For those of you still wondering about using a Mac for Skyrim, I use my Macbook Pro for Oblivion (obviously using Bootcamp to run Windows 7) and I can run the game on Very High settings, with Resolution, view distance, fade distance, and shadow/water details maxed out, and it runs perfectly. Not to mention that I have Qarl's Texture mods, Streamline, Script Optimizer, and other mods running on it. My Macbook is definitely nothing special. It's 2.53 GHz, i5 dual core processors with an Nvidia Geforce 330M graphics card, so this is definitely not a "gaming computer".

Unix does't use .exe files so some mods that self install wouldn't work but manual installs "should" work, the probably is the massive performance hit you take from dual booting or virtual booting its inherently doable but the problem is that you cant upgrade Apple computers. It would be a better question to ask if you can run it on a Linux Machine

I'm pretty sure there won't be any OSX edition of Skyrim.

However, it will likely run OK on the latest MBPs in bootcamp at slightly lower resolution and lower detail settings.

This is what I have in my laptop because it helps when working on extremely large (outdoor advertising) photoshop files and some video editing and motion graphics apps.

It doesn't help much with any games I have played to date, other than making it easier to Alt+Tab back and forth between windows, or perhaps allowing someone to launch multiple games at once. I don't think any game I have tried so far uses more than 3 or 4GB RAM.

No, you don't need to run it on lower settings. As I said, my MBP is nothing special at all, and I run it on the highest settings, with Qarl's Texture mods and a bunch of other mods (Including OOO) and it runs VERY smoothly.

There is a reason now.
Not only Bethesda but the majority of software developers weren't releasing their games on Macs because the shops that sell Macs are few and the "self space" Mac software had at shops was extremely small to non existant.
But now Apple created the App Store where everyone can download any kind of software directy at his Mac.
This means that Bethesda or any other developer can at least release the via App Store for Mac owners.
Better only digital distribution than no distribution at all.

Just get a PC. They're superior to Macs and Xbox. :wink_smile:

They're superior for gaming, yes.

Hopefully that will be the case for Skyrim as well, but it's still a bit early to tell. At this point, I'm still not 100% certain if I will be able to run it smoothly at 1920x1080 on my quad-core windows laptop which has a pretty good GPU.

Thanks for contributing nothing to the thread topic and going directly against the OP's request (and the board rules) to not flame or go off-topic.


I'm on a Mac and have a DirectX 11 capable GPU, but it's one of the few. That will likely change in 10 months' time.


I have 16GB and it's not enough. AT ALL. There are things that exist that you would never know take up so much RAM. Logic, zBrush, running Windows in a VM, and so on. I wish I could do more than 16GB.


I have been running Oblivion maxed out on my iMac, with OBGEv2, which adds Godrays, SSAO, and depth of field shaders. And Oblivion is an unoptimized piece of crap, engine-wise.


Not even that, necessarily. Valve released stats on their Macs running Steam and said that on average Macs were more powerful than the PC base that runs Steam.

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To answer the OP. I'm not sure. I would like to build an over-the-top gaming PC before its release. But I may just have to settle for it on my iMac.

There is a reason they released modern warfare 2 for the Mac and that's to show that these machines can now handle this day and age with their new Intel platforms. I like gaming on my mac and I enjoy my mac more than my old pc.
lcd back lit screens FTW!!!

This is why I asked for "OpenGL" on the thread asking for DX 11 support. If Bethesda don't want to make an OS X port, a third party would find it easier if the engine was OpenGL based instead of DirectX. Take a look at id's Tech 6 engine currently under development for 'Rage' - running on PC, 360, PS3, and OS X. Get with the beat Beth!

i agree

I play oblivion on a mac (bootcamp) + 85 mod installed including better cities, natural environments etc etc, never any problems.

But I don't know if the same could be skyrim


Sorry for my English :foodndrink:

What are the specs on your macbook pro? I have one from the same year and I'm just curious if I would be able to run Oblivion on those settings as well? And does Windows 7 Ultimate really make that big of a difference over Windows XP?

Cheers

(My Macbook Pro specs)
2.53 GHz processor
4 GB Ram
NVIDIA 9400m video card
OS: version 10.6.7

Yeah, I play a number of PC games on my iMac using Bootcamp & WinXP SP3.

Like with any system, it all comes down to the graphics card.... in my case, it's an aging iMac with a pretty lousy one. ATI HD2600XT / 256mb.

So, yes - I've played Oblivion, Fallout 3, and Fallout: New Vegas on this system. Low settings, edging up towards medium in some cases. Most "extras" (AA, AF, super shadows & reflections, etc) turned off. Still looks great.

But, like I said - it's an older system. 3-4 generations old, so the current cards are much better. (new line of iMacs just got announced with ATI HD 6750/6770/6970)

I'm hoping that I'll still be able to run Skyrim on my system (PC games keeping pace with consoles has kept the system requirements down for the past couple years, but they're starting to creep higher now for a number of PC games.)



The one big advantage with an actual PC is being able to swap out your graphics card. :shrug:

But I'd be using a Mac anyway, so Bootcamp keeps me from needing to make space (and pay for) a second machine.

I'm running a mac pro set up for video editing and colour correction, installed a Windows partition using bootcamp and forked out for a HD 5870. Upgrading your GPU on a mac is no more complex than it would be on a PC (make sure OSX drivers exist for your chosen card though).

I'm hoping to crank Skyrim to max on my 30" monitor, but we shall see...

I am a programmer my self and i use a mac, but for games i always keep recommending good game pc's. I always play games on my game pc.

But only if you're using a Pro. The iMacs & portables aren't upgradable.

You can't play Oblivion on a mac. The only time I remember something like that was when someone released a torrent for mac users, other then that Beth has never released any mac games.