Guild Wars 2

Hey,

I’m looking to buy a new machine. Up until I got my Macbook Pro 15’, all I knew was windows. I’ve come to the conclusion (although many would disagree), that I have far much more time for Mac due to the overwhelming amount of efficiency it brings, it’s simply got a lot going for it. It wouldn’t be used solely for gaming use, however gaming would be a large part of it.

In addition to the above, Macs tend to last longer and actually don’t lose a lot of their value 3-4 years from purchase compared to a windows. So later down the line if I want to purchase an upgraded Mac, I could probably get at least 60% of the price that I paid for it back at 2nd hand. Whereas a windows, you’d be lucky to get 40% for what you paid for it 3-4 years later.

I’m looking at the 27 inch iMac, and am wondering if anyone here uses an iMac to play Guild Wars? I’m not much a solo player, so I tend to like World Boss Hunting, Dungeons and Fractals. A lot of the research I have done has suggested the following:

• GPU far more important, so upgrade the graphics card where possible
• i7 Intels aren’t necessary unless doing tons of multi-tasking (which I wouldn’t do to that degree)
• A flash or fusion drive would be largely beneficial for common file usage loading speeds

Based on the above, I am thinking about getting an iMac with the following specs:

• 3.4GHz Quad-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
• 8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2X4GB
• 1TB Fusion Drive
• NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB GDDR5

The 1TB Fusion drive is replacing a 1TB ATA Drive (7200 rpm) (for £160 extra)
The 780m 4GB Graphics card is replacing a 775m 2GB graphics card (for £130 extra)

I have the option to upgrade the processor from:

3.4GHz Quad-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
to
3.5GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 3.9GHz

But from what I’ve read that’s a pretty pointless upgrade if you aren’t doing multi-purpose and process intensive things such 3D rendering, video / photo editing. Considering I’d mostly be using it for gaming, and work I don’t feel it’s worth the extra £190 based on research I’ve read.

Actually CPU is more important than GPU in GW2. The game isn’t incredibly well optimised leading it to be far more CPU intensive. Just make sure you don’t get a mac with an intel graphics card because you’re basically kittening yourself.

But yeah, the iMac you’ve suggested should play GW2 extremely well. I know a lot of people who have purchased more recent iMacs have got far far far superior FPS to anyone else – like, around the same as playing in windows.

I’m not sure upgrading the graphics card is completely necessary, the game is 32bit and is inside a cider port, so it won’t utilise all of the vRAM – not even close to it. (But if you’re going to play other native OSX games then it may be worth your money, just not if it is solely for GW2 or other games that have been ported inside a wrapper).

Ahriman. I’m looking at the same iMac but without the Fusion drive upgrade. If you do get one please post your experience with it and GW2. Thanks.

I’ve been playing on a mid-2010 27" iMac, and the game runs just fine at native resolution and default graphics settings. 2.93 GHz i7, ATI Radeon 5750 with 1G, and an SSD.

If you’re going to keep the Mac for a long time, and you intend to play a lot of games, a better video card is what will keep you playing the longest.

My IMac is late 2012. It is an i7, 3.4 GHz with Nvidia GeForce GTZ680MX 2048MB.

For the most part, GW2 runs very well. The graphics are superb on the big shiny 27" monitor. The only real problem I have is when there are very large groups of players, such as in WvW or at a world boss. I have to lower my graphics settings then to ‘best performance’ or inevitably I will find myself facing the desktop with my game bailing out.

I just ordered a new 27 inch iMac. When I get it up and running I will relay the GW2 performance. Should be here around July 9th.

This is what I got:

27-inch iMac
3.4GHz Quad-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2X4GB
1TB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB GDDR5
Magic Trackpad
Apple Wireless Keyboard (English) & User’s Guide

Hey! I’m just the man you need!

27-inch iMac
3.5GHz Quad-core Intel Core i7, Turbo Boost up to 3.9GHz
16GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM
1TB Fusion Drive
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB GDDR5

I got the machine today and am downloading the OSX client now. Haven’t played the game in 2 years so I’m very rusty. How do I turn on FPS in the game? I’ll let you know what I’m seeing.

The game hasn’t quite been out for 2 years yet – so I’m assuming you mean 1 and a half or something?

To get FPS to show up just open up the settings menu and the FPS will show in the bottom corner of that – there’s no in game way of having it permanently on screen though.

Cruel Intent.9482:

How do I turn on FPS in the game? I’ll let you know what I’m seeing.

besides the fps counter in the options menu, you can edit the file

“$HOME/Library/Application Support/Guild Wars 2/config”

and set the option under the [d3dgl] header to

“ShowFPS” = “Y”

to get a permanent fps display.

Short answer it will run great. Max out all the RAM you can afford, it can’t be upgraded later, and do get a i7 processor if you plan to keep it for some years,

Mine is:
iMac 27 Late 2013, Intel Core i7, 3,5 GHz, 32 GB RAM, NVIDIA GTX 780M – 4GB, Fusion Drive. (and I haven’t had a glitch in performance at all)

Sunday.8953:

Short answer it will run great. Max out all the RAM you can afford, it can’t be upgraded later, and do get a i7 processor if you plan to keep it for some years,

Mine is:
iMac 27 Late 2013, Intel Core i7, 3,5 GHz, 32 GB RAM, NVIDIA GTX 780M – 4GB, Fusion Drive. (and I haven’t had a glitch in performance at all)

Whaaat. I thought that most of the new iMacs did have upgradeable RAM

According to Apples web site the 27 inch iMac’s have an access panel in the back for adding more memory.

Using the previous model (late 2012/early 2013) i5, GTX680MX.
Performance is … good enough. Not great. My first iMac, and most likely my last.

The graphics card is bare minimum for a display of this resolution. In GW2, performance is more limited by the CPU, and since you can’t really overclock an iMac, you’re pretty much out of options here. A poorly realized OSX version of the game doesn’t help here either. At least there’s Bootcamp to play the game under Windows with better performance. Take note though that Fusion Drive doesn’t work with Bootcamp, it will only use the regular hard drive, not the SSD.

From a gamers point of view, price-performance ratio of the iMac is lousy. In order to get acceptable performance, costly upgrades are mandatory. But that’s why you get a Mac for productivity, so it actually pays for itself, and not for gaming.

Sunday.8953:

Max out all the RAM you can afford, it can’t be upgraded later, and do get a i7 processor if you plan to keep it for some years

The 27 inch models do have user-upgradable RAM. Apples build-to-order RAM upgrades are obscenely overpriced. Go with the minimum RAM and upgrade it yourself if neccessary. You’re not going to need an upgrade for a while unless you go heavily into photo/video editing. Same for an i7 upgrade, little to no benefit unless you’re insisting on keeping a dozen apps opened at once while gaming, or using applications that are heavily multithreaded. Hint: The majority of games stilll aren’t.

I would avoid buying an iMac right now as they seem to be end of life (stock of iMacs in stores is very low).

And probably one of the biggest upgrades you can get for GW2 performance is a Fusion drive (or just an SSD). It really cuts the load times.

Hi all – I went and purchased my iMac, and I’m so impressed. Been playing GW2 for a few hours now, and I’ve never felt such a smooth experience. In general exploring, I am getting a solid 70-95 FPS depending on the view, and in combat engagement it tends to be 40-65. I went into WvW and followed a large group of people and I never fell below 35.

The specs I went with in the end, were:

3.4GHz Intel Core i5
16GB Ram
500gb Flash Drive
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB

If the 27 inches of brilliance isn’t enough, then the FPS results should be

I can see the smile on your face Ahriman. Mine arrived yesterday and I’ve been playing/testing and I have the same numbers. I get an average FPS in the 70’s doing PvE. It will drop into the high 40’s for a few seconds during a fight but it comes back fast. I did not expect the FPS to be this high and SMOOTH, although I would assume this hardware in native Windows to be better.

The thing that I’am most impressed with is how the colors and sharpness are so rich. I didn’t expect that. The sand storm in Dry Top looks fantastic.

I will show some screen shots in a few days. Sadly I have too much going on right now to play. I just want anybody out there who is questioning if a Mac can play this game at the highest settings, the answer is a definate yes.

My specs:

27-inch iMac
3.4GHz Quad-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2X4GB
1TB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB GDDR5

Supercluster.7159:

I can see the smile on your face Ahriman. Mine arrived yesterday and I’ve been playing/testing and I have the same numbers. I get an average FPS in the 70’s doing PvE. It will drop into the high 40’s for a few seconds during a fight but it comes back fast. I did not expect the FPS to be this high and SMOOTH, although I would assume this hardware in native Windows to be better.

The thing that I’am most impressed with is how the colors and sharpness are so rich. I didn’t expect that. The sand storm in Dry Top looks fantastic.

I will show some screen shots in a few days. Sadly I have too much going on right now to play. I just want anybody out there who is questioning if a Mac can play this game at the highest settings, the answer is a definate yes.

My specs:

27-inch iMac
3.4GHz Quad-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2X4GB
1TB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB GDDR5

“I just want anybody out there who is questioning if a Mac can play this game at the highest settings, the answer is a definate yes.”

Just because you purchased the most recent model of the iMac, does not mean GW2 works on highest settings as a “definite yes”. Many people here don’t have the latest machine, but do have specs that should yield a higher amount of FPS than they’re getting. With your specs, you should run most things at a decent FPS.

Nageth.5648:

I would avoid buying an iMac right now as they seem to be end of life (stock of iMacs in stores is very low).

And probably one of the biggest upgrades you can get for GW2 performance is a Fusion drive (or just an SSD). It really cuts the load times.

Agreed, Apple’s having their annual conference soon, where they show off new models of their machines and devices. Just with a month or so and then purchase an iMac, you’ll get better specs at a better price.

Keep in mind, too, that many of these people getting such good FPS dropped at least $2,200 on their iMac, so of course they’ll be getting better FPS than most. I don’t really understand why people don’t take that into consideration when boasting about how fast their client is.

Aries Feathermore.5761:

I don’t really understand why people don’t take that into consideration when boasting about how fast their client is.

Honestly, it’s quite silly to complain about performance when you drop money for a Mac that has an Intel graphics card or a mediocre one. Good frame rates are achieved by decent graphic cards only. This is also an issue some people experience on Windows.

I mean, you don’t really expect an Intel 3000 to pull off a stable 60 FPS with anything above medium settings. Right?

Lucky.3870:

Aries Feathermore.5761:

I don’t really understand why people don’t take that into consideration when boasting about how fast their client is.

Honestly, it’s quite silly to complain about performance when you drop money for a Mac that has an Intel graphics card or a mediocre one. Good frame rates are achieved by decent graphic cards only. This is also an issue some people experience on Windows.

I mean, you don’t really expect an Intel 3000 to pull off a stable 60 FPS with anything above medium settings. Right?

First off, you do realize that MacBook Pros can also have dedicated graphics, right? So you’re actually wrong, I have an AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 1GB vram as with as the Intel 3000. It performs pretty well at medium-high settings on Windows. Good frame rates are NOT achieved by decent graphic cards only; it’s basic knowledge your CPU, RAM, etc. play a big factor into FPS.

Before trying to void my point, you could’ve asked what specs I had.

Aries Feathermore.5761:

First off, you do realize that MacBook Pros can also have dedicated graphics, right? So you’re actually wrong, I have an AMD Radeon HD 6750M with 1GB vram as with as the Intel 3000. It performs pretty well at medium-high settings on Windows. Good frame rates are NOT achieved by decent graphic cards only; it’s basic knowledge your CPU, RAM, etc. play a big factor into FPS.

Before trying to void my point, you could’ve asked what specs I had.

I wasn’t trying to void your point. Basically, you replied what I expected to hear. Which only proves my idea that the game has poor optimization.

That’s not exactly a point that needs further proof

Supercluster.7159:

I can see the smile on your face Ahriman. Mine arrived yesterday and I’ve been playing/testing and I have the same numbers. I get an average FPS in the 70’s doing PvE. It will drop into the high 40’s for a few seconds during a fight but it comes back fast. I did not expect the FPS to be this high and SMOOTH, although I would assume this hardware in native Windows to be better.

The thing that I’am most impressed with is how the colors and sharpness are so rich. I didn’t expect that. The sand storm in Dry Top looks fantastic.

I will show some screen shots in a few days. Sadly I have too much going on right now to play. I just want anybody out there who is questioning if a Mac can play this game at the highest settings, the answer is a definate yes.

My specs:

27-inch iMac
3.4GHz Quad-core Intel Core i5, Turbo Boost up to 3.8GHz
8GB 1600MHz DDR3 SDRAM – 2X4GB
1TB Serial ATA Drive @ 7200 rpm
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780M 4GB GDDR5

Thinking about getting an iMac too. However, are you guys using the mac beta client or bootcamp?

I’m using the mac beta.

Supercluster.7159:

I’m using the mac beta.

That is great! no need for bootcamp then! How well does the iMac deal with the heat (fan) though when playing? Because it still uses a nvidia xxxM card (laptop card) and I am playing on a laptop which heats and causes my fan to run constantly (which i guess is normal for laptops). No techy here at all, if someone can clarify if that has anything to do with the heat, please do! xD

Endo Kazuki.2086:

Thinking about getting an iMac too. However, are you guys using the mac beta client or bootcamp?

Both. OSX client for short game sessions/open-world playing when I don’t want to reboot. Bootcamp for WvW/Bossfights/longer playsessions on the weekend. Depending on what you want to do in the game, Bootcamp might be a good idea.

Endo Kazuki.2086:

How well does the iMac deal with the heat (fan) though when playing?

Generally speaking, the iMac runs completely silent. In some situations where the client is extremely taxed, the fans will spin up and become audible, though still not really loud. They’ll run for a minute or two and then slow down again. It helps to adjust your graphics settings smartly (turn down shadows & reflections), and use the frame limiter at 60FPS.
That’s my experience with the iMac of the previous generation (late-2012, GTX680MX).

Endo Kazuki.2086:

That is great! no need for bootcamp then! How well does the iMac deal with the heat (fan) though when playing? Because it still uses a nvidia xxxM card (laptop card) and I am playing on a laptop which heats and causes my fan to run constantly (which i guess is normal for laptops). No techy here at all, if someone can clarify if that has anything to do with the heat, please do! xD

My iMac was getting in the mid to high 90’s Celsius and was a little concerned about that. I bought Temperature Gauge Pro which monitors the heat sensors and allows you to adjust the fan speed. I set the fan control to max when any sensor hits 80c. Now the highest I’ve ever seen any sensor is 85c which is well below Intel and Nividia throttling temps.

My guess is Apple wants to keep things quiet and keeps the fan speeds low.