NCsoft on Thursday announced that its MMORPG (massively multiplayer online role-playing game) City of Heroes is headed to the Mac, thanks to TransGamingis Cider technology. The Mac version of the game will enter public beta testing when its thirteenth expansion, Power and Responsibility, is released later this fall. NCsoft said that the final version of the Mac edition will be available before the holidays.

City of Heroes lets players create hero or villain characters who live in Paragon City or on the Rogue Isles, respectively. They choose from hundreds of powers and thousands of costume options as they customize their creations, then they play solo or in groups as they battle their foes and undertake missions. As in most RPGs, characters become more powerful as they gain experience.

TransGamingis Cider Portability Engine places a wrapper around a gameis Windows code, remapping the commands to their Mac OS X equivalents. While the technology adds a slight performance hit, TransGaming says it allows developers to bring their games to the Mac faster and more cheaply, albeit only for Mac with Intel processors. Publishers including UbiSoft and Electronic Arts have also used Cider.

"Through Cider, the Mac version [of City of Heroes] will parallel the developments of the PC version, providing all game updates, new features, and storylines simultaneously on both platforms," TransGaming CEO Vikas Gupta said in a press release.

When City of Heroes is officially released, it will be sold at NCsoftis PlayNC store and TransGamingis GameTree Online.