Oct 08, 2020 Even fewer big games are being released on Mac today. This is depressing for us gaming Mac users - but there is still hope Game-loving Mac users have been forced to watch, while the number of.
- Explore the world of Mac. Check out MacBook Pro, iMac Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, and more. Visit the Apple site to learn, buy, and get support.
- Apple Arcade: The complete list of games for iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV. Apple Arcade includes over 135 games you can play now for only $5 a month, and new ones are added almost every week.
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/Mac Tips /Why Are Macs Bad for Gaming? [Reasons Released in 2020]
Who doesn’t want a Mac? Everybody does. Well, except for gamers. If you’re a serious gamer, you’re probably not playing on your Mac. That is if you even have a Mac.
As a serious gamer, you already know the answer to the question, why are Macs bad for gaming? You pretty much know the reasons why you can’t play the games that you love on a Mac.
However, do you know that there is now a way for you to enjoy the games you love on your Mac? Stick around and you will learn more about it here.
For the sake of the others who don’t know the answer to the question, why are Mac bad for gaming, well, there are three reasons why. Read on to learn more about them.
Article GuidePart 1: Reasons for Why Are Macs Bad for GamingPart 2: Cloud Gaming is Now Possible on Mac Bonus Tip: A Powerful Tool to Optimize A Mac Machine for Better Performance
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Part 1: Reasons for Why Are Macs Bad for Gaming
Reason #1: Macs Were Not Marketed as Gaming Machines
Let’s walk down memory lane. Did you know that Mac was actually known to have some awesome games in it? Yes, it’s true. During the 80’s that was exactly what the scenario was for Mac.
Between the Mac and the PC, the latter was known to be more functional than a gaming machine. Hence, Mac was the one that was known to be as a fun, gaming machine.
All that changed when Apple decided to rebrand itself. They started to position themselves as a more serious brand in the market. They wanted to go beyond the fun and learning functions of a computer so that they could be taken more seriously. Hence, they downplayed the concept of gaming in their culture.
Apple just didn’t want to be known as a fun machine in the business. They didn’t want people in the workplaces to end up playing games on their computers.
Over time, it was realized that the workplace didn’t really need serious computers. As long as the computers were functional, they were good to go.
As Windows made its way in the workplace, it also created and developed APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) so that it was easy to program a game for Windows. That pretty much paved the way for PCs to enter the homes, with parents focusing on productivity and kids focusing on games.
As that was happening, Apple was still focusing on how to position themselves as serious machines in the market. With the market gearing towards PCs for gaming. Apple was pretty much able to appeal to a different kind of audience, which obviously did not consist of serious gamers.
Reason #2: Hardware Is Not Powerful Enough for Gaming
No one can deny that Apple products are awesome. However, not everyone can afford them. They’re pretty expensive, right?
Cost is not the only reason as to why some folks prefer a PC over a Mac. Face it, there are a lot of things that can be done on a PC for free. Unfortunately, that’s just not the case with Mac. For serious gamers, the cost is not the only reason why they prefer a PC over Mac.
So, why are Macs bad for gaming? When it comes to gaming, the hardware is king. It needs to be able to support powerful graphic cards that can run games.
Sure, the processors of most Macs are pretty good. Only the Mac books, specifically the Mac Book Pro has a Quad-core Processor. Yes, the displays are awesome as well on almost all Macs. When it comes to RAM and storage, they’re not bad as well. As a matter of fact, both Mac Books and their desktop versions are pretty good in terms of RAM and storage.
There’s just one thing that horrible in Macs when it comes gaming and that is the graphics. Most Mac models rely on integrated Intel graphics cards that are underpowered. Needless to say, integrated graphic cards aren’t great for gaming. Even with the best APUs, they’re just not going to work well at all.
Even if iMacs have their own dedicated graphic cards, they’re still not able to run a lot of games. Since Macs are more expensive than PCs, it makes it a very odd choice for gaming. PC is definitely a more affordable choice and it performs very well for gaming.
So why are Macs bad for gaming? Well, the answer is that their hardware is not cut out for gaming. It’s not powerful enough to run all the games for the serious gamer.
To make matter worse, their OS isn’t very popular when it comes to games. Compared to the 20000 games available on Windows, there are only about 7000 games available on Mac.
This is not to say that Mac is an inferior product because it definitely isn’t. It’s just not designed for gaming.
Reason #3: Macs Are Expensive to Upgrade
Serious gamers are always upgrading their hardware. The reason for that is because games are becoming more and more advanced. So, the next generation of games will always need more powerful hardware.
Unfortunately, Macs are not upgradable. They can’t be torn apart for the sole purpose of running a game. An attempt to do that would cost a lot of money. Hence, is the reason why serious gamers do not consider the Mac as a gaming machine.
Part 2: Cloud Gaming is Now Possible on Mac
So, a Mac may not be an ideal machine for gaming. However, it could be used for cloud gaming. Now, what exactly is cloud gaming?
Cloud gaming allows the gamer to have external accessibility to a computer or PC that’s on the cloud. The gamer uses the processing power of his or her Mac so that he or she is able to play some games.
How is that made possible? It’s made possible by NVIDIA’s GeForce Now.
GeForce Now for Mac offers ease-of-use and overall compatibility with a good number of popular PC games.
For serious gamers who want to experience playing on a Mac, here’s how GeForce Now can be set up.
- Navigate to the GeForce Now website
- Click on Download Now For Mac.
- Drag and drop it to your Applications folder.
- Launch the GeForce Now application.
- Sign into the GeForce Now application.
- Run a network test to check computer, network connection, internet service provider, and choose the closest NVIDIA GeForce Now server for better bandwidth and experience.
- Go to the top, right-hand side of the screen to Manage Team. That will launch another application for the Steam environment.
- Launch and run Steam. Choose and install a game to play.
The performance of GeForce Now is very impressive. It can run a lot of games with very low latency experience.
Hence, GeForce Now gives the gamer the ability to play PC games without having the need to run Windows on Mac. It also gives the gamer the ability to play games instantaneously without having to run an installer.
Considering the fact that GeForce Now is still in the beta stage, it’s just going to get better when it’s finally released.
Since GeForce Now is still in the beta stage, it’s still free of use. When it’s fully launched, it’s going to come with a monthly fee.
Bonus Tip: A Powerful Tool to Optimize A Mac Machine for Better Performance
Thanks to GeForce Now, it’s now possible to play games on Macs. Since there is no need to download any games with the GeForce Now, any Mac machine can be used to run any kind of PC games. Cloud gaming through GeForce Now levels up to the gaming experience on Mac.
To ensure the optimum performance of any Mac machine, it’s best to make use of the iMyMac PowerMyMac software. The PowerMyMac software not only cleans up a Mac machine; it also helps optimize its performance. This is very important especially if the Mac machine is going to be used for cloud gaming.
Since the PowerMyMac software cleans and optimizes a Mac machine, it helps speed it up as well. Again, that’s crucial in cloud gaming. Even if everything else is on the cloud, it is still critical to have a good running Mac machine to play the games. Needless to say, the PowerMyMac software can help any Mac machine perform better and faster. It can speed up a Mac with just a couple of clicks.
The PowerMyMac is compatible with macOS 10.10/10.11/10.12/10.13/10.14.
![Mac For Gaming Mac For Gaming](https://www.macexpertguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/best-games-for-Mac-1.jpg)
In Conclusion
The answers to the question, why are Macs bad for gaming, are pretty evident now. There are a lot of reasons why Macs aren’t ideal for gaming. One could also surmise that Macs are really not meant for gaming.
The good thing is, there is now a way to play more games on Mac. Thanks to GeForce Now, cloud gaming is possible on Mac.
With the PowerMyMac software, any Mac machine can be optimized for the better cloud gaming experience.
So, what are your thoughts on this? Feel free to share your thoughts by leaving a comment.
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The most powerful and useful 16-in-1 Mac Software in 2019
Free DownloadAn eGPU can give your Mac additional graphics performance for professional apps, 3D gaming, VR content creation, and more.
eGPUs are supported by any Thunderbolt 3-equipped Mac1 running macOS High Sierra 10.13.4 or later. Learn how to update the software on your Mac.
An eGPU lets you do all this on your Mac:
- Accelerate apps that use Metal, OpenGL, and OpenCL
- Connect additional external monitors and displays
- Use virtual reality headsets plugged into the eGPU
- Charge your MacBook Pro while using the eGPU
- Use an eGPU with your MacBook Pro while its built-in display is closed
- Connect an eGPU while a user is logged in
- Connect more than one eGPU using the multiple Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) ports on your Mac2
- Use the menu bar item to safely disconnect the eGPU
- View the activity levels of built-in and external GPUs (Open Activity Monitor, then choose Window > GPU History.)
eGPU support in apps
eGPU support in macOS High Sierra 10.13.4 and later is designed to accelerate Metal, OpenGL, and OpenCL apps that benefit from a powerful eGPU. Not all apps support eGPU acceleration; check with the app's developer to learn more.3
In general, an eGPU can accelerate performance in these types of apps:
- Pro apps designed to utilize multiple GPUs
- 3D games, when an external monitor is attached directly to the eGPU
- VR apps, when the VR headset is attached directly to the eGPU
- Pro apps and 3D games that accelerate the built-in display of iMac, iMac Pro, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro (This capability must be enabled by the app's developer.)
You can configure applications to use an eGPU with one of the following methods.
Use the Prefer External GPU option
Starting with macOS Mojave 10.14, you can turn on Prefer External GPU in a specific app's Get Info panel in the Finder. This option lets the eGPU accelerate apps on any display connected to the Mac—including displays built in to iMac, iMac Pro, MacBook Air, and MacBook Pro:
- Quit the app if it's open.
- Select the app in the Finder. Most apps are in your Applications folder. If you open the app from an alias or launcher, Control-click the app's icon and choose Show Original from the pop-up menu. Then select the original app.
- Press Command-I to show the app's info window.
- Select the checkbox next to Prefer External GPU.
- Open the app to use it with the eGPU.
You won't see this option if an eGPU isn't connected, if your Mac isn't running macOS Mojave or later, or if the app self-manages its GPU selection. Some apps, such as Final Cut Pro, directly choose which graphics processors are used and will ignore the Prefer External GPU checkbox.
Set an external eGPU-connected display as the primary display
If you have an external display connected to your eGPU, you can choose it as the primary display for all apps. Since apps default to the GPU associated with the primary display, this option works with a variety of apps:
- Quit any open apps that you want the eGPU to accelerate on the primary display.
- Choose Apple menu > System Preferences. Select Displays, then select the Arrangement tab.
- Drag the white menu bar to the box that represents the display that's attached to the eGPU.
- Open the apps that you want to use with the eGPU.
If you disconnect the eGPU, your Mac defaults back to the internal graphics processors that drives the built-in display. When the eGPU is re-attached, it automatically sets the external display as the primary display.
About macOS GPU drivers
Mac hardware and GPU software drivers have always been deeply integrated into the system. This design fuels the visually rich and graphical macOS experience as well as many deeper platform compute and graphics features. These include accelerating the user interface, providing support for advanced display features, rendering 3D graphics for pro software and games, processing photos and videos, driving powerful GPU compute features, and accelerating machine learning tasks. This deep integration also enables optimal battery life while providing for greater system performance and stability.
Apple develops, integrates, and supports macOS GPU drivers to ensure there are consistent GPU capabilities across all Mac products, including rich APIs like Metal, Core Animation, Core Image, and Core ML. In order to deliver the best possible customer experience, GPU drivers need to be engineered, integrated, tested, and delivered with each version of macOS. Aftermarket GPU drivers delivered by third parties are not compatible with macOS.
The GPU drivers delivered with macOS are also designed to enable a high quality, high performance experience when using an eGPU, as described in the list of recommended eGPU chassis and graphics card configurations below. Because of this deep system integration, only graphics cards that use the same GPU architecture as those built into Mac products are supported in macOS.
Supported eGPU configurations
It's important to use an eGPU with a recommended graphics card and Thunderbolt 3 chassis. If you use an eGPU to also charge your MacBook Pro, the eGPU's chassis needs to provide enough power to run the graphics card and charge the computer. Check with the manufacturer of the chassis to find out if it provides enough power for your MacBook Pro.
Recommended graphics cards, along with chassis that can power them sufficiently, are listed below.
Thunderbolt 3 all-in-one eGPU products
These products contain a powerful built-in GPU and supply sufficient power to charge your MacBook Pro.
Recommended Thunderbolt 3 all-in-one eGPUs:
- Blackmagic eGPU and Blackmagic eGPU Pro4
- Gigabyte RX 580 Gaming Box4
- Sonnet Radeon RX 570 eGFX Breakaway Puck
- Sonnet Radeon RX 560 eGFX Breakaway Puck5
AMD Radeon RX 470, RX 480, RX 570, RX 580, and Radeon Pro WX 7100
These graphics cards are based on the AMD Polaris architecture. Recommended graphics cards include the Sapphire Pulse series and the AMD WX series.
Recommended Thunderbolt 3 chassis for these graphics cards:
- OWC Mercury Helios FX4
- PowerColor Devil Box
- Sapphire Gear Box
- Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 350W
- Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 550W4
- Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 650W4
- Razer Core X4
- PowerColor Game Station4
- HP Omen4
- Akitio Node6
AMD Radeon RX Vega 56
Screen Recorder Mac For Gaming
These graphics cards are based on the AMD Vega 56 architecture. Recommended graphics cards include the Sapphire Vega 56.
Recommended Thunderbolt 3 chassis for these graphics cards:
Apple Mac Pc For Gaming
- OWC Mercury Helios FX4
- PowerColor Devil Box
- Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 550W4
- Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 650W4
- Razer Core X4
- PowerColor Game Station4
AMD Radeon RX Vega 64, Vega Frontier Edition Air, and Radeon Pro WX 9100
These graphics cards are based on the AMD Vega 64 architecture. Recommended graphics cards include the Sapphire Vega 64, AMD Frontier Edition air-cooled, and AMD Radeon Pro WX 9100.
Recommended Thunderbolt 3 chassis for these graphics cards:
- Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 650W4
- Razer Core X4
AMD Radeon RX 5700, 5700 XT, and 5700 XT 50th Anniversary
If you've installed macOS Catalina 10.15.1 or later, you can use these graphics cards that are based on the AMD Navi RDNA architecture. Recommended graphics cards include the AMD Radeon RX 5700, AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT, and AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT 50th Anniversary.
Recommended Thunderbolt 3 chassis for these graphics cards:
- Sonnet eGFX Breakaway Box 650W4
- Razer Core X4
Learn more
- Learn how to choose your GPU in Final Cut Pro X 10.4.7 or later.
- To ensure the best eGPU performance, use the Thunderbolt 3 cable that came with your eGPU or an Apple Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) cable. Also make sure that the cable is connected directly to a Thunderbolt 3 port on your Mac, not daisy-chained through another Thunderbolt device or hub.
- If you have questions about Thunderbolt 3 chassis or graphics cards, or about third-party app support and compatibility, contact the hardware or software provider.
- Software developers can learn more about programming their apps to take advantage of macOS eGPU support.
Windows Or Mac For Gaming
1. If you have a Mac mini (2018) with FileVault turned on, make sure to connect your primary display directly to Mac mini during startup. After you log in and see the macOS Desktop, you can unplug the display from Mac mini and connect it to your eGPU.
2. If you're using a 13-inch MacBook Pro from 2016 or 2017, always plug eGPUs and other high-performance devices into the left-hand ports for maximum data throughput.
3. macOS High Sierra 10.13.4 and later don't support eGPUs in Windows using Boot Camp or when your Mac is in macOS Recovery or installing system updates.
Pc Vs Mac For Gaming
4. These chassis provide at least 85 watts of charging power, making them ideal for use with 15-inch MacBook Pro models.
5. Playback of HDCP-protected content from iTunes and some streaming services is not supported on displays attached to Radeon 560-based eGPUs. You can play this content on the built-in display on MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, and iMac.
Bes Mac For Gaming
6. If you use Akitio Node with a Mac notebook, you might need to connect your Mac to its power adapter to ensure proper charging.