Crossover Games for Mac

Making the decision

One of the hardest things to review about Codeweavers' implementation is the whole idea of a retail cost. For starters, we're talking about software that is genuinely open source, and there is the possible moral question of whether anyone should duly profit from it.

On the other hand, these are the same coders that have been driving Wine for ages and the money is going directly to the further development of games support. It's an unrealistic belief to hold developers responsible for developing for 95 percent of all computers simply because we fall in the five percent minority – so the idea of a company being funded to help us run software better is simply a blessing.

Let's be honest – how many people truly donate to open source projects? Even most of the penguin-clad zealots would have to put their hands down. When the money isn't flowing, people can't spend their full time on a project – and if all you can count on is the occasional charity of a few impressed people, the talented coders shouldn't be expected to donate much more. Codeweavers allows a direct injection into one of the biggest weaknesses of both Linux and Mac, and I hardly believe that isn't worth paying for.

In that, this software is a bit hard to rate – Crossover Games is in its infancy, and even that infancy is pretty damn impressive. However, we're talking $40 USD for software that really fits a niche at present. Though the wholehearted support from companies like Valve is both impressive and promising, we're still lacking the love of major developers and publishers like Epic and Electronic Arts. The growing library available on Steam is a great starting point for a multi-OS assault on the Microsoft stranglehold of gaming – but would it ever be seen?

Because of that, Crossover Games is in a precarious position – one that we as gamers need to look at closely. Piracy is an often justified behaviour nowadays, and it's probably even easier when you recognise that the base this software is built on is completely open source. Then, there's the idea of paying for something that will take time to grow into the all-around answer. Probably half of what you will look for out of this program isn't there – yet.

On the other side of the coin, it's a chance to actually stand up for support of both the developers and the OS of your choice. With time and funding, Codeweavers could evolve Crossover Games into the same fantastic and excellently supported program that it did to its initial Crossover project. Real gaming on Mac and Linux would be nothing more than $40 or twenty-five quid away for a fully featured solution, and the Wine code will reap the benefits for those who are willing to DIY their own solutions for free. Every change that Codeweavers puts into the Wine source goes right back into the GNU open license, so the benefits are pretty far-reaching.

Conclusion

So, bottom line...is it worth it?

The answer is, that depends. It depends on your moral stance, it depends on your needs right now and it depends on what you are willing to wait for. If you believe in supporting open source, supporting cross-platform gaming or have a love (like I do) for older games or things that don't require the absolute bleeding edge of technology, then the answer is an easy "yes." A simple $40 investment has allowed me to bring so many great games onto the computer that goes everywhere with me...and it will just get better over time.

For anyone else, it's not going to be the same equation. The compatibility list from Codeweavers will tell you pretty much everything you need to know – if your app is on this list at all (even just Honorable Mention), chances are it works. If not, it's probably in your best interests to just keep an eye on it – when the "turning point" game for you shows up, you can jump in with both feet.

In the end, I think that Crossover Games is a great start to an even greater goal. If you go into it expecting for everything to work flawlessly without thought, you may be disappointed. If you are looking for a program that already offers some neat functionality and is geared to offer a whole lot more, you'll be extremely excited at the prospect that Crossover Games offers.

Will it live up to its possibilities? That depends on funding...which, in the end, depends on people like you and I.

• Performance
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• 9/10

• Ease of Use
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• 8/10

• Features
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• 7/10

• Value
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• -
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• 7/10

• Overall
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• -
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• 7/10

What do these scores mean?