Game Mode is a new feature in macOS Sonoma that, according to Apple, boosts gaming performance on Apple Silicon Macs. Macs haven’t traditionally been considered a gaming platform, but Apple hopes to alter that. With the introduction of Apple Silicon processors, Macs are more powerful than ever. The tech giant based in Cupertino is definitely making an effort to persuade programmers that porting their games to macOS is worthwhile. And naturally, this will wind up being a huge boon to the platform.
But there’s more Apple’s been doing to make the Mac a gaming platform, including making it simple for developers to convert Windows games to the Mac with the new Game Porting Tool. Quite impressive, isn’t it?!
The ability to play Windows games on a Mac environment is not exactly groundbreaking. With the release of macOS Sonoma, Apple is building such solutions right into the operating system, making it much simpler for PC game creators to port their games to the Mac.
And the tech giant isn’t stopping at getting these games working on macOS. According to the developer, Game Porting Tool can also convert DirectX 12 to Metal 3. DirectX, for those who are unaware, is an application programming interface for Windows and Xbox consoles that manages graphics rendering and game audio in a manner analogous to Apple’s Metal API.
And there’s more!
Mac OS Sonoma is presently in beta and may be downloaded by qualified developers. The public beta will launch next month, and the full version is scheduled for this fall. Information about the beta is available on the Apple Developer website.
To convert DirectX visuals to Metal, developers may utilize new tools after testing a Windows game on macOS with Game Porting Tool. This allows the game to function natively, greatly enhancing its performance. Support for gamepads, Spatial Audio, and High Dynamic Range video are just a few of the native system capabilities that may be taken use of using the macOS Sonoma Software Development Kit.
The native macOS version of the game, however, works much better, with roughly double the frame rate on the same hardware. And that’s why Apple pushes its developers to go beyond merely doing Windows port translations.
What are your thoughts about macOS Sonoma so far?
Developers may take advantage of Game Mode, which is included in macOS Sonoma, in addition to the Game Porting Tool. When Game Mode is on, the system “focuses on the gaming experience for the foreground game,” as stated by Apple.