French development company Uncanny Games will tomorrow release OIO the Game—a “strikingly original and enchanting puzzle platformer—for Mac via Gamersgate. OIO is a scrolling platformer that requires you to collect 100 orbs and 3 fragments on each level, putting the pieces of the story together to unravel a mystery. There are 12 scrolling levels in all, with increasingly elaborate physical puzzles throughout.

One third of the pleasure of Senseless Acts of Justice is in figuring out the mad logic behind the puzzles. The rest of the enjoyment comes from the humor of the writing. Like the best of the classic puzzle games: Monkey Island and Full Throttle, the Hector games should be savored like a fine beef blood Slushie (which you’ll need to solve a puzzle).

As a parent, I’ve never been a fan of young Dora. The kid yells too much. She and that blasted monkey just can’t hold a conversation without shouting at each other or, worse, at my kids. But the kids are more willing than I am to forgive (or tolerate) this constant shouting, so they’re happy to play the games. One of the latest for the Mac is Dora’s Big Birthday Adventure from Nova Development, and it’s a pretty good game.

Telltale Games has announced plans to bring back Back to the Future in the near future, and I apologize for starting this article off that way. I’m usually above such things. The company which has also recently brought back game franchises such as Sam & Max and Monkey Island hopes to have both Back to the Future and Jurassic Park ready for release on Mac, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Wii and PC this winter.

Ever felt like the one weapon/tool/object you needed in a game just wasn’t there? What if you could just doodle a customized object right there for your immediate use? In Max & the Magic Marker (M&MM), that is just what you do, with the added benefit that your graffiti is neither illegal nor unwanted. In fact, the drawings you make for Max are the only tools he has to make it through the three worlds and 15 levels of gameplay in his quest to stop the monster he unwittingly doodled upon receipt of his magic marker.

Bullet Candy Perfect is a 2D based shooter game with 3D graphics involved in the gameplay. The developer is only asking that you donate anything greater than $1 to help support it, which is pretty generous considering the amount of time I’m sure was put into it. And while the gameplay certainly has a lot of facets to it, it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting.

Our friends over at MacGamer have previewed the now defunct Presto’s upcoming enhanced DVD of Journeyman Project 3: Legacy of Time for Mac OS X. Presto, founded in 1991, originally brought Journeyman Project 3 to the Mac in 1998. The game has now been enhanced by programmer Tommy Yune to be played in Mac OS X off DVD with a higher data rate and storage capabilities for a smoother flow of gameplay. In other words, you won’t get stuck in what we older Mac gamers like to call “disk swapping hell.”

I have played a Yes album cover; a Yes album cover with an Asia title. Playing Aquaria from Ambrosia Software was like jumping into the cover of Classic Yes and having myself a good swim, one that everyone should enjoy. I don’t care if you’re a hard core gamer or a casual gamer. I don’t care if you prefer action or adventure games, Aquaria has just about everything a gamer could want, and just enough of it to keep you going past the occasional boring and confusing bits.

The Geneforge story is finally coming to a close. Last week, Spiderweb Software, Inc., announced the release of Geneforge 5: Overthrow for Macintosh, the final game in the epic, award-winning Geneforge series. This classic-style turn-based RPG dates back to 2002 with the release of the first Geneforge game. Originally for Mac OS Classic, the entire series has been updated to run natively on Mac OS X.

As with the previous games, Geneforge 5: Overthrow has a huge, open storyline, with dozens of different endings and paths to victory. Help the rebels or fight them. Kill your opponents or use stealth and diplomacy. Focus on the storyline or simply seek wealth and carnage. No matter how you play, Geneforge 5 offers an epic adventure with plenty of replay value.

And who says there are no games for the Mac? This week, Ambrosia Software announced and released a 2D game that they are calling Aquaria. This underwater strategy game was built as a Universal Binary, so it will work on both Intel and PPC based Macs running Mac OS X v10.3.9 or later. Taking on more »