Observation concerning games and overheat

[Gridphoenix]

Hi,

I have a late 2013 Macbook Pro and use it also for gaming. I read through all the threads concerning overheat and modifying the fan speed of the notebook. But I also made some observations concerning the games. Some games work like a charm some do not. Obviously there are games that immediately force the CPU to go to very high workload and this triggers the fans to speed up.
For example:

Civilization 5 runs without a problem (Temperature not over 70 Degree Celsius).
Space Run no problem.
Talisman Digital (in Windows VM) no problem.
Hearthstone no problem.

Europa Universalis IV overheats.
Warlock 2 overheats.
Wastelands 2 overheats after a while.


I do not like to play a game while the fans are running full force.
So I wonder why some games trigger the high CPU load and others don't´t. I also found that the graphics resolution is not the problem. Its the CPU load.
Did other users observe similar behaviour ?

Michael

 

[leman]

Game developers usually do not concern themselves at all about energy-saving features, and its often the case that games burn away the CPU and GPU cycles without doing any useful work. Most games redraw the entire screen every frame and they draw as quickly as they can, even if it will not result in improved user experience.

Not to mention that CPU load alone is not the entire factor, you need to take the GPU utilisation into account as well.

 

[snaky69]

Hi,

I have a late 2013 Macbook Pro and use it also for gaming. I read through all the threads concerning overheat and modifying the fan speed of the notebook. But I also made some observations concerning the games. Some games work like a charm some do not. Obviously there are games that immediately force the CPU to go to very high workload and this triggers the fans to speed up.
For example:

Civilization 5 runs without a problem (Temperature not over 70 Degree Celsius).
Space Run no problem.
Talisman Digital (in Windows VM) no problem.
Hearthstone no problem.

Europa Universalis IV overheats.
Warlock 2 overheats.
Wastelands 2 overheats after a while.


I do not like to play a game while the fans are running full force.
So I wonder why some games trigger the high CPU load and others don't´t. I also found that the graphics resolution is not the problem. Its the CPU load.
Did other users observe similar behaviour ?

Michael

If your computer hasn't shut down in your face while gaming, then it hasn't overheated. Please stop using this word unless you actually are experiencing this.

The fans are going full force because their job is to extract heat that you are making the computer generate by gaming. If the fans were not ramping up, they wouldn't be doing the thing they are designed to do. The computer would literally burn itself to a crisp in a matter of a minute or so. Don't complain they are working as intended, they are protecting your expensive computer.

Computers are powerful these days. Power usually generates a byproduct: heat. That's plain old thermodynamics and there is nothing you can do about it short of rewriting the laws of physics.

TL;DR: Your computer is working as intended, at temperatures that are safe for it. If you're bothered by the fan noise, put on some headphones or turn the game's volume up.

I rest my case.

 

[Gridphoenix]

No need to be upset.

Let me put my question a little more technical:

There are some games that are programmed in a CPU demanding way, while others are not. The fact that a complex game like Civ 5 is not very demanding on the resources shows that it is a matter of programming. A game like Pandora - which is similar in complexity - immediately pushes the CPU to its limits thereby triggering the fans (like it should do) I am just observing the facts here and trying to find out what reasons exist. I also would love to assemble a list of "low resource" games.

Concerning the fan noise I do not think that having the fans running at 5000+ rpm for a prolonged time is a good thing.

 

[nerowolfe]

Some games are just more efficient / make better use of multiple cores. Add heavy GPU usage to the list of culprits whenever fans ramp up for a long period of time, as the gpu heat-sink is next to its cpu counterpart and def add up to the active cooling your mac has kicking in early and often when gaming.

I'd suggest lapping and replacing the stock thermal paste of your computer as well as cleaning the fans on a yearly basis.