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Flight simulators and aircraft combat games serve a solid niche for those of us that like to take to the skies when we're not doing other things with our computers. Here's a roundup of the top ones you can download today, with prices from free to reasonable and the focus from arcade-style action to ultra-realistic flight sim. They're not only great games, they're some of the best Mac.

• Best 4x Space Game Mac
• Best Space Game Mac

Your Mac isn't just good for doing schoolwork or connecting with friends. Thanks to the Mac App Store, it's also the home to impressive games for kids. Many of our favorites are part of Apple Arcade. However, there are others we recommend that you can purchase separately.

Alto's Adventure

Best 4x Space Game Mac

First released on iOS in 2015, Alto's Adventure remains one of the most popular games in the Apple universe, regardless of platform. Packed with 180 handcrafted goals, Alto's Adventure for Mac is a snowboarding odyssey like no other. The physics-based gameplay is easy to learn but challenging to master, which is precisely how these types of games should be no?

Once you master Alto's Adventure, move onto Alto's Odyssey, which is also available on the Mac App Store. You'll be happy you did as Alto's adventure moves to a warmer climate.

Down the hill you go

Alto's Adventure

With six unique snowboarders

Experience fully dynamic lighting and weather effects, including thunderstorms, blizzards, fog, rainbows, shooting stars, and more

Best Space Game Mac

Bring You Home

The Love You to Bits team is out with its latest game, Bring You Home. Featuring Polo, a humble alien hero, your job is to reunite the star with his kidnapped alien pet. Family-friendly, this puzzle adventure comes with a few exciting twists through a unique game mechanic. Silly, inventive, and unexpected, Bring You Home comes highly recommended.

Meet adorable Polo

Bring You Home

A smart, refreshing adventure

How far will you go in this game full of twists, turns, and family-friendly fun?

Crossy Road Castle

For solo or multiple users, Cross Road Castle builds on the original game in fun new ways. With various levels and variations, the game is easy to enjoy even offline. Better still, every run up the castle is different. And like all Apple Arcade games, there are no in-app purchases required.

Go upward, my friend

Crossy Road Castle

Climb the tower

What will you find today? With Crossy Road Castle, every day is a new adventure.

Dandara

In the 2D world of Salt, life has changed considerably, and not for the better. Fear has arrived where there was once happiness; oppression has replaced freedom. But all is not lost thanks to Dandara, a heroine for our time. In this platformer game, you'll discover mysteries and secrets hidden throughout the world of Salt alongside its interesting cast of characters. Where does it end? That's up to you to figure out.

Beautiful and immersive

Dandara

Explore this directionless world

In the world of Salt, the world has broken down. Make it better by solving the world's many puzzles.

Element

In Element, you're escaping a decaying solar system where you must visit each different planets to grab essential elements. By doing so, you'll generate energy and build attack and defense units to defeat your enemy. The realtime strategy space game is beautifully crafted and designed for those who don't have hours to invest in gameplay.

A non-gamer strategy game

Element

Incredible journey around a dying solar system

Do you have what it takes to save the universe? You're about to find out.

LEGO Builder's Journey

LEGO Builder's Journey is a poetic puzzle that takes place in a breathtaking world filled with brick-by-brick effects, accompanied by a beautiful soundtrack. Throughout the narrative, discover movements that go up and down, challenges that inspire, and celebrations that will keep building.

Art meets LEGOs

LEGO Builder's Journey

A story about play, connections, and adventure

Smile! Here's a LEGO game like no other. Perfect for all ages (including older builders), this game is a special treat you didn't know you needed.

My Brother Rabbit

A little girl and her brother use the power imagination to escape a hostile outside world. What they discover is a fantastic universe that provides the play and comfort they need. In this land of make-believe, you'll help an adorable rabbit play mini-games, find hidden objects, and more. Along the way, you'll discover five amazing areas full of unique characters, including robs-moose, giant mushrooms, and more.

Land of make-believe

My Brother Rabbit

Five worlds to discover

With the real world in danger and uncertainty, escape to the fictional world of My Brother Rabbit.

Quiplash

For three to eight players, Quiplash comes from the team that brought us You Don't Know Jack and Fibbage. The question-and-answer game has no rules and no correct answers. What it does is offer hours of fun for family and friends.

Multi-player game

Quiplast

Hilarous fun

Another great party game from one of the best developers in the business.

Things That Go Bump

During the night, everyday objects and rooms come to life. Be careful of spirit creatures called yōkai, which can both destroy and give life. Fun and challenging for the whole family, Things That Go Bump offers gameplay for up to four players across multiple devices, including Mac, iPhone, iPad, and Apple TV.

Test your curiosity and creativity

Things That Go Bump

Kid-friendly design

Test your curiosity and creativity with new challenges in every room.

Your favorites?

Does your little one sit behind the computer, playing games better than you ever could at that age? What is their favorite go-to Mac game? Let us know in the comments below.

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Space games have been around for decades on PC. The genre is more popular than ever before and with titles like Star Citizen on the horizon, it's easy to get lost among gorgeous nebula, massive planets, and endless space. Not all space games are worth your time, however. This is a list of titles we believe you should have in your collection.

This is the godfather of space games. While not perfect, X3 ($19.99) offers incredible value for the money allowing the player to embark on various journeys and create their own story. Be a trader, stock broker, pirate, fleet general, company executive, explorer, miner, and much more. The sheer scale of the game is impressive, but it's showing its age.

Hopefully, X4 will pick up where Egosoft left off with Albion Prelude and take advantage of the latest hardware.

EVE Online

EVE Online is an online space role-playing game (RPG) that has hundreds of thousands of active players, many of whom take EVE gameplay and role-playing extremely seriously. You may have read about massive wars occurring in-game, lasting more than 24 hours and resulting in the scrapping of thousands of ships. But fear not, as it's an expansive universe, allowing players to do essentially whatever they desire. Wish to spend hours mining rock? Go for it.

Everything within the EVE-verse is player-driven, including the economy. Think of it as a space simulator that simulates a living, breathing community of star explorers. Best of all, you can get started for free.

Stellaris

If you wish to take control of an entire species and dominate (or integrate into) a galaxy, you'll want to pick up Stellaris ($39.99). This 4X title by Paradox Interactive is as in-depth as it is gorgeous. There's something about sending hundreds of ships into battle and watching all the lasers, missiles and mass particles fly across the screen. That is, if you're on the winning side.

As well as offering a strategic fix for players, Paradox worked hard implementing dynamic events and more variables to help make each playthrough feel slightly different.

Elite: Dangerous

Elite: Dangerous ($29.99) is impressive in the scale of the Milky Way galaxy Frontier, the developer, managed to accurately reproduce. Much like X3, you're able to take part in trading, be a pirate, take on other players and even particpate in a war. The game is also being continuously updated by the developer, adding in a bunch of features for free, and there's VR support if you own a headset (and powerful enough PC).

While the game itself can prove difficult to get the hang of from the get-go — seriously, who would have thought docking your ship would be such a pain? — Elite is incredibly rewarding once you master the controls and combat system.

Faster Than Light

Faster Than Light, commonly known as FTL, ($9.99) is a roguelike space adventure game that is terribly hard to master. You're in charge of manning a ship and leading a crew as you flee a rebel fleet through many sectors. Everything is randomized to offer unique playthroughs, and it's of paramount importance that you select upgrades, manage crew, buy weapons, switch load outs, and oversee resources to succeed.

Combat is fast-paced and fluid, as is movement across each sector. Just don't get too comfortable in your well-armed ship as FTL has every desire to pull you off your high horse in a few seconds. And seriously, buy the soundtrack to FTL — it's excellent and worth every penny.

Sins of a Solar Empire

Ironclad Games and Stardock brought PC gamers the excellent Sins of a Solar Empire back in 2012, and today it remains a top pick for anyone seeking a space-based real-time strategy experience. Picking from three races and two factions within (for a total of six) allows you to take on the mantle of responsiblity to start with a single planet and expand your empire. Various victory conditions are available, including diplomatic and warfare.

The multiplayer is also really good, especially when you have a full game of friends in multiple alliances. Let the fierce battles take place. Sins is helped a fair deal by being such a great looking game. It;s well worth picking up. The $51.19 price tag includes various extras and additional content.

Homeworld Remastered Collection

Developed by Relic Entertainment and published by Sierra Entertainment in September 1999, Homeworld is a stunning space game that captivated the lives of many. Gearbox recently released the Remastered Collection ($34.49), which adds more up-to-date graphics and sound, but retains the magic that made the original so brilliant. But don't get too cozy in Homeworld, as it's a difficult game to progress through and you'll find yourself drawing the short straw more often than not.

As you progress through the single-player campaign, your task is to gather resources and build up a massive fleet, which you keep when moving between levels. If only it were that simple. My only gripe with the Remastered Collection is the lack of Cataclysm, a superb expansion pack that's sorely missed in playthroughs.

Rebel Galaxy

Rebel Galaxy ($19) is somewhat of a strange entry on our list because while it's an excellent and rather unique experience, it can become a little grind-like and repetitive. Still, it's a fun arcade shooter that requires you to ensure you're rocking the best equpiment your funds can afford.

Think of Rebel Galaxy as a wonderful mashup of Freelancer and Firefly. What makes it feel so unique is instead of relying on front-mounted weaponry, you're engaging with the enemy as if you were an assassin on a pirate ship. Everything is settled once your broadsides take aim and fire.

Notable mentions

• Freelancer: A gem of a game that offers an immersive galaxy to explore, if you manage to secure a copy.
• Freespace 2: Just an awesome classic space combat sim.
• Mass Effect: This is not technically a 'space game' in the same sense as other titles in our list, but it is still set in space and a kick-ass trilogy (sorry, Andromeda).
• Star Citizen: This game isn't complete yet, but it certainly looks promising (if we ever make it to the finish line).
• Star Wars: TIE Fighter: You're a recruit of the Imperial Navy under the command of Darth Vader. Need we say more?
• Wing Commander: A truly retro space combat title with a great story and awesome gameplay. (Wing Commander 4 is also brilliant.)

Your favorites

What are the top space titles that keep you returning for more? Sound off in the comments and tell us why we should have included your choice.

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