You Thought Bugdom and Nanosaur Were Lost Forever
These days, the only pre-installed game you’ll find on a Mac is an addictive strategy-based war sim that pits royal factions against each other. And by that I mean chess. But now you can get unique, fun, classic games like Bugdom , Nanosaur , and Cro-Mag Rally . I thought these games were lost forever, but as it turns out, they can still be played.
I grew up with iMac G3. To the outside world, it certainly wasn’t a gaming machine, but it was my first PC. I could play the games I wanted to play, which were usually the two Mac ports of Harry Potter ( albeit soundtracks ), but my favorite part of the G3 was the pre-installed games: I didn’t have an N64, PlayStation, or GameCube, but I did have Bugdom , Nanosaur and Cro-Mag Rally. And that was fine with me.
What happened to Bagdom, Nanosaurus and Cro-Mag Rally?
If you don’t have fond memories of these games, here’s a quick recap: In Bugdom, you play as a pill bug, traversing 10 levels to save your world from an invading enemy ant. (I promise, it’s great.) In Nanosaur , you’re a heavily armed dinosaur outrunning other dinosaurs in an attempt to steal their eggs. (Again, that’s great.) And Cro-Mag Rally is a kart racing game set in the ancient world, complete with “timed” karts and weapons.
These games won’t sell in 2022, but they pushed some boundaries for Mac gaming and 3D development in their time.
It doesn’t end there though: the iMac G5 comes with two unique games: Nanosaur 2 , the sequel to the original dinosaur shooter (this time starring a deadly pterodactyl), and Marble Blast Gold , in which you control a marble through a series of progressively challenging racing games. trails to the finish line. To give credit, Pangea Software developed most of these games, as well as many other games that you could purchase separately, while Marble Blast Gold was developed by GarageGames .
The problem with these older games is that they were written for Mac hardware (PowerPC) which is no longer supported. The original game files exist, but if you download them to your Mac today, you won’t be able to open them. With the exception of mobile ports (which I’ll cover below), I thought most of these games were lost forever. Luckily, there is a way to play them on your current hardware by using both mobile ports and by completely rewriting the game’s source code.
How to Download Classic Mac Games or Play Online
There are currently two games available for download on Mac: Bugdom and Nanosaur . These games have been rewritten by developer Jorio for macOS, Windows, and Linux, allowing you to play the original games the way they were on your current computer. To install these games on your computer, please follow the links above, then choose your specific OS from the list of download links. This is a journey of nostalgia, of course. Do I miss playing these games on a classic CRT display with a matching keyboard and hockey puck mouse? Of course. But after years of not being able to play Bugdom outside of my own memories, I agree.
However, Marble Blast Gold is the easiest to play. The game and its sequel have been ported as a web application by the developer Vanilagy, which means you can play directly in your browser. Go to this website , then click on the ball in the top left corner to select Marble Blast Gold . You will find all levels already unlocked as well as over 2000 custom levels designed by other players.
Cro-Mag Rally and Nanosaur 2 have unfortunately not been rewritten for modern Macs, but you can play iOS and iPadOS ports of the games by downloading them for $1.99 (there’s also a free, ad-supported version of Nanosaur 2 ). The Nanosaur 2 is mostly as I remember it, but I’m a bit disappointed with the Cro-Mag Rally situation. Don’t get me wrong – I’m excited that this game will be playable in any form in 2022, but this version is not the one I really want. Cro-Mag Rally for Mac OS X comes with additional game modes, as well as a settings panel that allows you to customize the game’s physics. I’d love to experience those parts of the Cro-Mag Rally again, but it doesn’t look like it’s going to happen anytime soon.