How Apple’s M1 chip handles games, and which ones are compatible with it

GamesMac

Apple’s computers have never really been popular for their gaming capabilities. Though users can play games on them, the macOS experience has never felt fully optimized for gaming and does not offer nearly enough higher-level settings that are offered to PC gamers.

However, with the release of the new M1 chips, the gaming experience has seriously improved for users. In a video uploaded by MrMacRight, he demonstrates how the M1 chipset handles a variety of games varying from older titles like World of Warcraft to newer, and more demanding titles like Shadow of the Tomb Raider.

M1 chip

Check out how Apple’s M1 chips handle games, and which games work best

Apple’s M1 chip offers a ton of performance improvements to users, and as we have established before, gaming still is not necessarily a strong suit for macOS. However, the M1 delivers incredible performance and advanced technology with revolutionary battery life, which helps to offer a solid experience for several titles. According to Apple:

“The Apple M1 chip gives the 13‑inch MacBook Pro speed and power beyond belief. With up to 2.8x CPU performance. Up to 5x the graphics speed. Our most advanced Neural Engine for up to 11x faster machine learning. And up to 20 hours of battery life — the longest of any Mac ever. It’s our most popular pro notebook, taken to a whole new level.”

Here is a list of the 25 games that were tested by the YouTuber:

  • Boarderlands 3
  • Half Life 2
  • World Of Warcraft
  • Shadow of the Tomb Raider
  • Minecraft
  • Dota 2
  • Bioshock 2: Remastered
  • Among Us
  • F1 Mobile Racing
  • Stardew Valley
  • Dead Trigger 2
  • Soul Knight
  • Monument Valley
  • Stardew Valley (Steam)
  • DiRT Rally
  • Boarderlands 2
  • CSGO
  • Cuphead
  • Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor
  • Dying Light
  • Hades
  • The Pathless
  • Deus Ex:Mankind Divided
  • Batman: Arkham City
  • The Sims 4

Developer and designer Thomas Schranz has compiled a list of Apple Silicon compatible games in a Google document. It includes a ton of details like app distribution, universal builds, resolution, FPS, settings, external monitor support, native or using Rosetta translation, and more. Gamers who are considering if they should get the latest Mac should definitely check it out here.

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About the Author

Asma is an editor at iThinkDifferent with a strong focus on social media, Apple news, streaming services, guides, mobile gaming, app reviews, and more. When not blogging, Asma loves to play with her cat, draw, and binge on Netflix shows.