Macbook for games?

r.spitz · Feb 6, 2010

Hey guys I just got the new unibody macbook, 2.26, 4gb ram, 320 hdd, and am loving it. I've never really been one to play games on the pc as they all seemed to need killer systems to run decently. I decided just for poops and hahas to try need for speed most wanted, and wow it runs perfect at full graphics settings, and even works with my ps3 controller. Just wondering if anyone else is using a macbook for gaming or if I am going to overwork it.

Chris H. · Feb 6, 2010

r.spitz said:
Hey guys I just got the new unibody macbook, 2.26, 4gb ram, 320 hdd, and am loving it. I've never really been one to play games on the pc as they all seemed to need killer systems to run decently. I decided just for poops and hahas to try need for speed most wanted, and wow it runs perfect at full graphics settings, and even works with my ps3 controller. Just wondering if anyone else is using a macbook for gaming or if I am going to overwork it.

You should be fine. I mean especially if it is brand new.

S.SubZero · Feb 6, 2010

Here's a raw comparison between the 9400GT (desktop version) and the 9600M GT found in the higher-end MacBook Pros:

Video Card Comparison - GPUReview.com

Here's a raw comparison between the 9400GT (desktop version) and the 8800M GTX in my old gaming notebook:

Video Card Comparison - GPUReview.com

You get good performance between (a) 1280x800 really isn't that high a resolution, and (b) NFS:MW is five years old.

r.spitz · Feb 6, 2010

Ok I wasnt sure, this is my first attempt gaming on a laptop and was impressed, especially the ps3 controller being plug and play. So I'm guessing I should be fine to run cod2 as well?

S.SubZero · Feb 7, 2010

It should run. I don't know the game, and I don't typically try gaming on specs that low, so it's out of my jurisdiction. You can always tweak the settings of the game to get a framerate you are comfortable with.

alexsd123 · Feb 7, 2010

You can do some gaming on your MB but for hardcore gaming, you need a tower and Windows. =)

I have been playing Bioshock and CSS in OSX on my MBP lately and they run pretty smoothly.

bluefox9er · Feb 7, 2010

I use my xbox360 for games.... and my PCs as computers....and my plasma TV to watch TV and movies with.

I have never owned a windows laptop PC with enough battery life to watch a movie.