Steam is the world’s most popular digital PC games store — an online platform for downloading games straight to your computer instead of shopping at traditional retail outlets. The platform was launched to great success in 2003 thanks to the parent company, Valve, releasing it alongside one of the most highly anticipated PC games of all time: Half-Life 2. The company strategically ensured that Half-Life 2 couldn’t be played without downloading or registering the game on Steam, which was a controversial move but also the world’s first push into digital distribution. Since then, Steam continued to grow rapidly as dated formats like CD and DVD became obsolete.
Today, lots of Mac users are still wondering: does Steam work on Mac? Truth is, for many years, Mac users had very little access to the most recent games. Although Steam was originally Windows exclusive, it eventually began to support Macs too — with a catch.
Set up your Mac for gaming
Get Steam Games for Free in 2020. There are various gaming communities online, but Steam remains to be on the top of every gamer. It’s the most popular gaming store on the Internet today. It is the best place for gamers to play, discuss or create a game. You can also chat with fellow gamers using an app called Discord.
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The main reason for Steam not initially supporting Macs was them containing proprietary hardware that game developers struggled to cater for. Macs generally didn’t have the same gaming-oriented hardware that Windows PC users enjoyed, such as high-performance CPU chips and video cards. Additionally, Windows made it easier for game developers to interface with their hardware using widely supported API tools such as DirectX.
The lack of games on Mac wasn’t only due to hardware and software, but also the business model as a whole. In the early 2000s, Apple was more concerned with their suite of creative applications and music software rather than games. As gaming became more popular, the company struggled to enter the market through their own App Store, as competing products had already captured market share.
Thankfully, Macs shifted away from their own hardware to common X86 platforms used by Windows PCs, which included Intel chips and leading video card brands like AMD and Nvidia. Suddenly, gaming on Macs became viable — in an effort to reinvent the industry Apple is releasing Arcade this fall, its gaming subscription service for all the Apple devices. But while we are yet to see what is Apple hiding up its sleeve, Steam has already jumped on the opportunity to make it work.
Now is a better time than ever for gamers on Mac, thanks to greater Steam support and more powerful hardware parts. So if you’re wondering how to download Steam for Mac, you’re in the right place. Follow the instructions below and you’ll be ready to get your Mac games download going in no time:
Navigate to steampowered.com
Click the Install Steam on the top right of the screen
On the next page, click Install Steam (make sure the Apple logo is next to the button, the browser should have automatically detected you’re on a Mac)
When the Steam download for Mac is finished, click on steam.dmg
From the new window, drag steam into Applications
The install should now be complete. Test it by opening Steam from your Dock or Applications folder.
There are a few considerations to keep in mind if you’re thinking about installing Steam on Mac. First, you’ll want to ensure you meet the minimum requirements. Second, most of the popular games use a traditional two-button mouse configuration, whereas many of Apple’s mice only have one by default. You can usually update the settings of your mouse, including the Apple Magic Mouse, to use a two-button style in your System Preferences. Finally, you’ll want to ensure your Mac is optimized for the best gaming performance.
Despite Macs now having a more viable hardware platform for game developers, you’ll find that not all best Steam games for Mac are the same as Windows. Game developers still have to make accommodations for their games to run properly, most often quality assurance testing and specific Mac updates. In such an environment, here’s how you can find the best Mac games on Steam:
Open Steam from your Dock or Applications folder
Create a new account or log in if you already have one
All featured games (on the first page) should be Mac-compatible (identified by the Apple logo)
Double-click on any title to learn more about it
Click “Add to Card” and then “Purchase for Myself”
Choose Install Game Now
The Steam downloader will automatically start in the background and notify you when complete. Your game will then become available from the Library tab.
A helpful trick for first-time users is to take advantage of the Wishlist function, which adds games to a watchlist and notifies you when they are on sale. You can find the Wishlist button on the game page, near the “Add to Cart” button.
Additionally, you might want to begin your gaming journey with some free games for Mac. Windows 10 mac os high sierra. In Steam, navigate to the Store tab, then Games, and then Free-to-Play. You can download any of these following the same instructions as purchasing games.
If you find certain games are running slow, especially online, you may want to troubleshoot your internet connection. Mac users have a fantastic option for identifying internet issues in an application called WiFi Explorer.
WiFi Explorer automatically scans your network for coverage conflicts and then suggests tips for resolving them. In just a few seconds, you can see how well your WiFi network is performing, the strength of the signal when you move around your place, and your signal-to-noise ratio — so you can go back to gaming ASAP.
If you’ve finished a game, or you’re trying to free up space on your drive, you may want to uninstall a Steam game on Mac. But you might be wondering: where does Steam install games? The answer is relatively complex, as Mac structures its application files in such a way that accessing them in the Library can be difficult when compared to the Windows File Explorer. Thankfully, uninstalling games on Steam is easy with its built-in file wizard for Mac. Here’s how to uninstall Steam games on Mac:
Open Steam, then navigate to the Games Library
Right-click on a game and choose Uninstall from the dropdown
Click Uninstall on the confirmation window. The game will be removed automatically from your Mac.
If you’re looking to uninstall the Steam application itself entirely from your Mac, it’s best to uninstall your games first to ensure nothing gets left behind. After that, simply dragging Steam into the Trash wouldn’t be ideal. If you want the most reliable way possible to uninstall Steam on your Mac, you may want to consider using an application designed to do this thoroughly.
Free up space for new games
Get CleanMyMac X, a powerful app uninstaller and Mac cleaner. Win more space for the most interesting Steam games.
CleanMyMac X is a popular tool for Mac users that lets you uninstall applications and wipe their footprint completely from your drive (simply go to the Uninstaller tab, scan your Mac, and remove). Plus it grants you access to one-click optimization and other handy features such as browser privacy configuration.
Now that you know how Steam works, and how to install and uninstall games for Mac, you’re ready for gaming with confidence.
Best of all, WiFi Explorer and CleanMyMac X, which can help you craft the best gaming experience possible, are available for free via 7-day trial with Setapp, a software suite with more than 150 Mac apps to solve tech issues, increase your productivity, and express your creative side as well. Now let’s play!
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One of the most popular names amongst the gaming freaks and especially the PC Masters is Steam. Developed by Valve Corporation, Steam is a wide digital distribution platform, which provides digital rights management (DRM), video streaming, multiplayer gaming and more. It also offers the installation and automatic updating of games, and community features like a list of friends, in-game voice and chats functionality. Moreover, the software provides API called Steamworks for free, which helps developers to integrate many of Steam’s functions like networking, in-game achievements and matchmaking into their products.
However, this is not the only option when it comes to gaming clients and there is no harm in trying out something else. So, let’s discuss some of the best alternative gaming clients than Steam.
One of the best PC gaming clients, Green Man Gaming is a web-based store which sells digital keys for Steam, Uplay, Battle.net and more. It is ranked as the second biggest digital game retailer of PC gaming. Green Man Gaming has played the smart way as instead of competing with well-established Steam, it has a store which provides Steam keys with lower prices than Steam itself. With customers in 195 countries, the store is widely stocked with multi-platform digital games. Moreover, it also provides reviews, game data tracking, and discussions on its community as well.GMG has proven that using Steam as your ultimate gaming library doesn’t mean that you can only buy the stuff from Steam.
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One of the best alternatives of Steam is GamersGate, a digital gaming distribution platform for Windows and Mac computer. It offers the client-free interface, which makes gamers access their games without any third party involvement. GamersGate has around 6000 games available to download on the web. It offers a strong selection of AAA publishers along with wide variety of niche publishers. To meet the needs of the industry, GamersGate launched Blue Coins. It is the currency that can be used to purchase a game on the site. It can be earned by either performing an activity or directly purchased with cash. You can also earn Blue coins by ranking games, writing reviews and more.
OnePlay is one of the leading gaming stores which is accessible to all no matter what platform you are using, Windows, Mac, Android. It offers a subscription service which gives you access to 2000+ games. All the games available are of premium range and also add free. It also keeps you updated with latest video game news. It also gets you cheats and codes to cross a game level with losing your life. If you want to purchase a new game, you can always read the critic reviews and get to know about it. Unlike other gaming subscription services, OnePlay allows you to rent a game. In other words, you can pay a small amount to download a game and play it for 30 days. For now, the selection of rented games is limited but this system gives you the opportunity to run a game without an Internet connection and on up to 2 systems.
GOG is also considered to be the best PC gaming client as it provides DRM free video games through a digital platform for Mac, Windows, and Linux. All the video games and movies available in the store can be purchased and downloaded online. Just as the name suggests, it offers a wide and specialized range of old games which are not available easily. You don’t have to install special client software to download or run the games. It also allows you to download helping materials of games that you have downloaded. The gaming subscription service is customer friendly as it provides money back guarantee up to 30 days.
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An online gaming store, Direct2Drive is one of the best alternatives of Steam. Direct2Drive is the predecessor of IGN’s game store but now it is taken over by another company. The motto is same, pay for the games you like and download them right away. Direct2Drive provides huge discounts while promoting a game. Though you can download many of the games directly some of the games sold by the company still needs a DRM activation mainly on Steam, Uplay, and more.
Another PC gaming client Humble Store, that can be used instead of Steam. The gaming subscription service offers front for both small and big publisher games. The platform is open for Windows, Mac, and Linux. It provides games of established publishers like AAA publishers as well as niche publishers. The store is also indulged in the noble cause as the 5% of the price of all the purchase is donated to children’s video game charity Child’s Play. It also supports other charity services like American Red Cross, WaterAid, Wikimedia Foundation. Moreover, there is an additional option with which another 5% either goes to charity or refunded to the player.
Itch.io, yet another best PC gaming client for game lovers which allows you to host, sell and download Indie games. It is an open platform to aspire people to sell the content they have created. As a seller, it gives you full control, whether it is setting a price, running the sales or designing the pages related to the game. Itch.io is said to be the collection of different, interesting creations by different publishers. Itch.io also supports pre-orders, creating early-access content, selling rewards, bundling your content, and more.
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Microsoft Store was introduced with Windows 8 and has been the part of Windows OS. In 2017, the name got changed to Windows Store. The store provides a wide range of applications divided into different categories. One of them is games. Although, you will not find a wide range of games in the store there are some games that are exclusively available in Windows Store. It is not that of a good option but it is there if needed.
Another gaming client which can act as an alternative to Steam, Origin has a simple interface. It allows you to download, install and play your favorite games. The Origin library keeps your PC games organized in a single place for easier access. You can also save the progress of your most of the games on the cloud, in case you want to continue it on a different machine. It enables you to play single player games even if you are offline.
Last but not the least, Uplay is a digital gaming subscription service which can serve as one of the best gaming clients. The service is provided for multiple platforms like PC, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, iOS, Windows Phone, Android, and more. Uplay enables the gamers to connect with another player and also gives the opportunity to earn rewards based on their accomplishments(called Actions). Every Uplay enabled games gives the player points called Units after accomplishing the actions. With each action, a player gets units between 5 to 40 Units, which can be used to unlock game-related rewards.
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So, this is the list of some of the best gaming clients available. Even if you love Steam, still there is no harm in checking out your favorite game in other stores if it saves you some money.
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