8 ms·

Skyrim on Mac When?

FractalHQ 4y ago
To be fair, it takes like 20 minutes to setup a windows boot on a MacBook with Bootcamp. Windows runs smoother and less buggy on my Mac than any PC I’ve ever owned, and even AAA games run just fine. You’ll need a fan to keep an Intel MacBook cool though… those things are practically space heaters once you try to do anything useful.
assbuttbuttass 4y ago
Skyrim runs fine on Proton EDIT: my bad I guess Proton is Linux-only
- jsheard 4y ago
  Crossover fills a similar role for macOS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRwkvrp2rBw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRwkvrp2rBw It's actually using DXVK here, the same D3D11-to-Vulkan wrapper used by Proton, so they must be stacking it on top of MoltenVK to go D3D11-to-Vulkan-to-Metal. Two levels of translation isn't ideal but it seems to get the job done.
- gpderetta 4y ago
  It would work on MacOS too if apple hadn't made supporting 32 bits binaries so hard.
- kcb 4y ago
  Apple needs first party Vulkan support. It would be a huge first step to making many modern games very functional on Mac.
charliebwrites 4y ago
Hey HN! And welcome to a hill I'm willing to die on. I've been teaching myself basic HTML/JS/CSS to begin my webdev journey and this is the first project I've put together. It was recommended to me to make a project I'm passionate about so that I'm motivated to keep learning and get something real out there. Well here it is: SkyrimOnMacWhen.com! Its been far too long since Skyrim came out for there to be no release for the Mac. We've had ports for everything! PS3/4/5 Xbox360/One/XS, hell even Alexa got a port... As a Mac user who has to carry around a laptop for work anyway, it would be great to have a port to macOS, as their target base is at least as big as some of the other ports that got attention. -------- Quick FAQ: * Why did you choose Potential User Base as a metric, why not <X>? I thought about it for exactly 30 seconds and made a choice. This is more effort than Bethesda Softworks put in to making Skyrim on the Mac * Why did you use <Y> as a data source, or choose <Z> timeframe? I think <A>, <B>, or <C> would be better It turns out its _really_ hard to find true sales data for various consoles, PCs, etc. At least for free, via Google. If you have a good source, please lmk. * Why does your CSS look so bad? I'm so bad at design thinking I could screw up a stick figure * Why didnt you use <X> technology to make your site? I started learning web dev like two weeks ago, between a full time job and a sub par social life I'm trying to keep going. I havent had time to learn anything else. * Who hurt you..? A lot of people, but Bethesda Softworks mostly
- lfkdev 4y ago
  Use a framework like Bootstrap or Bulma, your website will look ten times better with no effort. But cool project!
  - surfer7837 4y ago
    Nah this page load instantly for me, I like it. All Bootstrap websites look the same to me.
    - lfkdev 4y ago
      Bootstrap sites are also loading instantly. If you prefer a basic html from 1990, you are not the average user.
      - surfer7837 4y ago
        Doubtful, especially on a 3G/4G connection. You're not an average user if you're on a Gigabit connection running the latest CPU
  - benbenolson 4y ago
    Defeats the purpose of the project.
- Kaze404 4y ago
  Nice website! Programming is the most fun when you're applying it to something you personally care about, so you're in a great position already.
- smegsicle 4y ago
  if you wanted something fun to do server-side, you could calculate #skyrimCounter and bake it into the html rather than displaying a noscript error
  - fmorel 4y ago
    But either way, thank you for using noscript only for the counter and not to blank out the entire page! So many websites these days don't load at all without JavaScript.
finiteseries 4y ago
Today, if you can stand 1080p, a ridiculously small bitrate, and using a gamepad: https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-game-pass/cloud-gaming https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-game-pass/cloud-gaming Later this year, or whenever Microsoft upgrades xcloud if you’d like to actually enjoy playing it!
- Kaze404 4y ago
  Nvidia GeForce Now is also an option if you already own the game on Steam
  - finiteseries 4y ago
    Sadly not, GFN is incredible but Microsoft/Bethesda removed it from that service 2 years ago or so.
  - solardev 4y ago
    GeForce Now is incredible, but some publishers like Bethesda removed all their games from it. I dunno why. It's really sad, because the catalog started out huge and gets smaller every year.
- solardev 4y ago
  There's also https://shadow.tech/ https://shadow.tech/ that lets you run Steam in the cloud (any game you own, not limited to a subset). It's a lot more of a PITA to use and keep updated than xCloud or GeForce Now, though.
mukundmr 4y ago
The whole OpenGL versus Metal situation doesn’t help in putting games to macOS. Also, Crossover ports no longer work.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
mukundmr 4y ago
The whole OpenGL versus Metal situation doesn’t help in porting games to macOS. Also, Crossover ports no longer work. Getting a nice console has been my solution for gaming.
- imbnwa 4y ago
  That's what I do, got a PS5 direct from Sony and am playing Skyrim on there now with a M1 Mini for compute.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
ravel-bar-foo 4y ago
'Skyrim VR' potential user base links to an article on smart speakers. I also think it is very unlikely that there are 200M VR devices out there, but only 90M macs.
- charliebwrites 4y ago
  Good catch, fixed
  - paraph1n 4y ago
    Haha, genuinely curious, how did you end up linking to smart speakers instead of VR equipment?
    - SahAssar 4y ago
      Probably because of researching numbers for the skyrim alexa edition.
duxup 4y ago
I just play it on my Switch.
- satysin 4y ago
  I picked up Skyrim for my Switch when it was on sale a month or two back and was very happy at how good a job they did with the port. Yes it is a 10 year old game but the Switch is 5 year old mobile hardware and weak harder at that so it wasn't a given it would be as good a port as it is. Sure you don't get mods, etc. so it is just vanilla Skyrim but it is still a wonderful experience. Of course I kinda want to try it on the Steam Deck now, I wonder how well it plays there with a bunch of QoL mods?
  - duxup 4y ago
    When it was released on PC I felt mods were essential. Largely because man that PC release version was a mess. Now the Switch version is very bit of DLC or add on they've added and I can't think of anything I would want.
falcolas 4y ago
Their engine barely runs on windows, expecting it to run at all on mac is a reach. For reference, they’ve been patching up the same homebrew game engine for decades.
robby_w_g 4y ago
The potential user base for skyrim on macOS is much lower because there simply isn't a large user base of gamers on Mac platforms. Mac users of Steam represent 2.45% of the total user base in the following survey: https://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/Steam-Hardware-Software-Survey-Welcome-to-Steam https://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/Steam-Hardware-Softw...
- worble 4y ago
  Obviously no-one games on mac, because Skyrim isn't on it!
- chadlavi 4y ago
  That's a circular argument. No content or support is the reason there are very few Mac gamers. There are an awful lot of people out there who have a Mac and play games on other platforms and devices. Probably even people who bought a pc just to be able to play games on it.
  - ksec 4y ago
    >That's a circular argument It is not. Many developers have tried and stats have shown the cost of porting Games to Mac, as well as maintaining it with each macOS changes were not sustainable with its revenue generation. That is at least for Games coming from console or PC. This may change if those Games come from Mobile Platform.
    - fao_ 4y ago
      I mean you say that, but for Linux the figures were very similar -- perhaps worse, until Valve put work into Wine and developed tech like, e.g. Proton
      - jhbadger 4y ago
        True, but with the Steam Deck it was obvious why Valve did that -- they weren't doing it to be nice to Linux users (although they've benefited) but because they wanted to use Linux (and avoid the Microsoft tax) on their consoles. There's no benefit to them for improving Mac gaming. In fact, the Mac Steam experience has been getting worse as many games (including many of Valve's own) only have 32-bit ports to the Mac which do not run on current versions of MacOS.
dchnshA 4y ago
MacOS will never be a gaming platform. Apple has never shown any interest in making it one and compatibility has only gotten worse over time.
- jeroenhd 4y ago
  Apple is working with several games developers to get more games on Mac, although that could just be a way for them to boast how powerful their mobile-GPU-turned-desktop-GPU is. See: https://9to5mac.com/2022/06/06/apple-gaming-updates/ https://9to5mac.com/2022/06/06/apple-gaming-updates/
TheTon 4y ago
I love this and I hope someone at Bethesda sees it. Unfortunately, I think the odds of Bethesda releasing anything for non Microsoft platforms in the future is approaching zero. It is an interesting development that AAA gaming is becoming nearly an all first party affair with the acquisitions and consolidation that have happened over the past couple of years. We are already at the point where for the most part only indie games will be available cross platform. As a gamer and an Apple fan, I’m vexed and puzzled that Apple isn’t doing more in games than Apple Arcade and milking iOS in app purchase. They finally have capable hardware with the transition to Apple Silicon (and this includes iOS devices), and their software stack is pretty good, but it’s tragically underutilized. Simply building a good platform and hoping the games will come isn’t enough in a world where your competitors buy up all of the game studios.
- mbg721 4y ago
  I'm a little surprised that Skyrim runs on Windows PCs and consoles as well as it does. Bethesda has such a reputation for releasing ambitious-but-buggy games, I half-expect the headline "after 11 years, Skyrim bug-fix patch released".
  - yakubin 4y ago
    > Bethesda has such a reputation for releasing ambitious-but-buggy games As far as I know, I've only played one game by Bethesda - Doom Eternal. It was also the only game I haven't found a single bug in. I'm more used to Ubisoft games, which are chronically buggy. Doom Eternal was a whole other level for me.
deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
jeroenhd 4y ago
Just because there are 89 million macs out there doesn't mean there are 89 million mac gamers out there. If you've got the money to buy a mac, you've probably got the money to buy a games console for your gaming needs. Macs just aren't a popular gaming platform. I'm sure there's a vicious cycle there about how the lack of games cause a lack of gamers, but still. Steam publishes their hardware survey. About 2.45% of Steam installs are on Mac. 58% of those users are still on Intel. With 5-10% of OS market share that means that mac users are twice to four times less likely to want to game compared to Windows users, and most PCs in the world definitely don't run Steam. There's also the performance problem: Macs come with high resolution displays and comparatively bad GPUs. The Intel Iris GPUs aren't bad, but they're no gamer powerhouse. The ARM chips are a lot better, but they're still crushed by any dedicated GPU in most similarly priced computers, especially in laptops. Their excellent AI+transcoding support blowing PC out of the water doesn't help when you want to render a game. My expectation would be that a port of modern Skyrim (the re-release with signiciant bumps to the graphics) would result in a stuttery mess on most Apple users with an interest in gaming. I'm sure the original release would play fine, but giving Mac users the inferior version probably wouldn't go down well. Yes, the new Macs have been demoed to show some very graphically intense games, but if their Tomb Raider demo was anything to go by, the graphical fidelity of the new models still leaves much to be desired, especially for such an expensive device. Lastly, there's the fact that Microsoft bought Bethesda. They've been working hard at making Xbox Game Pass a thing, unifying Windows and Xbox where they can. With the absolute defeat in performance per watt that Apple brought to the desktop space, I think it would only hurt Microsoft to invest time into making Mac a more viable gaming ecosystem. They can't ignore the gaming market when it comes to the PS5 or Switch, but why invest in bringing a new competitor to the market? I know Skyrim has been ported to pretty much any device, but with the small amounts of Mac gamers, the relatively slow GPU in most Macs, and the whole OpenGL/Metal situation, I don't see how it would make sense for Bethesda to ship Skyrim to Mac.
mikl 4y ago
Considering that the game is 11 years old now, I doubt a macOS port would be worthwhile. Mac users who wanted to play Skyrim has likely already played it on PC or console. I really liked the game, but I’m certainly not paying to play it again on my Mac when I already own on other platforms.
bugmen0t 4y ago
It works smoothly with high quality using CrossOver (wine) on my M1 MacBook pro from 2021.
solardev 4y ago
FYI, not a native port, but you can already stream Skyrim in a browser: https://www.xbox.com/en-us/games/store/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim-special-edition/BQ1W1T1FC14W https://www.xbox.com/en-us/games/store/the-elder-scrolls-v-s...
setgree 4y ago
Careful what you wish for. I find that StarCraft Anthology — the original which was released for free, not the remastered version — is the app most likely to crash my 2020 MacBook. When devs put this stuff on many years after the fact as a sop to diehard fans, they don’t really have an incentive to do a good job on the implementation side. There is no reason that a 1998 game should crash a 2020 computer.
jurmous 4y ago
In the past most Macs sold were Macbook Airs or other Macs which only had integrated Intel graphics. These made Macs a less attractive market to develop games for as the games run poorly on them. Now with the way more powerful graphics by default on the M1 chips, I expect way more games to come out in the future supporting Macs. Like how No Man's Sky is coming out for Mac in the fall. Also the unified memory on Apple Silicon will help a lot in game performance when the games are optimised to use it.
vehemenz 4y ago
The percentage of macOS users who want to play Skyrim and haven't already on a PC or console is probably pretty low. None of these demographics are mutually exclusive. Besides, iOS pulls in more revenue for Apple than does Steam for Valve. Apple doesn't gain much by targeting gamers on macOS.
telman17 4y ago
Cool stats! Being a long time Bethesda Softworks fan myself, I could see Todd Howard announcing a version of Skyrim for this website before it gets a Mac OS version. Skyrim JS of course!
magic_hamster 4y ago
It's somewhat of an open secret that Apple gave up on games maybe two or three decades ago. Halo was being developed exclusively for Mac before Bungie was acquired by Microsoft; gaming on Mac was on the low burner ever since. Don't hold your breath for a Mac port then. Instead, take a look at the ridiculously long list of platforms for which Skyrim is available, and pick one.
psi29a 4y ago
Instead of waiting for Skyrim (or other Beth titles) to be released for macOS, why not lend a hand to the OpenMW? Work is already underway in supporting later versions of NIF, so you can already use some Skyrim assets in OpenMW, support for reading ESM4 was recently introduced. We should have basic Skyrim "walking simulator" in a few releases. Here is a PoC of Skyrim running in OpenMW, don't mind the Morrwind HUD for now, that will be dehardcoded. :) https://youtu.be/oWPAGuPsQ4A https://youtu.be/oWPAGuPsQ4A https://openmw.org https://openmw.org

To be fair, it takes like 20 minutes to setup a windows boot on a MacBook with Bootcamp. Windows runs smoother and less buggy on my Mac than any PC I’ve ever owned, and even AAA games run just fine. You’ll need a fan to keep an Intel MacBook cool though… those things are practically space heaters once you try to do anything useful.

assbuttbuttass 4y ago

Skyrim runs fine on Proton EDIT: my bad I guess Proton is Linux-only

jsheard 4y ago
Crossover fills a similar role for macOS: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRwkvrp2rBw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRwkvrp2rBw It's actually using DXVK here, the same D3D11-to-Vulkan wrapper used by Proton, so they must be stacking it on top of MoltenVK to go D3D11-to-Vulkan-to-Metal. Two levels of translation isn't ideal but it seems to get the job done.
gpderetta 4y ago
It would work on MacOS too if apple hadn't made supporting 32 bits binaries so hard.
kcb 4y ago
Apple needs first party Vulkan support. It would be a huge first step to making many modern games very functional on Mac.

charliebwrites 4y ago

Hey HN! And welcome to a hill I'm willing to die on. I've been teaching myself basic HTML/JS/CSS to begin my webdev journey and this is the first project I've put together. It was recommended to me to make a project I'm passionate about so that I'm motivated to keep learning and get something real out there. Well here it is: SkyrimOnMacWhen.com! Its been far too long since Skyrim came out for there to be no release for the Mac. We've had ports for everything! PS3/4/5 Xbox360/One/XS, hell even Alexa got a port... As a Mac user who has to carry around a laptop for work anyway, it would be great to have a port to macOS, as their target base is at least as big as some of the other ports that got attention. -------- Quick FAQ: * Why did you choose Potential User Base as a metric, why not <X>? I thought about it for exactly 30 seconds and made a choice. This is more effort than Bethesda Softworks put in to making Skyrim on the Mac * Why did you use <Y> as a data source, or choose <Z> timeframe? I think <A>, <B>, or <C> would be better It turns out its _really_ hard to find true sales data for various consoles, PCs, etc. At least for free, via Google. If you have a good source, please lmk. * Why does your CSS look so bad? I'm so bad at design thinking I could screw up a stick figure * Why didnt you use <X> technology to make your site? I started learning web dev like two weeks ago, between a full time job and a sub par social life I'm trying to keep going. I havent had time to learn anything else. * Who hurt you..? A lot of people, but Bethesda Softworks mostly

lfkdev 4y ago
Use a framework like Bootstrap or Bulma, your website will look ten times better with no effort. But cool project!
- surfer7837 4y ago
  Nah this page load instantly for me, I like it. All Bootstrap websites look the same to me.
  - lfkdev 4y ago
    Bootstrap sites are also loading instantly. If you prefer a basic html from 1990, you are not the average user.
    - surfer7837 4y ago
      Doubtful, especially on a 3G/4G connection. You're not an average user if you're on a Gigabit connection running the latest CPU
- benbenolson 4y ago
  Defeats the purpose of the project.
Kaze404 4y ago
Nice website! Programming is the most fun when you're applying it to something you personally care about, so you're in a great position already.
smegsicle 4y ago
if you wanted something fun to do server-side, you could calculate #skyrimCounter and bake it into the html rather than displaying a noscript error
- fmorel 4y ago
  But either way, thank you for using noscript only for the counter and not to blank out the entire page! So many websites these days don't load at all without JavaScript.

finiteseries 4y ago

Today, if you can stand 1080p, a ridiculously small bitrate, and using a gamepad: https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-game-pass/cloud-gaming https://www.xbox.com/en-US/xbox-game-pass/cloud-gaming Later this year, or whenever Microsoft upgrades xcloud if you’d like to actually enjoy playing it!

Kaze404 4y ago
Nvidia GeForce Now is also an option if you already own the game on Steam
- finiteseries 4y ago
  Sadly not, GFN is incredible but Microsoft/Bethesda removed it from that service 2 years ago or so.
- solardev 4y ago
  GeForce Now is incredible, but some publishers like Bethesda removed all their games from it. I dunno why. It's really sad, because the catalog started out huge and gets smaller every year.
solardev 4y ago
There's also https://shadow.tech/ https://shadow.tech/ that lets you run Steam in the cloud (any game you own, not limited to a subset). It's a lot more of a PITA to use and keep updated than xCloud or GeForce Now, though.

mukundmr 4y ago

The whole OpenGL versus Metal situation doesn’t help in putting games to macOS. Also, Crossover ports no longer work.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

mukundmr 4y ago

The whole OpenGL versus Metal situation doesn’t help in porting games to macOS. Also, Crossover ports no longer work. Getting a nice console has been my solution for gaming.

imbnwa 4y ago
That's what I do, got a PS5 direct from Sony and am playing Skyrim on there now with a M1 Mini for compute.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

ravel-bar-foo 4y ago

'Skyrim VR' potential user base links to an article on smart speakers. I also think it is very unlikely that there are 200M VR devices out there, but only 90M macs.

charliebwrites 4y ago
Good catch, fixed
- paraph1n 4y ago
  Haha, genuinely curious, how did you end up linking to smart speakers instead of VR equipment?
  - SahAssar 4y ago
    Probably because of researching numbers for the skyrim alexa edition.

duxup 4y ago

I just play it on my Switch.

satysin 4y ago
I picked up Skyrim for my Switch when it was on sale a month or two back and was very happy at how good a job they did with the port. Yes it is a 10 year old game but the Switch is 5 year old mobile hardware and weak harder at that so it wasn't a given it would be as good a port as it is. Sure you don't get mods, etc. so it is just vanilla Skyrim but it is still a wonderful experience. Of course I kinda want to try it on the Steam Deck now, I wonder how well it plays there with a bunch of QoL mods?
- duxup 4y ago
  When it was released on PC I felt mods were essential. Largely because man that PC release version was a mess. Now the Switch version is very bit of DLC or add on they've added and I can't think of anything I would want.

falcolas 4y ago

Their engine barely runs on windows, expecting it to run at all on mac is a reach. For reference, they’ve been patching up the same homebrew game engine for decades.

robby_w_g 4y ago

The potential user base for skyrim on macOS is much lower because there simply isn't a large user base of gamers on Mac platforms. Mac users of Steam represent 2.45% of the total user base in the following survey: https://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/Steam-Hardware-Software-Survey-Welcome-to-Steam https://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/Steam-Hardware-Softw...

worble 4y ago
Obviously no-one games on mac, because Skyrim isn't on it!
chadlavi 4y ago
That's a circular argument. No content or support is the reason there are very few Mac gamers. There are an awful lot of people out there who have a Mac and play games on other platforms and devices. Probably even people who bought a pc just to be able to play games on it.
- ksec 4y ago
  >That's a circular argument It is not. Many developers have tried and stats have shown the cost of porting Games to Mac, as well as maintaining it with each macOS changes were not sustainable with its revenue generation. That is at least for Games coming from console or PC. This may change if those Games come from Mobile Platform.
  - fao_ 4y ago
    I mean you say that, but for Linux the figures were very similar -- perhaps worse, until Valve put work into Wine and developed tech like, e.g. Proton
    - jhbadger 4y ago
      True, but with the Steam Deck it was obvious why Valve did that -- they weren't doing it to be nice to Linux users (although they've benefited) but because they wanted to use Linux (and avoid the Microsoft tax) on their consoles. There's no benefit to them for improving Mac gaming. In fact, the Mac Steam experience has been getting worse as many games (including many of Valve's own) only have 32-bit ports to the Mac which do not run on current versions of MacOS.

dchnshA 4y ago

MacOS will never be a gaming platform. Apple has never shown any interest in making it one and compatibility has only gotten worse over time.

jeroenhd 4y ago
Apple is working with several games developers to get more games on Mac, although that could just be a way for them to boast how powerful their mobile-GPU-turned-desktop-GPU is. See: https://9to5mac.com/2022/06/06/apple-gaming-updates/ https://9to5mac.com/2022/06/06/apple-gaming-updates/

TheTon 4y ago

I love this and I hope someone at Bethesda sees it. Unfortunately, I think the odds of Bethesda releasing anything for non Microsoft platforms in the future is approaching zero. It is an interesting development that AAA gaming is becoming nearly an all first party affair with the acquisitions and consolidation that have happened over the past couple of years. We are already at the point where for the most part only indie games will be available cross platform. As a gamer and an Apple fan, I’m vexed and puzzled that Apple isn’t doing more in games than Apple Arcade and milking iOS in app purchase. They finally have capable hardware with the transition to Apple Silicon (and this includes iOS devices), and their software stack is pretty good, but it’s tragically underutilized. Simply building a good platform and hoping the games will come isn’t enough in a world where your competitors buy up all of the game studios.

mbg721 4y ago
I'm a little surprised that Skyrim runs on Windows PCs and consoles as well as it does. Bethesda has such a reputation for releasing ambitious-but-buggy games, I half-expect the headline "after 11 years, Skyrim bug-fix patch released".
- yakubin 4y ago
  > Bethesda has such a reputation for releasing ambitious-but-buggy games As far as I know, I've only played one game by Bethesda - Doom Eternal. It was also the only game I haven't found a single bug in. I'm more used to Ubisoft games, which are chronically buggy. Doom Eternal was a whole other level for me.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

jeroenhd 4y ago

Just because there are 89 million macs out there doesn't mean there are 89 million mac gamers out there. If you've got the money to buy a mac, you've probably got the money to buy a games console for your gaming needs. Macs just aren't a popular gaming platform. I'm sure there's a vicious cycle there about how the lack of games cause a lack of gamers, but still. Steam publishes their hardware survey. About 2.45% of Steam installs are on Mac. 58% of those users are still on Intel. With 5-10% of OS market share that means that mac users are twice to four times less likely to want to game compared to Windows users, and most PCs in the world definitely don't run Steam. There's also the performance problem: Macs come with high resolution displays and comparatively bad GPUs. The Intel Iris GPUs aren't bad, but they're no gamer powerhouse. The ARM chips are a lot better, but they're still crushed by any dedicated GPU in most similarly priced computers, especially in laptops. Their excellent AI+transcoding support blowing PC out of the water doesn't help when you want to render a game. My expectation would be that a port of modern Skyrim (the re-release with signiciant bumps to the graphics) would result in a stuttery mess on most Apple users with an interest in gaming. I'm sure the original release would play fine, but giving Mac users the inferior version probably wouldn't go down well. Yes, the new Macs have been demoed to show some very graphically intense games, but if their Tomb Raider demo was anything to go by, the graphical fidelity of the new models still leaves much to be desired, especially for such an expensive device. Lastly, there's the fact that Microsoft bought Bethesda. They've been working hard at making Xbox Game Pass a thing, unifying Windows and Xbox where they can. With the absolute defeat in performance per watt that Apple brought to the desktop space, I think it would only hurt Microsoft to invest time into making Mac a more viable gaming ecosystem. They can't ignore the gaming market when it comes to the PS5 or Switch, but why invest in bringing a new competitor to the market? I know Skyrim has been ported to pretty much any device, but with the small amounts of Mac gamers, the relatively slow GPU in most Macs, and the whole OpenGL/Metal situation, I don't see how it would make sense for Bethesda to ship Skyrim to Mac.

mikl 4y ago

Considering that the game is 11 years old now, I doubt a macOS port would be worthwhile. Mac users who wanted to play Skyrim has likely already played it on PC or console. I really liked the game, but I’m certainly not paying to play it again on my Mac when I already own on other platforms.

bugmen0t 4y ago

It works smoothly with high quality using CrossOver (wine) on my M1 MacBook pro from 2021.

solardev 4y ago

FYI, not a native port, but you can already stream Skyrim in a browser: https://www.xbox.com/en-us/games/store/the-elder-scrolls-v-skyrim-special-edition/BQ1W1T1FC14W https://www.xbox.com/en-us/games/store/the-elder-scrolls-v-s...

setgree 4y ago

Careful what you wish for. I find that StarCraft Anthology — the original which was released for free, not the remastered version — is the app most likely to crash my 2020 MacBook. When devs put this stuff on many years after the fact as a sop to diehard fans, they don’t really have an incentive to do a good job on the implementation side. There is no reason that a 1998 game should crash a 2020 computer.

jurmous 4y ago

In the past most Macs sold were Macbook Airs or other Macs which only had integrated Intel graphics. These made Macs a less attractive market to develop games for as the games run poorly on them. Now with the way more powerful graphics by default on the M1 chips, I expect way more games to come out in the future supporting Macs. Like how No Man's Sky is coming out for Mac in the fall. Also the unified memory on Apple Silicon will help a lot in game performance when the games are optimised to use it.

vehemenz 4y ago

The percentage of macOS users who want to play Skyrim and haven't already on a PC or console is probably pretty low. None of these demographics are mutually exclusive. Besides, iOS pulls in more revenue for Apple than does Steam for Valve. Apple doesn't gain much by targeting gamers on macOS.

telman17 4y ago

Cool stats! Being a long time Bethesda Softworks fan myself, I could see Todd Howard announcing a version of Skyrim for this website before it gets a Mac OS version. Skyrim JS of course!

magic_hamster 4y ago

It's somewhat of an open secret that Apple gave up on games maybe two or three decades ago. Halo was being developed exclusively for Mac before Bungie was acquired by Microsoft; gaming on Mac was on the low burner ever since. Don't hold your breath for a Mac port then. Instead, take a look at the ridiculously long list of platforms for which Skyrim is available, and pick one.

psi29a 4y ago

Instead of waiting for Skyrim (or other Beth titles) to be released for macOS, why not lend a hand to the OpenMW? Work is already underway in supporting later versions of NIF, so you can already use some Skyrim assets in OpenMW, support for reading ESM4 was recently introduced. We should have basic Skyrim "walking simulator" in a few releases. Here is a PoC of Skyrim running in OpenMW, don't mind the Morrwind HUD for now, that will be dehardcoded. :) https://youtu.be/oWPAGuPsQ4A https://youtu.be/oWPAGuPsQ4A https://openmw.org https://openmw.org