EVE Online on an old Macbook?

[7254278]

Hey Guys,

I got a little bored of WoW so I figured Id give EVE Online a try. Here is my question. I have an old macbook 2.16ghz with 3GB of ram and the intel GMA 950. I know the GMA 950 is a terrible gaming card but I still managed to run WoW at low-mid settings and get 15-30 FPS depending on where and what my character was doing. I wanted to know will EVE run on the lowest settings at all? Not expecting it to be perfectly smooth but is it playable? How about if I installed it through bootcamp? (would rather not, I try and use windows as little as possible).

Any insight would be appreciated.

Thanks
Patmian


PS: I tried Vendetta Online for mac (I love space sims, was addicted to EV Nova and Freelancer for years) and it seems like a cool little game but the player-base is sooooooo small its not worth playing. Such a shame. . .

 

[Huntn]

I have no experience with Eve Online, but I would be doubtful. Integrated graphics is the weak link. This EO page says you need a min of: Video: ATI X1600 or NVIDIA GeForce 7300 GT or higher with 128 MB of Video RAM.

There was a point where the MacBooks were upgraded to support Shaders 2. I don't remember if the 950 is before or after, but that could be a factor.

Maybe someone who is actually playing or tried to play EO on a similar MB will report in.

 

[SingaporeStu]

If you check the EVE forums, you'll know that intel GMA950 + Mac OS X = assured trouble playing EVE in Mac OS.

If you must, Boot Camp into Windows & play the Windows version. It's much more stable.

I'm playing on an early-2009 MacBook (White) with C2D 2.0GHz + 9400m & 4GB RAM. In OS X it's playable most of the time, but Boot Camp into Windows just to play EVE (or any other GPU intensive game) seems more stable.

 

[7254278]

Decided to bite the bullet and just give it a try on a trial account. Ill post how it runs in OS X and Windows XP. . . I hope its at least playable on min settings. . . Gonna be awhile, the download is taking forever. . .

 

[7254278]

Ok in OS X I barely get 10 FPS on the LOG IN SCREEN! The game is 100% unplayable with the GMA 950 in OS X. . . Ill post the Windows XP results tomorrow. I suspect it will run ok due to the lower minimum hardware requirements.

 

[7254278]

Windows Update. . .

Just downloaded the client(I read a lite client was available but I couldnt find it) and with everything on low during the tutorial I get 15-20 FPS and while warping 5-9 FPS so its kind of playable. . . So I am gonna try it out and see if I like it.

Does anyone know if there are any new GMA 950 drivers or something that might boost performance?

 

[savvos]

Intel posts new drivers on their website. I've updated drivers for my X3100, but they mostly seem to be increasing stability or compatibility, not improving speed. Good luck!

 

[SingaporeStu]

Windows Update. . .

Just downloaded the client(I read a lite client was available but I couldnt find it) and with everything on low during the tutorial I get 15-20 FPS and while warping 5-9 FPS so its kind of playable. . . So I am gonna try it out and see if I like it.

Does anyone know if there are any new GMA 950 drivers or something that might boost performance?

Patmain,

As advised here in & EVE forums, your best bet is to bootcamp into Windows & play from there. You might wanna check out Apple's latest Bootcamp drivers (if you haven't already installed it), or find something from nvidia directly (for Windows, of course).

If I were you, I'd sell off that old Macbook & trade-up to a newer 1 with at least the 320m. Even the Whites have them. IMO, they're a good buy if you already like white and don't need firewire.

Personally, I waited until they put the 9400m on the MacBook White before I bought it, just with an eye to playing EVE on it. Before that, I was using an iBook G4 for other stuff, and it worked just fine.

Either way, welcome to EVE, and good luck.