Electronic Arts has launched Origin for the Mac, a new, built-for-platform version of EA’s direct download application for Mac users worldwide. Just as it has for tens of millions of PC users, Origin for Mac will offer fast and safe game downloads for many of the industry’s most popular titles from EA and publishing partners.

Origin for Mac delivers such features as cloud storage to save and continue games, social connectivity via friends lists, and more. However, Micheal Blank, vice president of Original at EA, says it will offer additional value to gamers who play on both PC and Mac devices: dual-platform play for select EA titles.

With dual-platform play, gamers will buy a game once and be able to download it for both PC and Mac (if the game is available for both platforms). After purchasing the game via Origin on one platform, as soon as a player logs into their other device, the game will appear ready for download in the Origin "My Games" tab.

Origin for Mac launches with a catalogue of hit titles from EA and publishing partners available for immediate purchase and download, including Dragon Age 2, Batman: Arkham City, LEGO Harry Potter and The Sims 3. In a special launch offer and to celebrate more than a decade of The Sims, players can enjoy huge savings across The Sims 3 franchise on Origin, says Blank.

The Sims anniversary sale gives players a chance to download The Sims 3 base game, plus numerous expansion and stuff packs via the new Origin for Mac application for as little as $10. These savings on Origin are available for a limited time.

For the best experience, Origin for Mac users should be running OS X 10.6.8 or newer with an Intel Core 2 Duo processor or better. You can download it at www.origin.com/download .