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The Last Macintosh &
The Last Classic Mac OS:
A Tribute

Tomb Raider Summaries:
An opinion on the classic games

Old Tomb Raiders on New Macs

May 18 2020

With Apple's decision to end 32-bit support, and introduce Catalyst to allow conversion of iPadOS apps to macOS, from 10.15 Catalina onwards, Dave has made a further update to the otherwise mothballed 'Old TRs' article to document its consequences, as well as updates to the Boot Camp and emulation sections due to Microsoft ending support for Windows 7 in January 2020. Since Dave now games on hardware other than Macs, these are based on documentation and news coverage rather than experience.

Apple have also announced the depreciation of the OpenGL and OpenCL graphics libraries in favour of their own Metal API. When these are in turn removed from some future release of macOS, further games, including TRs, may be affected. It's possible that no current Mac TR will run at that stage, or that manual installs of the older libraries may be required.

STOP PRESS: While preparing this update a number of viable sources have indicated that Macs based on Apple's own ARM chips, possibly a 12-core version of the A14, will appear during 2021. Previous Mac CPU transitions (M68K->PPC->x86->x86-64) have offered temporary backwards-compatibility at best. Any further updates will have to wait on a formal Apple announcement.

Also, Valve ended native VR support on Macs at the start of May 2020 because that relies on OpenGL features (Vulkan) not directly supported in Metal. Windows-on-Mac options (BootCamp, emulators) should still function.

March 28 2019

Aspyr Meadia have pointed out that after OS 10.14 Mac OS will no longer support 32 bit games:http://www.feralinteractive.com/en/news/933/

This means that TR Anniversary and Underworld won't be playable on Macs running the new 64 bit (only) systems.

October 20 2016

With no new Mac or iOS Tomb Raider news in the last several months it would appear that MacRaider is in a state of stasis. Indeed, with The Rise of the Tomb Raider only just now releasing on PS4 it looks unlikely (hardware specs not withstanding) that even that title will make its way to the Mac platform.

It was my intention, when taking over the site that it would be a static repository for the information accumulated by Kerrie and while there has until recently been the occasional report by me and the inclusion of the ' Old TRs on newer Macs' page kindly contributed by Dave it seems that MacRaider may be reverting to that original vision.

When MacRaider started, Tomb Raider could be played on a lowly 7200/90 Power PC Macintosh running System 7. It would seem that the latest iterations of the game have not only outgrown MacRaider but possibly the Mac platform itself.

For those who still enjoy playing the early games the information will remain available here for the interim and I am still more than happy to answer any email queries about those games.

Happy Raiding.

February 13 2016

Aspyr have posted information on their support site that an Apple security update could break some Mac games. As TR2 is included in the list of affected games it might be prudent for users to check this information..

Also of interest is the news that some of Aspyr's games will no longer support Mac OS 10.7 or older. Although Tomb Raider is not specifically mentioned it would be reasonable to expect that some games will be affected.

More info here

September 3 2015

Square Enix have released yet another Lara Croft game for mobile devices. 'Lara Croft Go' is available for iOS and Android from the Apple App store for around US$5. I haven't played much of it yet so too early to form an opinion but the game is getting good reviews.

June 5 2015

For those with iOS devices a new Lara Croft adventure called 'Relic Run' is now available free on the App Store. Game play is very similar to another popular game in the same genre. I haven't played much of it yet, mainly because I'm not very good at 'runners' but the graphics look good....and it's free!

February 1 2015

If you are looking for more Tomb Raider to play don't forget trle.net. The site has been around for many years and is a repository for a vast number of TR custom levels. An interesting article can be found here. A link to the site can always be found in the MacRaider links section.

December 9 2014

Tomb Raider II has been released for iOS and is available on the App Store. I haven't finished TR 1 for iOS, mainly due to the controls which eventually took their toll. Judging by the many complaints around the net the controls for TRII are no better. A shame really since both games look really good on an iPad with retina display. Square Enix stubbornly refuse to make the game bluetooth keyboard compatible even though Apple i devices are.

September 1 2014

I have made a small update to the TR11 & The Golden Mask page relating to playing the Intel version:Tomb Raider II and TR II: The Golden Mask

June 21 2014

The next Tomb Raider game in the current series has been announced entitled 'The Rise of the Tomb Raider' Since the game seems to be following in the footsteps of last years reboot it doesn't seem any more likely that I'll be playing this one particularly if the current trailer is any indication.

Of more interest (to me) is the announcement of a sequel to Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light enetitled 'Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris'. The game will be available on PC, X Box One and PS4 and will incorperate four player co-op.

April 24 2014

The 'Old Tomb Raiders on New Macs' page has been updated. Dave has brought the page up to date as of Mavericks. This will probably be the final update for the page due to changes in his gaming set up and the increasing improbability of playing any of the early Tomb Raiders in the newest Mac OS.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Dave for his tireless work on what is surely one of, if not the most comprehensive articles on the subject.

I would also like to remind everyone that the page includes a handy, colour coded section for those wanting to quickly ascertain whether or not the TR they want to play will run on their hardware/software.

January 30 2014

Happy Birthday Mac

January 30 2014 marks the 30th anniversary of the Macintosh computer. I have been using Macs for most of that time and have seldom touched a PC. MacRaider is still being produced on the same Power Mac G4 as it was when I took over the site in 2008 running OS9 Classic. Obviously MacRaider would not exist without the Macintosh computer and I may never have played Tomb Raider if I wasn't already using the platform.

Many Happy Returns Macintosh.

Dccember 19 2013

At last some interesting classic Tomb Raider news; Tomb Raider 1 has been released for iOS (iPhone/Pad etc). Although not specifically Mac related I thought it worthy of a new post. I have only just begun playing on an iPad with retina display and the graphics look great. Some people have complained about the controls but I haven't found them too bad. Perhaps steering Lara while running could be improved. The game is available from the Apple App Store now for a measly US99c.

RIP Tomb Raider 1996 to 2013

With the release of the Tomb Raider reboot it is obvious that the game I have loved playing for more than a decade is gone and has been replaced with something far darker, more bloodthirsty and (for me) disturbing. It was always my hope that Tomb Raider would become more light hearted and even include more of Lara's dry humour but it seems that the developers have decided to take the opposite route and I have no wish to play a game which focuses on the pain and suffering of any character let alone my favourite, Lara. FWIW I believe that the old formula had a lot of life left in it and many more areas to be explored. Tomb Raider has joined a genre that I have no interest in no matter what name is given to the game or character.

Reportedly the developers have at least gotten the gameplay right with the new game. It's just a pity that they could not have implemented this within the old format.

With all of this in mind I would like to pay tribute to a game which has given me many hundreds of hours of gaming pleasure but has now (for some of us) come to an end.

It now remains to be seen how relevant MacRaider is in 2013. If people are still accessing the site for information/help regarding the original games I would appreciate an email so I can get some idea of the level of interest.

I will acknowledge that the new game has received excellent reviews. I think it is a pity though that the developers have had to alienate some die hard Tomb Raider fans and take the path they have.

January 18 2013

As there has been no real, new Mac/Tomb Raider news since the release of Underworld for OSX and Aspyr haven't seen fit to port any more of the early TRs to OSX since releasing TR2, it seems that MacRaider might be in a state of stasis. The site will remain online as a support base and I will report any new news should anything arise.

I have posted an update to the Old Tomb Raiders on New Macs article from Dave.

FWIW recent news/footage of the new Tomb Raider reboot have only served to galvanise my opinions of the game and it is doubtful that I would even play the game once it reaches the cheap bins. A question to ponder might be: when does Tomb Raider stop being Tomb Raider and start being some other game with only the title and character name attached to it?

May 17 2012

At last some good Mac/Tomb Raider news! Feral Interactive have announced that they will be releasing Tomb Raider Underworld for the Mac on May 31st. Good things come to those who wait!

For more information follow the Feral Interactive link on this page.

February 14 2012

Happy Birthday Lara! The 'real' Lara that is ;-)

November 11 2011

It has become apparent that if you choose to run the Classic Tomb Raider 2 Golden Mask levels in the new Intel game you will not be able to save your progress i.e. if you try to save the game will quit to the desktop. There is currently no fix for this but if a workaround is found I will certainly post it here.

November 5 2011

I have received information from Attila that the Classic TR2 Gold levels can be played in the new OS 10 re-release. Also Manu has been able to get anti-alissing and wide screen working although this requires a special app. This and all other information on the new Intel TR2 can be found on the Tomb Raider II & The Golden Mask page (link at left).

RIP Steve Jobs 1955 - 2011

October 28 2011

The re-released Tomb Raider 2 for OS 10 (Intel) is now available at the Apple app Store for US$7.99. Thanks to Manu for allerting me to this.
It doesn't seem as though the Golden Mask levels have been included.:-(

September 28 2011

I have been in contact with Aspyr Media to try and find out more information about the re-release of TR2. They were forthcoming with a few extra snippets of info:

The re-release will be available for download through the Apple App Store.
It will be compatible with OS 10.6 and 10.7.

I asked if The Golden Mask levels would be included but this was not answered.

I also asked about the possibility of the other Classic Tomb Raider games receiving the same treatment and was told that: 'We are assessing the re-release of multiple titles from our catalogue to be released in the same manner'. Slightly cryptic but encouraging ;-)

Go to my News Archive for more news!

MacRaider is a one-person Mac-user fan site, dedicated to bringing you the best possible information to help ease your way through the Tomb Raider games.

On MacRaider you'll find detailed information on every version of Tomb Raider, from the original 'Tomb Raider' of 1996 (released as 'Tomb Raider Gold' on Mac in 1999) to 'Tomb Raider Anniversary, released in 2007.

Note that much of the information is equally applicable to the Mac, PC or console games as the gameplay is virtually identical!

MacRaider is a very plain site, with none of the bells and whistles that are infesting many other sites. There is a reason for this - my intent has always been to make MacRaider accessible to any Mac user who can play any of the Mac Tomb Raiders. Therefore I chose a 1996 Power Mac 7200/90 with a 33.6k modem as a baseline - anything on this site can be easily accessed on any Mac from then on!