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With that in mind, we played through and evaluated a slew of free Mac games, and we’ve put together this updated list of the best free games for Mac. We made sure there is enough variety here to please most gamers, but this is also a perfect opportunity for you to try something new. Also, to help you decide, we’ve designated each game as Free (start to finish) or F2P (free to play, but purchases are possible). Of course, if you’re happy to just buy your games, feel free to check out our comprehensive list of the available today.
For the freebies, read on. Free-to-Play / Battle Royale Shooter Consider this your free invitation to one of the biggest gaming parties going on right now. You’ll play, you’ll have a great time, you’ll die, and you can always come back for more Fortnite Battle Royale is simply the free PvP mode of Fortnite. You and up to 99 opponents are dropped on a giant map where you must find randomly placed weapons, shields, and resources to help you remain the last player (or squad) standing. With the multitude of weapon types and shelter options available, Fortnite Battle Royale accommodates pretty much all survival strategies. You can’t just hide and hope for the best, however; the longer you survive, the tighter the playing area, forcing you to engage in combat instead of finding some remote area in which to camp. As you’d expect from one of the finest, the competition can become pretty caustic.
But there are a lot of friendly players, tooand some pretty good dancing. The games does lag a bit at times, and those who want to pay will be able to level up more quickly. But when it comes to third-person multiplayer combat action, Fortnite Battle Royal is a game you simply have to try. Free-to-Play / Real-time Strategy Here’s another game that gives you dozens of hours of content to play for free.
Some game developers are more cross-platform than others — for example, all of Valve’s own games on Steam and Blizzard’s games on Battle.net support Mac. The big digital PC gaming storefronts all have Mac clients.
In fact, it was recently updated to be even freer! If you want more (and you likely will), just pay for some new campaign chapters. Developed and published by, Starcraft II is a real-time strategy game that allows you to participate as one of three races: Protoss, Terran, or Zerg. Although a sequel (it’s set four years after the events of 1998’s StarCraft: Brood War, and uses characters and settings from that game), Starcraft 2 stands on its own. If you’ve played a previous Starcraft game, you know just how deep the gameplay and strategies can go. There’s a lot to do and manage, which is why fans have remained so loyal over the years. If you haven’t played one, Blizzard gives you a lot to do here before they start asking for money.
Starcraft 2 gives you the complete Wings of Liberty story campaign, unranked and versus AI for multiplayer (along with the ability to unlocked Ranked), and three-story commanders before implementing any restrictions or microtransactions. You can then pay to get the full story mode, individual commanders for co-op games, announcers, and skins. You won’t need all of it, but if you love what the free version offered, you’ll have plenty of options to keep the fun going.
100% Free / Adventure Spelunky—an indie action-adventure game created by Derek Yu—has you controlling an unnamed adventurer/explorer, known as the Spelunker. Your aim is to explore the underground tunnels and gather as much treasure as possible while avoiding the traps and enemies filling the tunnels.
Gameplay is straightforward: whip or jump on enemies; pick up items; or use bombs and ropes to further explore the caves. Levels are randomly generated, and you only get one life (if you die, you have to start from the beginning). Although this sounds like it’d make the game frustrating, it actually gives each run a unique feeling. There are two important reasons you’ll want to consider giving Spelunky a go. First, it’s an extremely light game that can run great on older Macs, including MacBooks. Second, it’s completely free from start to finish.
A good match for fans of 2D platformers who want to reminisce and remember the good old days of Castlevania, Spelunky offers plenty of great, free entertainment. Open-source / Real-time Strategy Here’s another game that’s completely free from start to finish. This open-source, historical, real-time strategy game comes from Wildfire Games, a group of volunteer game developers from around the globe who are obviously big fans of Age of Empires 2.
For a group that scattered and diverse, they’ve given us a surprisingly tight game of ancient warfare. In 0 A.D, you will begin development of your city, raise a mighty army, and contend with rivals to take over the world. Those rivals can be on Windows, Linux, and Mac. As you’d expect from an RTS game, you’ll spend time gathering resources, developing and advancing technologies, and defending yourself from attacks while launching campaigns on others.
Although 0 A.D. Is set in a fictional time, the game is rooted in reality. The randomly generated battle maps are based upon real geography of the ancient world, as are the detailed units, buildings and technologies.
If you’re a developer, you’re invited to contribute to the game’s growth. If you’re not, you can still get creative with the game’s map editor. It’s all free no matter how you get involved with 0 A.D., so dig in and get history started off right. And if you really like it, consider contributing to the game’s development. Free-to-Play / MOBA Which storm, you ask?
Wrong question. Which developer? So you know this multiplayer online battle arena game is worth your time. Consider it a League of Legends challenger with a greater focus on team play.
Fans of Warcraft, Diablo, Starcraft and other Blizzard titles will be happy to see their favorite heroes show up here. These Heroes of the Storm fight in 5 vs 5 battle arenas, engaging in versus AI, unranked and ranked fights.
The ranked fights are split into hero (solo) leagues and team leagues, both of which pit you against stronger competition as you rack up wins. In addition, Blizzard rolled out the Heroes Brawl game mode in 2016, expanding the gameplay styles with Arena, Mutator and Single-Lane rules.
There are around 80 heroes to rotate through, and if you find one you really like you can purchase permanent access to him/her/it through in-game currency or microtransactions. Speaking of that, microtransactions are otherwise relegated to hero customizations and mount purchases (horses, lizards, etc.). In other words, you won’t need to pay anything to fully enjoy the game.
Still not convinced? Heroes of the Storm also happens to be one of our editor-in-chief’s favorite games. Check it out and maybe you can take him on. Free-to-Play / First-person Shooter It was originally released as a standalone game in 2008 and we still cannot talk about the best free games for Mac without mentioning Team Fortress 2. TF2 is a team-based first-person shooter developed. Players choose a character from the multiple classes available, then join one of two teams and battle in a variety of game modes such as capture the flag and king of the hill. Its fan base remains faithful due to its art direction, gameplay, and humor, making Team Fortress 2 one of the top rated games of all time.
Plus, find the right team and Team Fortress 2 becomes an excellent cooperative. Fans of online first-person shooters will get into this one quickly, and remain active thanks to the game’s strong sense of community and the high production values typical of Valve. Purchases are relegated to unique weapons, outfits, and such, so they’re certainly not necessary to stay involved, yet another reason for the game’s enthusiastic fan base.
Free-to-Play / MMO There are so many good F2P MMOs out there that it can be hard to figure out where to start. If you’re in that situation, why not begin your adventure in the amazing universe of Middle-Earth with Lord of the Rings online?
Developed by, LotRO follows the story from the books and movies and gives free access to almost everything the game has to offer. The only differences with the paid version are the two character slots (as opposed to five), the fact you cannot send money through the in-game system, and the lack of destiny points (high-end points you have to be a VIP member to use). The small details are easy to forget considering LotRO is one of the higher-quality MMOs available. Lord of the Rings Online isn’t just for fans of Tolkien’s work, it’s for anyone who loves the classic MMO formula (such as World of Warcraft’s) but prefers to not have to pay for it. The amount of fun you can have with this game without paying a dime is outrageous, making it one of the finest free online Mac games available. Free-to-Play / MOBA League of Legends from developer remains one the most popular and successful Multiplayer Online Battle Arenas (MOBA) available. It’s so popular it has its own League of Legends Friends mobile app just to help you keep track of everyone.
In League of Legends, you assume the role of a “champion” with unique abilities, weaknesses, and strengths. Your objective is to fight alongside your team against other player or computer-controlled champions. In the most popular game modes (there are many), you have to destroy the opposing team’s nexus which lies at the heart of a guarded base. Battles last around 20 to 60 minutes, with your Champions starting out at a very low level. They gain experience throughout the match and—equally important—they earn gold that can be used to buy in-game items to increase their powers and abilities. These disappear at the end of the match and you start the next round fresh. You have over 100 champions at your disposal, and you can spend money to purchase them (as well as multi-game boosts) straight-away.
Beyond that, microtransactions are relegated largely to cosmetic items. Oh, and be warned that League of Legends is a complex and highly competitive game, and the community is known for being particularly harsh towards newbies. 100% Free / Adventure You’ve certainly heard of Cave Story—and you’ve maybe even played one of its console or Steam iterations—but did you know this Metroidvania style 2D platformer started as a “free time” project for developer Daisuke “Pixel” Amaya? It took him five years to develop the game, and it became one of the first Indie gaming successes. Cave Story quickly gained traction because of its great story and solid gameplay. You start as an amnesiac who wakes up in (you got it) a cave, and as per usual when you find yourself alone and without memories in a cave, you quickly learn you’ll have to fight a crazy doctor who plans to conquer the world.
The enhanced version called Cave Story+ is available pretty much everywhere, but the original Cave Story is still available for free. Free-to-Play / Collectible Card Game There aren’t many companies that can deliver the same high quality of free games as Valve, but one that certainly can is Blizzard. We already talked about Starcraft II, and here we are again with Hearthstone—a digital collectible card game based on the popular Warcraft universe.
If you don’t get into card games, don’t skip ahead just yetthis one is widely praised by players no matter previous feelings towards the genre. Hearthstone is much simpler than you would imagine. In every match, you pull three or four cards (depending on who goes first) out of your customized deck of 30 cards. There are different card types (weapons, spells and minions), but the objective is clear: empty your opponent’s health before he does the same to you. Hearthstone is a great game—free or paid—that’s a good match for pretty much any kind of gamer.
It’s easy for new players to get into but offers enough depth to keep you hooked. It also benefits from frequent, free expansions to refresh the available cards, and its light system requirements make it one of the top free games you can easily play on your MacBook. Free-to-Play / First-person Shooter Upset that Overwatch is still sorely missing on the Mac?
This may be the answer. Hi-Rez Studios’ Paladins focuses more on teamwork than most of the other free-to-play games we’ve included here. Players choose a champion from four possible categories: front line, damage, support and flank. You’ll need to pay to get access to all of the available champions, but the free options are more than enough to get you started. There are a wide variety of game modes to battle through in Paladins, including popular options such as siege, team deathmatch, survival, and co-op. Your champion’s abilities can be enhanced via cards which provide cooldown reductions, health bonuses, etc. In addition, in-game currency obtained by killing enemies and winning battles can be used to purchase even greater bonuses.
The team behind Paladins have stated that they drew inspiration from Team Fortress 2, but this game stands up quite well on its own, quietly becoming one of the hottest. 100% Free / Strategy No, this isn’t a Gimli-only mod for Lord of the Rings Online. Dwarf Fortress is its own unique entity—part construction and management, part roguelike, and text-based. Yes, text-based.
A typical Dwarf Fortress game involves a randomly generated world in which you indirectly control a group of dwarves in an attempt to build an underground fortress. Without much direction (the game has no objectives) and text-based graphics, this game is hard.
But that’s also Dwarf Fortress’ charm. Once you figure out how everything works, building that fortress becomes an addiction.
Also, part of Dwarf Fortress’s fame comes from the fact it’s a two-member project that survives solely on donations. Dwarf Fortress is a good option for folks who appreciate a good challenge (it’s famous for its difficulty and complexity) and who don’t need high-end graphics to enjoy a good gaming session. You can also feel good about yourself for supporting the indie movement. Free-to-Play / Fighting Here’s another game that promises “No Pay to Win. No Pay to Play. No hidden fees. No monthly costs.
And it’s going to stay that way forever.” Sound good? It’ll sound even better once we get into the specifics. Brawlhalla is a 2D platformer fighting game along the lines of Super Smash Bros., only with many more gameplay options (you have to have something to compensate for the loss of Ike, I guess). There are online ranked 1v1 and 2v2, online 4 player free-for-all, online 8 player free-for-all and 4v4.
Locally, you’ve got free-for-all, custom teams, and a single player tournament. And if the gameplay options don’t keep things fresh, the multitude of weapons and power-ups available during the brawls will certainly keep things moving along. If you do want to pay, you can unlock all of the characters or you can get different outfits for them.
But if you decide to keep your money to yourself, it won’t stop you from winning. Free-to-Play / Visual Novel Terrified by the concept of joining a book club? Then this game’s for you.
A visual novel by Team Salvato, Doki Doki Literature Club is actually a psychological horror game in disguise. It starts out innocently enough, with your character joining a high school literary club. There’s a poem writing mechanic you can use to flirt with the various girls in the club, and there’s a lot of dialogue to click through. But things turn dark very quickly and you’ll soon find that Doki Doki Literature Club is more about keeping the girls alive than it is about finding your one true love through books. The game breaks the fourth wall quite a bit, creating a wholly meta experience that’s effective even if you’ve never played a dating sim before. Be prepared for the disturbing contentand plenty of restarts. You’ll need to play through the game a few times to get the ending that won’t put you off high school clubs forever.
Open-source / Simulation Remember Transport Tycoon Deluxe? It was a business simulation game released back in 1995, so if you were too young or just missed it, its spirit lives on with this open source remake. Like its inspiration, the point of Open TTD is to make money by transporting people and cargo via planes, trains and automobilesand boats.
Each time you successfully move an object from point A to point B you’ll get income that can be used to build better methods of transportation. All this takes place between 1950 and 2050, giving you plenty of different technologies to develop and utilize (although mods and online content can take that even further).
Of course, technology has changed quite a bit since 1995, and Open TTD has taken advantage of that by expanding the game with larger maps, an enhanced UI, multi-language support, custom AI, and plenty more. Even better, Open TTD features online and local multiplayer with up to 255 players! And although updated, the game does retain its original visual charm. Open-source / Racing We gave you a Super Smash Bros.-style game earlier, so why not include some Super Mario Kart love as well?
SuperTuxKart is a kart racer with several racing modes for single and multiplayer action, as well as plenty of characters to obtain and use. Of course, what really matters in games such as this are the tracks.
There are 21 to unlock within the game’s story (it involves a kidnapping and a race-to-save-your-friend element if you must know), but with the open source model, there are plenty more to download via add-ons. SuperTuxKart has some pretty impressive, colorful racing environments that are fun to drive through. Fans of open source gaming will also get a kick out of seeing the mascots from other titles making their appearance here. Overall, SuperTuxKart offers a great deal of arcade racing fun.
100% Free / First-person Shooter Born as a wild west-themed mod for the Source engine, Fistful of Frags is a deathmatch game set in the Wild West. It has your basic options such as teamplay, versus and elimination modes, but separates itself with some unique mechanics. For example, it has a dual wield weapon system with double dynamic crosshairs, and you can even throw your weapons as projectiles when all else fails. And speaking of weapons, the historical guns available to you are slower to use than modern first-person deathmatch games, but they’re still quite powerful. It also forces you to play things a little more realistically than when you’re using tasers, bazookas and flak cannons. The more skilled you become with your guns, the more you’ll be rewarded.
You won’t have to pay a dime to play Fistful of Frags; no microtransactions exist within the game. Use the money to buy some whiskey if you’re of age, as the game seems to focus on that quite heavily. 100% Free / Turn-based Strategy With a name like Wesnoth, you just know it’s a place you’re going to have to battle for. Thankfully, the battles are turn-based on a hex grid that will take you back to the ‘90s visually, which was a tremendously colorful and detailed place to be. So, what will you do during The Battle for Wesnoth?
As described on the project’s website, “Embark on a desperate quest to reclaim your rightful throne Flee the Lich Lords to a new home across the sea Delve into the darkest depths of the earth to craft a jewel of fire itself Defend your kingdom against the ravaging hordes of a foul necromancer Or lead a straggly band of survivors across the blazing sands to confront an unseen evil.” That enough for you? The Battle for Wesnoth features 16 single-player campaigns and 46 multiplayer maps (online and hot seat) over which more than 200 units will battle. The game has developed a large, dedicated fanbase due to the quality and quantity of content, the engaging gameplay, and the fact that it’s free (not to mention its Tolkienesque setting).
That community has, in turn, contributed a ton of user-made content ranging from new campaigns and factions to artwork. 100% Free / Endless Runner Sometimes you want to play a game with just one button.
We get that, and that’s why we offer up Canabalt. This endless runner has been released on everything from iOS to the Commodore 64 (waitwhat?), and it offers plenty of frenetic fun on the Mac. Basically, you’re a dude running from some sort of threat.
We’ve all been there, right? In Canabalt, this involves running/jumping across rooftops as you dodge various obstacles along the way. Unlike in real life, you get faster as you progress, increasing the challenge. And unlike many endless runners available, the environments in Canabalt are procedurally generated. This means the game is more about skill than memorization, and it greatly increases the replay value.
If you’re looking for a free way to kill some time on your Mac, Canabalt is it. 100% Free / First-person shooter We close our top 20 with Unreal Tournament from Epic Games, but I expect it’ll be much higher up the next time we look at this list.
A new iteration of one of the all-time classic multiplayer first-person shooters, Unreal Tournament fills old-time gamers like me with nostalgia while pointing all players directly towards the future. If you’re too young to know, Unreal Tournament was initially developed in 1999 as an expansion for the single-player FPS Unreal, but quickly took on a life of its own. The game drops combatants on wonderfully designed (and quite memorable) maps in which they can engage in the usual multiplayer matches: assault, capture the flag, deathmatch, etc. Loaded with unique weapons, armor, and amplifiers, Unreal Tournament gives gamers of all types a way to win. This new version is still in alpha, so there’s plenty of work to be done (as evidenced by multiple reports that it’s still quite buggy). That means you’ll be helping the developers along by playing it, but it’s also your chance to improve your skills ahead of launchfor free. For the record though, it is unclear what will happen with this game as no updates nor a word from the developers have occurred in almost a year.
Games Games Our take Genre Demand Level MMORPG Guild Wars 2 Because you can’t have a guild without having wars. If you tend to prefer story-driven games, this MMORPG actually builds a storyline around your actions. It’s a great way to stay involved when you get tired of fighting for fighting’s sake. Developed by ArenaNet and published by NCSOFT, Guild Wars 2 uses a dynamics event system as opposed to traditional quests to create the story within its persistent world. Select your race choose your profession, pick your skills and join the fight. 74 Metascore MMORPG MMORPG Trove This sandbox MMORPG allows you to play as a pirate, a dinosaur tamer, a headless knight, and more.
Developed and published by Trion Worlds, Trove invites players to build a world, explore others, fight, and go home (it’s the only place you’ll be safe, after all). The game is visually reminiscent of Minecraft, but offers plenty more dungeons to explore, abilities to master and bosses to defeat. And because everyone’s competing with Fortnite these days, there’s a battle royal mode to keep the kids happy. NA Metascore MMORPG MMORPG EVE Online Surprisingly, this is only one of the few MMORPGs set in space as opposed to a fantasy world. EVE Online features over 7,800 star systems to explore and conquer, and its unscripted setup means you can do so at your discretion.
Its persistent world of mining, piracy, manufacturing, trading, exploration, and combat will keep you entertained for a very long time, and there’s now a limited free-to-play to help you get started. EVE Online has even been exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art, for crying out loud! NA Metascore MMORPG MOBA SMITE This free to play third-person MOBA from the developers of Paladins allows players to control a god and get into the thick of the team-based combat with the game’s third-person perspective. You get five free gods (from the available 80-plus) when you sign up, and new content is released every two weeks.
Start off in the newbie-friendly arena mode and build up your skills until you’re ready to become a Grandmaster in the SMITE World Championship (or just have fun with the numerous promotions events). NA Metascore MOBA Shooter Xonotic Totally free and totally open-source, this first-person shooter runs on a modified Quake engine and is inspired by Unreal Tournament and Quake (but with enhanced player movement). This means you can play classic modes such as deathmatch and capture the flag, but you can unlock 14 more for a wide variety of intense combat options. And as you’d expect when hearing the names Quake and Unreal Tournament, Xonotic, is a rare first-person shooter action amongst the other games on our list. NA Metascore Shooter Collectible Cards The Elder Scrolls: Legends A collectible card game featuring two-player turn-based combat (against a human or computer opponent).
The cards are based on characters and creatures from The Elder Scrolls, pitting the player character against a High Elf named Naarifin who intends to fulfill the Culling with the help of an army of demons. The game is free-to-play, with expansion sets available for purchase (including one that features elements from The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim). The latest—Houses of Morrowind—was just released in April of this year.
NA Metascore Collectible Cards Action Super Crate Box This is certainly one of the more unique freeware games on our list. Super Crate Box provides old-school arcade action mixed with the intense excitement of modern survival games. The enemies won’t quit coming, and the only thing you have to stop them is one of 14 weapons provided at random by the crate box. Pick up your weapon, kill as many as you can, then hit up the crate box for a new, different weapon. If you don’t stop the enemies before they reach the firepit they’ll return even faster.
May the odds be ever in your favor, or something like that. NA Metascore Action Shooter Marathon Oh, Marathon, glorious Marathon. One of the all-time great first-person shooters for the Mac is still available, and it’s available for free. You can’t call yourself a Mac gamer without having played this.
Marathon broke new ground in the first-person shooter genre across all platforms, which is quite an achievement as it was only available for Mac OS. Developed before microtransactions were even a thing, it’s totally free to play from start to finish.
Still a blast to play despite its age. NA Metascore Shooter Experimental The Plan “A fly ascends to the skies, pondering the pointlessness of its brief existence.” They say a fly’s life is only three days, but it’s not like it knows that, right? A fly doesn’t know death from Shinola. But we do, and that makes this “experiment” from the developers of Among the Sleep a beautiful bit of relaxing freeware. It doesn’t last much more than five minutes, but isn’t that kind of perfect? Gorgeous visuals and simple gameplay to share with others. NA Metascore Experimental Adventure Unturned Work with friends to survive a zombie-infested land (because that always turns out so well).
This F2P game comes from the creator of the Battlefield and Deadzone games in Roblox, bringing with it similarly blocky graphics that make the proceedings a bit more lighthearted than your usual zombie fare. You’ll be up against nature and other players—not just zombies—as you attempt to fortify your stronghold in the Yukon, Hawaii, Russia and other official and community created maps.
Also, you have access to jet skis and helicopters. As you should. NA Metascore Adventure Action The Expendabros Video games have thankfully become quite diverse over the past decade, but every now and again you just want to help some old-school arcade burly men go on an old-school action mission of intense side-scrolling mayhem. The Expandabros may be nothing more than a short but free way to try out Broforce, but we see nothing wrong with that when you get to control guys like Broney Ross, Bronar Jenson and Toll Borad.
Take down a ruthless arms dealer and his army of soldiers, artillery and circular saws exactly as ‘80s action heroes would want you to. NA Metascore Action Role-Playing Realm Grinder In this “clicker” from Divine Games you’re a monarch out to expand your realm. You’ll start with nothing more than a meager farm and a strong desire to explore, build, upgrade, and attack.
Are you good? Are you evil? Let the other players decide. Your concern should be solely with clicking to get rich. Whether you get there by dealing with elves, demons or any of the other dozen factions is up to. How much you spend it also up to you; Realm Grinder is free-to-play, but microtransactions are available if you tire of clicking. NA Metascore Role-Playing Action Iron Snout Not content to hide in his house of straw, this little pig would rather defend himself with cleavers, athletic equipment, and whatever else he can find.including the body parts of his enemies.
This free brawler is bloody and violent, but its colorfully cartoonish and often humorous presentation help to keep the proceedings light. The fast-paced action is enhanced by simple controls that helps you get started quickly, but you’re going to need some practice to unlock all of the game’s achievements. NA Metascore Action Strategy OpenRA This is your chance to play one of the earliest (and finest) real-time strategy games for free, as OpenRA is pretty much just Command and Conquer. The classic real-time strategy game from Westwood Studios has been made available through and maintained by the open-source community, and has been updated to run natively on modern operating systems and screen resolutions. So, although it retains the visual style of the 1995 original, it plays just fine on your iMac or MacBook. OpenRA offers many “modern features” as well, including dual-button mouse input, fog or war, and streaming support. NA Metascore Strategy Shooter Shadow Warrior Classic From the creators of Duke Nukem 3D comes his Asian counterpart.
This throwback first-person shooter is equally juvenile, equally over-the-top, and equally fun.provided your mindset is rooted firmly in the 1990s. The lead character’s name is Lo Wang, and that should tell you everything you need to know.
The bad jokes, gore and stereotypes are almost as prevalent as the repeated environment textures, but that’s just what we played in the ‘90s. It was either this or Mario Teaches Typing. At least now it’s free. NA Metascore Shooter. We know that game fandom is subjective.
We all have our own filters that lead us to a specific genre or title, but there’s a lot of commonality in those filters. Here’s what we used to determine which games should be included here and where they should rank. Native support: You’d be surprised how many Top Games for macOS lists feature Windows-only games.
Each and every one of the games mentioned here is officially supported on MacOS and does not require Bootcamp or Wine. MacOS performance: Having said that, we haven’t specifically tested each game on multiple Mac systems.
Because all of these games can be freely downloaded and tested, we didn’t feel the need to benchmark. Check our comments on each game, however, to see which of them are prone to lags or will work well on older Mac systems.
Critical acclaim: We know that our opinions are not the only ones that matter. To keep this guide as relevant as possible, we only considered proven games with positive reviews from both professional reviewers and average gamers. 100% Free VS. Free-to-Play: As we mentioned before, there’s a distinction between free and free-to-play (F2P).
Both are included here, but check our designations to see which are really free and which require microtransactions of various sorts. Great games are available at any cost. And although there are features and options in $60 titles that you’ll rarely find for free, we continue to be amazed by how much entertainment you can get out of a game that won’t cost you a dime to play. We had a lot of fun learning about and playing these games, and we hope you will, too.
As you check them out, we only have two requests for you. First, be sure to tell us about any great Mac free games we missed. And second, if you can, send some financial love to the developers. Game development is a hard road to travel, and these people deserve to be rewarded. Kirk's love for Apple and Mac gaming lead him to Applelinks.com in 1997, where he would eventually become editor. He was then hired to become editor of AppleTell.com before it was bought out and shut down eight years later.
During this time, he also contributed to GamerTell, Inside Mac Games, Mac Gamer’s Ledge, and Dealerscope. Kirk is now vice president of client services at Dynamics Online, Inc, and is also co-founder and managing editor of BESTAppleTV.com, a website dedicated to viewing, gaming, and browsing on the Apple TV device.
With the recent high sierra and the ability to connect egpu boxes via thunderbold there is a whole new world that opens for game players. Imagine playing with one of these top cards from Nvidia or AMD. Maybe we should open a page or forum thread for those who are interested in this option. As always, there is much more on the horizon than Apple pretends to publish. But as always, users will have to help each other out, even go into the grey zone to discover al the posibilities. Let the games future begin!
What are the best free Steam games? If you are bored and penniless, you don’t need to fear a gaming drought. Steam is full of games to play without spending a penny (no, not like that). What’s more, many of them are very good indeed: games that are just as much fun to play as their full-price, wallet-destroying siblings. In recent years, free games have become the norm, with some even overtaking paid-for triple-A tiles as the leaders of the PC gaming hobby. Take a quick look at Steam’s most-played list and you’ll see that a significant proportion of the biggest games in the world happen to be free-to-play.
So, because we desperately care about the health of your bank account – and honestly worry about how much money you’re spending on your nasty gaming habit – we want to help you find all the free games worth your time. Below you’ll find a bounty of free Steam games, all available to download and play right now. What are you waiting for?
Crossout is a post-apocalyptic MMO action game from Targem Games in which you craft and build monstrously-sized machines and use them to bash others in explosive online matches. So it is basically what you used to do during your childhood with Lego, but with the magic of computers. You can craft a wide variety of vehicles – from small, nimble buggies to rugged off-roaders – with an arsenal of weapons just as large: get your murderous hands on power drills, machine guns, and rocket launchers, or even stealth generators if you fancy a quieter approach.
With an arsenal like that, it is easy to see why Crossout is one of the best free Steam games. As you fight, you build your reputation with your chosen faction. In PvP or PvE (where you can even fight user-created bosses) engaging in some good ol’ shooting will grant you new parts and blueprints to continue your vehicular crusade. In World War II soldiers would often hear thunder in the distance and prepare themselves for rain, only for them to discover it was actually War Thunder; a free Steam game about planes and tanks shooting each other. Gaijin’s flight game straps you into a mind-shattering variety of authentic 1940s war machines and tasks you with surviving countless dogfights and land battles with other players. It is a game that is constantly being updated and improved, with the the biggest additions providing whole new types of vehicles like warships.
To help you make sense of it all we have put together a guide to air battles, and help with tank fights too. World of Warships. There are heaps of quality tank games available on Steam, but prospective admirals have far fewer options. Fortunately then, there’s World of Warships, which is not only one of the very best naval warfare simulations, but also a free Steam game. With 200 of the titular warships for players to unlock, from destroyers and cruisers to battleships and aircraft carriers, players can rest assured they won’t run out of new toys to aim for.
Not that you’ll notice the grind: the multiplayer naval battles of World of Warships are pure spectacle. Warframe lets you play as a space ninja, and that is probably all that you need to know to start getting excited.
Beyond that, it is a third-person co-op affair that pits you against goons and other space ninjas, all wearing fancy ‘warframes’ that provide special abilities. It is a slick action game with a hint of Destiny about it, thanks to its buddy-up mission design and shared-world social environments.
There may be a bit of grind involved if you want to craft the coolest gear, but you will be slicing people in half and powersliding around on your knees for most of that, so don’t be too concerned. It is one of the most popular free Steam games, meaning there is always people to play with, and frequent huge, expansion-like updates like Plains of Eidolon. Neverwinter is the MMO take on Bioware’s classic and beloved RPG, taking you to the Forgotten Realms and pitting you against hobgoblins, kobolds, and much, much worse.
It is a surprisingly robust action-MMO, with a strong emphasis on skill-heavy combat and a pretty world to explore. There is a bit of a push for players to buy things in the in-game store, but you can do everything without paying a penny. That even includes playing the frequent expansions, such as the recent Swords of Chult update that adds a new skirmish and refines the PvP elements. Star Trek Online. Star Trek Online is an MMO set in the unmistakable sci-fi world of the starship Enterprise, where you are given a ship, a crew and sent off on sci-fi adventures that feel authentically Star Trek. Though it’s ever-ageing, it continues to get regular free updates that add new, elaborate episodic missions, additional gear, and seasonal events. The story also has a tangible impact on the evolving galaxy.
While there is a cash shop and premium ships, the game continues to be extremely generous toward free players, allowing them freedom in their exploration of the final frontier. Star Conflict. Do you long for a free Steam game that is effectively one gigantic, endless spaceship dogfighting simulator? Star Conflict takes the idea of player-driven stories spawned by Eve Online and condenses it to a much more action-packed, combat-oriented experience with a much more gentle onboarding process. When you are not skirmishing in nimble fighters or massive frigates, you can simply explore the beautiful, vibrant cluster of ancient worlds scattered through its sizeable void. Heavy Metal Machines.
Wish that Rocket League was a little more Mad Max? Well now you can headbang and prepare for the apocalypse in Heavy Metal Machines, a 4v4 MOBA car action game. Help your team of hooligans nab and volley a bomb ball into the opposition’s goal to score with the first team to three wins the match. Even though the game in currently in Early Access the developers, Hoplon, have pinky promised that the game will now and always be free to play. Each machine has its own abilities, play style and punk-inspired character, one of them being a batty old lady riding a reinforced hover bike.
Each character has their own personality, heavy metal soundtrack, and a detailed background story over on the website. It’s hectic, explosive and good fun to play. Realm Royale. Battle royale is Steam’s biggest export right now, with PUBG commanding the gaming hours of millions. But what if you don’t want to splash out on PlayerUnknown’s wares, and you don’t fancy leaving the perimeter of Steam?
You need Realm Royale, the fantasy 100-player deathmatch from Hi-Rez. While it may look a bit like Fortnite from the outside, dive into a match and you’ll soon see that Realm Royale has several of its own ideas that solve some of the genre’s long-standing problems. You don’t have to leave behind loot that’s unuseful; simply disenchant it into shards, and spend these at a Forge to craft new, legendary-grade weapons and armour. But watch out: fire up the Forge and you’ll suddenly become the target of dozens of foes looking to swipe that new gear from under your nose.
It adds a new level of tension to the mid-game, something Fortnite and PUBG has yet to crack. Need help mastering it? ArcheAge, Trion’s free-to-play MMO, begins very much in the mould of tradition: quests, crafting, and slightly humdrum fantasy adventures.
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Get past that though, and the game quickly makes way for high seas escapades as you and some chums set off on your very own ship, becoming wealthy traders or unfriendly pirates, preying on other players. It is a true sandbox MMO that is vastly accommodating to the ambitious merchant, explorer, or scallywag. And the ambition is ever growing: the recent Legends Return update allows you to bolster your boat with dragon mounts, or return to the launch version of the game with ever-changing progression servers. Warface is a gritty free-to-play first-person shooter that you can tackle with or against your friends in co-op or competitive versus modes. You will find plenty of variety while playing with others as you attempt to master a range of teamwork strategies and playstyles on multiplayer maps that change every day.
Get to grips with the Rifleman, Sniper, Engineer, and Medic classes, and bask in the atmospheric environments that are beautifully rendered by Crytek’s CryEngine. With a substantial array of weapons and difficulty levels all available without spending a penny, Warface is a great option for some free FPS action. One of the great MMOs of our time, EVE Online is now available to play without a subscription fee. This means that literally anyone with a PC can start their own voyage of discovery within the vastness of space. The only question is: who will you be? Unlike class-based fantasy RPGs, EVE isn’t about being a ranger or a warrior and saving the world. It’s about becoming a cog within a huge, player-controlled universe.
So will you be a trader and help bring much-needed items to others? Or will you rise through the ranks of a corrupt corporation and engage in tactical sabotage against your enemies? These are just two of the countless thousands of paths that are available to you in this incredible, unrivaled MMO. Science fiction meets fantasy in this action-heavy MMO where players gain power with the ultimate goal of becoming a deity. Lofty is an understatement, but Skyforge delivers countless hours of action with a lot less grind than average free Steam games. Skyforge does without traditional levelling structures and set classes and instead lets you progress you character based on your total stats and XP.
As for classes, you can swap between any of the 12 unlockable classes at will, giving you plenty of flexibility when approaching a new combat scenario. It may get a lot of stick for looking like Overwatch, but Paladins has got its own take on the hero shooter formula. Using a deck of cards that imbue special passive abilities, you help your team capture control points and escort a siege engine to the front door of an enemy fortress.
Champions level up throughout a match, with each new level upgrading their skills by drawing new buff cards. Afterwards, you can open chests, pick up more cards for your decks, and voila, you’ve got a new favourite free Steam game. Smite is a MOBA with a twist: you control your religion-influenced gods like you would in a third person action game, with the camera positioned behind them. This makes Smite feel a very different kind of 5v5 game, and the differences do not stop there. Smite has numerous modes, including the team deathmatch-influenced Arena. That said, it has still got plenty of familiar stuff: lanes, creeps, and items are all present and correct, and the pantheon of gods is being ever added to. If you are just getting started, check out our Smite beginner’s guide.
You might have spent many hours with Hearthstone, but a true rival to Blizzard’s epic CCG looks to be on the cards, so to speak. Shadowverse is an immensely popular game in Japan – quickly becoming its biggest of the genre after the mobile release in 2016 – and is already setting the rest of the world on fire.
It is destined to be your next free CCG fix. With the freedom of many strategies and playstyles to experiment with, and minimal RNG, Shadowverse always feels fresh. And that is before we mention the new card expansions that hit every three months. It is very easy to get started with, too: a tutorial, single-player story, and free card packs for beginners will get you going, but Shadowverse takes time to master. Fractured Space. It is easy to think that every MOBA is a Dota clone, in the same way we all thought every shooter was a Doom copy in the 90s.
But that is not true; the MOBA genre is expanding and offering new experiences. Take Fractured Space, for instance. It is a 5v5 game where players travel down lanes and destroy the enemy base. But forget anime-styled heroes and jungles; Fractured Space is a sci-fi epic. Kilometer-long frigates warp into battle, pounding the enemy with missiles and lasers, and explosions tear apart zero-g instillations.
There are hotkey abilities, but you will be activating anti-ballistic lasers rather than a flashy skillshot. It retains all the tactical finesse of a MOBA, but never feels like one. It is the first true progression for the genre, and you can captain one of its incredibly detailed ships for free on Steam. MapleStory 2. MapleStory 2 is a colourful MMO that’s ideal for fans of deep customisation and entertaining co-op. Once you’ve chosen the perfect haircut and fashion style for your avatar, you and some virtual pals can explore and fight baddies in the gorgeously blocky, Minecraft-style universe of Maple World. There’s plenty here to keep you busy: with public events, dungeons, bosses, mini games, and home-making to name a few activities – this endearing world will swallow up your free time.
Even better, it’s a free Steam game, too. You can’t say fairer than free. Winning Putt. If the one thing you feel like your life is missing is a golf MMO, then Winning Putt is here to make sure your dreams are fulfilled. A multiplayer stick and ball sim built on the CryEngine, it allows you to create a character and train them up to become a worldwide leader in the art of hole-in-one.
Using microtransactions you can pay real-world money for ‘enchanting material’ or a bigger shaft (steady). But, like in the best free Steam games, you don’t have to, and such trappings shouldn’t detract you. This is a golf game where you can play a round on the alien planet of Starglen, after all. Atlas Reactor. Atlas Reactor has the hallmarks of a good, old-fashioned PC game: thoughtful turn-based tactics, endless loadout tweaking, and a robot dog who is up for a scrap. But it is also thoroughly modern, thanks to its competitive PvP and a relentless rhythm that means it barely feels turn-based at all.
That is made possible by a battle system in which players plot their moves at the same time before watching the explosive outcome. It is part League of Legends, part XCOM, and that is a genre clash that has to be witnessed. Path of Exile. Considerably more grim and gothic than other action games out there, Path of Exile is also blessed with one of the most compelling levelling systems seen in an RPG. An impossibly large and liberating grid of abilities and improvements awaits, ready to allow you to enhance your character in any which way you see fit. To unlock those tantalising abilities you’ll need to battle your way through the monster-infested world, making use of a combat system that is (whisper it now) possibly a bit better than Diablo III.
Rift is an exciting MMORPG from Trion Games, and it is a pretty popular free Steam game. Set in the epic fantasy world of Telara, you will be embarking upon a journey that sees your character grow, develop new skills, wield special weapons, and defeat dangerous beasts.
Once you have decided which faction you will be siding with – either the Guardians or the Defiant – you can start your adventure in this massive, rich world. You also have plenty of choice in which Calling you choose. Will you be a Warrior, Cleric, Mage, Rogue, or Primalist? Or, if you just want to bypass all that rigmarole, you can choose a Purpose: a pre-made profile so you can just get stuck in straight away. Team Fortress 2.
What can one say about Team Fortress 2, Valve’s mega-popular, constantly evolving shooter? It has many hats. It is also extremely refined, always full of players despite launching in 2007, and gets frequent updates to fatten the game up with even more hats, modes, and maps. But despite how much the game has grown in the nine years since it launched, it remains easy to pick up, especially if you have some chums to play with. The package itself now feels infinitely huge, with a great variety of game types, from the classic capture point Red vs.
Blu games, to co-op Mann vs. Machine, where players band together to keep waves of murderous robots at bay. Dota 2 is massive, second only to League of Legends in the realm of MOBAs. Millions of people seemingly play it constantly, always coming back to check out new characters and patches.
As a MOBA with roots in the origin of the genre you know exactly what to expect: an eclectic roster of champions, a huge list of powerful items, ten players, three lanes, and a massive emphasis on skill. You could spend days and days just thinking about the metagame, not to mention honing your talents by spectating the biggest matches come tournament season. Budding players need to get started somewhere with this free Steam game, so check out our guide to the best Dota 2 heroes. Card games have become big business on PC, and it is all too easy for them to feel quite similar. Duelyst is unlike any card game out there, though. It combines the RNG and card drawing systems of games like Hearthstone with turn-based tactics mechanics. Each card you play summons a character onto a chess-like board, and you can move them around in order to flank enemies or escape them.
This added layer brings a new level of thought and tension to a set of familiar rules. Combined with colourful, retro-cool art, Duelyst is one of the most original and captivating free Steam games. Planetside 2. PlanetSide 2’s scale is something to behold. Whole continents are locked in constant conflict, with armies clashing over bases, vehicles speeding across the ground, aircraft lighting up the sky – it is glorious until you die thanks to a sniper sitting a mile away.
You will want to play with friends for this one, or at least be equipped with a microphone, as the chaos of battle only starts to make sense when you are in a squad that communicates. Think Battlefield’s capture-point style gameplay, but on a large, never-ending scale, with three factions locked in ceaseless combat. Absolute FPS bliss. What should you do when a load of terrifying alien monsters invade your city through breaches in your very dimension? Since there is not really a precedent for it, we recommend hiring the closers, an elite band of psychic teens with a penchant for alien bashing. Choose one of five colourful characters from the Black Lambs team and introduce these beasts to their interdimensional maker with chains of ridiculous combos.
In PvE and PvP modes, Closers is a free anime action-RPG that allows you to smash aliens through the gravel with buses and slash them in a flurry of sword strikes. Now that is how to deal with an alien invasion. And there you have it: the very best games available on Steam that will cost you absolutely nothing. We’d even consider some of them the. And since they all come at everybody’s favourite price, it means you can play even more games than before.
Why not try them all and see which ones are for you? Afterall, it won’t cost you anything.