Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 are coming to the Mac!

News Reader · Post by **News Reader** » March 9th, 2010, 8:00

Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 are coming to the Mac!
Author: Shawn Zabecki Valve
Category: Valve news update Valve news update
Publish Date: Mon, 08 Mar 2010 11:56:33 -0800

Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 are coming to the Mac!

We like the platform wars in the forums so much that we've decided to add a new platform to the fray. Later this spring, we'll be releasing both Left 4 Dead 1 and 2 on the OSX operating system for Mac computers, all through Steam.

Steam on the Mac will behave just like Steam for Windows, but through Steam Play will add cross-platform ownership. That means if you own Left 4 Dead 2 for Windows, then you already own it for the Mac. There's no need to buy it twice! Unless you want to buy it twice, in which case, as long as you're feeling so generous, why not buy it five times?

Plus, Mac and Windows players can go head-to-head, since both Left 4 Deads are cross-platform compatible. Mac owners can even host their own servers and create their own maps, just like Windows users.

The Mac Versions of L4D1 and 2 don't run under emulation software but in native code. That's technical talk for how cool your friends will think you are with your five copies of Left 4 Dead 2 for the Mac.

We'll be releasing the exact system requirements soon. The Mac versions will be updated in sync with the Windows versions, so the platform wars can continue uninterrupted.

Even though Left 4 Dead 2 is the only game you'll ever need on any platform, as a purely academic exercise, you should probably check out the complete catalog of games available on the Mac when the Steam client is released in a few weeks.
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spoodie · Post by **spoodie** » March 9th, 2010, 9:40

Interesting. Be worth a try just because. TF2 ran quite well on my laptop with bootcamped Windows XP.

Post by **Grimmie** » March 9th, 2010, 12:01

* Changed Lewis skin, now wears a cardigan and thick rimmed glasses
* Lewis pops caffeine pills instead of painkillers

* Zoe now carries an macbook pro and uses an iphone to communicate

Post by **HereComesPete** » March 9th, 2010, 12:35

Grabbin' peels as sponsored by apple!

Mr. Johnson · Post by **Mr. Johnson** » March 9th, 2010, 12:45

New melee weapon added: apple Ipad®

buzzmong · Post by **buzzmong** » March 9th, 2010, 13:07

That's actually really nice of them, if you own the game in the first place you can use whichever version you need too without buying it again for the other platform.

I think ever other company would have perhaps forced you to buy the new version.

Also nice is the crossplatform play, about time Valve reintroduced that, used to be able to do it from linux with GoldSrc iirc.

Post by **Joose** » March 9th, 2010, 13:36

buzzmong wrote:That's actually really nice of them, if you own the game in the first place you can use whichever version you need too without buying it again for the other platform.

I think ever other company would have perhaps forced you to buy the new version.

Blizzard have always done it too, iirc. Of course, Blizzard have supported macs so long that there was a time when Warcraft was damn near the only real game on the mac...

Sol · Post by **Sol** » March 9th, 2010, 18:31

Poertal 2 is to be on macs too. Whee.

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » March 9th, 2010, 18:35

I assume all source engine stuff will make it to mac eventually, as it's most likely a lot of work has gone into converting stuff from directX, to OGL.

Post by **deject** » March 9th, 2010, 19:04

Dr. kitteny berk wrote:I assume all source engine stuff will make it to mac eventually, as it's most likely a lot of work has gone into converting stuff from directX, to OGL.

Their source control system now creates 32-bit/64bit Windows code and OS X code automatically when source is checked in to the system, so it's basically effortless for them to make Mac versions now.

Sol · Post by **Sol** » March 9th, 2010, 19:04

An arse load of work i imagine. Here's hoping that the multiplayer elements will be cross-platform though...
[editz]

Looked into it, and it is. Hurrah.

Now i have a valid excuse to buy that mac pro.

Post by **Dr. kitteny berk** » March 9th, 2010, 19:27

deject wrote:Their source control system now creates 32-bit/64bit Windows code and OS X code automatically when source is checked in to the system, so it's basically effortless for them to make Mac versions now.

Still, full engine rebuild to get to this point

Post by **Roman Totale** » March 9th, 2010, 19:40

HereComesPete wrote:Grabbin' peels as sponsored by apple!

buzzmong · Post by **buzzmong** » March 9th, 2010, 19:51

Dr. kitteny berk wrote:Still, full engine rebuild to get to this point

Arguably though it's the smallest part of a game. Art assets (inc levels) normally take the longest to develop, and handily, are cross platform.

Post by **HereComesPete** » March 10th, 2010, 11:02

Roman Totale wrote:

I figured you'd notice.