World of Warcraft
From Mac Guides
Contents |
Overview
World of Warcraft (http://www.worldofwarcraft.com/) is a computer game developed by Blizzard Inc. It is a 'MMORPG', or Massively-Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game. Taking place in a fictional online world, players interact with millions of other players worldwide. The game is fee-based and costs $14.99/month to play. This article will attempt to answer the most common questions about World of Warcraft (sometimes known as 'WoW') and playing it on the Macintosh platform.
System Requirements
These are the minimum system requirements for Mac as posted by Blizzard (link):
Mac® OS X 10.3.9:
933 MHz or higher G4, or G5, or Intel processor
512 MB RAM or higher; DDR RAM recommended
ATI or NVIDIA® video hardware with 32 MB VRAM or more
6.0 GB available HD space
4x CD-Rom drive
56k or better Internet connection
These are the recommended system requirements as posted by Blizzard:
Mac® OS X 10.3.9 or newer:
1024 MB RAM or higher; DDR RAM recommended
ATI or NVIDIA® video hardware with 64 MB VRAM or more
Broadband Internet connection
Performance
World of Warcraft performance is a highly debated and asked-about topic. Typically performance is broken down into two categories: in-city performance, where there are many other players, and outdoor performance, where there are few other people on the screen. The game can be installed on most Macs running Mac OS X 10.3.9 or newer, whether they meet the minimum requirements or not.
Key, assuming the graphics are all the way down, or only slightly enhanced:
Poor: Averaging less than 10fps outdoors, unable to function in cities/raids.
Weak: Averaging between 10 and 20fps outdoors, 1-5fps in cities/raids.
Decent: Averaging between 20 and 30fps outdoors, 5-20fps in cities/raids.
Good: Averaging between 30 and 40fps outdoors, 20-30fps in cities/raids.
Excellent: Averaging greater than 50fps outdoors, greater than 30fps in cities/raids.
G3 Systems
Poor to Weak
Computers with G3 processors are not technically supported, however the game will run on the newest of them. G3s faster than 800mhz, with more that 1gb of RAM, at least 64mb of graphics memory, and with a fast (7200rpm+) hard drive can expect relatively weak performance with the graphics settings at their lowest.
G4 Systems
Weak to Good
Computers with G4 processors vary widely in their performance in World of Warcraft. Dual-processor G4s often display surprisingly decent performance at slow processor speeds, between 700 and 900mhz, which are not technically supported. Computers slower than 700mhz, even with maximum RAM and graphics card will typically perform weakly. Here is a breakdown of the various G4 systems that can be used to play WoW and how they hold up:
G4 Towers
Being the most customizable, G4 towers have the most WoW potential. Dual processor machines, greater than 1ghz, having greater than 64mb of VRAM, with 1gb+ of RAM will show decent to good performance. Slower machines will still perform decently, but the amount of RAM and VRAM remain extremely important.
G4 Powerbooks
G4 Powerbooks represent a wide range of computers, but can easily be broken down into Titanium and Aluminum models. Titanium Powerbooks are at the low-end of being able to run the game. As usual, the faster the machine, the faster it will run the game. Don't expect great performance from Titanium powerbooks. Aluminum models range from weak performance to good performance. The amount of installed RAM and VRAM make a huge difference, with the 1.67ghz Powerbooks with 128mb VRAM and 1gb+ of RAM will exhibit the best performance, in the 'good' range.
G4 iBooks
The graphics card in the iBook G4s does not provide for the best playing, but WoW will perform weakly to decently. The amount of installed RAM is just about the only customizable part, and having the most possible will make the biggest difference in gameplay.
Mac Minis
The Mac Mini is essentially the same as the iBook G4, and will exhibit pretty much the same performance.
G5 Systems
Decent to Excellent
G5s will show the best performance in WoW. Any model faster than Single-Processor 1.8ghz has the memory and processing power to run the game well, and the rest of the performance depends on the graphics card. A fast graphics card with a lot of VRAM (256mb+), in a SP G5 with a 2.0ghz+ processor will run the game at maximum graphics settings and very rarely drop below 40fps. This cannot be said of any other Mac systems. The G5s are the best computers for the game, and, being customizable, can all provide consistently high frame rates. Graphical settings can be customized to balance eye candy with performance.
G5 iMacs will run the game well, but since the graphics card is not customizable performance will depend on the revision of the computer itself. Newer revisions with better graphics cards will perform better.
Compatibility
World of Warcraft is simultaneously developed for the Windows and Mac platforms, and the two versions are entirely interoperable.
