Running Battlefield 3 on a mid-2009 MBP... how would it perform under Windows 7?

[Nervous Nick]

Hey, guys. I've been poking around online, but haven't found a straight answer. Because I'm not very computer-smart when it comes to questions like this, I took some screencaps of what System Profiler tells me about my computer.

So assuming I'm running a 64-bit version of Windows 7, how would you guys expect the game to run?

 

[psykick5]

Poorly. Build a gaming computer or buy an Xbox.

 

[castillo4141]

Depends, but it can run. I'm planning on playing it myself. I have the same MBP the OP has. But I've done a few twitching on W7

Use GameBooster to free some workload and focus on playing the game.

Use Nvidia Inspector to Overclock the GPU. ( http://downloads.guru3d.com/NVIDIA-Inspector-1.94-download-2612.html )

Update your Nvidia Drivers and DirectX.
I personally prefer RivaTuner instead of Nvidia Inspector but is more sophisticated...but if you have some time and are tech savvy, I guess is ok, both are good programs at overclocking.

This also helps with the heat...and a better control with the fans in Windows: http://sourceforge.net/projects/lubbofancontrol/?_test=beta

Of course, everything else is about game tunning. Resolution, AA, Shadows, etc. etc. But I guess it won't be very bad. Squeeze the max out of your machine...and no matter what people say, overclocking when properly done is not harmful...just don't use all the time if you don't need it all the time.

PD: Use some programs for testing the stability of the overclock, I've use FurMark, pretty neat. http://www.ozone3d.net/benchmarks/fur/

Hope it helps.

 

[bizzle]

I couldn't even get it to run past the loading screen on my 2.66 (overclocked to 3ghz) with 9600m GT 256MB overclocked to the max (forget exact clocks). I made sure I had the correct beta drivers too.

 

[B.LI]

same here, as I'm not really good at looking at these specs... can someone help me out here, whether my mb can support the game via 64-bit w7 please?

thank you,

 

[castillo4141]

I couldn't even get it to run past the loading screen on my 2.66 (overclocked to 3ghz) with 9600m GT 256MB overclocked to the max (forget exact clocks). I made sure I had the correct beta drivers too.

Overclocked to the max? There's no max setting, each hardware piece can endure differents amouns of overclocking, depending on the quality of manufacture, is some kind of luck thing. Don't use beta drivers, you can use a stable version with Nvidia Inspector, and if you use RivaTuner you will have to look up in forums for the best ForceWare version that fits the 9600m, that's why Rivatuner makes everything more complex.
You may have done the overclocking well, but the strange part is you didn't even get past the loading screen...that's wierd, maybe a bad installation?
Does the game simply freeze? BSoD? Wierd lines all over the screen? Or was it just simply unbearably slow?

When I try the game by myself I'll try to report the FPS range or at least if it is playable.

 

[Wattser93]

@ BL.I

The 6490M will scrape by and be playable. However, the upgraded 15" with the 6750M would do MUCH better. If you plan on gaming a bunch on your MBP, and it's still within its return period, you'd be much better off with the better GPU that the 2.2/2.3 i7 has.

 

[castillo4141]

OK, I've already played the game. Overcloking was needed for decent frame rates, but over all is as taxing as the previous Battlefield. Obviously I used inferior resolution than native and everything in medium settings, except for shadows - used low seettings -.

So, as I said is playable. sorry not to have any video but I currently don't have any recording device, you'll have to trust me on this one.

PD: By playable I mean 25 to 15 fps. Nothing to brag about, but is ok.

 

[chromescreen]

BF3 on 9600m GT mid-2009 mbp

I wrote a blog post (+ some gameplay footage) explaining how to tweak settings to get BF3 to play decently on a mid-2009 Macbook Pro. So yes, it is very much playable on an overclocked machine, but on a resolution way below native.

In short, there are quite a few options to turn BF3 into an enjoyable experience (with high visual fidelity) on 9600m GT. Link: http://www.chromescreen.com/battlefield-3-playable-on-nvidia-9600m-gt-and-dual-core-macbook-pro/

I wouldn't agree with castillo4141 about BF3 being as taxing as Bad Company 2. BF3 is WAY more taxing. I can run BFBC2 on shadows high, fx high, textures high, with some object details set to medium, 16xAF, HBAO off (of course), native resolution 1440x900, with FXAA injector on top of that, DX9 mode though (nothing particular missing compared to DX10), at 40-60 FPS. The image smoothness+crispness, frame rate, everything is just beautiful. BFBC2 on an OC'ed mid-2009 MBP is just perfect.

Well, hope this helps,
Cheers,
Mark