Lag in games on a iMac

[CLS7]

I have a iMac late 2015 with 32GB of RAM that I am still happy with. I replaced the spinning disk two years ago with an SSD which speeded up the computer with a noticeable difference.

The built-in graphic card is 2GB and I notice a lot of lag in games, especially in 3D games. To the question, is it possible to connect an eGPU. If it does, do games have to be compatible with the card? or how does it work?

I'm planning to buy a new Mac in the near future but still like my iMac. It's fast at almost everything except games.

 

[Nguyen Duc Hieu]

I have a iMac late 2015 with 32GB of RAM that I am still happy with. I replaced the spinning disk two years ago with an SSD which speeded up the computer with a noticeable difference.

The built-in graphic card is 2GB and I notice a lot of lag in games, especially in 3D games. To the question, is it possible to connect an eGPU. If it does, do games have to be compatible with the card? or how does it work?

I'm planning to buy a new Mac in the near future but still like my iMac. It's fast at almost everything except games.

Which resolution have you run the game at? The stock GPU can only drive iMac's 5k monitor in 2D applications.
3D applications at 5k resolution is tough for even modern mid-budget graphic card.

2015 27" iMac 5K (R9 M390) [6th,4C,] + RX 5700 XT @ 16Gbps-T...

System specs 27" iMac late 2015 17,1, (thunderbolt 2) 3.2 GHz Quad-Core Intel Core i5 32GB Ram 1 TB Fusion AMD Radeon R9 M390 2GB MacOS C...

egpu.io

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/late-2015-imac-5k-r9-395x-gtx980ti-egpu.1957652/

Guide:

Installation Guide

Enable AMD/NVIDIA eGFX for All Thunderbolt Macs with SIP, ART & FileVault support. - mayankk2308/kryptonite

github.com

 

[zarmanto]

I think your best options are likely to be: 1) either buy a newer iMac and sell your current one, or 2) if that other new purchase you mentioned is already very imminent, just reduce the graphics settings of your games until the replacement arrives.

There's no real way to sugarcoat this... Macs just aren't really built with gamers in mind. Personally, (when I'm not doing something more productive) I play video games on a 2019 iMac, which I personally think isn't bad at all -- but it admittedly still lags a bit in some games, even when running at 1080p. (I'm looking at you, No Man's Sky...) In contrast, you have an iMac that's four years older than that; it's not likely that you're going to be able to get particularly amazing gaming performance out of that older iMac.

Of course, as you noted you could go with an eGPU; if you do a few minutes of googling, you will certainly find that there are people out there who are very bullish on that idea. I'm just not necessarily convinced as to the breadth of games that are compatible, nor to the overall value preposition as compared to swapping out that iMac; in the end it would likely still cost more to buy an eGPU than it would to sell your current iMac and buy a 2019 or 2020* model with a much better GPU in the box. (Clearly I'm somewhat biased, since I'm recommending what I already have... but that's still what I'm going with.)

* Note that 2020 was the last year Apple produced an Intel-based iMac; if your gaming relies upon Windows in Bootcamp, that's probably where you want to go.

 

[CLS7]

I think your best options are likely to be: 1) either buy a newer iMac and sell your current one, or 2) if that other new purchase you mentioned is already very imminent, just reduce the graphics settings of your games until the replacement arrives.

There's no real way to sugarcoat this... Macs just aren't really built with gamers in mind. Personally, (when I'm not doing something more productive) I play video games on a 2019 iMac, which I personally think isn't bad at all -- but it admittedly still lags a bit in some games, even when running at 1080p. (I'm looking at you, No Man's Sky...) In contrast, you have an iMac that's four years older than that; it's not likely that you're going to be able to get particularly amazing gaming performance out of that older iMac.

Of course, as you noted you could go with an eGPU; if you do a few minutes of googling, you will certainly find that there are people out there who are very bullish on that idea. I'm just not necessarily convinced as to the breadth of games that are compatible, nor to the overall value preposition as compared to swapping out that iMac; in the end it would likely still cost more to buy an eGPU than it would to sell your current iMac and buy a 2019 or 2020* model with a much better GPU in the box. (Clearly I'm somewhat biased, since I'm recommending what I already have... but that's still what I'm going with.)

* Note that 2020 was the last year Apple produced an Intel-based iMac; if your gaming relies upon Windows in Bootcamp, that's probably where you want to go.

Thanks for your reply!

I myself realize that it is probably better to invest in a new Mac.

The thing is, the screen on my iMac is absolutely amazing. I planned to buy a new iMac with M1 but Apple never released a 27" model, only a 24".

I then thought about buying a Mac mini M2, but it was never released last year and if I were to buy a Mac mini, I must have a good monitor that corresponds to the 5K screen I have on my iMac today.

An equivalent monitor would be an Apple Studio Display, but it is far too expensive. Well, I guess I'll have to wait and see what models Apple releases this fall. Hoping on a 27" or maybe even better, an 32"?

 

[zarmanto]

... An equivalent monitor would be an Apple Studio Display, but it is far too expensive. Well, I guess I'll have to wait and see what models Apple releases this fall. Hoping on a 27" or maybe even better, an 32"?

I hear you, and I get you... I'm sure I'll be drooling over the 32" iMac, too, if they actually make one. But it may be worth noting that the Apple Studio Display is actually Apple's current notion of what a "budget friendly" monitor should look like; contrast the 27" 5K Studio's starting price of $1599 with the 32" 6K Pro Display XDR's starting price of $4999. So if you're anywhere close to as budget conscious as I am, I would hazard a guess that you might well choke on your drink when/if Apple announces the price of a 32" iMac. This is part of the reason I tend to favor that last crop of 5K iMacs, especially for those of us who have been spoiled rotten by those wonderfully ultra-densely packed pixels.

Alternatively, if you've decided that you're really ready to take the plunge into the future with an Apple Silicon Mac, it may be worth investigating the various 4K and 5K 27" third party monitors. Unfortunately, there really aren't very many 5K options out there, (like... one?) but there are plenty of 4K options, at a variety of price points. And I'm admittedly not a graphics artist... but I have a fairly economical 4K Dell monitor sitting right alongside my iMac, and I've been quite happy with it. (There are newer versions of that monitor as well, just as an aside.)

 

[wilberforce]

I'm not a gamer, but the 2020 27" iMac with i7 or i9 and (most importantly) the 5700XT GPU is the one to get for games. Can be very hard to find for a reasonable price, because sellers "know what they got," but you could look around.

 

[T'hain Esh Kelch]

Have you tried lowering the graphical quality of said games, especially the resolution?

 

[pmiles]

Specify what games you are playing. Everyone assumes an eGPU or Apple Silicon is the ticket to paradise but in some cases, the best solution is actually a Windows PC. Most games aren't native to the Mac platform and as such, play at a less than optimal experience right from the get go. Even long standing games such as WoW have taken a serious nose-dive in support over the years.

 

[CLS7]

Specify what games you are playing. Everyone assumes an eGPU or Apple Silicon is the ticket to paradise but in some cases, the best solution is actually a Windows PC. Most games aren't native to the Mac platform and as such, play at a less than optimal experience right from the get go. Even long standing games such as WoW have taken a serious nose-dive in support over the years.

Example of games that have lags

Truberbrook https://store.steampowered.com/app/757300/Truberbrook__Trberbrook/

Syberia 3 https://store.steampowered.com/app/464340/Syberia_3/

 

[pmiles]

Both are older games... technically your specs should be sufficient but only if you are running the game at 1920x1080. Keep in mind that Apple isn't exactly known for keeping their drivers updated, so bugs do persist permanently in some cases. Of course bugs can exist due to the game code as well, which only the developer can fix.

Given the age of the games and the overall comments on their forums, it sounds like par for the course in terms of playability. Meaning, a newer computer isn't going to fix the issue.