Guild Wars 2

Thanks to a major malfunction last night, I’ve been forced to download the GW2 Mac client onto my laptop following a sudden loss of my Windows 7 partition. I figured, hey, it’s the same laptop, the same resources, there should be no difference!

Oh, was I wrong. I cannot get my FPS above 15. It’s playable, but certainly not optimal. I’ve had FPS issues in the past (mostly due to a buggy connection, thank you ISP That Shall Not Be Named), but they have never been this bad.

Is the GW2 client being run via wrapper versus native at the heart of this issue? Because I was running way smoother in Windows 7 even for having what’s considered an ancient laptop by game standards. Specs are as follow:

MacBook (13 inch, Late 2008)
10.8.2 OS
2 GHz Intel Core Duo
4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3
NVIDIA GeForce 9400M 256 MB

There have been others who say the game runs better in windows than Mac and yes, it uses a cider port in Mac. We also still have kinks in our code that need working out and not all graphics options are available to us.

What graphics setting did you use in windows and what are you currently using in Mac?

Also, you may want to run software update and make sure you have the latest in updates and monitor you system temps while idle for about 10 mins and while playing the game for 10 mins (note CPU and GPU).

Let me know

Alright, I ran some tests and here are the results. This is after the latest software updates, running in Windowed Mode with a Skype call active. Testing took place in Rata Sum (idle) and Metrica Province (active):

Graphics settings:

Animation: Low
Anti-Aliasing: None
Environment: Low
LOD Distance: Low
Reflections: None
Textures: Low
Render Sampling: Native
Shadows: Low
Shaders: Low
Post-Processing: None
WvW Character Limit: Lowest
WvW Character Quality: Lowest
No bottom boxes checked

Temperatures (measured using iStat Pro, Fahrenheit):

GPU:
Idle: 34
Active: 34
CPU:
Idle: 96
Active: 88

While playing in Metrica, I had spikes of 15 FPS that would last 2+ minutes.

Hope this data helps!

Lol for idle I meant without running any major programs, not idle in game, but it’s okay.

That 96 degrees is a little warm. (guessing C). You may want to use istat to check what speed your fans are running as well, especially once it gets above 90 (mine rarely gets above 90 and usually hovers around 92 for a min or 2 then fall below 90 again, MBP late 2011).

You might also want to get a cooling pad with fans to help circulate the heat underneath the system that could build up and cause spikes. (try this last as you have to spend money for something that may not be the issue)

Have you considered opening up your system and cleaning the fans? And especially trying to evacuate any dust or fluff buildup near the vents, fans, and anywhere else you see it. Mine is under 2 years old and I don’t smoke or didn’t have any pets when I cleaned mine in November and it had stuff stuck around the fan vents and other misc places. Be very careful though and maybe check a video online for others who’ve opened up your system. (lol I almost cracked an area near my fan trying to get a wedged dust bunny out)

If these things don’t fix your issue or give any improvements, I highly recommend checking the submit a ticket sticky hand have a got at that.

Then come back here and post your results and what worked for you to resolve your issue.

Haha, I tend to take things a little too literally, I think!

Are you ready for something horrifying? This system has never been cracked and cleaned, partly because I didn’t want to violate the original AppleCare (long expired) and partly because I would stare at the unibody design and try to figure out how to open it with little success. So my system has been running mostly in carpeted or semi-dusty areas since June 2009, Whoops!

I’ll be grabbing some canned air later and hopefully cleaning everything out and not losing vital components like teeny-tiny screws. If that doesn’t work, I think Belkin makes a USB-based cooling pad for around $20 that could help, too. Thank you for the suggestions so far!

No prob, hope it does help. Please check back when you can to let me know if anything helps and/or if you needed a ticket and their fix.

The unibodies aren’t too bad, just do be careful not to strip the screws as they can be tricky. Watch a vid on it, it help

Alright, I’ve run some tests, and I’m thinking that it’s not a cleaning/cooling issue. Last night, I was running between 15/18 FPS during a Molten Facility run using my Mac client. I rubberbanded a bit, but it was much more playable versus my usual 8 FPS.

Today? I get online (had to sign in through our network, this may be important), log into GW2…and I’m running at 4 FPS steady. I have a sinking feeling that there’s something going on with a firewall or connection that’s allowing me to play, but not very well at all.

Not sure if this requires a ticket or not, all I ask is for 15 FPS steady and nothing more! The lag is so bad that it takes spamming keps over and over to launch an attack or heal, and even then it takes a good 3 seconds just to activate

I use these steps to test my lag and input lag. They’ve helped me a bit, but I’ve also read that others are having similar issues on the pc side. (lately, I’ve also experienced a combination of server-side issues plus some ISP lags, causing large input lag recently)

These steps only work on home setups, not university or public connections due to lack of control over the latter.

Make sure you try playing with any firewalls (including router/modem ones) or anti-virus software disabled and if the issue still occurs, re-enable (if not, gw2 needs to have exceptions made and ports authorised, as listed below in the first link)

Try the things under code 7:

https://en.support.guildwars2.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/8994/~error-codes

I personally use QoS with high priority, but each setup is different.
If the d/c still occurs, you should check your connection to the server and the routing:

https://en.support.guildwars2.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/9245

There are examples listed so you can see if it’s your issue, your isp’s or possibly server side. (this works well if you can test it prior to a disconnect lol or during times of lag, but it is very valuable to know what optimal speeds look like by checking during off-peak times like early in the morn or after midnight)

If this doesn’t turn anything up for you or you don’t see any improvements, check the sticky on submitting a ticket and then do so. Then please post back here with what solution worked for you.

Let me know

Still testing, but here’s some additional data:

Ping: 44ms
Download speed: 21.15 Mbps
Upload speed: 4.36 Mbps

I’m getting the same problem with the FPS,
15 FPS on the 2.1Ghz RMBP
I used to get 60 on best performance, it decreased right after the April 30th patch.
I talked to the support and they have no idea what’s wrong, they just suggested me to raise the issue to developers by posting it on the forums, but I see I’m not the only one.
We should really try and bring this up so it can be fixed.

The problem is, this forum for Mac is not supported by Anet any longer.

So, who did you talk to (what support)? Was it through a ticket?

Have you tried all of the standard Mac fixes (software update, repair permissions, repair client, disable antivirus and firewalls, delete the gw2 folder contents, etc)? If not, I can post instructions of them for you.

Also, you can roll the dice and try your luck on the pc tech support forum… But we tend to get ignored or told to come back here. And they keep getting help for this same issue including some with solutions.

I’m sorry you’re experiencing this issue, but for us maccies, tickets are truly our only option

Reporting back, finally!

The issue…well, this is shameful. It was the heat! I elevated my laptop, purchased an under-system cooling fan that runs off my USB port and poof! No more lag!

Thank you for all of the help and suggestions, though! Admins, unless others have this issue, this thread can be locked and concluded!

Awesome, it’s always the simplest things lol. Glad your issue is fixed!