Here we are again. Mac Games on the Internet 2: Durandal. Or was that MGI2: Judgment Day? Mac Games on the Net 2: Hell on Earth? I dunno. Anyway, I’m back. I’ve got a few more sites to list, in addition to the ones I presented earlier. Naturally, this list won’t be as comprehensive; I hit most of the high points last time. However, you’ll still find some good ones in this addendum. As before, I’ve included an HTML file to create clickable links to each of the sites. MacGames2.html now contains all of the sites, including those found in the last list. It is the guide to Mac Games on the Internet. Use it, and may the Force be with you. (All right, I’ve really lost it now.)
The Basics Revisited
The editor of this fine magazine also wanted me to cover the basics in a bit more depth. Personally, I am only familiar with AOL and my friendly local ISP (Internet Service Provider). Unfortunately, I have not had enough experience with the other commercial services to give a balanced review. But luckily, that’s not my purpose here. I’m just going to tell you what I know, and for the 4 million of you who subscribe to AOL (plus the other millions that connect via a local ISP), you may find this description quite handy.
Here’s the short version:
AOL: 800/827-6364
Compuserve: 800/524-3388
eWorld: 800/775-4556
Those are the phone numbers for the three services at which most of you will be looking. AOL, which now has the most subscribers, is probably the service of choice when it comes to major, nationwide services. To throw off the bias in this article just a bit, I’ve added the phone numbers for CompuServe and eWorld. CompuServe seems to be working on SLIP/PPP connections; this looks very promising. eWorld, on the other hand, has licensed AOL’s Web Browser and is offering this service to its users. Once you get set up with a browser from AOL or eWorld, you’ll be in the same boat.
On the other hand, I consider a good local ISP to be far superior both in quality of connection and service and sometimes in price. If you can contact one in your area (many advertise in local papers), you may find yourself getting more out of the Internet than you could with any of the large online services.
Now for the really biased part.
AOL. AOL provides an easy, worry-free way to connect yourself to the Internet. No fancy software to deal with. All you need is AOL’s software and an additional application, called, strangely enough, “Web Browser.” If you are equipped with AOL’s Web Browser, you can connect via the usual means and then choose the menu option “Switch to Browser” (or go to Keyword: WWW) and your Web Browser will be automatically launched.
If you don’t have the Web Browser, you can pick it up free of charge. Just hop over to Keyword: UPGRADE and choose to download software. Grab the Web Browser and, if necessary, AOL Version 2.6. Unstuff this software and you’re ready to go. If you aren’t a subscriber and haven’t been bombarded with AOL disks via snail mail, then call the number listed above and have them send you a few (trust me, you’ll get more than one).
Now you’ve got the software. So, how does one use AOL’s Internet services?
E-Mail: This one’s easy. It works just like regular AOL electronic mail. If you enter an Internet address into the “To:” field of your message, your mail will automatically be delivered to the address you specify. If you wanted to send mail to me from AOL, you just enter “afn02635@afn.org” into the blank. No hassle, no extra charges.
Receiving mail is just as easy. Other people using other Internet Service Providers can send mail to you by tacking a “@aol.com” on the end of your AOL screen name. Sending mail to “JeremyC743@aol.com” would deliver mail straight to my AOL mailbox. Be careful, though. Many times AOL users will be pinpointed as inexperienced Internet users; I tend to find many advertisements and scams piling up in my mailbox, while none accumulate in my regular Internet mailbox. The only way these people could have found my AOL address is from my signature file (a small text file appended to all my mail messages and newsgroup articles), which lists the two addresses side by side. So, as soon as you see mail from an unknown person offering you a great deal on a new book or a get-rich-quick scheme, trash it!
FTP: This one’s pretty easy too. Anonymous FTP is as simple as going to Keyword: FTP and entering the name of the site you would like to visit. If you’re only interested in Mac games, you’ll find most of the files you need at ftp://ftp.amug.org/ or ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/ (which is mirrored at ftp://mirrors.aol.com/). Most of the other FTP’ing you’ll do will be from hypertext links in Web documents. In other words, you won’t have to worry about this interface. All you really need to know about how to live and where to go you’ll learn in the next section...
WWW: As mentioned before, AOL’s Web Browser is available free of charge at Keyword: UPGRADE. Once you’ve downloaded the necessary software, load the Web Browser and take a peek. Select “Web...” from the Services menu and type in the appropriate URL (Uniform Resource Locator, better known as an Internet address) into the text field at the top of the window. You can also click on the links within the current page (they will appear blue unless the colors have been changed). You can even open up the MacGames2.html file on this CD by selecting “Open...” from the File menu. The complete list of Mac games on the ‘net will appear, at your mercy.
So, what about all those controls at the top of the screen? “Home” takes you to the first page you see when launching the browser (set in your preferences file). “Back” takes you to the previous page. “Forward” moves you back to the original page, if you just hit “Back.” “Load Images” loads the backgrounds and graphics, assuming you did not select the Auto Load Images option, in which case images are loaded automatically. “Reload” redisplays the current page. “Stop” stops any file transfers when you’re sick of waiting. “Load Original” will download the original file(s) from the remote host, unlike “Reload,” which may reload them from your hard drive.
So there you go. AOL’s Web Browser in a nutshell. If you’re still interested in the Web, you can check out AOL’s facilities for making your own home page. Who knows, you may be featured in an IMG article some day...
Oh, and by the way, you probably noticed the other options in the Services menu. You can FTP and Gopher from this application too.
Direct Connection. This section is for everybody who is plugged directly into the Internet via a dedicated line or an educational or commercial institution. You can also connect quasi-directly via modem with a SLIP/PPP connection from a local Internet Service Provider, which fools your computer into thinking it is connected directly. The one thing these options all have in common is MacTCP, a control panel that allows your computer to communicate directly with the Internet. In this section of the article, I’ll cover the software you need to get connected via a direct line.
Control Panels: As mentioned earlier, you’ll need MacTCP for any of these connections. Configuring the control panel is up to you; it is different for every situation. Unless you want to get really picky about it, all you really need to do is click on the icon for the correct connection type. If you have a SLIP/PPP connection, you will also need InterSLIP or MacPPP, depending on your connection type. You’ll have to pick these up from a friend or from your service provider; they’re both readily available online.
Netscape: This application is the Web browser of choice for most Internet users. Much more advanced than its main competitor, NCSA’s Mosaic, Netscape has all the features you’ll ever need. The current version, 1.1N, allows you to read Usenet newsgroups, download from anonymous FTP sites, and browse the Web. Set up your preferences files by typing in the names of your hosts for mail and news (contact your local service provider) and you’re on your way. The controls are rather self-explanatory. If you need any help, check out the section on AOL’s Web Browser; the commands are quite similar. Also, you can choose help options from the menus to check out Netscape’s online help files. If you’re curious about what’s in store for the future of Netscape, download Netscape 2.0b1, a beta version of the new Netscape. It has several new features, including mail reading and advanced Usenet options. To view this file in hypertext format, simply select “Open File...” from the File menu and double click on MacGames2.html, which can be found here on this CD.
Eudora: You’ll also need an application to read mail, assuming you have access to a POP3 server (that’s “Post Office Protocol”). Any problems? RTFM. I’m not writing a manual.
NewsWatcher: A great Usenet newsgroup reader from the author of the ubiquitous Disinfectant application. A nice little tool for those of you who dislike Netscape’s Usenet newsgroup features. Try it for a week... You’ll like it! Guaranteed! (All right, not really.)
Fetch: Like NewsWatcher, this FTP application gives you a little more control than Netscape’s anonymous FTP features. If Netscape isn’t sufficient for your needs, this handy application is a must.
All of the above software can be obtained free (or shareware) from the Internet. Yeah, yeah, I know. How are you supposed to get them if you don’t have any applications to get them with? You can either grab one of them from your ISP, who will most likely set you up with all the software you need, or you can get one from a friend and download the rest. Also, it is likely that your server has a text interface that will allow you to conduct an FTP session through an ordinary VT100 text interface.
All right, enough of that. Now we get down to business. I’ve included the basics, which are repeats from last article. However, all of the other sites are new additions to the collection. The complete list (parts 1 and 2) are compiled in HTML format in the file MacGames2.html . Knock yourself out.
The Essential Bookmarks
These Web and FTP sites are invaluable for any Macintosh user exploring the Internet. Pay close attention!
Sumex Archives: This is the mother of all Macintosh FTP sites. If you’re looking for shareware or freeware on the Internet, chances are it’s here. The main server is consistently swamped with anonymous users. For this reason, there are numerous “mirror sites,” each of which maintain a copy of the Sumex archives, updated regularly.
Main server:
ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/info-mac/
Mirror sites:
ftp://ftp.amug.org/info-mac/
ftp://mirrors.aol.com/
The Info-Mac HyperArchive: For Web users looking for a way to access the Sumex archives without using FTP, this is a tremendously helpful tool. It provides a mirror of the complete Sumex archives, in HTML format. Not only can you search the entire archive for keywords, you can also view a brief abstract before downloading a program.
Yahoo: An invaluable Web search engine and index of Web pages, this is the place to look when you want to find a site dedicated to a specific topic.
http://www.yahoo.com/
AMUG: The Arizona Macintosh Users Group supports both a Web page and an FTP site full of Macintosh goodies. Check out their incoming directory for the very latest releases of Macintosh software. Since files sent to Sumex are not available for several days, new releases (especially for Marathon add-ons) can be found here.
ftp://ftp.amug.org/
ftp://ftp-2.amug.org/
Archie Search: This Rutgers server is an HTML-ized Archie gateway allowing you to search the Internet’s FTP sites through several different Archie servers. Useful for finding an elusive file...
http://www-ns.rutgers.edu/htbin/archie
The Well-Connected Mac: This Web page provides links to many sources of information about Macintosh resources on the Internet. Well-organized and thorough.
http://www.macfaq.com/
Mac Magazines: Yep, they’re on the Web. Lots of information about upcoming Macintosh products. Also some links to help you get started on the Internet. Useful, nice-looking, and generally well-organized. Mac Net Journal, the only listed magazine that is not also a major publication, is an electronically distributed magazine reviewing all things Internet and Macintosh.
MacUser: http://www.macuser.ziff.com/~macuser/
MacWorld: http://www.macworld.com/
MacWeek: http://www.ziff.com/~macweek/
Mac Net Journal: http://www.dgr.com/web_mnj/
Usenet: Usenet newsgroups are worldwide message bases for all sorts of topics. Last time I looked, my server provided access to 14,000 different newsgroups. If you have a specific interest, chances are you can discuss it here. For information on Macintosh games, there are several groups that may be of interest to you:
comp.sys.mac.games.action
comp.sys.mac.games.adventure
comp.sys.mac.games.announce
comp.sys.mac.games.flight-sim
comp.sys.mac.games.marketplace
comp.sys.mac.games.misc
comp.sys.mac.games.strategic
Mac Games-Related Sites
The following list provides several major sites that are devoted to a particular game. Note that many entertainment companies provide home pages for their own games; these sites will be listed with the companies later in this article. I have tried to select the best sites available for each game, so that you can go straight to the best possible source of information.
Dungeon Master II: This link is a definite bookmark for any fans of MacPlay’s new RPG release. This site has press releases and general game information as well as many equipment lists. You’ll have access to information that any serious game player would need.
http://www.pacinfo.com/~rtaylor/dm2.html
Exile: Fans of this Fantasoft game may find the information contained here useful. You’ll find a large list of items as well as a “tourbook” to help you along while playing the game.
Infocom Games: This link contains lots of great information about all those classic Infocom text games. Includes information on how to obtain these games and even how to write your own.
http://www.csd.uwo.ca/~pete/Infocom/
Marathon: One new site for Marathon this time. Michael Neylon is one of the biggest contributors to third-party Marathon maps on the ‘net. He has created this site to flaunt his maps to people on the ‘net (and it works). You’ll find maps, and general ratings of each of his contributions. An extremely well done site...
RoboWar: Here are a few links with information about the shareware game RoboWar. They contain online documentation and information about Internet tournaments.
TacOps: This TacOps site is a gold mine of information. Although I haven’t played the game, it seems like this site has everything you ever wanted to know about TacOps, and more.
Ultima III: Created by the author himself, this site gives you the lowdown on the new shareware Ultima III for the Macintosh. Fans of the game will enjoy this site!
http://www.swcp.com/~beastie/ultima3.html
Warlords II: This Australian Warlords II page has lots of great information, updates, and links. Plus, it looks incredibly cool. This site is a must for any Warlords fans (or for those who want to know what it’s like to play games upside down).
Xconq: This site is a bit skimpy on information. It contains an overview of the game, the game’s manual, and the release notes as well as links to places where this shareware game can be downloaded. Nothing special here.
http://www.cygnus.com/~shebs/xconq.html
Sites for Computer Games in General
Many pages are devoted not to a single game but to a certain type of game or just games in general. Here are a few such sites.
Jumbo: A HUGE index of shareware games. Contains a search function or a regular ol’ index. Everything but the kitchen sink can be found here.
http://www.jumbo.com/
Mac Gamer’s Haven: This guy sent me mail notifying me of his Mac games site on the Web. Actually, it’s a pretty cool index (in HTML table form) of Macintosh games, demos available on the Internet, pages devoted to them, and corporate pages. A bit confusing at first, but once you figure out how it’s organized, it becomes very easy to use. Enjoy!
http://www.cen.uiuc.edu/~wmcqueen/games1.1.html
Flargh’s Mac Arcade Games List: This page has a tabular index of old coin-op arcade games and their Macintosh equivalents. A useful resource for nostalgics who are fed up with Microsoft Arcade.
http://www.tikkabik.com/mac_arcade.html
Games Patch and Hack List: The GPHL has been around for a long time on the Internet. It is a listing of modifications to games that can be performed with ResEdit, created to allow legitimate purchasers of games to remove the annoying copy protection. Keep out of reach of small children (or those who act like them).
comp.sys.mac.games FAQ: This document contains some of the most frequently asked questions in the comp.sys.mac.games.* hierarchy (listed above). If you have a pretty simple question about a game, look here first instead of annoying people by asking the question for the millionth time.
Mac Game Resources on the Internet: This listing is actually part of the csmg FAQ (see previous). It has been converted to HTML format in much the same manner as this listing in order to allow Mac gamers on the Internet to find information about particular games. This list tends to emphasize FAQ (frequently asked questions) documents for games while my list is dedicated primarily to Web sites. If you can’t find what you need in my list, check out this one.
http://www.pitt.edu/~schulman/macgames.html
Mac Game Gurus: The recently released book called Tricks of the Mac Game Programming Gurus provides several chapters of information to potential Mac game authors. This site, established by the publisher of the book, provides visitors with some excerpts form the book as well as several links to Mac programming sites on the Internet.
http://www.mcp.com/hayden/mac_game-gurus/
Corporate Web Pages
These pages are maintained the companies who create Macintosh games. Get the information straight from the horse’s mouth...
Ambrosia Software: This Macintosh shareware giant has recently established their presence on the Internet. They provide an extremely well-organized and aesthetically pleasing site with loads of information about their products. They also allow you to register your shareware online. Ambrosia plans to establish their site as a center for the Macintosh community in general; this link should soon prove to be an essential bookmark for any Mac user on the Web.
http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/
Atomic Software: The makers of the V for Victory series and several other war games has a fairly well-designed site with information about their products. Potential customers, enjoy!
http://atomic.com/
Broderbund Software: Wow, I’m impressed. Cool imagemaps, lots of product info, and Macintosh information as well as PC stuff. A cool site.
http://www.broderbund.com/
Bullseye Software: The makers of Dogfight City have made demos and screen shots available for your enjoyment. Not the most appealing site on the Web, but gamers interested in Dogfight City might find this page inviting.
http://www.nauticom.net/www/website/bullseye/
Bungie Software: After the tremendous wait and immense secrecy behind this project, Bungie has opened their Web site to the public. Well, you can go here if you want to. Personally, I’ll stick to the Marathon sites listed in one of the previous sections. CGI animations and tremendous amounts of visitors slow this site to a crawl, and the only useful information or products that can be found here are the software bundles (straight off the CD), which can easily be obtained elsewhere. They do have a contest available for those who register Marathon 2 online, though. Oh, and for anybody who’s seen the Bungie guys (i.e. been to MacWorld conventions), the caricatures of the Bungie personnel are a riot.
http://www.bungie.com/
Cerberus Development: The makers of the Mac shareware game Fracas have established this site as a center for information, product registration using online credit, and for downloading the latest version of their software. A worthwhile visit for those who enjoy their games.
http://www.transy.edu/~cerbdev/CerberusHome.html
Cyberflix: Makers of Jump Raven and Dust, Cyberflix makes available several documents containing enormous amounts of product information. Beyond the main page, it’s not very pretty. Don’t expect much more than huge text files for each of the products.
http://www.cyberflix.com/
Electronic Arts: Ugh. Ick. Eww. A five year old could have done these graphics. I didn’t stay long enough to see if there was ANYTHING concerning the Macintosh here, but if you want to, you can check it out.
http://www.ea.com/
id Software: I must say, those Quake screen shots look incredible.
http://www.idsoftware.com/
Origin Systems: Like many of the other PC-dominated companies on this list, the Macintosh gets the short stick at this site. Actually, I don’t know if it’s even mentioned.
http://www.ea.com/origin.html
Papyrus Software: This site is maintained by the makers of IndyCar Racing II. Not an incredible amount of information, and that image of an Intel processor on the bottom of the screen is an eyesore. I dunno. If you like the games, you might want to take a look.
http://www.papy.com/
Presto Studios: Woohoo! I LIKE it! Very slick, nicely done, etc. The makers of the Journeyman Project and its sequel have created a very nice-looking site to promote their games. Not too heavy on the text aspect, but it does what it needs to. Users of text browsers may be disappointed; the graphics are the high point here.
http://www.prestostudios.com/
Sanctuary Woods Multimedia: These guys also worked on the Journeyman Project. I don’t have much to say about them as I’m not really familiar with other things they’ve done (if any). If you feel any attachment to these guys, you could have a look. It’s actually a nice site...
http://www.sanctuary.com/
Trilobyte: These guys made 7th Guest and 11th Hour. Very cool-looking. A must for any fan of the games.
http://www.tbyte.com/
Online Stores
These links represent some of the first companies who have ventured out onto the Internet as mail order services. They will actually take you credit card information and ship a product to your door without having to pick up the phone. Cool, eh?
Cyberian Outpost: One of the pioneers of this method of purchasing products. Well organized and visually pleasing. These are the people who know what they’re doing. If you have Netscape and can establish a secure connection (i.e. it encrypts submitted credit card numbers so they can’t be intercepted in transit), you might enjoy shopping for computer supplies from the safety of your comfy chair (you have one near your computer, don’t you?).
http://www.cybout.com/
Egghead: The software giant goes online. Lots of products, great graphics, and even a decent Mac selection. Another good source for Mac software.
http://www.egghead.com/
The Mac Zone: The mail order house goes online. Like the others, it has some cool software that allows you to put items in your virtual shopping cart and then pay via credit card over a secure link. Take your pick of the three. Personally, I find this site less aesthetically appealing...
http://www.maczone.com/maczone/
Home Pages of People You May Know (Of)
I’ve found a few of the home pages of some well-known game developers. Most are both entertaining and interesting...
john calhoun: This is without a doubt the best page I have ever seen on the Web. Period. (And that’s saying a lot; I’ve been around quite a bit.) For those who don’t know him, John Calhoun is the guy responsible for such Mac classics as Glider, Glypha, Spaceway 2000, and Pararena. Great graphics, lots of cool stories, anecdotes, and interesting things to try. The text is well written and enjoyable, and the graphics and art are very well-done. Kudos to John!
http://157.151.80.1/jcalhoun.html
Matt Burch: The creator of the upcoming Ambrosia Software game Escape Velocity has set up his home on the Web on Ambrosia’s Web server. Some great links (for some great laughs, check out the Mentos link).
http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/~mburch/
Chris De Salvo: This guy is responsible for many of the games coming to you from MacPlay, including many of the Star Trek titles. Read about him and what he does for MacPlay...
http://www.deltanet.com/users/phixus/
David Wareing: The creator of Ambrosia’s Swoop now has his own home page as well. Meet the programmer...
http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/~dwareing/
Andrew Welch: Yet another link to a page on Ambrosia’s server. This page is a must-see, if only for the picture at the top of the page. I laughed so hard I nearly fell out of my seat.
http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/~andrew/
And They All Lived Happily Ever After...
Another Mac Games on the Internet article comes to a close. As usual, you can mail me at afn02635@afn.org (preferred) or JeremyC743@aol.com with your suggestions or comments. If there’s enough of a response, there could even be a third article...
