Got a tip for us?
Let us know
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.
OS X Parallels or Fusion for gaming?
- Thread starter canhaz
- Start date
- Sort by reaction score
It is a hit and miss of course. Some games will work, while others will not. The biggest concern, though, is the performance hit running a game within a virtual machine, so a strong hardware is of essence. Also, a bit of tweaking might be needed as some games seem to work better in windowed mode, while others perform better in full screen. Sometimes, it's night-and-day difference between those 2 modes.
Having said that, parallels seem to be traditionally a better performer for running games, while vmware is considered more stable/compatible choice for other applications.
Having said that, parallels seem to be traditionally a better performer for running games, while vmware is considered more stable/compatible choice for other applications.
Agreed with antonis. I'd also add that I use Parallels to play some games and it it works very well. Don't expect everything to work, or work well, but a fair few things will work great and the older the game the better. As for newer stuff? Give it a try and see.
thanks everyone that's good to know
cool. any specific titles you enjoy that also happen to run well?
cool. any specific titles you enjoy that also happen to run well?
Assassin's Creed II (it's a bit of a push and takes some tweaking, but acceptable)
Command and Conquer 3
Simpsons Hit & Run
Tomb Raider Legend
Tomb Raider Anniversary
Those are the ones off the top of my head. I'm sure there are others I've forgotten. And bear in mind that the list is quite short anyway, as I haven't had the time to try all the games I've wanted to under Parallels.
Also note that several of those actually have Mac versions, but I play them under Parallels because they actually work better virtualised than native (not often the case, but sadly some ports are just done by lazy companies that don't really care).
Parallels
----------
Fallout 3
Fallout New Vegas
Dark Souls Prepare to Die Edition
Legend of Grimrock II
Steam will run if you are that way inclined, I know Skyrim runs this way and it runs well, what other games would run I have no idea.
It is as had been said trial and error, but the better your hardware the better the results will be. I have searched for a site that deals with Parallels and what works and what does not, without success.
got it thanks. is there a reason these seem to be older games (5+ years)? will newer games not work or is it just because you like these particular ones?
----------
tnx. good to know Skyrim works nicel. also agree with you, that a website listing games that runs well with Parallels, would be useful.
Couple of reasons. Yes, I like those games, and therefore tried them first. I'm still getting around to some of the others. The other reason is that between my Wii U and the increase in Mac ports in recent years, most newer games that I enjoy haven't needed Windows at all.
As Washac said, anything's worth a try. Skyrim is actually one of the games I've been meaning to test.
ahh ok that makes sense. yeah I love my wii U too. can't wait for the new zelda. really enjoyed windwaker refresh though in the meantime.
ps: skyrim is amazing