Re:Valve Says Counter-Strike 2 for macOS Not Happening, Ther...
by TheRealDunkirk on Friday October 13, 2023 @08:36AM
(#37869877)
Gaming in the 90's started out on OpenGL, which was and is cross platform. Ports for Quake were being made for things like SGI workstations, because it was relatively straightforward. Microsoft headed off further development in a cross-platform gaming environment by creating a Windows-only API, and making sure developers used it, with lots and lots of money. Windows became the de facto platform because Microsoft used their monopoly to kill off the burgeoning threat of an open ecosystem. If it hadn't done this, Macs and Linux could have been viable gaming platforms, despite their relative marketshares.
Re:Valve Says Counter-Strike 2 for macOS Not Happening, Ther...
by xcv123 on Friday October 13, 2023 @04:35PM
(#37875325)
That's backwards. Market share is all that matters for commercial games. If there are no customers for a platform theres no point supporting it. Windows got the market share and it was over for Mac gaming. Linux was irrelevant in the 90s. You need a CS degree to install it and it had approximately zero users.
If Apple had the market share then developers would have targeted Mac and ignored DirectX/Windows.
Microsofts market share was nearly 100% in the 90s and that's how they became the de facto gaming platform. Because it was the de facto PC platform. Apple was a much smaller company and nearly went bankrupt in the 90s. Microsoft dominated for many reasons that had nothing to do with gaming and the legacy continued. Bill Gates was in court for antitrust violations. Apple focused on other niches besides gaming just to survive and avoid bankruptcy.
Mac still only has 8% market share, hence Bethesda not caring about Mac. The market is just too small.
https://www.cnbc.com/2023/07/11/apples-mac-market-share-jump...