Games with the Intel GMA 950

I recently won a contest, and got a new MacBook C2Duo 2.0ghz (black). I have long been a Mac user, and know my way around a bit. I did a lot of searching about how the Intel GMA 950 chip would do for games. The results are mixed, and mostly based on opinion. So, I thought I would simply add my 2-cents:

The Intel GMA 950 in the MacBook does not make for a GREAT game machine, but for the casual gamer, it might be ok. I played Halo ( universal patch ) from start to finish, without poor video performance. I am currently playing Empire At War, and am pleased with the performance.

While both of these games would be much more enjoyable with things like FSAA ( anti-aliasing ) and hardware shaders and lighting, they are playable with low quality settings. I even bumped-up the textures and geometry settings in Empire at War, without noticeable loss of performance ( at a high resolution too! ).

The bottom line is, if you are shopping for a portable gamer, keep shopping. If you are on a budget, already own one, or are just curious, it's not as bad as the so-called "experts" have guessed.

Get the Empire At War demo here, and see for yourself!

2Ghz Macbook Black/1.6Ghz G5 PowerMac Mac OS X (10.4.9) 1gig RAM in Macbook ( considering upgrade )

2Ghz Macbook Black/1.6Ghz G5 PowerMac, Mac OS X (10.4.8)

Posted on Apr 25, 2007 2:01 PM

19 replies

DrMacMikeR Author

Level 1

33 points

Apr 30, 2007 3:49 PM in response to DrMacMikeR

UPDATE

So, I broke down and upped the RAM!

I went to NCIX and got a 2Gig kit for $109.99
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=20170&vpn=VS2GSDSKIT667D2&manufacture =CORSAIR

Testing with Empire at War, it certainly runs smoother... I upped many of the graphics settings, but discovered that only small tweeks were reasonable. As suspected, no amount of RAM is going to allow me to run with detailed particles, shadows or maximum environment textures...

It's a bit better, and that's enough 🙂

2Ghz Macbook Black/1.6Ghz G5 PowerMac Mac OS X (10.4.8) Now featuring: 2Gigs RAM

tcdm1972

Level 2

240 points

May 1, 2007 8:22 AM in response to DrMacMikeR

I've been playing Sims2 and Stronghold 2 on my macbook windows XP bootcamp with excelent results.
On OSX side I got Age of Empires 3 so far very smooth play. I just ordered Call of Duty 2 for mac and I'm waiting to see how it plays. I will report back when I get it and install it - should be tomorrow.

Wish me luck 🙂

May 1, 2007 5:27 PM in response to tcdm1972

Let me warn everyone away from the OS X version of The Sims 2. It does not play well with the GMA chipset, even with a maxed-out system and Universal patch. Avoid it, because Asypy won't be helping you with it.

The Windows XP version, however, runs great in Boot Camp!

I've had varying degrees of success with the same chipset on my Mac mini Intel Core Duo, and now that I've migrated to the Mac, I look forward to a few games now and the, especially since the CPU is faster.

So far, I can vouch for The Sims 2, Star Wars Empire At War, Neverwinter Nights (not NWN2), City of Heroes, World of Warcraft, Warcraft III, Deus Ex (may need to be tweaked to not freak out on the dual-core CPU), and The Ur-Quan Masters (which is free, runs great in OS X, and can be found with a Google search).

I have had mediocre experiences with Half-Life 2 and Second Life. They work, but aren't pretty or smooth.

As usual, I recommend downloading the demo and trying it before ever buying a game for your computer. Try before you buy.

tcdm1972

Level 2

240 points

May 1, 2007 8:11 PM in response to Keith Owen

Just to report back - I installed the Call of Duty 2 Mac version onto my 2.0GHz 2GbRAM macbook.

The game is playable at the lowest possible settings - but struggles through very action intense combat scenarios. If you don't mind the low quality graphics and playable at best frames per second - then go for it. I wonder if COD2 plays better on windows side.

As for playing this game on my Macbook - I think I will wait until I get my Macbook Pro in a few months - before I play this game

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Games with the Intel GMA 950