Cyberpunk 2077 Coming to macOS: What Mac Gamers Need to Know

Good news for Mac gamers. The popular open-world game Cyberpunk 2077 is finally coming to macOS. After some delays, the launch date is now official. You can play Cyberpunk 2077: Ultimate Edition on your Mac starting July 17th.

This release is special. It’s the first time the game will run natively on Apple Silicon. So, if you have an M1, M2, M3, or even the latest M4 chip, you’re in luck. But there’s a catch. Not every Mac will handle it well.

To play Cyberpunk 2077, your Mac must have at least 16GB of unified memory. So, if you have a base M1 or M2 Mac with only 8GB of RAM, the game won’t run. This makes sense. Cyberpunk 2077 is a heavy game with lots of graphics and details.

Cyberpunk 2077 Coming to macOS: What Mac Gamers Need to Know

CD Projekt Red, the studio behind the game, worked closely with Apple. They made sure the game runs smoothly on different Mac models. The game has special graphics presets for each chip. This helps balance good visuals with good performance.

If you have a newer chip like the M3 or M4, you’ll get extra features. One of them is path tracing. This is a fancy lighting mode that makes the game look more realistic. It’s like full ray tracing used in movies. It makes the city lights, shadows, and reflections pop out.

The game also uses AMD’s FSR. This is an upscaling tech that boosts performance. It lets you play at higher frame rates without losing much image quality. The Mac version will also support MetalFX upscaling, which is Apple’s own version of FSR.

Cyberpunk 2077 on Mac supports Apple’s hardware, too. You can use your Magic Mouse or Trackpad. If you have an HDR monitor, the game will support HDR for brighter colours and better contrast. And if you play with AirPods, you’ll get spatial audio and head tracking for a more immersive feel.

See Also: Activision Shuts Down Call of Duty: WWII After PC Hack

Mac players have run Cyberpunk before. Some used Apple’s game porting tool, which is like Proton on Linux. But that was a workaround. Now, the game is officially supported. It uses Apple’s Metal graphics API for better performance. It also uses Apple’s Tile-Based Deferred Rendering (TBDR) for better graphics on Mac chips.

The launch comes with new goodies, too. CD Projekt Red just dropped the 2.3 patch for Cyberpunk 2077. This update adds more cars and new photo mode features. The Ultimate Edition also includes the Phantom Liberty expansion. Plus, it supports cross progression. So, you can switch between your Mac and other devices without losing your game progress.

You can get Cyberpunk 2077 for Mac from the Mac App Store, Steam, Epic Games Store, or GOG.com.

If you have a powerful Mac and enough memory, now’s the time to explore Night City. Get ready for a wild ride. Happy gaming, Mac fans!