Play Windows games on OS X

I'd recommend WineBottler; I have about 30 apps and games that work great with Wine. A few pointers though:

• Check the Wine Application Database for various apps. This shows what version of Wine, what winetricks you need and what workarounds may be required.

  ^{Disclaimer: I'm a super maintainer}

• Check the official system requirements for the program/game. For older games, this will state which version of .NET or other framework is required—make sure you select the same version in WineBottler to be installed in the new prefix.

• For programs that don't work, you can create a blank prefix with various frameworks installed and try combinations of winetricks without needing a new prefix each time.

I have used CrossOver, PlayOnMac, WineBottler & wine (directly from Terminal).

All of these use wine, but I would strongly recommend CrossOver, even though it isn't free. If you don't feel like spending any money, I would recommend either PlayOnMac or WineBottler as they are pretty similar in functionality.

Wineskin is also another alternative to look at.

If you're just playing casual games and don't need super-great FPS, Wine is the way to go. You don't need to buy Windows that way, and since it's free, it's definitely worth trying out first.

The Big Fish games are also available on Mac and the system requirements are even lower. I don't know if you have to buy them again, but that's where you'll have the best experience.