Plenty of great games will never see the light of day on OS X. But even though some publishers have decided against developing for Macs, that doesn’t mean we have to miss out on the best Windows games. If you’re turned off by the idea of console gaming and would rather put your VM to work playing a few games, we’ll help you pick your pleasures -- and run them successfully on your hardware.
This mesmerizing action-RPG will rivet you until the end of its spellbinding storyline. While the third installment is due in the next year or so, you’ll need to play through Mass Effect 1 & 2 to get the real nitty gritty of this trilogy. The games require some heavy artillery, however, so make sure your Mac is well-equipped before embarking on this space journey.
Always wanted to be a superhero? If you like massively multiplayer online role-playing games, DC’s new game takes place in the actual universe itself. Players can choose a mentor for their character (like Batman or Superman) and then fulfill assignments based on whatever faction they chose at the beginning of the game.
The sequel that PC gamers have been anticipating for quite a while is finally out. If you enjoy fast-paced shooting action and saving the world from alien invaders, Crysis 2 will totally hit the spot.
Bejeweled isn’t the only ridiculously addictive puzzle game out there. Puzzle Quest 2 combines the beauty of fantasy RPG with a matching-colors game. This game is more than simply matching beads, though -- you’ll also have to upgrade your character’s stats if you want to get anywhere, and the game includes some pretty amazing characters, powerful weapons, and truly engrossing gameplay.
If you’re a fan of World of Warcraft but aren’t too keen on the monthly subscription tax, Guild Wars is the best free alternative. Though the first installment has been around for years, the sequel is slated to hit shelves any day now. All you have to do is purchase the boxed copy, install the game, and you’re instantly transported into a customizable fantasy world where literally anything can happen.
Before you game, make sure your hardware’s up to snuff.
Just like you’d oil up your car before you embark on a long trip, you’ll have to make sure that your graphics card is well equipped for the taxing task of running a graphics-heavy 64-bit game (on a virtual machine, no less!). First, go into System Profiler and select Hardware > Graphics/Displays. You’ll see the name of the video card currently running in your Mac, as well as the available video RAM (VRAM). If you need more information, you could easily Google each card for more information about memory. EveryMac.com also has a handy guide for, well, every Mac that exists, with a full-blown list of specifications.
If you see two GPUs in effect -- typical on all unibody MacBook Pros -- that’s because your Mac is actually running both an integrated graphics chip and a discrete GPU that switches back and forth, depending on your computer’s needs. For instance, a MacBook Pro running a game and hooked up to an external monitor will require the faster performing GPU to work harder so that it matches the frame rate to the screen resolution.
GPUs are literally the heart of gaming performance.
However, because a virtualized environment is standalone and separate from your Mac, it doesn’t engage the GPUs like OS X will. In Boot Camp, Windows utilizes the discrete graphics card when it’s running graphics-heavy processes. Other virtualization software usually creates fake “hardware” that the virtualized Windows recognizes as actually existing. For example, VMWare creates a fake GPU called an SVGA device, which is actually tapping into the discrete GPU of the MacBook. So, when you’re shopping for games, look at the specifications for the discrete graphics card to match it to the game you want to play.
Your Mac’s got your back with all the specifics on your innards.
It’s important that you use the specifications in System Profiler to cross-reference it against the developer’s recommended settings. In the case of PC-only titles, there are specific criteria for what kind of graphics card, memory, and processor you should have to play a game. Whether you’re playing on a virtual machine or through a dual-boot, it’s important that you don’t cut it close when it comes to these system requirements. If a game calls for a minimum of 512MB of memory to run the game, assume that you’ll need at least 1GB of RAM to successfully power through without furrowing your brow.
After Nvidia and ATI started manufacturing native GPUs for the Mac platform, high-performance gaming became easier on Macs and its components were finally reflecting that. But not all Macs are created equal, and you can’t upgrade a Mac like you can a PC.
If you’re running a Mac Pro, you can easily swap out the GPU inside the machine with one of Apple’s graphics-upgrade kits. If you’re feeling bold, you could even purchase a more affordable Mac-compatible graphics card over at NewEgg.com and do it yourself with one of iFixit.com’s online guides. Just remember that the graphics card needs to match the internal architecture of the processor you’ve got packed in there, as well as how many sticks of memory you have available.
So much space for so much power.
iMacs and Mac minis are a bit out of luck when it comes to GPU upgrades because of the way the motherboard is placed inside. You could always shove more RAM in there if need be, however. Just be sure to peruse the System Profiler to learn the limitations of your Mac and play games that only fit within those specs. For instance, if you top out at 128MB of GPU memory and 2GB of RAM, you might want to take it easy on that graphics-heavy fantasy-world RPG and stick to puzzle games, platformers, and old-school 3D shooters like Counter-Strike.
millman
April 06, 2011 at 1:05pm
You forgot one important piece of information. Parallels can virtualize a BootCamp installation. I installed Windows 7 in BootCamp for when I want to play those really intensive games like Crysis or a fast running development environment for .NET development. However, I can launch that same Windows 7 install from with Mac OS X using Parallels. Great for when I just need to do some quick .NET development and want to have quick access to my Mac applications and environment.
The only real downside is that each time you switch between running Windows directly off of your BootCamp partition and Parallels Windows will need to log back out after you login to update your shared profile.
