Death will drop by and try to finish the job unless you can get rid of the last slime. Regular shots will only delay the inevitable, but codshots, obtained by shooting the flying toasters (an After Dark reference, perhaps?) and catching the falling cods, can help you to cheat Death. It is a fun game that only suffers because you can only move the shooter with a mouse, which is, for me, a bit more tedious than using a keyboard. Hey, it worked for Ambrosia Software's Swoop.
Version: 2.0.7
Author: Ingemar Ragnemalm
File Size: 192K compressed, 416K expanded
RAM Needed: 1400K
Known Requirements: At least a 12" monitor (I think)
Web Site: Ingemar's Games
Smack a Skunk There aren't any polecats for you to smash, but the skunks in the game are the banes of Ingemar Ragnemalm's existence, such as software bugs, the C:\> prompt, and the PowerBook 5300. Like the Whack-a-Mole games in amusement parks and arcades, you must smash the skunks before they can return to the holes that they came from. Miss ten skunks and the game is over. The game is a hoot to play, and if you wish that Smack a Skunk would use your skunks, wish no longer. Download this game and find out how to incorporate your worst enemies in it.
Version: 1.0
Author: Ingemar Ragnemalm
File Size: 296K compressed, 724K expanded
RAM Needed: 3384K
Known Requirements: 68LC040 or better processor and 256 colors
Web Site: Ingemar's Games
SmallGame Be honest--is there a lamer title for a game? Perhaps the title is appropriate, since it is a very simple shoot-'em-up. You are a blue dragonfly, and the things that you spit are apparently potent enough to destroy the other insects that are reckless enough to fly in your direction. Ingemar Ragnemalm claimed that his Slime Invader is mindless, but this takes the cake. Then why did I bother putting it up here, you ask? For its stupidity, it is not a bad game to play. The graphics are large and quite colorful, as you can see in the above picture. The game was also made in one night, which I think is quite impressive.
Version: 1.0
Author: Yves Schmid
File Size: 264K compressed, 912K expanded
RAM Needed: 3000K
Space Dungeon I consider this fun game to be a cross between Rogue and WarCraft. You must go through various floors of a, well, space dungeon and engage monsters like trolls, robbers, and blobs in hand-to-hand combat. A great concept of this game is that the players who actually fight the monsters will live longer and get a better score than players who avoid fights and simply collect the money lying around the dungeon rooms. This is one of the very few games in this page that is actually being improved on right now--it recently went public beta, although the final version may not surface for some time. It's perfectly functional, though.
Version: 2.0 beta 4
Author: Mike Vande Ven, Junior
File Size: 348K compressed, 616K expanded
RAM Needed: 1024K
Known Requirements: 68030 or better processor, 256 colors or more, 13" or larger monitor, and System 7.0 or later
Web Site
Stardust This is an excellent, and quite challenging, puzzler. You have been separated from your companion and zapped into a world full of Stardust. In each of the game's fifty levels, you start from a green door and you must find a way to enter the blue door to the next level. You can create and destroy blue and green blocks--you must master these skills to solve the puzzles. If you wish to continue from where you left off whenever you run the game, you need to enter the password for the level that you are currently working on. In that case, you better keep a piece of paper and a pen handy when you're playing Stardust. The above picture serves two purposes--to give you an idea of what Stardust is like, and to help you to solve one of the game's earlier levels. Don't worry--I promise not to ruin the other 49 levels for you. After all, I'm still working on them!
Version: 1.1
Author: James Burton
File Size: 524K compressed, 1.1 MB expanded
Known Requirements: System 7.0 or later
RAM Needed: 2250K
Web Site: Strange Games
Stones The game has been played by a countless number of people for thousands of years. It is known as Arcana, Awale, Ayo, Kalah, Mancala, Ouare, Sorry!, and Wari. And Nathaniel Tagg decided to name it "Stones"? It is one of the world's oldest board games, and its life continues to be extended with this Macintosh version. The bottom half of the board and the left score pile belong to Player One, who always starts the game, and the other piles belong to Player Two. Both players can be either human or the computer, set at one of the four difficulty levels. A player selects a pile and the stones in that pile are seeded, one at a time, on the other piles clockwise, with one stone also being put in the player's own score pile if it is in the way. If the last stone lands on another pile with stones, the player keeps the turn and the stones in that pile are automatically picked up and seeded. If the last stone lands on an empty pile, it will then be the opponent's turn. If the last stone lands on the score pile, then the same player can select another pile to resume the turn. The player with the most stones after all the stones on one side have been used up, wins. If the rules made no sense, don't worry. The game is easier to understand when it is actually played, yet it requires much more strategy than, say, checkers.
Version: 1.05
Author: Nathaniel Tagg
File Size: 88K compressed, 384K expanded
RAM Needed: 512K
U Mac Rogue If you like Rogue but want more modern graphics, then this game is for you. They both play almost exactly alike. This one uses a more Mac-friendly interface (you can move with the hjkl keys, arrow keys, numeric keypad, or pointing-and-clicking). There are a few issues, though. You need a big window to play the game, and even so, the entire floor of a dungeon isn't visible in one window (unlike the original). You have to scroll or wander around to discover rooms that you may have missed. You can make the sprites smaller and see more of the dungeon on the screen, but at the expense of good graphics. Also, a few of the enemies are different from the first game. You can choose from two character icons (male human warrior and female elf wizard), but they don't really differ other than their looks. There is even an option that makes Rogue more real-time (rather than the gameplay being turn-based, enemies will attack as soon as they see you). That would have been a nice feature, but it makes the game impossible to play for people who don't know the game's keyboard commands like the back of their hands. Despite the problems, there are indeed positive aspects of this game. Better graphics, of course. Also, in the first level (where you haven't really "entered" the dungeon yet), you can see trees and paved roads, which indicate that you really are on the surface rather than underground. The icons for the monsters look great. And you can, sort of, see the animation of a weapon that is hurled. There are actually two of this game that are version 3.0. The first one, MacRogue, which can be found elsewhere, used copyrighted images and Marco Pontil had to remove them and re-release it less than a week later as U Mac Rogue. Just so you don't get confused, because I did at first.
Version: 3.0
Author: Marco Pontil
File Size: 508K compressed, 1.1 MB expanded
RAM Needed: 1536K
Known Requirements: 32-bit QuickDraw (not a concern unless you don't have a color Mac)
Video Poker Sick of solitaire? Want a high-stakes card game? Then this one is for you. If you have ever played poker or video poker, then you don't need any explanation. If you haven't yet, check out the instructions. This is a pretty easy game to play and it is just as addictive as those quarter-eating machines. Too bad the money you can win aren't real. An odd thing about this game is that you can't really go broke. If you only have $1 left, you can't even make a $1 bet--you will just have to start over. A useful feature of this game is that you can create multiple players (to throw off the mafia, maybe?) and also save your progress so you can resume your good or bad luck streak another time.
Version: 1.1
Author: Bret Dowell
File Size: 836K compressed, 2.1 MB expanded
RAM Needed: 4096K
XConq Okay, the last game here is a doozy. In case the picture above isn't enough of an indicator. This is a turn-based war simulation which has enjoyed countless hours of play and too many revisions, since its initial release in 1987, to count over several different operating systems, including the Mac OS as well as derives of Unix. Don't let the Unix reference throw you off--the Mac interface keeps the game relatively playable. There are way too many things to do in this game--you could engage in countless war scenarios (some historical, some fictional) with up to seven other sides (computer or networked humans), play adventure games (The Lord of the Rings, anybody?), or even create your own scenarios. The instructions will be your best friend for your first few games, and before long you will be wondering how a game so intensive could be nothing more than a mouse click away.
Version: 7.4.1
Author: Stanley T. Shebs
File Size: 3 MB compressed, 8.9 MB expanded
RAM Needed: 10000K (some scenarios require more)
Web Site
That's all for now. I have more games to add in the near future, particularly those for the PowerPC and OS X. Comments, suggestions, complaints, or directions to fun games are ALWAYS welcome. I found out about a couple of games here only because their creators themselves e-mailed me! So if you have a game that I should check out, send it to me or at least tell me where I can download it. And remember, freeware only, please. Thank you!
This is my e-mailbox. If you have anything to say or ask about this site or me, feel free to click on it, write something down, and send it to me. I read all of my e-mails and answer them when I can.
Disclaimer: This Web site is the property of Rich Knopf (me). My Web space provider, America Online, is not responsible for this site. Neither are all of the outside parties mentioned in this site. If you're going to sue somebody for this site, it better be me.
This page was created in June 2, 1998, and it was updated in December 12, 2002.
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