News
Valve Poised to Bring Games Shop to Mac
If you run a Mac, you get a lot of simple online shopping access (through iTunes) to movies and music, along with easy ways to post videos and photos on the web. But what about software? Macs don't have anything similar to the iPhone App Store.
Turns out some Seattle locals have beaten Apple to the punch.
Bellevue's Valve Software, makers of the Steam online-only shop for PC software, sent teaser e-mails to a few game- and Apple-obsessed outlets this afternoon, and each of them included playful references to Apple and Macintosh ads. This one, a play on the '80s era of Apple's magazine ads, should tickle anybody who grew up on a Mac. The take from the weird barrage of Apple puns, obviously, is that Valve will soon be bringing Steam to Mac.
That means Valve has beaten Apple in a key piece of the growing online-shopping world. It also could transform Macs into legitimate game machines, as Steam's priority is hardcore gaming. Though there's no indication that Steam will start selling non-game apps, the company's track record and quality product have put it in the alpha-dog position to do as they please.
I have repeatedly guessed that 2010 will be Steam's biggest year, and so far, I gotta thank Valve for making me look prescient. Yesterday's bizarre story about Valve hinted at some announcements coming on March 11, where they will be at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. I'll be on the scene to report the expected news.
Bellevue's Valve Software, makers of the Steam online-only shop for PC software, sent teaser e-mails to a few game- and Apple-obsessed outlets this afternoon, and each of them included playful references to Apple and Macintosh ads. This one, a play on the '80s era of Apple's magazine ads, should tickle anybody who grew up on a Mac. The take from the weird barrage of Apple puns, obviously, is that Valve will soon be bringing Steam to Mac.
That means Valve has beaten Apple in a key piece of the growing online-shopping world. It also could transform Macs into legitimate game machines, as Steam's priority is hardcore gaming. Though there's no indication that Steam will start selling non-game apps, the company's track record and quality product have put it in the alpha-dog position to do as they please.
I have repeatedly guessed that 2010 will be Steam's biggest year, and so far, I gotta thank Valve for making me look prescient. Yesterday's bizarre story about Valve hinted at some announcements coming on March 11, where they will be at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. I'll be on the scene to report the expected news.
