Beyond the Sword for Mac OS is Shipping!

I went to register my game with Aspyr but was asked for a Serial Number. Where the heck do I find that???

Installation (MBP, 10.4.11) went quite smooth with Vanilla, but was balky when I went to BtS. The DVD ejected itself during early stages, twice. Third time was the charm.

Played about 150 turns and everything seems pretty normal. Two-button mouse works without issues, which was a concern. Today, I'll update to 3.19 and play while watching football...
 
I never bothered with registration. What does it buy you?
 
It's just force of habit. I do whatever I can to help the Mac gaming community seem as robust and interactive as possible.
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So last night was the big test. I patched to 3.19 and attempted a Direct IP MP game. FWIW, I'm running a MBP 15in with 1MB RAM, 2.16 GB clock and OSX 10.4.11.

It was just two of us, as this was just to test connectivity and discover any issues... AND THERE WERE NO ISSUES!!

The only caveat I received was when connecting, I got a semi-scary-looking notice that my game files did not match those of the host (who was running PC 3.19 with no mods). But after I clicked OK on that -- absolutely no issues. Smooth and fast, with full functionality -- like I was running the PC version, but with better graphics. It was awesome!

We played a couple quick test games, out to about 150-180 turns. Never an issue of any kind.
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Another real plus: The first couple SP games I played after installing, the game seemed to take a long time to load -- to the point where I was afraid it was frozen. But then, once the XML files went from uncached to cached, load time became FAST. And wile Aspyr has a notice that you need an Apple mouse, that's totally untrue. A standard 2-button mouse works just like on a PC.

I'm still messing around with resolution settings etc. but in general, the Mac version behaves just like the PC version in every way.

I AM SO STOKED!
 
A couple of questions:

1. Was the other player on a Mac or a PC?

2. Was the game set for Locked Assets?
 
The other player was on a PC, and was hosting.

Sorry, don't know anything about Locked Assets.
 
You can set Locked Assets in a competitive game (not sure what the option is called, but it's near he bottom of the Custom Game dialog options). This ensures that your opponent(s) use the same software config as you. Otherwise they could be running a mod that gives them unfair advantage.

However, when you are playing v3.19, PC vs Mac, I suspect that you will not be able to lock assets, as I believe Aspyr have broken the cross-platform compatibility trick they incorporated in version 3.17, and it no longer seems to work in 3.19.

I think we've confirmed this is the case for PBEM and single player game compatibility, but I'm interested in info about cross-platform network play, hence my questions.
 
I've been playing MP regularly now with no issues (weekly game). This is direct IP play, everyone on 3.19 without further mods. When logging in, I get a message that my "files do not match host computer" but I just click OK and everything works fine.

Gameplay is fast and smooth, and the graphics are crisp.

My only complaint is that I can't revert to desktop from fullscreen mode. That kind of sucks, as I can't track instant messaging without leaving the game.
 
Doesn't alt-tab work? Or Cmd-H? I never run full screen anyway. I have two screens, and full screen blacks out a perfectly useful screen I can use for monitoring mail/IM/Twitter etc.
 
After a long hiatus from Civ, I finally got around to ordering BTS! The patch to 3.19 seems to have gone fine, although I haven't had a chance to play a game yet. Will try to get BAT 2.2 working next.

I'm going to have to re-read all those tutorials, or at least have fun with the extra mods and scenarios. I've been curious about FfH for a long time.
 
So BTS seems to be working fine, but I'm now having problems with the web. I'm wondering if maybe something in the 3.19 patch might have messed up quicktime- I'm having freezes in both Safari & firefox, typically but not exclusively when trying to load a video.

I'm on a MBP, 2.5ghz, 4gb ram, 10.5.8. BTS is at 3.1.9. Safari, Firefox, and QT are all at the latest versions.

any thoughts or advice?
 
Is this when BtS is running? I can't believe just installing it could have any effect.
 
No, BTS was not up, and pretty much no other apps open. I repaired permissions and restarted and so far haven't had any other problems. Hoping this was the issue!

computers are magic. :crazyeye:
 
Hopefully it was a fluke. However, if it happens again you might consider running the Apple Hardware Test if you haven't already. Hold down 'D' when you start up and run the extended test (takes about an hour). (If it doesn't go you might need the install disc in the drive on boot.)

Though quite unlikely it's also possible you may be having graphics related issues. You might consider having your computer checked for distorted or no video issues.
 
Thanks for the link. I think it is a one-time thing. It may have been a while since I'd repaired permissions, and maybe some of my recent stuff (updating VMWare Fusion, installing a Drobo storage system), plus BtS had thrown it over the edge.

... and probably coincidentally, about a month ago, I had just had to take my computer in for repair to fix critical display issues, so I'm pretty sure that's the one thing it isn't!
 
Doesn't alt-tab work? Or Cmd-H? I never run full screen anyway. I have two screens, and full screen blacks out a perfectly useful screen I can use for monitoring mail/IM/Twitter etc.

Command-H is what I needed. Thanks.
 
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