So this is kinda confusing, try to roll with us. Developer Reality Pump announced that it's working on Two Worlds II, due this winter. Only ... it had already announced a sequel to Oblivion-esque FPS RPG called Two Worlds: The Temptation. We're pretty sure the team just decided to go with the number instead of the subtitle, but we guess we'll never know. (Yeah, we've emailed them.)

Set two years after the original, TW II promises "completely overhauled AI and balancing standards, experienced authors, [an] active combat system and the brand-new engine." Here's hoping the changes can make the sequel not so ... you know ... wretched?

[Via Eurogamer]

Mac owners can now travel back in time to August of 2008, thanks to Hothead Games. The developer's Mac port of the time-bending platformer, Braid, is now available, allowing Mac users to experience the authentic feeling of playing one of 2008's most unique games for the first time. (That is, if you didn't already play it on a Windows partition or something.)

The press release says that this is "the first in a unique collaboration between Hothead and other top-notch independent developers to bring their award-winning titles to new gaming platforms," although the company's PC release of The Maw predates this by several months. Braid is now available for immediate download via Penny Arcade's Greenhouse store for $14.95.

Attention Mac users, if you were bummed that the latest game from Tale of Tales, The Path, was restricted to PCs, it's time to rejoice, for the promised Mac version is finally out. Yes, you too can experience the game that's so freaky and different that it's like being punched in the face by a centaur. The game can be had either as a download ($10) or in a special USB edition (€25) that includes a custom USB flash drive containing the game and plenty of extras.

If you're unfamiliar with the game, check out a new story trailer after the break.

Spore publisher EA has dropped a new trailer and a handful of new screens for the game's upcoming expansion, titled "Galactic Adventures," and with them, a release date finally. According to the EA press site (and confirmed by EA Maxis rep. Amanda Taggart), the gameplay-heavy DLC hits the cyber autobahn as well as brick-and-mortar stores on June 23rd, though the pricing is still "TBA."

The trailer above shows off a variety of new end-game content that, to be perfectly honest, looks to be a lot of fun. Commanding fleets of space-faring creatures across the galaxy, subjugating everyone along the way? Where do we sign up?! And remember, Spore Galactic Adventures is just the first of four Spore titles coming to various platforms (Wii/DS/PC/Mac) this year, so keep those pocketbooks open.

Sony and Spil games have released an official Patapon 2 promotional Flash game for PCs and Macs. The pint- shot glass-sized Patapon experience isn't necessarily for gods of the beat, but it's a nice introduction to the series for those who've never played the game -- and shame on you, if that's the case.

Players are scored and unlock images on the three levels in the Flash game, which supposedly allows them to put together their own Patapon-themed wallpapers. We couldn't get that feature to work, but perhaps it's still having the gremlins worked out. The Patapon Flash game is available March 9-16, so "pata-pata-pata-pon" (rush) and "pon-pon-pata-pon" (attack) it while you still can.

How do you play games on a Mac? It's easy -- just pull out all the computer parts and put a Dreamcast inside.

Modder Logicdustbin pulled all of the obsolete computer parts out of the shell of a vintage iMac, replaced the bulky CRT with an LCD, and added a Dreamcast to the now-hollow unit. He fit controller ports onto the front of the computer and wired up the power button, with the result being this love letter to the late '90s. It's basically a homebrew version of Sega's own Divers 2000 Dreamcast!

After the break, we've got a video of this self-contained retrogaming box in action, along with a picture that answers the question on everyone's mind: Why? How do you get discs in there?

[Via Engadget]

Don't worry Mac and Linux gamers: Though the public beta of Quake Live that opened its doors yesterday only supports Windows, id Software's John Carmack tells Joystiq that "it's pretty high on my priority list to have the Mac and Linux support." To that end, an external contractor is working on just that "right now" but Carmack acknowledges that Quake Live compatibility "is going to be a much bigger factor in [the Mac and Linux markets] for people wanting to play the game than it is on the Win32 market where you have so many more options." Carmack was even hopeful that, with enough popularity and some special attention from Apple, the could get "maybe a handful of milliseconds better [on Mac OS] than you can actually get on Windows."

So, that's operating systems, but what about browsers? Sure, most of us are using Internet Explorer or Firefox but what about Google's Chrome? Quake Live producer Marty Stratton tells us that, while "it officially doesn't support Chrome" it "does actually work ... with some glitchiness." We didn't ask about that other WebKit-based browser, Apple's Safari, but Stratton said that while Mac and Linux support are the priorities, "I suspect we will get Chrome supported as well."

Promising news for Mac gamers, to be sure, and with many id insiders using Macs – Quake Live's own Marty Stratton said, "Right now I have to switch over to Boot Camp to play it in Windows" and John Carmack famously debuted the id Tech 5 engine at an Apple keynote – we're inclined to believe it's the high priority they say it is.

Check back later today for our full interview with id's John Carmack and Marty Stratton.

Xbox Live is a wonderful place. Without it, we would have never discovered diamonds in the rough such as The Maw and Braid. Thankfully, these games are getting the red carpet treatment and rolling out to other platforms, courtesy of Hothead Games.

Hothead games will first bring Jonathan Blow's Braid to Mac gamers everywhere. Also, the company is currently working on getting Twisted Pixel's The Maw to "multiple as-of-yet-unannounced digital distribution platforms and services." Steam, anyone?

We don't have a date yet as to when Hothead will be offering these titles to their respective platforms, but we'll update as soon as we know.

Through a partnership with TransGaming Inc., Ubisoft is poised to bring select titles to Mac gamers (yes, we repeat: "Mac gamers") through retail and digital download channels. The two most significant offerings will be Prince of Persia and Shaun White Snowboarding, although Ubisoft will also provide CSI: Crime Scene Investigation: Hard Evidence, Rayman Raving Rabbids and Petz Sports to retail locations for the first time. Those games are currently only available through Ubisoft's website.

You can download Prince of Persia and Shaun White Snowboarding for Mac from Ubisoft's site (and look for the other games on retail shelves) next month.

Tired of hanging out with your 12-year-old brother/sister/son/daughter? You'll finally have a permanent e-babysitter in April when teen-friendly MMO Free Realms goes live on PC. If you're going to be plopping the kids in front of a PS3 before you bolt to Olive Garden, however, you're going to need to wait until Q3, according to a report on Eurogamer. (On the bright side, the game will be a free download on PSN.) If you just can't wait for a teen-free date night, keep an eye out, as the beta for the game will reportedly begin "within a couple of weeks."

Eurogamer's source also says that Mac is "definitely on the list of platforms" Sony Online Entertainment wants to develop for," but nobody's talking details at the moment. Keep those OG gift certificates safe, Mac users. Sounds like you'll be needing them before you know it.

This week, retail is celebrating Friday the 13th with lots of scares. We've got the Fear 2 girl, plus giant, hairy, creepy, crawling Deadly Creatures, and, of course, House of the Dead's ... dead, who are joined by Onechanbara's take on zombies -- and bikini samurai (scary enough, in their own right). There's also NASCAR Kart Racing, which is frightening on a completely different level.

Valentine's lovers fear not. You haven't been forgotten. Flower buds on PSN this week, as well.

If you're a Spore fan then you're probably already aware that the best thing about the game was the creation tools, which allowed you to make your own aliens, buildings and vehicles. Spore Galactic Adventures, the upcoming expansion pack, looks to add more of these to the game, not only allowing you to create your own customized planets but also to build an entire game, LittleBigPlanet style.

Check out the videos after the break to see these new editor features in action. Perhaps some playable user generated content will make up for the disappointing gameplay in the original title.

In our interview with Diablo 3 lead designer Jay Wilson, it was explained that there were no plans to bring the long-awaited title to any platform other than PC and Mac. However, in the six days that have passed since said interview, a couple of Blizzard higher-ups weren't quite as dismissive of the possibility of the dungeon crawler making an appearance on our primitive gameboxes -- though the language used to describe this possibility hasn't exactly given us high-apple-pie-in-the-sky hopes.

When asked about a console rendition of the third entry in the Lord of Terror-slaying franchise, Blizzard COO Paul Sams gave an inconclusive "I don't know yet," though Vice President of Game Design Rob Pardo suggested a console port was "theoretically possible," as out of all of Blizzard's franchises, Diablo would be the most console-friendly. We guess a theoretical "yes" is better than an actual "no", or a metaphorical "maybe", but we're still not holding our bated breath for a non-compy version of Diablo the Third.