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Gaming on Mac?

T

Tavelon

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Aug 11, 2009
11
0
I have a 13" MacBook pro (forgot the specific cost, but it was the slightly higher end 13 "-er)

This is a recent switch from PC and so far I'm loving it. I'm reading into all the new things I can do, figuring out everything.

Most of my games are on PC. But should I get some (even 1 or 2) for my mac? I'd likely be looking into a game like CoD 4.

While I'd be willing to turn some graphics settings down, I'd like the best experience possible.

So... Can I and should I?
 
You definitely can run games on your Mac. The issue isn't whether or not you have the power (your MacBook Pro is MORE than equipped) -- the question is whether or not the games you want to play are available with Mac versions.

By all means, getting the Mac version of a game is quite convenient, but if all else fails, you can always install Windows XP or Vista on your Mac (using Boot Camp, which is free and built in to your Mac). It's less convenient, as you'll have to restart your computer each time you want to switch between Mac and Windows, but you'll have much more selection for games.

thegoldenmackid said:
however it is more expensive in money and disk space.
Click to expand...

Disk space, yes. Money, no... You need a copy of Windows, of course. But Boot Camp is free. :confused:
 
Thanks so much for the quick response!

ziggyonice said:
You definitely can run games on your Mac. The issue isn't whether or not you have the power (your MacBook Pro is MORE than equipped) -- the question is whether or not the games you want to play are available with Mac versions.

By all means, getting the Mac version of a game is quite convenient, but if all else fails, you can always install Windows XP or Vista on your Mac (using Boot Camp, which is free and built in to your Mac). It's less convenient, as you'll have to restart your computer each time you want to switch between Mac and Windows, but you'll have much more selection for games.



Disk space, yes. Money, no... You need a copy of Windows, of course. But Boot Camp is free. :confused:
Click to expand...

Ok... I was under the impression that macbooks didn't run graphics for games as well... or at least not until you got to 15". Is that true?

Plus, I have vista pre installed on a HP computer. I'll have to check and see if I can get it on boot camp.

Like I said I'd probably only do one or two games for mac as my pc has most of my games on it. But they'd be higher quality graphics games like COD.


Thanks again!
 
XP Runs $200?
Click to expand...

You can get XP Home for less than $100 if you search for OEM copies. Not quite free, but better than retail. I did this to use Autocad and play some PC only games.
 
I use a 13" Alu Macbook (same specs as your MBP) for a few games. When my girlfriend was at uni I used to sneak a game of L4D or 2 on it :D. But yea they're good for games. It ran all mine brilliantly, but now I run games on a proper "gaming" PC. My (overclocked) 9400M used to run L4D in medium to high settings at native res, AA and Vsync off. Even ran UT3 very well too with most options on med-high.

But it's worth it. Get bootcamp and XP and have fun.
 
re: gaming

Yeah, honestly, I think with the advent of "Boot Camp" came a relative slowdown in the already "sluggish/half dead" native Mac OS X gaming marketplace.

I bought CoD 4 for OS X and absolutely loved it on my Mac Pro tower -- but most people keep saying especially on a portable with a little less graphics card power than a Pro tower has, the Windows version of CoD 4 running in Boot Camp looks better and has a better frame-rate.

For a while there, it looked like the OS X gaming market was on the rise for the Mac... I'd say it hit a peak about 4-5 years ago when all the titles ranging from "Stubs the Zombie" to "True Crime: Streets of L.A." to "Unreal Tournament 2004" to "Spiderman 2" came out.

But now, it seems like practically everything is just a re-hash of the Windows code, running in emulation with the "Cider" package wrapped around it, and the performance stinks (not to mention it tending to have more graphics glitches and small bugs that way).
 
Huntn said:
Isn't the version of W7 available today drop dead when it's released to retail? If so, that is not a good option if your goal is to not spend money is it? ;)
Click to expand...

I believe after March 2010, your copy of Windows 7 will automatically restart every 2 hours until you buy a license.
 
hostins said:
we have something lik 800 topics like that "gaming on mac"
Click to expand...

This was your second post here? The OP asked a question specific to his situation - there's nothing wrong with that.

OP- I'm not sure if you'll have the same offer in your country but here if you buy Vista now you get a free (comparative, home=home, pro=pro etc) copy of Win 7 when its released. But in your situation I'd use XP and stick with it if all you intend to use it for is gaming. Performance wise XP is still the fastest and most compatible Windows OS.
 
Pirates of the Caribbean Cider

Would making a cider package for this game be possible: Pirates of the Caribbean

If yes, then how would I go about doing it, have already installed it with crossover, then moved the program files to another cider copy i had around then set up the .plist file, is there anything I am doing wrong
 
Thanks all!

Another question on this topic- All windows PCs I have owned had vista (or xp) pre-installed. I think the new laptop my brother got has a discounted copy of windows 7 he can get.

So.... Is there a way to install vista via bootcamp, even though I don't own the disc? Or is there a way to get the disc since it's already pre installed? (all other laptops and computer in the house are HP with vista, btw.)

Or do you think these games will work if we end up getting windows 7? (Can that be installed on more than 1 computer?) Did windows 7 mess up all the programming so you can't run games from previous OS like vista did?

Thanks!
 
Most windows 7 games work fine for me since i updated from Vista but you should have a look online as there are some games that aren't compatible with windows 7.
 
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